LOGAN: Alliance of Shadows, Book 2

Inheritance

Walking into the room, I felt the hum of whispered conversations trail off. Colton’s head snapped up, his dark eyes narrowing sharply as his voice broke the silence. “Was beginning to think I’d have to send in Trouble.”

“Beta Colton, I have a dilemma, and, no, it’s not something that can wait. I need to talk to the Grand Alpha right away. Maria, I’ll have my food now, please,” I said automatically, my focus shifting as the gravity of the moment settled over me.

Micah lingered in the doorway, his dark blue eyes gleaming with quiet amusement as he slowly closed the door behind him.

“Jake, if you haven’t already, take your sister into the next room and call your mother so she doesn’t worry herself sick. Ember, use my phone to call your maman, too, okay?”

“On it,” Jake replied, already moving to drag the girls into the adjoining room as the Stone brothers followed closely behind.

Micah chuckled softly, his amusement unguarded as he glanced at Colton. “Tell me, Beta Colton, is he always this way?”

Colton folded his arms, his raised brow shadowing the sharpness of his gaze. “And you are?” he asked, his tone low and guarded.

I rolled my eyes, my voice sharp. “He’s my cousin, Colt. Yes, I’m always like this—especially if I needed something done yesterday. Jake is my Delta, and Maria is my Gamma.”

Micah tilted his head slightly, his dark blue eyes flickering with curiosity. “I’ve never heard of a female Gamma, nor have I heard of a pack having four leaders,” he said.

Colton burst into laughter, the sound rich and genuine. “The only thing Logan hasn’t broken so far is the sound barrier,” he grinned. “He’s not even ten yet, but he’s already the youngest Alpha in our history. His Delta takes over for his Gamma when she’s busy, but their little pack got some real get up and go.”

“I see,” Micah murmured, his gaze steady as he processed the information. “Well, shall we, Logan?”

“Shall we what?” Maria snapped as she stomped into the room, her boots striking the floor with sharp, angry beats. She slammed the plate onto the table with a decisive thud, her green-brown eyes flashing. “Here, Alpha.”

“Maria!” I hissed in frustration, my tone scolding. Anyone who knew me as well as my friends did knew I hated it when they used my title—and Maria always did it when she was mad at me.

“Suck. It. Up,” Maria snapped, her brownish-green eyes narrowing as she turned her glare on Micah. “No, he shall not. He needs to eat, or he just might take a bite out of you. No calls, no deals, and no more talking, Logan. Eat, or I’m shoving it down your throat.”

“Geesh, Maria, would it kill you to take a nap and a chill pill?” I grunted, reluctantly picking up the fork. Admittedly, the food was good.

“Little Miss, you’re absolutely right,” Micah chuckled, his tone light. “He should eat. That way, he’ll have a clear head when he talks to his parents.”

Blinking, I called out to Wynter. She stuck her head in, her curious eyes darting between us. “Yeah?”

“I’m eating, but my cousin is being annoying. Can you do your thing?” I asked.

Colton paled, his voice dropping into a warning. “Back out gracefully, Vampire. Wynter’s not someone you want to mess with. Trust me, my youngest boy’s already gotten four black eyes from her this year alone.”

“What? That little one blackened your boy’s eyes? She’s so tiny!” Micah exclaimed, his amusement clear.

Before he could say another word, Wynter launched herself onto his back, her tiny nails digging into his shoulders. Micah gasped, his body stiffening as he froze in place. “Assistance, please? Logan, call her off, Cousin. I don’t have the patience to deal with this—not when my brothers annoy me to no end on a daily basis!”

Smirking, I told Wyn to go annoy her own family. Wynter shot me a sly grin before sliding off his back, her tiny nails releasing their grip as she landed lightly on the floor. In seconds, she bolted into the other room. The crash that followed was deafening, accompanied by Jake’s panicked scream.

“Little Miss, what just happened?” Micah whispered, his tone a mix of awe and concern.

Maria’s glare could’ve melted stone as she whipped around to face him. “One, stop calling me Little Miss. My name is Maria. Two, that was Logan telling you not to challenge his rank. Her older brother is Logan’s Beta, and even he can’t deal with her.”

“Speaking of,” I groaned, trading my plate for Colton’s laptop. “Hey, Dad.”

