Chapter 66 Final Goodbyes (Vivienne POV)
Sophie packed her camera equipment with the methodical precision of someone preparing for war, which I supposed she was.
"You don't have to do this," I said for the fifth time that morning. "You could evacuate with the other humans. Be safe."
"We've had this conversation." She didn't look up from configuring her backup recording system. "I'm documenting. That's non-negotiable."
"You could die."
"Everyone could die. At least if I die, I'll die doing something that matters instead of hiding while my best friend faces genocide." She finally met my eyes. "Vivienne, I know you're scared. I'm scared too. But I'm not abandoning you."
"I'm not asking you to abandon me. I'm asking you to not get shot while filming supernatural violence."
"And I'm asking you to trust that I've planned for every contingency I can think of. Freya's protection charms, emergency extraction protocols, hidden camera positions, automated uploads to cloud storage." She gestured to her equipment spread across three tables. "If Edmund's hunters want to stop the stream, they'll have to work for it."
I wanted to argue more. Wanted to lock her somewhere safe until everything was over. But Sophie's determination was absolute… I'd learned that over months of friendship. When she decided on something, changing her mind was impossible.
"Okay," I said. "But promise me if things go catastrophically wrong, you'll shatter Freya's mirror and let her extract you."
"I promise to consider it if I'm literally about to die. That's all I'm offering."
"Sophie… "
"That's all I'm offering," she repeated firmly. "Now help me test the pen camera. I need to make sure it's recording properly."
We spent the next hour checking equipment, running streaming tests, confirming backup protocols. Sophie maintained professional focus throughout, but I felt her tension through small tells… the way she bit her lip when configuring difficult settings, how her hands shook slightly when handling the emergency extraction mirror.
She was terrified. She was going anyway.
That kind of courage deserved more than my anxiety.
"Thank you," I said as we finished the final equipment check. "For doing this. For being the kind of friend who shows up even when showing up is dangerous."
"That's what friends do." She packed the last camera carefully. "Now go say your other goodbyes. You've got a list, don't pretend you don't."
She was right. I had a list.
Marcus Whitmore was next… not because I wanted to talk to him, but because I owed him an explanation after Declan nearly killed him in the hallway weeks ago.
I found him in the library, studying for what I assumed were exams that wouldn't matter if Edmund's plan succeeded.
"Marcus? Can we talk?"
He looked up, surprise evident. "Vivienne. Hi. Yeah, sure." He closed his textbook. "What's up?"
Where to even start? "I wanted to apologize for Declan's behavior. When he attacked you in the hallway. That was... excessive."
"Bit of an understatement. He looked like he wanted to kill me." Marcus set his book aside. "But I talked to some people. They said he's your boyfriend? The possessive type?"
"Something like that." Close enough to the truth. "But it's more complicated than just jealousy. There's something happening tomorrow. During the tournament. Something dangerous."
"What kind of dangerous?"
I chose my words carefully. "The kind where people might get hurt. The kind where human students should probably not be in the building."
Marcus's expression shifted from curious to concerned. "Vivienne, what are you talking about? Is there a threat? Should I call security?"
"Security can't help with this. But you can." I pulled out my phone, showed him the facility layout. "Tomorrow evening, starting around six PM, you need to evacuate everyone from this building. All human students. Tell them there's a gas leak, a bomb threat, whatever you need to say. Just get them out."
"That's... are you serious?"
"Completely. Marcus, I can't explain everything because you wouldn't believe me if I tried. But tomorrow night, something violent is going to happen in the underground facility. People will die. I don't want human students caught in crossfire."
He was quiet for a long moment, studying my face. "You're not joking. You actually believe this."
"I know this. There's a difference."
"Okay. Say I believe you… and I'm not saying I do… but say I believe there's some kind of threat tomorrow. Why tell me? Why not go to authorities?"
"Because authorities can't stop what's coming. They'd just get in the way and possibly get hurt themselves." I met his eyes. "But you can spread word among students. Text your friends, post on group chats, create enough social pressure that people leave the building. You're popular. People listen to you."
"This is insane."
"I know. But will you do it?"
Marcus looked at me for another long moment, clearly trying to decide if I'd lost my mind. Finally, he nodded. "Yeah. I'll do it. I don't understand what's happening, but I'll get people to evacuate. Six PM tomorrow?"
"Six PM. Earlier if possible." I stood. "Thank you. And Marcus? I really am sorry about Declan. He was protecting me from something you couldn't have known about. It wasn't your fault."
"Just promise me you'll be safe tomorrow. Whatever this is."
"I'll try." That was all I could offer. "That's all any of us can do."
After leaving Marcus, I found myself walking toward my old dorm room in Thornfield House. I hadn't been back since moving to the safe house three weeks ago. My key still worked.
