Chapter 13 Chapter 13
I woke up feeling… better.
For the first time since I arrived at the Moretti mansion, my body didn’t feel like it was betraying me. The fever that had gripped me for days had finally broken, leaving behind a dull ache in my muscles, but it was nothing I couldn’t handle.
I lay there for a long time, staring at the ceiling, replaying everything that had happened last night.
I had tried to escape.
Like an idiot.
I exhaled sharply, rubbing my hands over my face. What the hell had I been thinking? I wasn’t myself. My mind had been wild, my body sick and exhausted. The desperation had been unbearable.
But the memory of Alaric’s touch still lingered.
The way he had pinned me against the door, his fingers around my throat—not hurting, just holding, controlling. The way his breath had ghosted over my skin. The way my traitorous body had responded to him.
I shut my eyes and forced the thought away.
Maybe instead of acting like a reckless idiot, I should’ve just asked him to check on Anna. Maybe if I had said it nicely, calmly, he would have listened. Maybe he would have understood.
That’s what I’d do today.
I would be reasonable.
No more fighting. No more trying to run. I signed up for this. I might not have understood what I was stepping into, but it was too late to turn back now.
I needed to focus.
The shower was hot and indulgent, steam curling around me as I let the water wash away the past few days. I stayed there longer than I should have, letting the heat seep into my sore muscles, trying to rebuild myself.
When I stepped out, I put on something comfortable—a loose sweater and leggings. Nothing fancy, just practical.
Today, I would try a different approach.
I made my way toward Alaric’s office, but when I pushed open the door, the room was empty.
Strange.
Alaric was always in here, brooding over whatever dangerous business he was involved in.
Instead, the mansion was buzzing with activity.
The scent of fresh food wafted through the air, and I spotted several staff members rushing around, carrying bags—expensive bags—filled with female clothes and toiletries.
My stomach twisted.
Something wasn’t right.
I stopped one of the maids, a small brunette who looked nervous the moment I addressed her.
"Where's Alaric?" I asked.
She hesitated. Too long.
Then, finally, she muttered, "He's in his bedroom."
I frowned.
Why the hell was he in his bedroom in the middle of the day?
And why was the staff acting so strange?
I ignored the uneasy feeling crawling up my spine and headed upstairs.
I barely made it to his door before I heard a woman’s voice.
Angry.
Shouting.
I stopped, my breath catching.
"I can’t believe you did this, Alaric!"
The voice was sharp, furious, filled with something raw.
I didn’t recognize it.
And then—
Alaric’s voice.
Low. Controlled. Gentle.
"Emma, calm down."
Emma.
She was here.
Something inside me went ice cold.
I pressed my back against the wall beside the door, my fingers curling into fists.
I wasn’t eavesdropping.
Not really.
I just… needed to hear this.
"You married another woman?" Emma’s voice cracked with disbelief. "A stranger?"
Alaric let out a slow breath. "It’s not like that."
Emma scoffed. "Then what is it like?"
There was a long pause. I strained to hear.
Then Alaric spoke again, quieter this time.
"I don’t care about her, Emma."
I felt that.
Sharp and deep, cutting into my ribs like a blade.
"Then why?" Emma’s voice was thick with emotion.
"Because I had to," Alaric said, tired, resigned. "Because this was the only way to save you. I did this for you, Emma.I couldnt just watch you fade away."
Silence.
Then a choked sound—a sob.
Emma was crying.
"This is all my fault," she whispered. "You shouldn’t have had to do this for me, Alaric."
"There was no other choice baby," he murmured. "But it’s fine. It won’t be forever. Once you’re healed, the contract marriage is off."
The contract marriage.
I felt like I had been punched in the gut.
Alaric had never made me feel like his wife. That wasn’t surprising. I had never really wanted to be his wife.
But to hear him say it so easily, so carelessly—
Like I was nothing.
Like I was a means to an end.
Emma sniffled. "Does she know?"
Another pause.
Then—
"No. Vanessa doesn’t know anything."
My stomach twisted.
"She doesn’t know you’re an Alpha?"
Alpha.
The word sent a shiver down my spine.
I had heard it before. Leader. A code name, maybe? A mafia term?
I didn’t know.
But I knew enough.
Alaric wasn’t just dangerous. He was something else. Something more.
"She doesn’t need to know," Alaric said. "She’s just an asset, Emma. That’s all. When she’s done with her job, she’ll be gone."
I couldn’t breathe.
My legs moved before I could think, carrying me away from that door, away from that conversation, away from the suffocating realization that I was nothing but a pawn in his grand game.
My chest ached, my vision blurred.
I wasn’t supposed to care.
I wasn’t supposed to feel hurt.
But I did.
And I didn’t even know why.
Back in my room, I paced.
My hands were shaking, my mind a storm of emotions I couldn’t control.
Why did it bother me?
Why did hearing him talk about me like that make me feel like I had been ripped apart from the inside?
I should have expected this.
Of course, Alaric didn’t care about me. Of course, I was just an asset.
That was the whole point of this arrangement, wasn’t it?
I clenched my jaw, inhaling through my nose.
I needed to get the hell out of here. I needed to get away from him...or else I would go crazy in this place.
But this time, I wouldn’t be stupid about it.
No more reckless running.
No more desperation.
I already had a plan. I would make a story ,earn money lots of money. People would pay to read about Moretti's secrets .
I needed to investigate him ,to know more.
Who was Alaric Moretti?
Why did Emma call him Alpha?
Why did everyone in this house act like they were serving a king?
I pulled out a notebook from the bedside drawer and started writing everything down.
I needed to watch him. Study his movements, his business, the people he met. There was more to him than I knew. More than he was letting me see.
And if I was going to survive this, I needed to find out exactly what that was.
Because I wasn’t waiting for Alaric to throw me away,worse kill me.
I would be gone before he had the chance.