Logan: Chosen Champions Book One, page 7
Aleron met them outside. “All well?”
“The detective is fae.”
Aleron slow panned to face them. “What? How does that even work?”
Gideon caught him up while Logan moved closer to the crime scene down the block. From the work the investigators were doing, they’d been a couple hundred yards or so away from where the attack occurred.
It shouldn’t have been possible. How had they missed it?
Logan moved as close as he dared and scanned the scene. As an alpha wolf, he was considered one of the apex predators of their world. If he’d wanted to attack someone, how would he have done it?
The alley was dark, for starters. It made it easy for someone to hide in the shadows. The dumpsters gave more protection from sight. But how had they not heard her? How had a griffin and a martial eagle, two of the best-sighted shifters, not seen into the shadows? How had Logan and Scout not been able to scent it when it was so close?
Aleron and Gideon appeared at his side, looking to him for leadership. Nothing added up, and Logan growled his frustration. “What are we missing?”
Humans could hide in the shadows from other humans. Not from them. Humans didn’t have advanced hearing or smell either. This creature could have remained hidden from humans—but not from them.
Unless…
“Check for magic.”
“Fuck,” Aleron said, summing up Logan’s thoughts precisely.
They moved quickly around the area, avoiding the cops, but Aleron’s eyes glowed golden, the eagle in him searching in ways Logan wasn’t capable. His gaze locked on to a spot, then he pivoted and looked to the side. And then once again.
“It created a ward. A small one, but powerful,” Aleron said. “Only big enough to create a little bubble for its crime, and certainly not big enough to draw our attention from the air. If it concealed scent as well—”
“It was invisible to us.”
Logan’s phone dinged, and he pulled it out, expecting to see a message from the oracle intended for his eyes only.
Instead, a message from Bailey appeared on the screen. “Are you busy?”
8
Bailey
Bailey sat in his car with the doors locked, nervously chewing his lip as he waited for Logan’s response. His phone rang, startling him so badly he almost dropped it. Logan.
“Hell-hello?” Bailey fought to get his breathing under control. It was ridiculous to have such a strong reaction to a guy he’d met only once.
“I’m not busy.”
“Oh.” Bailey had forgotten how deep Logan’s voice was. How commanding and strong. And what an idiot he was for even thinking Logan wanted to hear from him. Why had he messaged again?
“Bailey? You okay?”
“Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine. I shouldn’t have called. It’s—yeah. I’m fine. You’re good?”
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. I’m just spooked, that’s all. Imagining things. It was a crazy night. Did you… did you hear what happened?”
“I did.”
“We know her. Well, Ashley knows her.”
“I’m sorry I couldn’t stop it.”
Bailey breathed and checked the rearview mirror. His spine tingled.
“Logan? Remember when you said… God, never mind.”
“Where are you?”
“Outside Ashley’s sorority house. I took her home after we went to brunch, and then we talked for a while. It’s just… I feel like someone’s watching me, you know? But it’s probably the sorority sisters. Strange dude sitting outside their house after what happened last night. Yeah, that’s probably it. I’m probably scaring the crap out of them, sitting here staring into space.”
“Stay where you are. I’m on my way.”
“Logan, you don’t have to—”
“I know. The detective in charge of the case is coming to question Ashley. It’ll help if you’re there for her.”
“They’re having a sorority meeting now. Putting everyone on a strict buddy system.”
“That’s good. There’s power in pa—numbers.”
“I should text her and tell her the cop is coming.”
“Go ahead, and let the others know as well. I’m sure Detective Alfred will want to talk to all of you.”
“Okay.” Bailey shivered again. “I can’t believe I’m so spooked. I’m not really like that, you know? I work nights. I’m normally the last one out of the theater.”
“First one in, last to leave,” Logan said quietly.
“Yeah. How’d you know?”
“I know people.”
“Well, that didn’t sound ominous or anything. I thought you were supposed to be making me feel better, not being Mr. Creepy.”
