Chapter 22

Chapter

Twenty-Two

IVY

S unlight dapples through emerald leaves, casting playful shadows across my skin. The forest glade breathes serenity, a haven untouched by the world's cruelty. I stretch out on soft grass, feeling truly free for the first time in... I can't remember how long.

A sparkling pool catches my eye, its crystal-clear water beckoning. I crawl to its edge, cupping my hands to drink. The coolness slides down my parched throat, sweet and pure.

A whisper on the wind makes me pause. I lift my head, scanning the treeline. There, at the crest of a hill. Dark figures.

My breath catches.

The Ghosts .

My ears quiver at their call.

Wait. My ears?

I look down at the pool, seeking my reflection. A russet doe stares back, eyes wide with confusion. I blink, and she blinks too. This can't be real. I'm?—

A howl pierces the air. The Ghosts are no longer men, but wolves, racing down the hill with deadly grace. Panic floods my system. I leap to my feet—four delicate hooves beneath me—and bolt.

The forest blurs as I run. My new body moves with fluid precision, leaping over fallen logs and darting between trees. The wolves' panting grows closer, hot breath almost at my heels. My heart pounds, adrenaline singing through my veins.

I should be terrified.

I should fight harder to escape.

But as I bound and leap, a strange calm washes over me. What am I running from? These are my Ghosts, my pack.

What is freedom without my pack?

I slow, allowing my pursuers to gain ground. I take one final leap, clearing a stream so effortlessly, I could be flying.

The white wolf overtakes the others.

He lunges with a snarl, fangs bared, eyes molten silver .

His teeth sink into my throat.

A betrayal.

They weren't supposed to hurt me.

I jolt awake with a strangled gasp, disoriented and struggling to breathe. Darkness surrounds me, pressing in from all sides. My heart races, my neck stinging like I was stabbed.

It takes a moment for reality to seep back in. The suffocating darkness... A hood. It's still on, blocking out all light. I'm not in a forest. I'm not a doe.

And Valek...

The events leading up to this moment ignite sheer fury within me, burning away the last wisps of the dream. That fucking bastard kidnapped me. I struggle against my bonds, but my wrists and ankles are secured tightly with tight bands. Zipties? The more I fight, the more they seem to cut into my skin.

I force myself to be still, to think. I need information.

Where am I?

What does Valek want with me?

Memories are bleeding in faster now. I cut the chip out of the back of his neck. And I hesitated when he told me to leave with him. So what did he do? Drug me like he drugged Whiskey and kidnap me ?

What the fuck was I thinking, helping him like that?

All I know is I'm in some kind of vehicle. The perpetual rumble that doesn't let up and the occasional ear-splitting screeching wine of steel on iron confirms immediately I'm on a train.

And Valek's cold scent leeching through the musty smell of the hood confirms that fucking asshole is the source of warmth beside me. I want to scream, to thrash, to bite—anything to get away from him.

But I force myself to stay still.

To breathe.

To think.

The train's rhythmic clatter fills my ears, a constant reminder of my predicament. I try to focus on anything else—the scratchy fabric of the hood against my face, the cold wood floor beneath me, the ache in my muscles from being bound for who knows how long. Anything to distract from the sickening realization creeping up on me.

I couldn't leave.

The thought hits me like a punch to the gut, leaving me winded. Why? Why couldn't I just run when I had the chance? I'd dreamed of escape for so long, plotted and planned, waited for the perfect moment.

And when that moment finally came, when I finally had freedom within my grasp, I hesitated.

No. That's not quite right.

I didn't just hesitate.

I chose to stay.

The truth of it settles over me, heavy and suffocating. I chose to stay because... for the first time in my life, I want something more than I want to be free and wild again.

I want the Ghosts.

All of them. Even Valek.

Fuck .

I want to laugh. I want to scream. I want to cry. Instead, I lie still, my chest tight with emotions I can't even begin to untangle.

The realization twists something inside me, a mixture of self-loathing and bitter amusement. How pathetic. How utterly, stupidly pathetic. After everything they've done, everything they represent, I've fallen for my captors.

The way they look at me sometimes, like I'm the most precious thing in the world… It's all fake, of course. It has to be .

But God help me, I want to believe it's real.

