Page 30 of Logan

Because this was certainly going to hurt.

There was no way my brother would accept me back into his life. He might claim to accept me and understand what I’d been through, but that was easy to say from a distance. The reality would be very different when I was standing in front of him and I was no longer the same unbroken kid he remembered.

“What if he doesn’t want me? I don’t have anywhere else to go. At least back in San Francisco I had a roof over my head. Here, I’ll be broke and homeless.”

While we’d been waiting, Logan had grabbed a water bottle for himself as well. He took a deep sip, giving my question proper consideration before answering.

“I don’t think you need to worry about that. From what I’ve seen of Jason Dahler, he seems like a reasonable man.” Just as I was about to argue, Logan cut me off. “However, if it turns out I’m wrong and you aren’t able to stay here…” He shrugged. “Then, I’ll just have to take you somewhere else. It’s a big world. There are plenty of places you could go. Heck. I’ve even got a guest room, if you’d like. You’ve got plenty of options.”

My whole body was numb as I listened to him, and the water bottle slipped from my fingers. It made an unexpectedly loud sound when it hit the asphalt, but it managed to land in just the right way that it remained upright. Some of the water splashed out, but it remained, for the most part, unsullied by the dirt on the ground.

I stared at the bottle, fighting the urge to kick it over. “You’d do that? You’d really… take me with you?”

Logan bent down to pick the water bottle off the ground and screw the cap back on before storing it with his own half-finished bottle in the back of the car.

“Of course. One way or another, I’m going to see you safe and settled somewhere. However, like I said, I don’t think it’ll be a problem.”

He stretched his arms over his head, groaning when his spine popped after so many days of driving. My gaze automatically tracked the rise of his shirt, which exposed an inch of skin just above his pants. The skin under his clothes was a little paler than on his arms and face, meaning some of his tanned complexion came from spending plenty of time in the sun.

I wondered what he did in his off time, when he wasn’t rescuing lost souls and reuniting families.

Was Logan the kind of person who enjoyed extreme outdoor activities, or was he the kind of person who kicked back on the beach and relaxed during his down time?

I’d probably never know, and that thought made me sad. Logan had a life to get back to; a life filled with people and activities I wasn’t a part of.

It was time to get on with my own life.

We climbed back into the car, and finished the last two hundred miles listening to various types of classical music that filled the silence without the risk of any inflammatory lyrics.

The clock on the car’s radio showed it was just past noon when we pulled into my brother’s neighborhood. It wasn’t the same exact same area where I’d grown up, but it was close enough thatI could almost imagine I was traveling back in time. It seemed like nothing had changed in the years I’d been gone.

Jason’s house looked just like the images I’d seen on social media. Even the picket fence surrounding the property was so white it looked like it had been photoshopped.

Was it better or worse that Jason’s life was just as picturesque as it seemed from a distance?

Despite recognizing the house, I didn’t immediately recognize my brother standing in the driveway. Jason was smiling in all his social media pictures, but now he looked stressed and worried, pacing back and forth from one end of the driveway to the other.

He looked like a completely different person without a smile on his face, but oddly enough, the fact gave me comfort.

In that condition, he looked more like me, and I could see the resemblance between us.

The car came to a stop in the driveway, but before I could get out, Logan told me to wait for a second. He got out first and went to speak with my brother. If I rolled down the window, I probably could have heard what they were saying, but I didn’t want to know.

After a minute, Jason backed up a few steps, keeping some distance from the car as Logan opened the door for me.

“All right. It’s now or never.”

My hands shook as I held my bag to my chest, hyper-aware of how little the entirety of my possessions weighed. Stepping out of Logan’s car took more effort than I cared to admit. I nearly slipped into the Midnight Zone when I heard the door close behind me. My vision started fading around the edges, andfor a moment, I could see myself from above as I approached my brother, but I shoved the welcoming headspace away and focused on what was happening. I’d both hoped for and dreaded this moment for years, and I was determined to experience it with a clear head, no matter the outcome.

“Clay?” Jason said as I approached.

My name sounded like both a greeting and a question at the same time. It was no wonder. In his eyes, I must look like a creature from a horror film. Like a shape-shifting alien, or a Skinwalker trying to take his brother’s place.

“Jason.” His name felt awkward on my lips, but I didn’t know what else to say. “Um… I’m back. I guess. Or… back doesn’t really sound like the right word. I’m here? No. That’s worse.”

My inane rambling cut off when he grabbed my shoulders. His touch was light, I could barely feel the weight of his hands, but the sudden physical contact still made me flinch. Luckily, he didn’t notice, as he was too busy looking me up and down like he was trying to see all of me at once.

After a moment of consideration, his gaze landed on my neck. The birthmark there was still the same shape as when I was a kid.

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