Page 25 of Chaos At Second Sight

Lucien looked at me sadly. But he didn’t really see me, his mind traveling somewhere else. To dusty places, locked away in an abandoned corner of his soul.

“Lucien killed our brother.”

The confession was far from anything I’d expected. I blinked, digesting the information. “Why?”

He tucked his tail in, his ears flattening. “Daniel bad. He hurt sister. He also hurt my human.”

Oh. “Your sister?”

“Trix. Trix ours. Lucien love Trix very much.” He paused, looking at the horizon. I mimicked his stance, giving him time to rearrange his thoughts.

The darkness had almost finished off the sunlight. Birds crossed overhead, hurrying to find a safe branch to spend the night.

“After…Human locked Lucien away. He despised Lucien,” he said with a weight that felt older than he was. “So Lucien hibernated…for years. Lonely.”

My heart felt as though someone had dropped it into a blender and forgotten to switch it off. I hugged my knees to my chest. There was so much to contemplate.

“So why did you wake up?”

“When we first saw Mate…Lucien stirred. Mate’s scent made nice dreams.” His claw brushed my cheek. “You were always saying my name when talking to the human on phone. Sometimes Lucien woke and enjoyed Mate’s talk.”

He hesitated, his gaze dropping.

“When Mate slept with other wolf…” His voice cracked. “The pain jolted Lucien. I took body and destroyed.”

The shine gathering in his eyes shattered me. He was referring to the time I was with Sillas and Logan felt it. Lucien had felt it too and made his pack pay for it.

“Lucy…” I shifted and took his clawed hands in mine. “I never cheated on you intentionally.” He looked up, ear twitching adorably. “I didn’t know you existed. I swear.”

“There are diamonds on your cheeks.” He captured one with his claw and held the tiny droplet up to the moonlight. I laughed and rubbed my eyes.

“They aren’t diamonds. Just tears.”

“Pretty tears.”

A watery chuckle escaped me. Only Lucien could make crying feel sweet. He had all this hidden tenderness that had gone unused for years, and I wasn’t going to waste it now.

A thought marinated as I absentmindedly stroked Lucien’s fur.

“I know who can help you.” I met his curious stare. “To navigate your relationship with Logan and be connected again.”

Someone who understood what it meant to be different better than anyone else.

I needed to call my friend Archie.

CHAPTER SEVEN

CLYDE

Half a bull landed on the hardwood floor of the veranda, splattering blood on my boots.

My lips flattened into a thin line. “I see the problem.” The right half was missing, its ribs polished clean.

“And this is just one of eight!” Farmer Drude scrunched his wrinkled face, his bulky arms crossing over his tanned chest, attesting to the years spent tending the fields. “It’s worse than the wolf raids of ’95!”

Dad and I exchanged a look.

“Five were eaten outright! Two looked like this.” He pointed at the carcass. “And one was buried. The beast’s keeping leftovers!”