The train lurches, and I'm jostled against Valek's side. His scent envelops me—crisp winter air, gunmetal, stone—and my traitorous body relaxes for a split second before I catch myself. I tense, hating myself for finding comfort in his presence.

Especially after what he did. The choice he robbed me of while whispering honeyed words about freedom and choice.

What a fucking joke.

"I know you are awake." His accented voice cuts through the rhythmic clacking of the train. "No point in pretending, little omega."

The pet name sends a jolt of rage through me. I turn my head toward his voice, wishing I could glare daggers through the hood. I settle for growling. "Fuck you."

He doesn't laugh or make a snarky remark like he usually would. Instead, he's silent. That makes the hair on the back of my neck prickle with unease.

The silence stretches, taught as razor wire. My skin crawls with the need to lash out, to hurt him like he's hurt me. But I force myself to stay still, to breathe through the rage. I need answers more than I need revenge right now .

"What do you want from me?" I spit the words out, acid on my tongue.

Valek shifts beside me. The warmth of his body bleeds through my clothes, making my skin prickle. "I want you to listen," he says, his voice low and measured. "You were not making the right choice."

A bark of laughter escapes me, bitter and sharp. "Oh, that's rich coming from you. You didn't give me a choice at all."

"No." His voice hardens. "I gave you a choice you could not make yourself."

My ziptied hands clench into fists in my lap, nails biting into my palms. "What the fuck is that supposed to mean?"

He sighs, a sound so weary it catches me off guard. "You are too bonded with this pack to leave on your own. Even if you ran, part of you would always be looking back. Wondering if you made the right decision."

The truth of his words stings, salt in an open wound. I want to deny it, to scream that he's wrong. But the dream flashes through my mind—the calm that washed over me as I slowed, letting the wolves catch me.

I swallow hard, pushing the memory away.

"So what?" I snap. "You decided to make the choice for me? Drug me and drag me away like some kind of prize?"

"No." There's an edge to his voice now, sharp as the knives he's so fond of. "I want you to help dismantle this false society. From top down, like I was doing before I was captured and thrown into prison to rot and die."

I freeze, his words sinking in slowly. "What?"

His words hang in the air, heavy with implication. I struggle to process what he's saying, my mind racing to connect the dots.

"Dismantle... the society?" I repeat, my voice barely above a whisper. "You mean?—"

"Yes." Valek's voice is cold, hard. "This system, it cannot be saved. Thane will want to fix things from inside. But some things are too broken to fix."

A chill runs through me, not entirely from fear. "So what's your plan?"

"To burn the world." His breath ghosts across my ear through the thin fabric of the hood, making my skin prickle. "To burn it all down and start over."

My heart pounds in my chest, a mix of excitement and terror coursing through my veins. It's everything I've ever wanted, isn't it? To see this cruel system crumble?

His words hang in the air. A part of me—the part that's been caged and beaten down for so long—wants to scream "yes" and watch it all go up in flames. But another part says no.

The part that wants the Ghosts.

"And then what?" I ask, my voice barely above a whisper. "When it's all ashes, what happens to me?"

Valek shifts beside me, the warmth of his body a stark contrast to the chill of his words. I can tell he doesn't know how to reply. Hasn't thought that far ahead.

A bitter laugh escapes me. "You didn't even want to set me free, did you? You just wanted me for yourself."

"Not true, little omega." His voice is sharp, cutting through the darkness. "I do want to set you free. That does not mean my instincts will let me, or that I am a good enough man to do it. But I do want to."

I turn my head toward his voice, wishing I could see his face. "And that makes it better?"

"It makes it honest," he says, a hint of frustration coloring his words. "You make me want to do the right thing. Perhaps I resent you for it."

His admission catches me off guard. I've never heard Valek speak so candidly before. It's unsettling, like the ground beneath my feet has suddenly shifted.

"But your chances of getting away are much higher with me, if that is what you choose," he continues. "And if you stay by my side when all this is over, I can show you all that remains in this world. There are places?—"

"I'm not interested," I cut him off, my voice hard. "I want the Ghosts."

The words surprise me as much as they seem to surprise him. Valek goes very still beside me, his breathing the only sound besides the constant rumble of the train.

"You want... the Ghosts?" he repeats slowly, as if tasting the words. "After everything?"

I swallow hard, fighting against the emotions threatening to choke me.

