Victor wakes up from a dream he can't remember. All he knows is that he has this burning desire to hold Ariadne in his arms as tightly as possible.Only the Omega isn't there, where she'd been last night, still safely tucked under Victor's embrace.The Alpha swallows the soul-crushing ache and quickly swipes away the tears that are drizzled on his cheeks.What did he dream about?Victor spies a red leather chair, with buttons sewn into the divots and golden painted appendages.Ariadne sits there, a distance away, only half-lit in the gloom of the dawn.She's a ghost, vaporous as the tiny dust fibers swim carelessly through the air.

"I can't go," Calvin says urgently. "He told me to stay in this chair no matter what happens. I can't move, Ed. I can't- I can't move, or else he'll hurt me again."Victor feels something profoundly painful rip into him.His wolf snarls, wanting to tear through his ribs. He doesn't want to be a man anymore. He wants to run away, slipping into an animal's safe, numb mind."He can't h-hurt you anymore," Edward whispers. "He's not here. He lost. We saved you. Please, Calvin, just come with me. I love you. I promise he'll never touch you again."For a moment, everyone stands still like a statue, then Calvin jumps from his seat and into the silver Omega's arms.The Beta cries so hard, shuddering into the tight embrace. "He hurt me so much."At that moment, Victor's shoulder burns where the bullet had grazed him.Now that the danger has passed, his body wakes up. He is wounded, and his nerves decide to remind him so.But he's relieve

"Calvin's up. He's in a bad way. Victor, if you want to talk to him- um- you can." Victor drains his coffee. "God damn, you need to use measuring cups next time. This is more bitter than my ex's asshole." Waylon flushes. "I'm sorry I can't make coffee-flavored water the way you like it. Just drink up, b*tch. I can't leave Calvin unattended." Victor sighs, "I am drinking it." The Alpha likes disrespectful Waylon more than he should. The two march back upstairs to the guest room, where Edward sits by Calvin's side. The Beta's eyes look positively war-torn

Ariadne watches as the two Alphas circle each other. Tremors run through Victor's body.His eyes are glowing coals. His claws are razor blades.As if to set the ambiance, Arthur's GT catches fire in the background. The explosion is so powerful that the car leaps off the ground in a blue ring of destruction before crashing down in a thunderous boom.From the ashes, plumes of thick gray smoke and burning debris.The Alphas remain unaffected. Both Victor and Arthur continue circling one another with pinpoint focus.All the while, Victor is profusely bleeding from a bullet graze on the top of his head. It looks terrible, a tar-black line coated in red, bits of hair, and skin torn right off.But as bad as Victor is, Arthur is even worse. His left arm is dislocated, hanging uselessly at his side. He has scratches everywhere. One along his eyes is so deep that he can't even open it.Ariadne sees everything in slow motion; all the molecules i

“You saved my life,” Victor whispers.Ariadne’s heart thuds in her chest. What is the Alpha talking about?“How can you explain that? Why didn’t you just let me die then?” Victor continues. “Then you could’ve had everything you wanted.”“It was a trick,” Arthur spat. “You think I could have the throne if I let you die?”“No one would have known. It would have only been your word,” Victor answers. “But you saved me anyway.”Arthur sounds like he’s crying. “What do you want from me, Vic? You have everything already. Do you want me to love you too? Just like everyone does, even Ariadne, and she-she doesn’t love anyone. Somehow you won her too. You win. Is that what you want?”“I just want to say goodbye,” Victor says.“I hate you. I hate you so much, you f*cking idiot. There’s nothing that