Tears burned Brie’s eyes, but she blinked them away. There was already enough sorrow in this place without adding hers to it.
“She’s still in there,” Brie whispered.
“What?” Logan inquired.
“Elena. She’s still in there, somewhere. I just saw her.” She turned to hold Logan’s eyes as she spoke. “When she looks at you, a small piece of her breaks through.”
“You saw it?” Logan whispered as if he didn’t dare to hope.
“I did.”
“I thought I was the only one who saw it. I was starting to think I imagined it.”
“You’re not the only one, and you’re not imagining it. Isawit. She’s in there, and she still loves you.”
Logan’s shoulders hunched forward, and his head bowed. For a second, he looked about to cry as Asher and Nathan each rested a hand on his shoulders.
“I’m not crazy,” Logan muttered.
“You’re not crazy,” Asher assured him.
Asher looked questioningly to Brie; she gave him a small nod. She hoped he could feel her certainty through their bond. His smile revealed he’d gotten the message.
Asher shifted his attention back to Logan. “We’ll save her.”
“Yes, we will,” Nathan said, but he stared uncertainly at her.
She understood his uncertainty. She was new here, she’d seen something he hadn’t, and he was looking to protect his friend. He was also probably afraid to get his hopes up.
“We’ve discovered something that could help against the demons,” Asher said to Logan. “Or, I should say, Brie discovered it.” He turned to her and held out his hand. When she took it, he drew her closer and clasped her hand in both of his. “She’s been searching for something to destroy the demons for centuries, and we think she’s found them all.”
“Hopefully,” she said.
There was still a chance the tenth stone wasn’t in Willow’s sword. Shereallyhoped it was, but if it wasn’t, then her search would continue. And everyone here might find her crazy.
But then, they might find her crazy anyway. She still wasn’t sure what good it would do to have all ten stones, but they belonged together.
“We think we have everything necessary to start a new plan of attack against them,” Asher said.
Logan’s eyes darted between them. Instead of acknowledging Asher’s words, he smiled as he said, “You’ve found your mate.”
Asher tried not to wince. He’d found his mate; she was healthy and strong as she stood beside him, and he loved her deeply. Though he was extremely happy about this, it felt like he was rubbing it in his friend’s face. But he couldn’t hide Brie from him; that would be impossible and unfair to Logan and Brie.
“I have,” he confirmed. “I’d like you to meet Brie.”
“Nathan told me about what happened and you’d become a vampire, but I never thought about what it would be like to see you with your mate,” Logan said.
Asher braced himself for Logan’s anger. There was nothing he could have done about any of this, but he would gladly take his friend’s wrath, not because he deserved it but because Logan was broken. He would be there to help his friend any way he could, even if it was as an emotional punching bag.
Instead of anger, a wistful expression crossed Logan’s face as he looked at Elena. “I’m sorry you had such an awful experience getting shot and becoming a vampire, but there’s nothing more precious than a bond between mates.” His attention returned to Asher. “I’m happy for you, and it’s a pleasure to meet you,” he said to Brie.
Brie squeezed his too-thin arm. “You too.”
Asher should have known Logan wouldn’t lash out at him; that’s not who his friend was, even after losing his mate’s love. Asher released Brie’s hands and stepped forward to embrace his friend.
Logan sagged against him and wrapped his arms around Asher. Logan’s bones pressed against his palms as they cleaved to each other.
“The mate bond is one of the strongest things in this world… if not the strongest,” Asher said. “If you and Brie see something in Elena, then wewillsave her.”