"Yes," I whisper. "I want my pack."

Valek's hand suddenly grips my arm, his fingers digging into my skin. "They are not your pack," he growls. "They may have prettier words to whisper to you, but they are still your captors."

I try to jerk away from him, but the zipties and his grip hold me in place. "And what are you?" I snarl back. "My savior? My knight in blood-stained armor? "

His grip tightens for a moment before he abruptly lets go. I hear him take a deep breath, like he's trying to calm himself.

"I am offering you a chance at real freedom," he says, his voice low and controlled. "Not the illusion of choice in a gilded cage."

"Real freedom?" I scoff. "You drugged me and kidnapped me. How is that freedom?"

"It is the start," he insists. "First step on a long road."

"If it's a start," I say slowly, "take off these ties and this hood."

The zipties are snipped away, followed by the hood. I blink rapidly, my eyes struggling to adjust after the prolonged darkness. Valek's face swims into focus, his silver eyes glinting in the dim light of the train car.

He's holding out his knife, handle first.

"Take it," he says, his accent thicker than ever. "You want your choice. You want to kill me? Do it. Freight train stops at the Reinmich outpost closest to the border with Vrissia, just west of a safe zone in the Outer Reaches. If you get off the train when the outpost is within sight and head directly east, you will reach it. You kill me, you are free. Right here, right now. "

I stare at the knife, my mind reeling. Is this another trick? Another test?

"Or," Valek continues, "we burn the world together."

My fingers twitch, itching to grab the blade. But I hesitate, searching his face for any sign of deception. His expression is unreadable, a mask of calm determination.

"Choose, little omega," he growls. "But you must make your choice."

Before I can even begin to process his words, a deafening crash echoes above us. The roof of the train car buckles inward, metal screeching as the car is torn open like a fucking sardine can.

A massive silhouette blocks out the moonlight streaming through the new opening. My nose fills with the familiar scent of leather and a forest after rainfall, but my heart recognizes him before anything else.

Wraith.

My heart leaps into my throat.

In a blur of motion, Wraith's arm shoots down, fingers digging into Valek's skull and gripping it like a bowling ball, a finger in each eye socket. Valek doesn't hesitate even as Wraith hauls him off his feet. He swings up with a snarl, burying his blade deep into Wraith's forearm.

A bone-chilling roar fills the train car as Wraith lets go of Valek, dumping him unceremoniously onto the floor. His face is hidden in shadow, but his piercing blue eyes flash in the moonlight.

The train car erupts into chaos. Wraith's massive form drops through the hole in the ceiling like an avenging angel, his body a blur of motion as he descends upon Valek. The impact shakes the entire car, metal groaning under the force.

Valek's head whips to the side a split second before Wraith's fist connects with the floor. Wood splinters and cracks, the sound of splintering timber drowned out by the rush of wind and the clatter of wheels on tracks visible through the newly formed hole.

The car lurches violently, throwing me off balance. I scramble to grab onto something, anything, as Wraith and Valek tear into each other like rabid animals. Their snarls and roars fill the air, punctuated by the shriek of tearing metal and splintering wood.

Valek's knife flashes in the moonlight, a silver blur as he slashes at Wraith's massive form. But Wraith is a force of nature, unstoppable and relentless. His fists crash down like sledgehammers, each impact shaking the entire car, his sweat-dampened black hair obscuring his face.

The train car bucks and shudders beneath my feet as I scramble to my feet. Wraith and Valek are locked in a deadly dance, fists and blades flashing in the moonlight. The car rocks violently as they slam into the walls.

The train rocks dangerously on the tracks. I need to do something, fast.

"Stop!" I scream, but my voice is lost in the cacophony of their battle.

There's no way they can hear me. They're fighting so hard and so viciously, they can't know they're about to derail the entire train. There's no way they would put me in danger like this if they have any idea.

I need to stop this train before we all die.

I lunge for the door, my fingers closing around the handle just as another violent jolt nearly sends me sprawling. The metal is ice-cold against my skin as I wrench it open, wind whipping my hair into my face.

The world outside is a blur of shadows and moonlight. We're high up in the mountains, the tracks hugging the edge of a cliff that plummets into darkness. My stomach lurches at the sight, but I force myself to focus.