Logan laughed.
A moment later Bailey realized Logan’s giant black SUV had pulled in behind him. “Oh… hey.”
Logan smiled. Bailey could see him in the rearview mirror. His unease faded, and he smiled back before giving a little wave. Another man Bailey recognized as the guy who’d driven Logan’s truck to him the night before sat in the passenger seat.
They opened their doors at the same time, and Logan said something to the other guy. He began to look around the area while Logan approached Bailey’s car door.
Bailey unlocked it and climbed out of the car. He ignored his sweaty palms and looked up at Logan. He looked tired, with deep purple marks under his eyes, as if he hadn’t slept at all since the night before. His dark, nearly black hair curled over his forehead, messy from Logan running his hand through it. Probably more stress.
Bailey’s stomach churned with guilt. He shouldn’t have bothered Logan over nothing. He clearly had more important things—
“Hey.” Logan lifted Bailey’s chin with his finger and stared down at him. “Whatever you’re thinking, stop.”
“I’m thinking you’re exhausted and should be getting some rest. You haven’t slept yet, have you? And here I am dragging you away from your work to come… do what? Babysit me?”
“Pretty sure I told you to call me even if you thought something was wrong. Didn’t I say that, or is my exhaustion making me forgetful?”
“Not funny.”
Logan grinned. “I thought it was.”
“Bails?” Ashley called from the front porch. “What’s wrong? I thought you were heading home.”
She glanced worriedly at Logan before looking back to him.
“Guess we should go talk to her, huh?”
“Yes. Did you message the others?”
“Not yet.”
“Come on, then. Let’s go talk to her, and you can message them then.”
Logan glanced over his shoulder to the other man, and Bailey followed his gaze. The guy shook his head.
“Keep watch. Let me know when the detective gets here.”
“I will.”
Logan put his hand on the small of Bailey’s back and guided him up the sidewalk. Bailey pretended he didn’t notice it, but damn, his heart sped up and his cheeks heated and everything in him wanted to lean into Logan’s touch.
He was broken. That was all there was to it.
He barely knew this guy, and all he wanted was to curl up against him and have Logan tell him everything would be okay. Sad thing was, Bailey would even believe Logan if he said it. He had it bad.
“Hello, Ashley,” Logan said once they reached the porch.
She glanced at Logan sharply before turning her attention to Bailey. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. I checked in with Logan, and he let me know a detective is coming by to talk to you about last night. I thought you might want me here.”
“Uh-huh. And what is he doing here?”
She glared at the hand still touching Bailey. “I got a little spooked, so I called him, Ash.”
Her glare faded. “Shit. I’m sorry. I’m foul. Thank you for coming, Logan. I’m sorry I’m being a bitch, but… well, honestly, you’re a strange man, and at the moment I’m not really wanting to be around men I don’t know.”
“That’s a good plan. Why don’t we sit out here on the porch and wait for Detective Alfred to arrive? Bailey is going to contact your other friends as well. We need to see if they can remember anything that’ll help us find this person.”
Ashley sat down on a white wicker patio chair, leaving the matching love seat for Bailey and Logan. The floral cushions really didn’t match his look for the day. Oh, and she was about as subtle as a Mack truck with her machinations.
He glared at her, and she smirked. Such a brat. Why were they friends again?
Logan sat down, leaving Bailey standing there awkwardly for a minute. He laughed at himself, then sat next to Logan. They didn’t really fit. Well, they fit, they were just pressed together from hip to knee, and dear God, was that man hot. Like, literally temperature hot. Well, plus figuratively hot, like, burning. But still, that warm weight pressed against him—and oh, dear God, Logan leaned closer and his arm sort of pressed into Bailey’s and his hand… long fingers and veiny and strong and…
Bailey’s brain nearly combusted. He shot a panicked look at Ashley, who finally earned her friendship points by asking Logan a few questions about the events of the previous night. It gave Bailey a moment to breathe and get his emotions in check.
