Logan’s POV
Erinne eased herself onto my lap as I drained the last of the wine. The liquid was warm and smooth, sliding down my throat, but there was a nagging feeling at the back of my mind. Something wasn’t right. I couldn’t quite place what it was, but the unease ate at me, refusing to let go.
My eyes were beginning to turn, and an intense ache had blossomed in my head. I tried to lift my fingers, tried to move my body, but it felt as though I was moving through waves of water or thick air.
I could barely see my surroundings, but my eyes worked just enough to see Erinne smile. She’d done something to me, and I could feel it. The impetuous slave girl! I wanted to grab her and fling her off of me, to show her who was the boss, but I felt so limp all over.
Erinne began to massage my shoulders, her fingers working into the tense muscles as she leaned in close. Her breath tickled my ear as she whispered, “Alpha Logan, you need to stop torturing yourself over Aria. She never loved you, not really. You were just a means to an end for her. You were a convenient opportunity, one that she grabbed with both hands.”
I stiffened at her words, my grip tightening on the armrests of the chair. “That’s not true,” I muttered, though even as I said it, doubt crept into my voice. Aria had always been elusive. She never gave me any information about her past life. It always felt like she was slipping through my fingers whenever I tried to hold on to her.
Erinne’s hands moved more firmly, kneading the tension from my shoulders. “Think about it, Alpha Logan. She used you to escape Denderick, and then she ran right back to him as soon as she could. If she cared about you at all, why would she do that?”
I shook my head, trying to clear the fog that was slowly settling over my thoughts. “She… she was scared. She didn’t know what else to do.”
Erinne chuckled softly, a low, mocking sound that sent a chill down my spine. “Scared? Of you? Alpha Logan, you’re one of the most powerful Alphas in the region. But I do not think she was scared. No, she was using you, plain and simple. And now, she’s back with Denderick, laughing at how easily you fell for her lies.”
Her words sliced through me, each one hitting a mark I hadn’t even known was there. I didn’t want to believe it, didn’t want to think that Aria could be so cold, so manipulative. But the more Erinne spoke, the harder it became to hold on to the belief that Aria had ever truly cared about me.
Erinne leaned in closer, her lips brushing against my ear as she whispered, “She’s nothing compared to what I can give you, Alpha Logan. I can give you something she never could-a true heir. Your blood, your legacy.”
I blinked, the room spinning slightly as I tried to process her words. A true heir. The idea held an appeal I hadn’t fully realized until now. Aria had taken something precious from me, something I could never get back. But Erinne… Erinne was offering to give me something in return.
I shook my head again, trying to fight the pull of her words. “But… but she was carrying my child…”
“Was she?” Erinne’s voice was soft, but there was a sharpness to it that cut through the haze clouding my mind. “Or did she just tell you that to keep you under her control? To make you believe you had something to fight for? To make you believe that securing your throne was possible?”
I frowned, the edges of my thoughts blurring as the wine took hold. “No… she wouldn’t…”
“Wouldn’t she?” Erinne’s hands moved to cup my face, turning my head so I was forced to look into her eyes. “Alpha Logan, you’re a strong, powerful man. But you’ve been letting this woman, this… this witch play you like a fool. It’s time to let go. Time to move on.”
Her words made sense, in a twisted, distorted way. Aria had left me and had run back to Denderick without so much as a second thought. Maybe Erinne was right. Maybe it was time to stop chasing a ghost and start focusing on what was real, what was right in front of me.
Erinne’s voice was like a lullaby, wrapping around me, pulling me deeper into the fog. “You deserve better, Alpha Logan. Someone who sees your worth, who’s loyal to you, who will give you the family you deserve.”
My eyelids grew heavy, the wine weighing me down as I struggled to stay upright. “Erinne… what did you put in my…. my wine…?”
She smiled with a soft, almost tender expression that did little to calm me down. “Just something to help you relax, Alpha Logan. You’ve been so tense lately, so on edge. I just want to take care of you.”
I tried to fight it, tried to push through the haze, but my body betrayed me. My muscles relaxed against my will, my mind slipping further into the darkness. “I… I don’t…”
“Shhh,” she whispered in my ear. “Just close your eyes, Alpha Logan. Everything will be fine. I’ll take care of everything. Like I took care of that beta.”
“Like you…. took care of that…. beta….”
And then the darkness claimed me.
When I opened my eyes again, the world was a blur. My head throbbed, and my mouth was dry as sandpaper. I blinked, trying to clear the fog from my mind, and realized I was lying on the couch in my study. The last thing I remembered was me sitting on my desk chair and Erinne… Erinne talking to me, whispering words into my ear.
I groaned, struggling to sit up, but my body felt like it was made of lead. As my vision cleared, I saw Erinne sitting across from me, a satisfied smile on her face. She was massaging my feet, her hands working with a practiced ease.
“How did you sleep?” she asked her voice light, almost teasing.
I mumbled something incoherent, my tongue thick in my mouth. I couldn’t think straight, couldn’t piece together the fragments of memory that danced just out of reach. What had she done to me? And why did I feel like I was falling into a pit I might never crawl out of?