Behind me, Valek lets out a pained grunt as Wraith slams him into the wall. The entire car shudders, the coupler between this car and the next twisting and sparking dangerously.

No time to think.

I grab the cold metal ladder that leads to the roof of the next car and haul myself up, the howling wind buffeting me. If I get to the front of the train, I can force on the emergency brakes. These freight trains are rarely manned by humans. They're controlled via satellite instead and escorted by drones. There's nobody up front who will realize something's wrong and put on the brakes so we can escape.

My heart sinks when I glance up at the sky. Six drones keep pace with the train in V formation. Their undersides flash red as they bank, revealing Reinmich's telltale flag. That fucking double-armed crimson cross on a field of black. The symbol that's haunted my nightmares for years.

It might mean freedom and safety to some, but not me. Especially not now. And right now, all six of them are trained on this train.

Fuck .

A red light blinks on the nearest drone's underbelly, and my blood runs cold. That's not just a camera. It's a weapons system powering up. We're seconds away from being obliterated.

I need to move. Now .

There's just no way I can get to the front in time.

Then something catches my eye. There's a pattern to the drones' movements, a split-second lag as they adjust their formation to account for the winding mountain track.

If I time it right...

No. It's insane. Suicidal, even.

But as another crash echoes from inside the car, followed by Wraith's bone-chilling roar and the sound of metal twisting and breaking away, I realize I don't have a choice.

I take a deep breath, waiting for that split-second window.

There.

I launch myself off the train car, my body arcing through the frigid night air. For one heart-stopping moment, I'm suspended between the speeding train and the cliff's edge, nothing but darkness below me.

Then my hands close around cold metal, and I'm clinging to the underside of one of the drones, my heart pounding so hard I'm sure it'll shake me loose.

The drone dips under my sudden weight, its engines whining as it struggles to compensate. I grit my teeth, fighting against the wind threatening to tear me away as the drones lift away from the train and start pursuing the one I'm hanging from.

The wind howls in my ears as I cling to the drone, my muscles screaming from the effort. I have seconds before the other drones calculate I'm hanging off one of them. My eyes lock onto the locomotive at the front of the train, a squat metal beast spewing smoke and sparks.

I swing my body forward, using my momentum to propel the drone toward the front of the train. The engines whine in protest, but I grit my teeth and push harder.

Just a little closer...

The other drones fall into formation behind us, red lights blinking ominously. I can almost feel their targeting systems locking onto me, the fine hair on the back of my neck and my arms prickling.

Now or never.

I release my grip on the drone and drop, my stomach lurching as I plummet toward the train. For a heart-stopping moment, there's nothing but air beneath me. Then my feet slam into the roof of the locomotive, the impact jarring every bone in my body .

I roll, barely catching myself before I slide off the edge. The wind tears at my clothes, threatening to rip me away. But I dig my fingers into a seam in the metal and hold on for dear life.

Above me, the drones open fire where I was just standing.

The night explodes into chaos. Laser fire streaks past me, slamming into the locomotive with deadly precision. Metal shrieks and twists, the engine erupting into flames.

The train bucks and shudders beneath me. I risk a glance back and my heart stops. The last few cars have already derailed, wheels sparking and screeching against the tracks. From this angle, I can't tell if Wraith and Valek are even still on the train to begin with. For all I know, they've fallen into the snow-covered mountainside sloping down from the tracks.

What I do know is we're out of time.

We have seconds, maybe ten, before the train reaches the bridge spanning the deep valley between this mountain and the next. There's no way the partially derailed train is going to be able to take the next curve without coming off the tracks entirely .

And then we'll plummet hundreds of feet to our deaths.

The locomotive groans, smoke billowing from its ruined engine. We're slowing down, but not fast enough. The mountain track curves sharply ahead, a sheer drop waiting to swallow us whole.

I swing myself into the burning cab, my fingers bloody from gripping the icy metal. The heat from the engine sears my face, but through the flames, I spot the emergency brake. It's partially melted, warped by the heat.

Fuck it.

I plunge my hand into the inferno, fingers closing around the scorching metal. Pain unlike anything I've ever felt sears through my arm. I grit my teeth and pull with every ounce of strength I have left.

The brake gives way with a shriek of tortured metal.