His body was a lost cause where Logan was concerned. But he could at least control his thoughts. Maybe. He glanced over at Logan and noticed an earbud tucked into his ear. The night before, he’d been too worried about Ashley to question Logan’s presence at the bar. He’d meant to grill him when they got back to Bailey’s house, but his friend had needed him more.
It didn’t make sense.
At all.
Why hadn’t they taken Ashley to a hospital the night before? They should have. If she was drugged, they would need the evidence. And she had been drugged… hadn’t she?
Plus fibers or whatever from her clothes. Which, now that he thought about it, were still at his house. Isn’t that what they did? Check for fibers? Especially now when they’d really be trying to find this guy since it wasn’t just about his attempt on Ashley anymore; he’d raped Rebecca.
He glanced at Ashley and could see the fear in her eyes. The statistics were scary. Their sociology professor had hammered them home. One in three women would experience sexual violence in her lifetime. Those numbers terrified him.
What would he have done if it had been Ashley? If he’d gone back and found the guy still there, trying to do to her what he’d done to Rebecca?
His heart pounded.
Logan glanced at him with a frown. “You okay?”
Bailey couldn’t even lie. “No.”
“Me either,” Ashley said.
Luckily, he didn’t have to explain further. An unmarked police car pulled to a stop behind Logan’s out on the street, while a squad car parked behind it. The man who got out of the unmarked car must be the detective Logan had mentioned. The other two were uniformed, and Bailey recognized Randy as one of them.
Ashley blew out a nervous breath. “I guess it’s time.”
“He’s a good guy,” Logan said. “And if he’s not, I’ll kick his ass for you.”
He grinned, and it took a second, but Ashley laughed.
Bailey’s heart skipped a beat. He leaned in ever so slightly, trying to convey his wordless thanks. Logan glanced at him, and his smile widened. Bailey’s heart stopped. He licked his lips, and Logan’s eyes drifted down before moving back up again. His eyes changed, the tiniest bit, but Bailey could see his reaction.
Logan knew exactly what effect he was having on Bailey. And he liked it.
“Excuse me for interrupting. I’m James Alfred.” The detective opened a leather wallet that displayed his badge and identification. “I’m looking for Ashley Wilson.”
Ashley smiled, but her voice shook as she spoke. “I’m Ashley.”
“I’d like to ask you a few questions about what happened last night.”
“Y-yes, sir.” She glanced at Bailey for support, and he smiled at her.
“Why don’t we talk out here on the porch,” the detective said gently. “It’s such a nice afternoon.”
“Yeah, that’s good,” Ashley said. She pulled her legs up onto the edge of the chair and wrapped her arms around them.
“If you gentlemen would excuse us for a few minutes, while we talk. The officers would like to get the names of anyone either of you recognized at the bar last night.”
“Oh,” Bailey said. “I can’t stay with her?”
“Well,” James said, glancing quickly at Ashley, “I’d prefer to talk to you separately, but you’re welcome to stay within sight of us.”
“Ashley?” Bailey didn’t care what the detective preferred. He cared about what his friend needed.
“I’m okay. Just stay close.”
“You got it.” Bailey stood and went down to the yard, where the two other officers waited.
Logan followed behind them, but his cell phone rang when they got close. “Excuse me for a minute.” Their eyes met in another of those strange supportive looks. “I’ll be right back.”
Bailey nodded before turning to Randy. “The detective said you wanted a list of people we knew who were at the bar last night.”
“Yeah. Thanks, Bails.”
Bailey tried not to flinch at the casual use of his nickname, or at the fact that Randy leaned in close and… smelled him? Then he reached up and put his hand on Bailey’s neck, almost in the same exact way Logan had. But this time, Bailey wanted to shrug the gesture away.
“Sorry about what happened to Ashley. You doing okay?”
Bailey nodded, managing not to squirm away when Randy was only trying to be nice. “I’m fine.”
“You two know each other?” the other cop asked.
