Page 92 of Consuming Logan

“Tyson was drugged,” Darwin grumbled, his tone gruff.

Logan opened the file attached to the received message. Who would drug the head of a medical supply company? It didn’t make sense.

“The drug was meant for Ava,” Tyson said, a grim expression on his face.

That got Logan’s attention. “The guy she works with…I think he’s your attacker.”

Dread snaked down Logan’s spine. Nausea rolled in his gut. He gazed at the phone he held and froze.

A picture appeared in his text messages, Ava and Monique smiled for the camera. His old mentor, Dusty Wilbeck, had his arm draped around both women. The caption underneath read: I TOLD YOU, BROTHER. YOU CAN’T KEEP HER. SHE’S MINE TOO. YOU CLAIMED MY BABY, NOW I’M TAKING YOURS.

Logan’s heart stopped. Dusty had never been his brother. Every piece of the puzzle fell into a horrifying frame. Brooke’s baby had never been his to claim. The lies and pain of the past sought to rob him of his future. Never again. Fury and fear in equal parts boiled in his blood. Dusty represented a life and a love that no longer bound to his thoughts or self-worth. Logan would excise the cancer threatening to consume his and Ava’s life…forever.

Chapter 34

The SCMC Cafe normally bustling with staff, held a few circular booths for customers to enjoy their lunch inside or in a private outdoor courtyard. Ava and Monique joined by Ash shared the table with the most sunlight. The elevator ride down had been quiet, both her friends aware that she and Logan had argued on the phone.

“Here you go,” Ash said, placing one medium latte in front of Ava while handing a fruit smoothie to Monique.

Ava gave Ash the warmest smile she could muster. “Thank you, but you don’t have to stay.”

Monique hadn’t met Ash before, and Ava didn’t want the young woman to feel uncomfortable. Though Ava and Logan were probably over, Monique’s loyalty lay with Logan. Besides, she would never jeopardize his relationship with a patient.

Ava needn’t worry. She listened as Ash turned his natural charm on Monique.

“The girl with the bionic arm.” Then he smiled, giving the teen a courtly bow. “How does it feel to be famous?”

Monique shrugged. “Okay, I guess. It’s kind of weird that people know about me even before I meet them. It’s strange, you know?”

Wow, Ava never thought of the notoriety Logan’s research had brought to Monique. Public attention was something she would not want for her own children. After she separated from Logan that wouldn’t be a problem. Separated. She never could have imagined she and Logan wouldn’t go the distance. The attacker had severed more than the tendon in Logan’s hand. Somehow, he’d damaged a vital part of the man she thought she knew.

As Ava sipped her coffee, the warm sweet brew dancing across her taste buds, she thought about her next move. Should she stay in Shell Cove or start over someplace new? Would Logan want a relationship with his children if she filed for a full custody? Contemplative, she chewed her lip. That’s when she noticed the numbness to her mouth. What was going on?

She looked up to find Ash watching her.

“You okay, Ava?”

Clearing her throat, she willed herself to stay calm. All of a sudden, Monique slumped forward in her chair.

“What have you done to us?”

Ash rolled his eyes. “Me,” he said innocently, flashing a bright smile. “Logan warned you, but you didn’t listen,” he teased.

Ava’s breaths came faster. Her mind spun, and she struggled to remain conscious.

Two people, a man and a woman, dressed in hospital staff attire appeared. Something was very wrong. Why was Kylie Rivers dressed like a nurse? And why was Franklin helping her? Panic gripped her when Monique’s limp body was lifted into a wheelchair. A white sheet was draped across, covering her from hip to toes. As the man wheeled her away, it occurred to Ava that she looked like a patient, resting quietly en route to a procedure.

Ava screamed, but the sound erupted from her throat low and garbled. What drug had Ash put in their drinks? Would it harm the babies?

“I love your fighting spirit, Ava. It will destroy Logan when I break you.”

Just as quickly, Ash and the accomplice shuffled her into a waiting chair. Her last thought was of Logan, as she used the last of her waning strength to curl into a ball, protecting their babies.

Please, let him find us, she thought, as her lids slammed shut with a deafening click.

Chapter 35

Logan blasted his own version of an all-points bulletin on the way to the hospital. First calling Bishop and Lance. His thoughts stayed focused on protecting and defending. Maybe some of Ava’s military training had rubbed off on him. He had to get Ava back. Ash, shit Dusty, had been crazed and enraged when Brooke died. Logan had been too engulfed in his own grief to care about the man who’d betrayed him. After Brooke’s death and Dusty’s disappearance, Logan had erased his former best friend from his life. Instead, he should have faced his past. Now, Ava and their unborn babies were in danger. She and their babies were the very air he breathed. He’d kill or die to get her back. To whatever end, he thought.