Chapter 60

Gideon’s POV

At first it was warm. A low thrum beneath my skin, creeping through my veins like the soft glow of a fire in a hearth. Manageable. Almost ignorable.

I thought it was exhaustion. Too many sleepless nights. Many hours of sitting in the office looking through the lists and files, changing the staff from corrupt to loyal workers.

But then the warmth increased as I started to feel hot.

It wasn’t exhaustion. It wasn’t the burn of my wolf preparing for battle. This was not a normal heat, it was insidious, coiling and going through the places no natural fire will go.

My throat went dry, my chest constricted. I pressed a hand against the desk, willing the room to stop spinning. My face grew hot, too hot, as if someone had pressed me against the forge itself.

That sweetness lingering on my tongue—it wasn’t harmless. The realization hit me with brutal clarity.

The glass. The water. Daphne.

My blood turned to ice and fire all at once. I realised how careless I was to drink the water. “No, this can't be happening to me.” I whispered, the word scraping raw in my throat.

She had done it. She had dared. She finally showed her true colours.

Of all her schemes, of all her venom, she had finally crossed into a territory I could not forgive. She had slipped poison into my veins—not the kind that kills, but the kind that enslaves. I growled at her desperate move to do something so evil just to be Luna.

Aphrodisiac.

My body confirmed what my mind screamed. The heat was growing, pooling low in my gut, sparking restless energy in my muscles, dragging my focus toward instincts I refused to acknowledge. I was slowly starting to sweat.

I gritted my teeth, my knuckles white as they dug into the desk. My wolf snarled inside me, but even he was unsteady, unsettled by the unnatural fire wrapping around us both.

“Damn you, Daphne,” I growled under my breath.

I slammed my fist against the desk, the wood cracking under the force. The sound jolted me, reminded me that I still had some control left. Barely. But enough to act.

I couldn’t let her win. Not like this.

I strode to the door, my vision swimming, the floor shifting beneath my feet. The heat clawed at me, demanding surrender, but I forced myself upright, forcing my voice steady.

“Beta!”

He was close—I knew he wouldn’t stray far when he’d left with suspicion burning in his eyes. Sure enough, the door opened within seconds.

The moment he saw my face, his composure cracked. “Alpha, are you alright?” “Go quickly call the pack doctor,” I ground out, my voice hoarse. “Now.”

He knew this was serious so he didn't argue. He didn't waste any more time and just simply nodded, his eyes grim as he quickly went to get the doctor.

I staggered forward, holding onto the wall for balance. Each breath seared my lungs, each step heavier than the last. My body betrayed me, sweat slicking my skin, vision hazy.

I had to get out of that office, away from the lingering scent of her perfume that clung to the glass. Away before I collapsed.

The door banged shut behind me as I stumbled into the corridor, each stride uneven but relentless. My wolf growled low, warning me, urging me to move faster before someone saw me like this.

But fate had other plans for me.

At the end of the hall, rounding the corner, was her. Raven.

And not alone.

The children trailed at her side, their laughter soft as they tugged at her hands, their steps light compared to my heavy, thunderous ones. Their innocence collided with the storm raging inside me.

My vision tunneled.

Her scent hit me first—wildflowers and pine, the smell I had once buried in my heart, the scent I had forced myself to forget but never could. It struck me like a blade, cutting through the haze only to inflame it further.

And when my gaze landed on her… The fire roared.

I stopped mid step as my palm pressed against the wall while staring at her with hunger which I never felt before, this wasn't me, the effect I was feeling was not pure and wasn't rightful. It was the drug. The poison twisting my instincts into something ravenous, something dangerous.

Her eyes met mine, and I knew she saw it.

She looked at me startled but then her expression turned confused but then she realised what has happened to me she got scared her expression turned in horror instantly.

The children giggled still, tugging at her sleeves, oblivious to the predator that stood a mere few steps away. To them, I was Alpha, protector. But at that moment, I felt like a beast at the edge of snapping.

My wolf snarled, trying to anchor me, but even he was compromised. The aphrodisiac was winning the battle of my conscience now it blurred the line between bond and lust, devotion and need. And Raven—My Claire—stood at the very center of it.

I rubbed my forehead for some reason I started to hallucinate Raven as Claire, it started to scare me but currently lust was overpowering my every emotion.

I took a step towards her even though it was not steady. My breath was short and ragged. My eyes locked on her, unwilling, unable to tear away.

She went pale.

In a heartbeat, her entire body shifted—not physically, but in stance, in instinct. Her warrior’s mind surged to the forefront, her maternal shield snapping into place. She tightened her grip on the children’s shoulders, her voice calm but firm.

“Leo, Nova, go back to your rooms.” I said firmly not wanting them to know that something has happened to Gideon.

The children looked at us with hesitation but confused not knowing why Raven became so serious. Leo was trying to figure out what was happening but I stopped him from thinking about it.

“Now,” she urged, more firm this time.

Both of my children obeyed reluctantly as they went back towards their room, their voices were no longer near us

And then it was just us. Claire and me.

She stood still as I slowly swayed towards her and kept my eyes locked onto her like I am a hunter ready to hunt. She tried to hide her fear behind the mask of the warrior but I saw her hand tremble and heard her heartbeat getting fast as she gulped nervously.

“Alpha Gideon?,” she whispered softly with concern. My name.

I slowly started to lose control with the last glimmer of clarity. I staggered trying to balance myself and shook my head forcefully as I tried to clear the fog over my head.

“No..no,” I gasped out. My voice no longer sounded confident like it always was. It was broken, raw, desperate and full of the drug going through me. “Not… you…don't come close.”

She looked at me with shocked eyes, her lips were in a straight line.did she understood what I am going through or maybe she didn't understand fully.

Something was definitely wrong. Terribly, dangerously wrong.

And she was standing directly in its path.