Aidan.

I had barely stepped into my room when it hit me.

A sharp, violent dizziness.

My head spun so suddenly that I had to grab onto the edge of the table to steady myself. The room tilted, the walls seeming to close in and stretch away at the same time. My breathing became uneven as I tried to hold myself together.

It was happening again.

One of the side effects the healer had warned me about.

After everything that had happened with Vanessa, I had gone straight to him, desperate for answers, for a solution to the gaps in my memory, the things I couldn’t recall no matter how hard I tried. He had given me some prescriptions, herbs and mixtures I had been taking diligently, hoping they would help.

And they had but not without consequences.

This wasn’t the first time I had felt this way. The dizziness... the pressure in my head... it had happened before. But this time was different.

This time, it came with something else, voices which were muffled at first like echoes trapped somewhere deep within my mind.

I squeezed my eyes shut, my grip tightening as I tried to focus, tried to make sense of it. The pain throbbed harder, but I didn’t stop. I couldn’t.

Then came the images, blurry and broken, yet slowly... they began to form.

Piece by piece, everything started falling into place, like fragments of a puzzle finally connecting.

And when I grasped it, when the full picture became clear, my eyes snapped open.

Shock flooded through me.

"Vanessa... was not pregnant," I said out loud, my voice barely above a whisper at first before growing firmer. I paused, my chest rising and falling as a storm of emotions surged within me, anger, disbelief, realization. "I didn’t touch her."

Despite the pounding in my head, despite the lingering dizziness, I didn’t hesitate. I pushed myself forward immediately, leaving the room without a second thought.

Nothing else mattered now.

Nothing could delay what needed to be done.

I moved quickly through the halls, my steps urgent, determined. I already knew where they would be.

And just as expected...They were all gathered in Davian’s room.

I didn’t bother knocking. I pushed the door open and stepped in, their attention snapping toward me instantly.

"You all..." I began, my voice echoing through the room, filled with urgency. "I didn’t fail my words. I didn’t do it."

They stared at me, intently and silently as though I had just said something completely absurd.

Like I had lost my mind.

"Vanessa isn’t pregnant," I added, my tone firm, unwavering.

"What?" they echoed in unison, their voices overlapping in shock.

The reaction was immediate.

I could see it on their faces, the disbelief, the confusion... and then, slowly, it shifted to relief, clear and undeniable.

"Very well then," Davian said, rising from his bed, his expression settling into something more controlled, more decisive.

Adrien let out a sharp chuckle, shaking his head slightly. "How pathetic," he muttered. He paused before stepping closer to me, his expression darkening. "And she’s been acting all fragile and convincing."

His eyes hardened.

"Isn’t she aware that lying to an Alpha is equivalent to death?" he yelled, his voice filled with anger.

"She must not go unpunished," Damien added, his tone colder, more controlled, yet carrying just as much weight as he remained seated, his posture composed but tense.

The air in the room shifted instantly.

The tension thickened.

And it was true, Vanessa had just crossed a line she could never come back from.

"And who said I’m going to spare her?" I asked, my voice calm yet edged with something far more dangerous as I raised my brows slightly. There was a certain satisfaction in the way the words left my lips, as though I had been waiting for the perfect moment to say them out loud. "I only came to break the good news... so we can hasten our plan."

The air in the room shifted almost immediately.

Adrien’s eyes lit up, a grin spreading across his face as excitement flickered through his expression. "Finally... I just can’t wait!" he said, his tone laced with eagerness, like someone who had been holding back for far too long.

A faint smirk tugged at my lips, but I said nothing more to that. Instead, I turned slightly toward the door, my voice rising just enough to carry beyond it.

"Anyone out there?" I called.

The response was immediate.

The door opened, and a rogue stepped in quickly, her head bowed slightly in respect as she stood at attention. "Yes, Alphas," she replied, her voice steady but deferential.

"Go call Beta Torin right now," I commanded without hesitation.

She didn’t question it. She didn’t delay.

With a slight nod, she turned and left just as swiftly as she had entered. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Silence settled over the room once more, thick and expectant. The minutes that followed felt longer than they actually were, each second stretching as anticipation built quietly among us. No one spoke. No one needed to.

We all knew what this meant.

Then, finally...

The door opened again.

Beta Torin stepped in, his presence composed as always, his posture straight as he acknowledged us. "Alphas..." he called, his tone respectful as his gaze moved across each of us.

"We have a task for you," I said, my voice measured, controlled.

"I’m all ears," he replied, stepping closer, leaning in slightly as if already prepared to receive whatever order was coming.

I didn’t waste time.

Leaning forward just enough, I lowered my voice and whispered the instructions directly into his ear.

"*****************************************"

Every word was deliberate. Precise. There was no room for misunderstanding, no space for error.

When I pulled back, my gaze remained fixed on him, watching carefully for any sign that he might not have fully grasped what was required.

But he didn’t falter, as he nodded firmly once.

That was enough.

A quiet sense of satisfaction settled within me, and I exhaled slowly, allowing a bit of the tension to leave my shoulders. "You may go," I said, dismissing him.

Without another word, he bowed slightly and turned, exiting the room.

The door closed behind him.

I shifted my attention back to my brothers, meeting each of their gazes in turn. There was no uncertainty left now. No hesitation.

Everything was in place.

"I think we are ready now," I said, my tone carrying quiet finality.

"More than ready," they echoed in unison.