THE CONTRACT (The Chosen Series #2)

IT'S TOO LATE TO APOLOGIZE

"Cкучать Erin, what in the worldGrigor drops his book and leaps out of his chair, rushing over to me.

"I—" a sob escapes me. "I fucked up." Grigori's arms wrap around me just in time to catch me before I collapse onto Alexei's polished floor.

I bite the inside of my cheek, struggling to stay grounded. I could claim ignorance, blame it on the heat of the moment, but that would be a lie. I wanted it. I still want him. And I know I always will.

"You're shaking, Erin, and you're burning up." I close my eyes, listening as Grigori's voice shifts to Russian, his words swirling into unintelligibility amidst the chaos of my thoughts.

As I'm caught between wanting to return to Fido and wishing it was Liam who wanted me, my consciousness flickers out momentarily.

"Блядь!" Grigor shouts, then he's lifting me, his strong arms carrying me upstairs to Alexei's bedroom. A sharp pain stabs at my temples, and I cry out. "Shhh, I'll get you something to make you feel better soon," he soothes.."

He lays me on the bed and quickly returns. "I need to remove your—" He pauses, noticing my attire. My eyes flick open, and I see him staring at my shirt—Liam's shirt. I grimace and nod, then start counting backward from ten as another wave of pain hits. Between seven and five, I feel Grigori's careful hands unbuttoning the shirt and removing it.

"This will only hurt for a second," Grigor murmurs, running a wet cloth that smells like antiseptic down my arm. I tense at the sharp prick in my arm, followed by another cloth and then pressure from his hand, as he continues to speak in soothing tones. I begin to count again, but instead of focusing on the lingering pain in my head, which has lessened, I feel a warmth spreading through me, my mind growing fuzzier.

"The pain will fade soon. You'll feel sleepy," Grigor pauses, adjusting my body under the covers, my head sinking into the pillow. "I'll contact Alexander," he adds.

He's administered a sedative, likely with a needle designed for our kind, whose skin is tougher than humans. Right now, I'm just thankful for the relief. As soon as I left the Cabin, the pain hit me, worsening the farther I got. It's the bond pulling at me, my whole being screaming to return. Thankfully, I'm spared the torment of hearing his voice in my head as Ava did with Griffin. I'm sorry, Fido.

"Forgive me, Alexander," I hear Grigor say, his voice distant as I assume he's on the phone. "да, I had to sedate her." He pauses, and my consciousness wavers again. I jolt awake briefly when I feel his hands gently move my hair aside, exposing my neck and the mark I know he's found. "да, она была отмечена." I squeeze my eyes shut tighter and bite my lip, a pit of dread forming as he confirms the bite to Alexei.

"да, Я позвоню Gerald. Я позабочусь о ней, пока ты не приедешь." Grigor ends the call, and the finality in his tone tells me Alexei's already on his way.

Grigor speaks again, but his words blur into the background as the sedative fully takes hold. I catch snippets— "Mated," a pause, then "Fix," another pause, and "As soon as you can." My mind can't hold on any longer, and I finally let the darkness pull me under.

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"I've temporarily blocked the connection from her end. She should be more like herself now," Gerald's voice filters through from my right, and I realize that what I thought was a pillow is actually Alexei's chest.

"I want to know exactly what happened. Who did this to her?" Alexei's voice is a dangerous growl, thick with restrained fury, every word seeming to vibrate with a lethal edge.