The world tilts sideways as the train finally loses its battle with gravity. I'm thrown clear, tumbling through the air as the ground rushes up to meet me.

Snow. So much snow.

I hit the slope and roll, my world a dizzying blur of white and pain. The roar of the derailing train fills my ears, punctuated by the thunderous impacts of cars crashing into the mountainside.

I come to a stop at the bottom of the slope, my body a mass of pain and cold. For a moment, I just lie there, gasping for breath, snow melting against my burning skin, soothing the already numb yet persistently needling pain.

A mechanical whine cuts through the air. My head snaps up, heart pounding harder as I spot three of the drones circling overhead. They're partially melted from the heat of the destroyed train, but their red targeting lights still paint the snow around me, zeroing in on my position.

This is it. I'm dead.

I close my eyes and grit my teeth, bracing for the searing heat of laser fire. But instead of death, a robotic, heat-warped voice blares from the drones.

"OMEGA. HOLD FIRE. OMEGA. HOLD FIRE."

My eyes fly open. What the fuck? How did they?—

The drones' weapons systems power down with an audible purr. For a split second, relief floods through me. Then reality crashes back in as they descend, surrounding me.

No. No no no.

Terror claws at my throat. I'd rather die than be taken again. My body moves on instinct, lunging for a fallen tree branch half-buried in the snow. My fingers close around the rough bark just as the first drone swoops down.

I swing with all my strength, connecting with a satisfying crunch of metal and sparks. The drone spirals away, smoking and beeping frantically.

Another drone dives for me. I duck and roll, coming up swinging. The branch connects again, but this time it splinters in my hands. Fuck . The drone I just hit whirs right back to life, chirping as it recalibrates.

A distant explosion echoes through the mountains, followed by the unmistakable sound of Wraith's enraged roar. Metal screeches and tears. Despite everything, a flicker of hope ignites in my chest. He's alive. Did he get his hands on one of them?

That's when I hear it. Boots crunching through snow. My blood runs cold as figures emerge from the treeline, firing on the drones, picking them off one by one with their assault rifles.

Vrissian soldiers.

Their stark white uniforms and white hair blend with the snow, making them look like ghosts materializing from the forest. The sight of them sends ice through my veins, colder than any mountain wind.

A snarl rips through the air, followed by panicked shouts.

"Holy fuck!"

Gunfire erupts, the staccato rhythm punctuated by Wraith's bone-chilling roars. I want to run to him, to help somehow, but my body won't cooperate. My legs give out, sending me crashing to my knees in the snow.

The soldiers are on me in seconds. Rough hands grab my arms, yanking them behind my back. Cold metal bites into my wrists as they slap cuffs on me.

"Target secured," one of them barks into a radio. "Omega female, early twenties. Initiating extraction."

I thrash against their grip, but it's useless. My body is beyond exhausted, pushed well past its limits. Black spots dance at the edges of my vision as they haul me to my feet.

"Let... me... go," I gasp out, my voice barely above a whisper. "Or… kill me."

One of the soldiers laughs, a harsh, grating sound. "Not a chance, sweetheart. You are far too valuable."

Valuable .

The word echoes in my head, filling me with fresh dread.

A scream pierces the air, followed by the sickening crunch of bones shattering.

"Forget repossessing the asset. Just kill it," another soldier snaps. "It's tearing through our men like tissue paper."

The asset? Repossessing? They must be talking about Wraith. Valek must be right. They are from the same lab.

Oh, god, no.

They're going to take him back there.

"Wraith!" I scream, my voice raw and desperate. "Wraith! Run!"

"Is that what you call that thing?" one of the soldiers jeers. They start dragging me toward a waiting hovercraft above the snow, the four fans below its tanklike steel chassis churning up the white powder and baring the dead grass beneath. I dig my heels into the snow, fighting with every ounce of strength I have left. It's not much.

A roar answers me, closer this time. Hope surges in my chest, only to be crushed as more soldiers pour out of the transport, weapons raised.

"Fire at will!" someone shouts. "Take it down!"

The air fills with the smell of ozone as energy weapons discharge. My heart leaps into my throat. Wraith may be nearly indestructible, but even he has limits.

I renew my struggles, throwing my weight backward. It catches the soldiers off guard, and for a moment, I think I might break free. Then pain explodes in the back of my head and the whole world goes dark.