Chapter 16

A sick, perverse part of him had found pleasure in her humiliation. He had flaunted his affairs in her face, parading other women before her, just to watch her flinch, to make her feel the sting of his rejection.

He had savored the cold, impersonal nature of their transactions, the digital proof of her subjugation. He had called her a bitch, a whore, and had even offered her to another man like a piece of property.

Tears of guilt and self-loathing streamed down his face. The list of his cruelties was endless. He had done so many unforgivable things to the only woman he had ever truly loved.

Logan stood by, at a loss for what to say.

It was the second time he had witnessed Cade break down, sobbing like a lost child for the woman he adored. Love, it seemed, was the great equalizer, humbling even the most powerful of men.

Logan let out a deep sigh. They had been so perfectly in love, and yet, they had spent years tearing each other apart, leaving both of them in ruins.

After a long, tense silence, Cade finally spoke, his voice a low, gravelly command. “Leave Kendra alone for now.”

Logan was stunned. After learning of the years of torment Aria had suffered, it was impossible not to be consumed by a desire for revenge. “Why!?” he demanded, unable to contain his disbelief.

“The child Kendra is carrying… it belongs to Reid Edric. It’s his flesh and blood. I have an obligation to protect it.”

The revelation sent a shockwave through Logan. He had always assumed the child was Cade's. The surprise was profound.

And then, it all made sense. He finally understood Cade's unwavering protection of the baby.

Reid was a familiar name. He had been a childhood friend to both Aria and Cade. They had even served together in the military. On a high-stakes mission, Reid had lost a finger while saving Cade's life. He was the truest of friends.

But Reid was gone, killed in a fiery car crash off a cliff. The baby was the last remaining piece of the Edric lineage. Cade was bound by honor to protect it at all costs.

A sudden sense of unease seemed to ripple through the room. Aria, still lost in her deep sleep, began to stir, her face contorted in a mask of distress.

“Stay away! Don’t come near me!”

“I’m not a murderer! I didn't kill my father! Let me go!”

“Please, don’t hit me! I’m begging you!”

She was trapped in a nightmare, her body thrashing against invisible assailants. In her horror, she was back in that dark, cold place, a place of constant torment. Fists rained down on her. Knives sliced at her flesh. Needles pierced her skin, a symphony of pain and agony.

“Cade, it hurts. Cade, please, help me…”

When they were young, she had always called for him, and he had always come, her hero, her savior. But years of his own making had shattered that trust. As a woman, she no longer looked to him for help.

He was kind to other women, but never to her. All she saw in his eyes was a cold, burning hatred.

Even in her sleep, she looked pale and terrified, her body trembling. “The Cade I knew is dead. He’s never coming for me. He’ll never help me.”

The powerful man the world saw was a stranger to her. The boy she had loved had vanished, leaving only the ghost of shared memories to haunt her.

“Aria,” he whispered, his voice thick with unshed tears.

Cade tightened his grip on her hand, the sight of her suffering an unbearable agony. Her words, spoken from the depths of her subconscious, were a final, devastating blow. He felt a familiar, sharp pain in his chest, a grief so profound it was a physical ache.

He was alive, his heart was beating, but none of it mattered.

In her world, he was already dead.