LOGINAs we moved towards the front door, the three of us slipping through the quiet mansion like we didn’t quite belong, Frank suddenly slowed down and shot a look at Rowan that usually came before either a sarcastic quip or a full-on fight.Fishing his car keys from his pocket, the metal jangled softly in the stillness as he presented them to Rowan with an exaggerated flourish."Here," Frank said, his voice flat but layered with a sharp warning. "You’re driving my car back to your place. But listen, Harrigan, if I see even a single scratch, a fingerprint that isn’t mine, or a crumb from whatever you munch on in the driver’s seat, I swear I’ll forget about Atlas’s weird fondness for you and take matters into my own hands. Slowly. While looking you right in the eye."Rowan halted, eyebrows shooting up as if they were about to vanish into his hair."Excuse me?" he replied, disbelief dripping from his voice. "You can’t just order me around like I’m your personal driver. I’ve got no desire to
"Or the reason is..." he murmured, searching my eyes. "Because of that absurdly good heart of yours. No one else would do this, sneak into a house that’s basically a fortress, dig through someone else’s mess, comfort the nephew of the guy who might’ve played a part in Rowan’s mom’s death, all for a jerk who used to make your life a nightmare. You’re too good, Atlas. Always have been."I tried my best not to lean into his touch, not to let my eyes flutter closed or my shoulders drop in surrender. My mind kept sending frantic reminders: We’re on a break. You’re betraying him by being with Rowan. You can’t just melt because he’s touching you like this.But man, I missed it. I missed Frank’s warmth, the steady pressure of his hands, the way he made the world feel smaller and safer just by being this close. Two weeks without this, without him and I hadn’t realized how cold I’d felt until just now.I managed a small, shaky laugh, hoping it came off steadier than it felt."Rowan’s still a je
"You never could have known," I said softly. "You were just a kid trying to survive him, Frank. That’s all you were doing. The fact that this hurts you so much, that it’s tearing you apart right now, shows you’re nothing like him. You have every right to feel sick about it. You’re allowed to be angry. You’re allowed to mourn the uncle you wanted him to be, even if that person never really existed."He finally lifted his head. His eyes were wet, lashes clumped together, blue irises searching mine like I had the answers he needed."I keep thinking, if I’d said something sooner," he whispered. "If I’d pushed back harder when I was younger, told my parents I didn’t want him to be my guardian, maybe none of this would have happened. Maybe Logan never would have moved into Willow Haven. Maybe Carla would still be alive. Maybe Rowan wouldn’t have grown up with that hole inside him. I was just... scared. All the time. And now it feels like I let so much happen because I was too afraid to spea
I let out a long, shaky sigh, feeling a bit of the tension ease in my chest amidst the chaos. Because even as Frank reeled and Rowan fumed, a strange sense of gratitude washed over me, we were finally closer to getting justice for Carla, closer to untangling the lies that had haunted Rowan for so long.I stepped closer to him, placing my hand on his shoulder, feeling the tight muscles beneath his shirt, and squeezed gently, hoping my touch said what words might fail to express."We’re making progress," I said softly, my voice steady despite the whirlwind inside me. "All those responsible, they’re not going to get away with this. We’ll find them, Rowan. Every last one."He looked up at me then, the anger in his eyes softening into something more resolved, like my words had grounded him."You’re right," he murmured, covering my hand with his own briefly, the warmth sending a familiar spark through me, no matter the circumstances. "I needed that. Can’t lose it now, we’ve got to focus on
We followed him down the corridor, the house growing quieter and chillier as we went deeper. Logan’s study was just what I’d expected: dark wood paneling, floor-to-ceiling bookshelves, a massive desk that looked more like a throne, everything arranged with military-like precision.We spread out and started searching the filing cabinets, desk drawers, shelves, even the locked boxes that Frank somehow knew the combinations for. But the more we dug, the clearer it became: Logan had been thorough.Important documents were missing entire sections, files suspiciously incomplete, anything that could have been incriminating had vanished ages ago. The room wasn’t chaotic like it had been when Frank describe it earlier; instead, it felt intentionally bare, stripped down, sanitized.The absence of anything useful was louder than any smoking gun.I straightened up from the last drawer I’d checked, frustration tightening in my throat."We’ve looked everywhere," I said, wiping dust off my palms. "T
I leaned forward between the seats, gently placing a hand on each of their shoulders, hoping to hold the peace together."Both of you breathe. We’re not here to fight. We need answers. Let’s just get to the house and see what we can find."They both sighed, grudgingly and at the same time and the car fell back into a tense silence, which felt less like a truce and more like a temporary ceasefire.By the time we arrived at Logan’s house that evening, the sun had slipped below the horizon, leaving the massive estate illuminated by the cold blue of security lights.Thankfully, Logan was still away in Hayselville, and the place looked just as imposing and unwelcoming as I remembered. The long driveway snaked through impeccably maintained lawns that retained their beauty even in late fall. The house itself was a sprawling structure of glass, steel, and pale stone that managed to look both luxurious and utterly lifeless.Every window was dark except for the motion-sensor ones that flickered







