Chapter 566: Sealed
"Electricity!" Violet shouted.
"What?"
She pointed at the panel. "What if we shock him? Give him a massive jolt, enough to wake him up. His body’s been hijacked by those drugs, right? What if we override them and force his brain to reset?"
Ace’s mouth fell open, then his face lit up with excitement. "That actually makes sense!" He rushed to the panel, eyes scanning the machinery like a man seeing treasure. "The drugs my mother gave him are chemical inhibitors. They suppress neural activity and disrupt his wolf bond. A high-voltage surge could flood his system, forcing his neurons to fire properly again."
"So," Violet said, "it’s like jump-starting a dead battery. The drugs are the virus, and the electricity is the reboot."
"Oh, absolutely," Ace said, almost breathless. "Good thing Alaric’s body is already adapted to channel lightning. If anyone can survive this, it’s him." He face-palmed dramatically. "Why didn’t I think of this earlier? Nice one, Oscar," he praised.
Violet found herself blushing. She might not be a genius like Alaric, but she wasn’t stupid either.
Ace flicked several switches on the control panel. One by one, industrial lights blazed to life overhead, revealing the full scale of the warehouse. Rows of towering metal racks stretched into the distance, stacked with crates marked with various symbols.
Alaric froze mid-giggle, squinting up at the sudden brightness. "Pretty lights," he whispered, then began clapping like a delighted child.
"Good thing this is W-B," Ace said quickly. "W-A holds the really volatile stuff. I was careful with my little scale bombing. They know that too, which is why they’ll be busy putting out the fire before it escalates. Hopefully, this works, and we get the hell out of here." He ripped open a side compartment and began twisting thick copper cables into a rough conduit.
Meanwhile, Violet went to get Alaric. "Come, Alaric."
Alaric didn’t protest. He followed her excitedly, like a little kid.
Ace said, "Although Alaric’s immune to electricity, flooding his system with it will still hurt."
"Alaric can take it. He’s strong," Violet replied firmly.
Ace nodded.
Violet dragged Alaric toward the cleared space where Ace had kicked crates aside. She crouched in front of him and instructed softly, "You won’t move from this spot, okay?"
Alaric nodded, then asked, "Will you stay with me?"
Violet nodded with a reassuring smile.
Ace attached one cable to the live panel and held the other above Alaric’s chest. "Once I complete the circuit, there’s no going back. You have to let go of him immediately," he warned, eyeing their intertwined hands.
"Do it," Violet said, her voice steady.
Ace hesitated for just a heartbeat, then counted down. "Five... four... three... two... Move now!" he commanded, slamming the cable down, fully expecting Oscar to move away.
But Violet didn’t move a muscle.
When Ace realized what she’d done, it was already too late.
The effect was instantaneous. Alaric’s body arched violently, a guttural scream tearing from his throat. Sparks raced across his skin, glowing patterns crawling beneath his flesh like veins of light and traveling straight into Violet, binding the two of them in a dangerous, unbreakable connection.
"Oscar!" Ace yelled, panicking. He reached for the controls to shut it off, but Violet’s thunderous voice stopped him.
"Don’t!"
Ace froze, utterly stunned. What the hell was going on? How was Oscar immune to electricity? No werewolf was—except his brother. He had brushed off their first encounter as luck, but this was something else entirely. This was impossible.
Violet gritted her teeth, muscles straining as she fought to hold on. Alaric’s eyes rolled back, then snapped open, glowing with wild, unrestrained lightning. The ground beneath them trembled as his power surged, threatening to rip the warehouse apart.
"Almost there!" Violet shouted through the storm of energy. "One more surge should do it!"
Ace, shaken but desperate, frantically adjusted the controls. Goddess help him, he was going to need the longest vacation of his life after this nightmare.
He slammed the final lever.
Every light in the warehouse burst in a blinding shower as Alaric absorbed not just the charge in the room, but the entire North Pack’s electrical grid. For one terrifying moment, the world seemed to hold its breath.
Then, just as suddenly, it was over.
Alaric and Violet collapsed to the floor, limp and gasping, while Ace stood frozen, unable to process what he was seeing.
Oscar was gone and in his place was Violet.
Ace’s brain stuttered to a halt. One moment, Oscar had been standing there, and the next, Violet. Was it Violet all along?
Wait. Wasn’t Violet supposed to be human?
Ace’s throat worked, but no sound came out. His mind spun wildly, trying to make sense of the chaos. It was safe to say, he was seconds away from completely losing it.
And then, as if things weren’t already insane enough, the next words he heard were:
"Mine!"
Followed immediately by another guttural, possessive, "Mine!"
Ace froze. What the actual hell?
His head turned slowly, painfully slow, like someone about to witness a horror they could never unsee.
Alaric’s lips slammed into Violet’s. The two of them devoured each other in a frenzy, kissing so fiercely it was more like a collision than an embrace. Their hands clawed at clothes, ripping fabric with desperate urgency.
Ace’s expression crumbled into pure horror.
Goddess save him.
If this was punishment for not saving his brother earlier, then he was sorry. He was so, so sorry.
But watching his brother have sex? Absolutely not.
Ace whipped his head away and bolted, sprinting blindly until he turned a corner and pressed his back to a crate, his chest heaving. He squeezed his eyes shut, wishing he could block out reality.
But there was no escape.
His cursed werewolf hearing made sure he caught everything from the wet sound of their lips locking, to the sharp tear of fabric, and finally, Alaric’s deep, strangled groan as he buried himself inside Violet’s waiting heat.
Ace slapped his hands over his ears, groaning in despair. This was a living nightmare.
From the other side of the warehouse, Violet had her legs locked around Alaric’s waist, her back pressed against a stack of crates. Alaric moved with feral hunger, thrusting into her as it he couldn’t get enough.
The matebond had ignited, and there was no stopping it now.
Suddenly, the warehouse doors burst open as Zara stormed in with a squad of guards, only to freeze.
For a moment, the entire world seemed to stop. Zara’s face went pale, her eyes wide with disbelief. "No..." The word left her lips in a whisper.
Violet’s head turned toward her, and her lips pulled back into a sinister smile. Immediately, her sharp, gleaming fangs descended, a promise of violence and defiance.
"No!" Zara screamed, realizing what she was about to do.
But it was too late.
Violet sank her teeth into Alaric’s neck and drank his blood.
Alaric’s roar of pain and pleasure echoed through the warehouse. His own teeth sharpened in response, his instincts overwhelming thought, and he bit down on Violet’s shoulder.
Their blood mingled, and their bond locked.
The matebond was sealed. Forever.