The room looked exactly as I'd left it… bed made with military precision the way Edmund had taught me, desk organized the way he'd insisted, photographs arranged the way he'd approved.
I picked up the frame on my desk. Edmund and me at age twelve, hiking in the Lake District. Both of us smiling at the camera. I remembered that day… remembered feeling proud that my father had taken time from his research to spend the weekend with me.
Data collection. That's all it had been. Testing my endurance, monitoring for supernatural traits.
Another photograph: age fourteen, helping with his "wildlife research." I looked so happy in that picture. So proud to be trusted with real work.
I'd been helping him plan genocide. Age fourteen and unknowingly contributing to murder.
The photographs lined my desk like a timeline of manipulation. Age five, age eight, age ten. Every year documented, every milestone photographed. I wondered if Edmund had other copies… filed away with his research data, cataloging my growth alongside experimental observations.
Would I ever see him alive again?
Did I want to?
The question sat heavy in my chest. Tomorrow, Edmund's hunters would attack. Gabriel's people would fight back. In the chaos, Edmund might be killed by his own conspiracy unraveling. Or he might escape, continue his genocidal crusade, spend the rest of his life hunting the daughter who'd chosen wolves over humanity.
Both outcomes hurt in different ways.
I set the photograph down carefully, exactly where it had been. Left the room without looking back. Whatever happened tomorrow, I couldn't spend my last day before battle grieving a father who'd never truly existed.
The sun was setting when I returned to the safe house. Tomorrow, the Silver Moon would rise at the same time, flooding the facility with ancient power that would amplify everyone's abilities while potentially degrading everyone's control.
Perfect conditions for violence.
Declan found me on the roof—my usual spot, though I'd be giving it up soon. Tomorrow we'd be underground, sealed in Edmund's trap, fighting for survival.
"How'd it go?" he asked, sitting beside me.
"Sophie's determined to document everything despite the danger. Marcus promised to evacuate human students. I visited my old room and confirmed that I'm never going back." I leaned against him. "How about you? Final preparations done?"
"Pack's positioned, equipment checked, coordination confirmed with other Alphas. We're as ready as we're going to be." His arm came around me. "Which means we've done everything we can. Now we wait."
"I hate waiting."
"Everyone hates waiting. But it's all that's left."
We sat in silence as darkness fell, stars emerging one by one. Tomorrow night, those same stars would be overshadowed by the Silver Moon… blood red and enormous, visible even underground through reinforced skylights.
"Declan?" I finally said. "If something happens to me tomorrow… "
"Nothing's happening to you."
"But if it does. If Edmund's hunters get through everyone and I end up captured or dead… promise me you won't do anything stupid trying to avenge me."
"That's not a promise I can make."
"Try anyway."
He pulled me closer. "If Edmund's hunters kill you, I burn everything. His network, his research, his entire genocidal infrastructure. I make sure he regrets every choice that led to your death. That's not revenge… that's justice."
"That's semantics."
"That's love." He made me look at him. "You're my mate. My person. The one I'd burn the world for. If something happens to you, I'm not just moving on like nothing changed. I'm making sure everyone responsible pays for it."
The certainty in his voice should have been concerning. Instead, it felt comforting… knowing that if I died tomorrow, I wouldn't die unavenged.
"Okay," I said. "Burn the world if I die. But try to survive first."
"Deal. You try to survive too."
"That was already my plan."
We stayed on the roof until midnight, neither of us wanting to sleep, both of us memorizing this moment. Tomorrow everything would change. Tonight, we had peace.
Finally, Declan stood, extending his hand. "Come on. We should at least try to rest."
His room was quiet, lit only by moonlight through the window. We didn't bother with pretense about sleep… just held each other.
"I can feel what you're feeling," I said. "Through the bond. Your fear, your determination, your love. It's all right there."
"I feel yours too. Terror about tomorrow. Grief about Edmund. But also certainty that you're doing the right thing." His hand traced patterns on my back. "You're brave, Vivienne. Braver than you give yourself credit for."
"I'm terrified."
"Brave and terrified aren't mutually exclusive. Brave means doing things despite terror." He kissed my forehead. "Tomorrow, you'll face your father's genocide attempt while accessing power you've barely learned to control. You'll force transformations, coordinate packs, potentially compel submission from dozens of wolves simultaneously. That's not something a coward could do."
"Or it's something a coward does because all alternatives are worse."
"Still counts as brave."
We didn't sleep… just held each other through the night, memorizing every touch, every breath, every moment of peace before violence. The bond strengthened with physical closeness, our consciousnesses intertwining until I couldn't tell where my fear ended and his began.
Dawn came too quickly.