“Oh, yeah. Bails, this is Norman Vail. He’s my partner. Norm, this is Bailey Cairn.”
Randy’s partner’s name didn’t match his face. He looked deceptively young—too young to be in uniform, anyway. “It’s nice to meet you, Norman.”
“Call me Norm. Everybody does.” He smiled at Bailey before turning to Randy. “You should probably stop touching him before Detective Alfred gets the wrong idea and chews your ass out again.”
“Oh, right.” Randy quickly removed his hand from Bailey’s neck.
Bailey shot a grateful look toward Norm while Randy pulled out his notebook and pen. “I already know Will, Heather, and Joey were there last night. Anyone else?” Randy asked.
“Not that I can think of. Honestly, I wasn’t there very long. I closed the theater after the show, then met up with them. The others are on their way over, though, so maybe they’ll be able to help more.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Randy said. “From what Will said, you’re the one who saved Ashley. She’s lucky you were there.”
“No, Logan saved her. Well—he found her? I’m not sure exactly what happened. None of us are.”
Norm made a little noise that drew Bailey’s attention. “Why don’t you tell us exactly what you remember.”
“Not much. We were dancing. When we went back to the table, Ashley wasn’t with us. It was weird because she usually tells me when she’s going to step away.”
Norm nodded.
“Yeah, Bails here is their keeper. He moms them all, don’t ya?”
Bailey glared over at him. “Look, Rands”—the nickname didn’t have the same annoying factor as Randy using his, but he at least tried—“I’m not their keeper. I’m their friend, and I look out for them. You should try it sometime.”
“Whoa, whoa,” Randy said. “I didn’t mean any offense. I like it.”
“Back off, Randy,” Norm said sharply.
“God, fine. So fucking sensitive.”
Norm rolled his eyes, but Randy didn’t notice. “What happened then?”
“I don’t know. I just had a weird feeling something was wrong. I can’t really explain it. I said something to the others, and we all went to check on her. We found her in the bathroom hallway. Logan had her arms, and I told him to let her go. When he did, I realized something was wrong. I never saw anyone else with her.”
“Except for Logan,” Norm said.
Bailey hesitated, not wanting to imply Logan had anything to do with it. “Right. But I don’t think—”
“It’s okay. We’ll talk to him separately too,” Norm said. “Find out his story.”
Bailey got it. He did. They had to be suspicious of Logan. Hell, he should be suspicious of him too. But he wasn’t. Maybe that made him naive, or worse, a fool.
He glanced over and found Logan talking to the other guy he’d arrived with. Logan looked around the area, searching for something maybe, and then his gaze landed on Bailey. He leaned his head to the side a bit, as if questioning Bailey, then his gaze moved over Bailey’s shoulder toward the street.
Bailey turned to look as well, and saw Will, Joey, and Heather approaching. He glanced at Norm and found the officer watching his interaction with Logan. “Um, our friends from last night are here.”
Norm nodded and moved away without a word, meeting them on the sidewalk in front of the sorority house. Randy, on the other hand, stayed with Bailey. His eyes had sharpened into a knowing stare that made Bailey uncomfortable. “You have something going on with him?” Randy asked, gesturing toward Logan.
“That’s none of your business,” Bailey snapped.
Randy scowled, then took a step back. He took a deep breath before blowing it out. “I’m being a jerk.”
“Pretty much.”
“Damn. Kick me while I’m down, Bails.”
“Don’t try to be cute, Randy. You’re being a jerk, and you know it. And you’re making me uncomfortable. I don’t like it.”
“That’s the opposite of what I’m trying to do.”
It took Bailey a second to process. “What?”
“Fuck, I’m bad at this. I just… I… Would you, like, go out with me sometime? Maybe get some coffee?”
Bailey had no idea what to say. He didn’t want to be nasty, but Randy really wasn’t one of his favorite people. “How about this?” Bailey offered. “After all this is settled, ask me again. I can’t right now.”
