Jared walked in his lips, bowed in a frown. He looked at eric, who was focused on his laptop his glasses hanging at the tip of his nose. “alpha, you might want to see this”
He said as he stretched his hand, showing eric his phone. Eric shifted his attention towards jared as he put down his glasses. He eyed him as he collected the phone, his expression shifting to anger as he balled his fists, his knuckles turning pale.
“take everything down” he said his voice hoarse as he stared at his phone. The picture was clear enough to show who she was, with his face nothing mre than a blur. “who did this? Jeremy?”
“sarah”
“they haven’t chosen their enemy wisely. If this gets out this could affect our world”
“the elders have already seen it, and they aren’t haopy with it. Kyle is spreading the news that your presence exposes our existence”
“I don’t need this right now, we needed a face in the human world and now some insignificant human’s game is threatening my position and our exposure”
“what do I do?”
“his company is already going downhill, he would try to get a meeting with me, I want you to grant him that” he looked back at yhe window as if thinking of is next move. “sue sarah and find out where selena is from she and jeremy”
“yes alpha” jaden said as he bowed and left the room
“what do you mean pregnant?” I asked as my eyes widened, I looked across the room and saw my parents faces laced wih shock as they stared at the doctor waiting for his answer.
“well apart from stress, you passed out because youre pregnant” he said as he stared at the charts in his hand. “although its mostly stress related”
My heart began to race as I thought about that night in the hotel, I couldn’t do this, I wasn’t ready to be a mother.
“dear, whats going on? what does the doctor mean?” my mother asked as she looked at me wide eyed.
“m-mom” I said my eyes p,eading. I turned to the doctor. “could you schedule an abortion?” the doctor nodded as he walked out noticing the tension in the room.
“are you sure about this?” my father asked, his face filled with concern. There was no judgement in their eyes, just concerned and I could feel the tears fill my eyes.
“im sorry” I whispered and they all gathered around me, we couldn’t afford another person, but I also couldn’t afford the abortuion fees. I didn’t want to burden my parents with the consequences of my mistake. Against my better judgment I decided to find the man from that night.
As if on cue, the news showed him, my one night stand. There he was, or his picture anyway, displayed over the hospital’s television. Eric grey, CEO of grey corporations. His name seemed so familiar. I watched as they woman spoke about him, a billionaire, seemingly a playboy with an almost mysterious life. He sounded shady and I could feel a couple of chills run down my spine.
Noticing my expression, my father placed his hand on my shoulders protectively.
“are you alright?”
I nodded not wanting to say anything to him. I didn’t even know what to tell him. That I just found out that the man I slept with and the father of my child turned out to be a billionaire? Or that I could never walk up to him.
“do you know him?” my mother asked.
I shook my head as I held her hands reassuringly, and that’s when I remembered where I had heard his name. eric grey, grey corporations, Jeremy had just secured an investment with them. He would probably drag my name in the mud in front of eric grey or it didn’t even matter. There was no possible way I could ever meet him.
I turned back to my parents apologetically. “I have some money socked up and I really want to have this abortion”
“we understand, and if there’s anything you need we are right here”
Sweat began to appear on his forehead as panic filled his eyes, he stared at the caller ID before falling into his chair. He had just begun to strive and didn’t understand why the top investors where all suddenly pulling out of his company.
“Victor” he called out to his assistant.
A man rushed into the office. “Yes sir” he said as he bowed his head.
“What’s going on with the investments?”
“Sir, we just found out that Grey corporations blacklisted the Frasier group” he said his head still down.
“I just got that contract with the Grey’s, how could the group be blacklisted?” he asked as he slammed his fists on the table.
“They didn’t give us a reason”
“What do…?”
“Darling” Sarah called as she walked in, cutting Jeremy off. “I saw a new dress that I want, its one of a kind” she said as she strutted towards Jeremy. Victor just bowed and walked out, leaving Jeremy staring at Sarah in anger.
“a dress?” he asked as he slowly walked closer to Sarah, his eyes burning in rage. “You want to buy a new dress?”
“yes” she noddd, oblivious of his rage. “it’s a haute couture” she added smiling sweetly. Her smile immediately fainted as Jeremy slapped her, sending her to the ground. She looked up at him in shock as she cleaned the blood trickling down from the tear on her lips, her cheeks were immediately red and swollen and tears began to well up in her eyes.
“get out” he commanded. She froze, he had never spoken to her this way, let alone hit her.
“you hit me?”
A knock on the door pulled their attention away from each other and a woman in a suit walked in and looked towards sarah, an intimidating smile playing on her lips. Briefcase in one hand and documents in the other
“sarah Carmen?”
“yes, that’s me”
“you’ve been served” she tilted her head and smiled again, this time a mocking smile as she handed the documents to sarah.
“what?” sarah asked as she took the documents her eyes widening. The woman didn’t give her a second befor she walked out.
“whats that?” Jeremy asked as he snatched the papers from her hands. His anger was slowly replaced by horror as he flipped through the documents, his eyes shifting from sarah to the documents and then back at her.
“what?” she sasked as she stared at him in confusion and fear. She snatched the papers back from him and read through the pages, her fear becoming more evident as she held the papers tighter and her hands began to shake.
“theyre suing you. How could you be so stupid? You could’ve trapped selena with anyone but you just had to choose eric grey?”
“I didn’t know”
“that’s not an excuse, why did you even post the ictures? It makes sense now, tis is why he blacklisted us”
“what?” she moved closer to him and grabbed his hands her vouce breaking. “i-I really didn’t know”
“get out” he said his voice low as he pulled his arm from her grip.
She tried to hold onto him again but he moved away as he stared at her like she was the most disgusting thing in the room. Tears began to fall from her cheeks as she looked at him.
