Maz had told Lucan about his conversation with Melloni. Would the professor take Maz’s warning seriously? “Not immediate, but it can’t wait much longer either.”
“Gotcha. Let me talk to Kean and see what he thinks. He’s much better at the relationship stuff than I am. My first instinct is to storm in and fix it with brute force, but apparently, that’s not always the best strategy.”
The corners of Bray’s mouth twitched, and Lucan smiled. “You’ve changed so much. It’s pretty epic to witness.”
Bray’s face softened. “My men changed me. Kean, Ruari, Jax. They make me want to be a better man, a better partner and father.”
“I want to be with my mates as well,” Lucan said softly. “Will you please help me?”
“I will. I promise.”
Lucan’s heart filled with hope, hope that lasted all through the day until the pack meeting that evening…when Palani had a seizure right in front of all of them. And even as Lucan sprinted toward the clinic to get the meds Enar had asked for, amid his deep worry for Palani was the thought that took away all his hope. Who would help him now in making sure Sando was safe? Who was left?
5
“We have to do something.”
Maz looked up from his book at Lucan’s grave tone, and when he saw his face, he put down the book entirely. “About Sando?”
“Yes. We can’t wait any longer. I know things are awful right now, what with Palani, but that doesn’t mean everything and everyone else should be on hold as well.”
The news of Palani’s diagnosis, made possible by the risky mission Bray had led into the city, had struck the pack like a bomb. Everyone was in shock, fighting to process the cold, hard truth that Palani was dying. He was dying, and it was a matter of time—a short time.
Maz was no neurosurgeon, but that morning he’d studied the MRI images with Enar and Mostyn, the radiology technician Bray had brought back with him from the hospital, and they’d agreed. Palani didn’t have long. He had an aggressive tumor, a glioblastoma if Maz had to take a guess, and no cure existed. Not even surgery could have saved him, if that even had been an option.
He’d held Enar as he cried hot, angry tears over the thought of losing his mate. Enar had insisted he’d cry with Maz and not with anyone else. Palani needed him, he’d said, and so he would be strong for him. Maz had assured Enar he’d be there for him every time he’d need a shoulder to cry on. Literally.
But Lucan was right. No matter how hard the news of Palani had crushed them, his impending death didn’t stop the world. It didn’t stop everything else, and that included Sando. “I know,” he said softly. “So what do you propose?”
“Clearly, Bray has different priorities now that Lidon appointed him as Palani’s replacement, so I’m not counting on him to do anything with what I told him. And I understand. Don’t get me wrong. But I don’t know what else to do… I’ve been racking my brain, and I just can’t figure out what the best course of action should be.”
The hopelessness in Lucan’s words hit Maz deep. The beta radiated loneliness, his slumped shoulders, his eyes missing the sparkle Maz loved so much. A wave of nausea washed over Maz. Everyone so far had let Lucan down. He’d done what he could to ask for help, but no one had truly stepped up. Not even Maz.
“I’m sorry.” His head spun with the implications of that thought. “I’m… I let you down. I’m sorry.”
Lucan’s brows drew together in puzzlement. “What do you mean?”
He didn’t even realize it. Lucan didn’t see that Maz had failed him, maybe because he never even truly expected him to help him anyway, to be there the way he’d needed. And he was supposed to be his mate, for fuck’s sake. It was embarrassing. Shameful.
“It should have been me. I should’ve taken action instead of sending you to Enar, Palani, Bray, your father. All this time, I’ve treated it like it was your problem. Yes, I supported you in the decisions you made, but I never took ownership the way I should have done. I’ve left it to you to bring it up, to follow up, to keep pressing for a solution…and I was wrong and selfish.”
Lucan played with the hem of his shirt, avoiding Maz’s eyes. “I wasn’t sure if you wanted