“Logan,” my dad narrowed his gaze on the Vampire standing behind me. “Who is that?”

“One of my Vampire cousins, Dad. They want to go back to their ancestral home, but only you can make that happen. We can hash out the details later. I have a question.”

“If you even think about saying you want to stay, it’s out of the question, young man.” My mom’s face appeared on the screen, her voice cutting through my words like a blade. The wave of nostalgia hit me harder than I expected, tugging at my chest and reminding me just how much I missed home.

Shaking my head, I said, “Mom, it’s not like that. I am coming home, I promise. I just… I didn’t want to take the powers that my Bisabuelo Raymundo is offering me before talking to you first. I… He told me that I’m half-Vampire and that his power would help me.”

“How will his power help you, Logan?” Dad asked at the same time Mom pressed in closer to say: “Honey, they aren’t pressuring you, are they?”

Micah’s smile was warm, his voice steady as he leaned slightly closer to the screen. “Not at all, dear lady. Grandfather only wants to go to his final rest, and Logan is my Aunt Annabella’s only male heir. With that in mind, we can return to our original home to teach him how to control his Vampire half. As the eldest son, I assure you that we will come to your lands on peaceful terms. We, my brothers and I, do not want a war.”

“Logan, with your cousins’ promise that they will keep the peace for the entire Alliance of Shadows, I will consent to whatever you decide, son. Clara?”

Clara’s tone softened slightly, though the tension in her eyes lingered. “We can’t dispute that they are his family. Are they willing to do what it takes to train you?”

Micah nodded, his gaze earnest as he leaned forward. “Yes, of course, we are. I assume that he has already been showing signs of his heritage?”

That’s when it hit me. The ability to smell blood, hear heart beats, and the insatiable hunger that hit when I caught the whiff of rare meat… All of it pointed to a deeper, darker family history than I ever realized.

“Then you have my consent as well. Logan, come home,” Mom said firmly, pulling me out of my thoughts. “I don’t care that you’re more than a little different, baby, but you better come home. Oh, and Lorne wants to play with the coloring book on your desk.”

Hearing her voice and seeing her familiar expression tugged at my chest. The ache of homesickness hit me hard, but I buried it under the weight of everything still left to do.

I laughed. “He can have it. Thanks, Mom. Dad, I promise. I’m coming home with the others. I’m an Alpha of my word.”

“Yes, you are, my boy. Now, get some rest before you do anything else today,” Dad replied before cutting the link.

The next day, I was surprised when Raymundo agreed with my request to take Nikolai’s portion of his power and give it to Peter. His deep-set eyes gleamed with something unreadable as he inclined his head. Approval, perhaps, or relief.

When my turn to transition came, they handed me a small vial of Raymundo’s blood and told me to drink it. My fingers trembled slightly as I uncapped it, the metallic tang of freshly-drawn blood tickling my senses. My thirst flared unexpectedly, a primal hunger clawing at me from the depths of my being.

The pain came in waves, unrelenting and merciless. It felt like fire and ice colliding under my skin, surging through every nerve and setting my body ablaze. When it was over, I struggled to sit up, drenched in sweat from head to toe. Every muscle in my body screamed in protest with each move I made, my exhaustion as heavy as the air around me.

“Abuelo?” My hand flew to my throat when I realized my voice was raspy and raw. Just how bad was I screaming?

“He’s gone to Grandmother now, Logan.” I turned my head to the whispered words that sounded like they were spoken right next to my ear. Peter turned his tear-filled gaze to me, shaking his head as his voice cracked. “He’d been begging us to find you, to bring you here so he could finally be at peace. Father was greedy, but Grandfather knew you were stronger. He knew you would at least try to help us. It’s why he held on for you, Logan. He wanted to go to his final rest.”

The words settled over me like a heavy weight, and all I could manage was a quiet, “I see.”

It felt like my mother’s passing all over again. The same aching emptiness clawed its way into my chest, reopening wounds I thought had long healed. Once more, I’d lost someone who had been a constant presence—even if only in spirit. Raymundo hadn’t been there physically, but his influence had shaped me in ways I was only now beginning to understand.

The surge of power within me rippled like a current, sharp and restless, threading through every inch of my being. The changes weren’t just physical—they were foundational, a transformation that left no part of me untouched.