Elena stared at her hands. “I have no idea what I’m doing in my life anymore. It’s all gotten so complicated, and I….”
Her voice trailed off as she shrugged. Lifting her gaze, she stared out the window as a child darted across the yard, sprinting for the school building. It was beautiful here and in many ways easier as she didn’t have to worry about rent and food, but…
“If it weren’t for you and my mom, I would have left already,” she admitted.
And she couldn’t ask him to stay if all she wanted was to run. Besides, if Logan did stay here, it would be as a hunter.Thatwas his life; it was what he was born to do, and he loved it. She’d never take that away from him.
Feeling as if the world sat on her shoulders, Elena dropped her head into her hands and massaged her temples. She didn’t want to lose him, but could she be a part of this life again? And would she be happy being involved with someone so entrenched in it?
Far too many hunters went out and never returned. There were far more older women than men oneverycompound.
Shecould become a fighter. She may not have gone through hunter teaching, but she’d gone through plenty of training of her own. She was strong, tough, and could kick some serious ass. But was that something she would want to do?
Like everything else, she had no answer.
Logan itched to draw her into his arms, but he remained unmoving. She had to work through this on her own, and he was afraid if he touched her, he wouldn’t let her go again.
Neither of them spoke as they stared out the window.
Chapter Thirty-One
Elena spentthe next two nights with Logan, but he returned to guard duty on the third night. While they continued to keep their relationship a secret from everyone, Asher was aware of what was going on, and she wasn’t ignorant to the increased whispers about them.
No one had seen her leaving his house; she was sure of that. Otherwise, it would be a lot more than whispers, but they were together a lot, he brought them breakfast every morning, and gossip was fun… when it wasn’t one of them.
Most of it didn’t seem malicious, though she was aware many didn’t approve of their relationship. She also didn’t care what they thought as long as they didn’t bother her mother with it.
After tonight, they would only have two more nights together before he returned to the Alliance.
She’d been trying not to think about that and kept pushing it aside, but it was getting harder and harder to shove down. He was leaving, and she was still completely uncertain about what she was going to do.
She hated this indecision; it was so unlike her. She’d always had a plan. Before, she always made a decision and followed through on it, even if it was impetuous, risky, and upset others.
Or maybe, she’d grown up. Maybe now she was aware of the consequences of her actions and how badly they affected others, and she didn’t want to repeat them.
She was also a confused, emotional mess, still mourning the loss of her father while trying to understand her growing feelings for a man she planned to only have a fling with.
And those feelings were growing. Every day they got a little deeper; every day, she cared more and more for him, and he obviously felt something for her too. He wouldn’t have asked her to return with him if he didn’t.
But the idea of moving across the country with him was terrifying. What if he grew tired of her a week later and decided to move on? If that happened, she’d be stuck at another hunter compound, but with hunters and vampires she didn’t know.
She hadn’t discussed any of it with her mother. Her mother already had enough going on without learning her daughter had feelings for a vamp. Her mother liked Logan, but Elena wasn’t sure how she’d handle having her daughter romantically entangled with him.
So, yet again, instead of sleeping, she paced the grounds while Logan and others guarded the gate. She had no idea what time it was, but the moon was high in the sky, and the stars shone as she prowled through a barn and out to a pasture. She climbed one of the fences and jumped off to land on the other side.
She had a good view of the gate from where she stood, but she couldn’t see Logan. He was probably in the little house they’d built by the gate, watching all the cameras with the other hunters.
They usually had five on duty at night in case something happened. So far as she knew, nothing ever had, but her father had always insisted that everyone remain diligent, and Juan was keeping that tradition going.
She started to turn away from the gate when shouts filled the air and the gate started swinging open. Elena frowned as a car with its brights on barreled through the gate. It squealed to a stop outside the medical building.
Two hunters leapt out of the front and flung open the back seat doors as four guards ran outside the shelter. She recognized one of the men as Logan by the way he moved.
Another hunter emerged from the back seat of the car, and together, they pulled a body free. Elena started running toward them, and their muffled shouts became more coherent. They were speaking in Spanish and trying to explain what happened, but they were all talking over each other, and she could only understand half of it.
They jogged with the body toward the medical building. Logan had started to follow them, but when his head turned toward her and his nostrils flared, she realized he’d caught her scent.
“What are you doing here?” he asked when she emerged from the shadows.