“I’m really sorry”
“victor”
“yes sir” victor answered as he came running.
“escort her out”
“yes sir” he said as he bowed. He looked at sarah apologetically as he took her hand, pulling her out of the office. Jeremy raked his hand through his hair as he dialed.
“hello” a voice from the other line said.
Days passed and Vincent and his men where quiet, Too quiet.Training continued and the patrols doubled. The fortress pulsed with tension, everyone waiting for Eric’s strike on The Cradle.But Vincent didn’t wait. He watched and when everyone least expected it, he moved.In the woods beyond the fortress, a low fog crept through the trees, swallowing roots and shadows alike. Three figures moved soundlessly beneath the veil of mist, clothed in black, faces painted with runic markings.Vincent’s chosen.Spies bred for infiltration.One of them, smaller, with red-tipped claws, pressed a gloved hand to the earth.“They’re asleep,” she whispered. “Eric is gone. Half the guards rotated.”The second pulled out a small carved crystal, humming with dark energy. “We go for the girl first. The boy second. The mother... we bring alive.”“And if they resist?” the third asked.“We won't give them a chance to.”Inside the fortress, I couldn’t sleep.Something had shifted in the air. I could feel it in
The fortress walls as the weight of the war burned through the people's sleep. The fires in the eastern tower burned low. I sat with Lucas and Lily wrapped in thick blankets in the hidden chamber below the main wing, watching their eyes as they darted behind fluttering lids.They had another nightmare.No, a vision.Lucas jolted upright, eyes glowing faint silver.“Lily,” he whispered. “Wake up.”She stirred, her small hands trembling as she gripped the side of the cot.“They’re underground,” she whispered before even seeing us.Eric, standing in the doorway, stepped inside.“You saw it again?” he asked quietly.Lucas nodded, his voice hoarse. “There’s a lake... but not really a lake. It’s fake. There’s stone beneath, People.”“Children,” Lily added. “And wolves but they don’t howl. They scream.”“An illusion spell” Eric murmured as he nodded to me.Eric crouched beside them, calm but alert.“That’s The Cradle,” he said, his eyes on me but his attention solely on the kids. “The spy m
The chamber beneath the fortress was built for one purpose, extraction.The walls were reinforced with runes to muffle sound. The floor was stone, probably stained by older wars. No windows. Just cold air, steel chains, and shadows.Eric stood at the center, shirtless, his hands bloody from the first strike. Jaden lingered in the background, watching silently. I had taken the twins to a secure wing, locking the door and telling them not to come out, no matter what they heard.After Jaden brought the spies, they had gone in search of more. Only five others were discovered, but it was better then none.The right was quick, just Eric and Jaden against the other five. When the fight was over, the only thing left was their bodies, ribbed apart and creating a stream of blood.Now it was just them. The two spies.One of the men, a young rogue with scars on his neck and silver-threaded tattoos spit a mouthful of blood at Eric’s feet.“You’ll get nothing from us.”Eric didn’t flinch. “I don’t
Vincent stood in front of a shattered altar within the shadowed ruins of the Black pine temple, his eyes burning with fury. Flames crackled around the walls as he hurled a steel goblet into the stone.“She’s dead,” Alina said calmly, though her own tension was clear.Vincent didn’t turn. “I told her to keep her head down. Blend in and Wait for my signal.”“She panicked.”“She was my only direct link ” he spat. “the closest to the plans, She fed us everything for months and made us two steps ahead. Now she’s ash and we're back to square one”Kyle stood a few steps behind, his arms crossed, blood staining the edge of his clothes. “She was weak. She hesitated.”“And you failed to take the twins when you had the chance, you have no right to speak” Vincent said as he turned sharply. “Are we all just failing now?”Kyle’s jaw tightened, but he didn’t speak.Alina approached the map on the wall, pinning two red flags to new positions.“We underestimated them. Eric’s not just reacting anymore
the fortress buzzed with motion. Blood was still being scrubbed from weapons and armor and an unease clung to the walls like smoke. We had won for now but peace was far from what we felt.Something lingered. Someone.“We need to flush them out,” Maya said flatly as she entered the war room, her silver-streaked braid clinging to her back with sweat and dried blood.Eric nodded, not looking away from the reports that Jaden had posted. “Kyle didn’t work alone. He couldn’t have.”“He had access to someone on our side,” Jaden muttered. “The breach... It was too precise.”I stood near the door, arms crossed.“They knew when we were moving. Where we’d be. Even the disguises”Eric turned to me, eyes sharp. “Then we find who did especially since Kyle escaped.”They nodded, something in their eyes gave me a sense of assurance but I knew how long it would last.Maya began tracing every communication made in the last two weeks. Every person's steps, every word.And soon they finally made
The underground chamber was silent and the children slept uneasily, curled in thick blankets, while I sat on the edge, every muscle in my body wired with tension. Eric stood near the sealed exit, his arms crossed, bruises blooming on his neck and jaw from the earlier attack.We hadn’t spoken much since we were brought to safety. There was no need. The fear in our eyes said it all.“They’ll come again,” I whispered. “Soon.” Eric noddedA soft knock came at the steel door.Jaden entered, his blood-streaked shirt was almost completely torn. “We’re clear, for now, but the western ridge was compromised. It’s only a matter of time before they circle back.” “We will move them tonight.” Eric said silent I shot up. “Tonight? We’re not ready”“We won’t be ready tomorrow either,” he snapped. “I won’t risk them again.”My hands trembled. “And the mole?”Jaden hesitated before answering. “Still sniffing him out. But whoever it is… they knew about the tunnel.”“They knew where to hit.” I didn