Page 89 of Mason

Brando doesn’t answer immediately. His expression stays unreadable, but there’s a weight to his silence. A warning.

“She doesn’t want to see you, Mason,” he says finally.

My hands drop to my sides, fingers flexing. I refuse to assume defeat. That’s not who I am. That’s not what I do.

“Did you tell her?” I ask, because he’s the only one who could have.

Brando’s gaze sharpens. He doesn’t flinch or waver. He knows exactly what I’m talking about.

“No,” he says simply.

I study him, searching for a crack, but there’s nothing. He’s telling the truth.

And then he quirks an eyebrow. “Ironically, I think she’s always known.”

A flicker of something moves through me—hope, fear, something in between.

“How?”

Brando exhales, shaking his head. “She’s always felt it,” he says. “She just... knows.”

The words settle in my chest like a slow, aching burn. Mia’s always been sharp, perceptive. But this? This is something else.

“Tell her I want to see her, Brando,” I say, my voice harder now. “This is me stepping up.”

He doesn’t answer right away. Just studies me with that unreadable expression, like he’s debating whether or not I deserve this.

“I know you have your reasons for keeping her in the dark,” he finally says. “Some of them might even be valid. But I think you need to give her some time, Mason.”

I shake my head. “This is what she wanted.”

Brando’s lips press into a thin line. “Mia doesn’t know what she wants, Mason. Not right now. Give her some time. She’ll come around.”

I grind my teeth, frustration biting at the edges of my control. Time? Time is what got us into this mess. Every day, every year I let this truth sit in the dark only made it harder to drag it back into the light.

But Brando isn’t wrong.

Still, that doesn’t mean I have to like it.

I exhale slowly, forcing myself to step back.

“Tell her I came by.”

Brando nods once. “I will.”

I don’t linger. I don’t push. Because some fights are won by waiting.

And when Mia’s ready?

She knows where to find me.

27

MASON

The engine hums beneath my fingers as I slow the car to a stop in front of the school. Shelby’s school. The one she’s thrown herself into, pouring her time and energy into something good. Something that matters.

She’s different now—stronger. There’s a light in her I wasn’t sure I’d ever get to see; a light which had been extinguished by David Eddy and was only now re-emerging after his exit from this world. But she’s found something here, something that makes her feel like she’s taking control of her life again. And I get to witness it every day.

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