Third Person
Whispers swirled like leaves caught in a current. Chloe had cracked something open, and now everything felt unstable. At the pack house, in the meeting halls, even at the training fields, the air held a strange static and an anticipatory hush.
A storm was coming.
Chloe knew exactly what she was doing.
With every softly spoken word, every calculated smile, she stitched doubt into the seams of the pack. She wasn’t direct, not anymore. She didn’t accuse Emily outright. Instead, she dropped delicate poison disguised as concern.
“I only want what’s best for the pack,” she told a small group of younger she–wolves over tea. “It was never about position.”
She paused for effect, eyes shimmering with unshed tears. “But it must be hard for Emily, right? Coming from such complicated Toots”
The implication hung there. Unspoken, but heard. She didn’t say Emily didn’t belong. She let others come to the conclusion for her.
It worked. Not with everyone, but with enough.
Elders who had started to warm up to Emily now spoke cautiously, Warriors who trained in the Titanfang pack began to wonder if she had the right to lead
Chloe was spinning the narrative, and people were starting to liste All the while, she played innocent, though the glint in her eyes said otherwise.
Logan
Thated games. I’d always preferred direct confrontation, a good fight, and the simplicity of truth.
This required strategy and restraint. It required being deceptive and tricky. I hated every second of it. Especially because it meant cozying up to Chloe while Emily watched from the shadows.
We had an understanding between each other. This was the most effective way to get what we wanted.
At every event, I allowed Chloe to get close to me. Our grand plan was to let her come to me and keep her coming. Over time, I’d
earn her trust.
Still, I couldn’t help the bitter taste every time Chloe touched my an or leaned in a little too close. I didn’t react and didn’t encourage, but I didn’t pull away either.
And that, more than anything, made my stomach twist.
1 found Emily in the garden one evening after another excruciating meeting with the council. She sat on the stone bench beneath the willow tree, the sunset streaking her features in hues of rose and gold. She didn’t turn when I approached.
“The council’s wavering,” he said softly. “Chloe’s getting to them
“I know.” Her voice was calm, but tight. “I heard Elder Harold use the phrase “bloodlines should be preserved with the cream of the crop“,”
Because Emily’s wolf was dormant, the elders thought she wasn’t good enough to carry on the legacy of my family. We had agreed to have no children, but somewhere in her heart, it had to be painful to hear.
I lowered myself onto the bench beside her. “She’s twisting the truth and trying to turn the tide in her favor.” I reached for her hand, but she pulled away, folding her arms tightly over her chest.
“It’s not you I’m mad at,” she said, after a beat.
Inodded get it.
“No,” she said, turning to look at me now, her eyes shining. “You don’t. You’re not the one who has to prove yourself every damn day. I walk into every room ten steps behind
I looked at her for a long mentent, taking in the pain behind her words. “Then it’s time to get ahead.”
She let out a sharp breath, not quite a laugh. “Thank goodness. I’m not sure how much longer I can take this.”
“That’s why I’ll ask her to bring me the proof we need at the leadership gathering this week,” I said.
Emily’s head whipped toward me. “What? Isn’t that too risky?”
“It’s a calculated risk. I’ll let her think I’m having doubts about our relationship, but I need something concrete before ending things. I’ll play it like I am on the fence. If she takes the balt, shehink she can get me something so important that I’ll choose a side, her side
Emily’s mouth parted in surprise. “Do you really think she’ll fall for it?”
Logan shook his head. “I’m not sure. Time is running short though, and we are all getting desperate.”
They sat in silence for a while.
Then, tentatively, Emily leaned against me. It wasn’t much–the press of her shoulder against his–but it made my heart soar
“I hate pretending,” she whispered.
“Me too.”
“But I hate losing more.”
I smiled faintly. “I know. Me too.”
The pack held a formal leadership gathering. It was a social event with political undercurrents as heavy as any council meeting.
It was also the time to trick Chloe into showing her hand.
I arrived early, dressed in sleek black, my usual Alpha aura sharpened by my tension. Chloe arrived not long after, radiant in silver with her hair swept up to expose the graceful curve of her neck.
She approached me immediately.
“Good morning, Alpha Logan,” she said with a too sweet smile.
“Good morning, Chloe.”
“You look tired,” she said softly, placing a hand on my forearm. “Is everything alright?”
I kept my expression neutral. “I’ve got a lot on my mind.”
“oh?L
“Oh? Like what?”
“Things aren’t going as well as I planned. I never thought it would be as much of a struggle to be with Emily.”
Chloe sighed dramatically. “I understand. You know, I keep thinking about the past. I think a lot about what we had, and what we could have had. I messed up.”
H
“Yes, you did,” I agreed, and this time, it wasn’t hard to.
“It could be me by your side instead of Emily. Is there any way we could start again?” She batted her long eyelashes at me, and I held back a scowl.
“I don’t know, Chloe.”
2/3
mid Chapter 42
+25 BONUS!
“After everything that has happened, after all the rumors, you musee now how this relationship isn’t good for you I could be good for you, Logan:”
“It’s not easy to separate from Emily now. It almost doesn’t matter what I think
“It most certainly does!” Chloe squeezed my arm tight in her pale hands.
“It’s gone too far. How am I supposed to leave her?” I was so close only needed a few more words to convince her.
“She’s no good for you. She has nothing and nobody. If you want to have someone at your side who can help you, you’d choose
The
He turned to her, voice low. “If what you say about Emily is true, teed more than words.”
Her eyes sparkled with triumph. “I understand. I’ll show you what kind of person Emily is.”
“And I need to know what kind of person you are,” I added.
“Anything! What can I do to prove it?”
“You said Emily was desperate for money. Show me. Prove she has nothing, and you have everything.”
That should do it. If she can prove she has the money, and that Emily has nothing, we would have evidence for our case.
“I can do that. It’s so simple,” she said with a grin.
I nodded once. She leaned in, her lips brushing my cheek.
Emily
Across the room, I watched from the shadows. I didn’t flinch, but my heart cracked a little more.
This was necessary. I reminded myself over and over again.
But oh, how it hurt.
