Chapter 245

Chapter 245

Vivian

I pulled the control lever, restoring power to the building, when a powerful hand yanked me backward.

The masked man shoved me to the ground, delivering a vicious kick to my back that sent pain radiating through my body.

I rolled quickly, preparing to kick at his knees, but froze when I saw the silver gleam of a wolfsbane blade in his hand. My pupils contracted in recognition of the mortal threat.

He raised the blade, preparing to strike, but I used my medical training and natural agility to sweep his legs out from under him.

Though he stumbled, he regained his balance with surprising speed, slashing the blade toward my shoulder.

"Time's up. It's time for you to join your companions!" he rasped, his voice distorted behind the mask.

I rolled away from the lethal strike, and he crashed beside me, the blade scraping against the floor with a metallic screech.

Looking into his eyes, I felt an unsettling sense of familiarity.

I couldn't place him among the hunters Lucas had identified, but I was determined not to let any threat stop me from helping my mate.

He kicked at me again, but I jumped clear, only to have him grab my knees and drag me down.

I delivered a precise elbow strike to his temple while simultaneously grasping his wrist to control the deadly weapon.

I noticed his eyes darting toward the control lever and realized he intended to cut the power again.

With a sudden jerk, he pulled me to the ground.

Reaching into my dress, I withdrew the silver knife and slashed deeply across his arm. He howled in pain, releasing his grip enough for me to break free.

We both scrambled to our feet. As he lunged, I sidestepped, delivering a precise kick to his abdomen followed by an elbow strike to his jaw. I twisted his wrist until the wolfsbane knife clattered to the floor with a cold metallic sound.

"Quite surprising, doctor. Shouldn't you be following the 'do no harm' principle?" he taunted through labored breaths. "Healing lives rather than taking them, isn't that right?"

My eyes flashed with coldness. I lunged at him, slamming him against the electrical room's metal shelving and ripping off his mask.

"To protect our kind, we also eliminate threats that must be removed," I replied calmly, then gasped in shock as I recognized him—one of my first patients at Woodland Mercy Hospital, a man whose life I had saved.

My mind raced: 'He came specifically for me? How long has this attack been planned?'

He suddenly leaped for a gun resting on a shelf, but my werewolf reflexes were faster. I grabbed the fallen wolfsbane knife from the floor and, in one fluid motion, drove it into his chest.

His eyes widened in shock as he looked down at the spreading bloodstain.

"You... actually..." he gasped.

"I'm no longer the doctor you could easily harm," I said coolly, kicking him to the ground and watching the light fade from his eyes.

I grabbed his tactical jacket and dragged his body out of the electrical room, leaving a dark red trail of blood behind. I couldn't risk any accomplices cutting the power again.

Turning away, I left him in the darkened corridor. My only focus now was returning to Lucas and ensuring his safety.

---

Lucas

After confirming Vivian had safely slipped away, I quickly dispatched the attacker who'd been occupying my attention. I'd merely been stalling, giving her time to escape and restore power to the building.

I reached into my jacket, retrieving a concealed knife and hurling it toward Philip with deadly accuracy. The blade whistled through the air, striking his ear with a sickening thud, severing his communication device.

Philip howled in pain as blood sprayed from his mangled ear. He fired wildly in my direction, but I was already moving, anticipating his reaction.

"Fuck!" Philip screamed, yanking the knife from his ear. Blood poured down his neck, staining his expensive suit.

'I think that earpiece is permanently out of commission,' I thought with grim satisfaction.

Near the entrance, military personnel were attempting to control the panicking crowd while black-clad figures methodically searched people trying to leave.

'I may have disrupted their system, but they still have ways to smoke us out,' I realized.

Philip glared at me, pressing a hand against his bleeding ear. "This fucking sound—how is it not affecting you?" he demanded, his voice strained with pain and fury.

I turned back to Philip, allowing a predatory smile to spread across my face. "Because I'm not your ordinary wolf," I said, "I was born a predator. I am. Killing... runs in my blood... and you," I took another step closer, "you've only ever seen wolves trying to live peacefully, being law-abiding fucking citizens. No matter what happens, they won't turn to hunting and killing..."

With each word, I advanced, my presence growing more imposing.

'I never cared about fitting in. I never wanted to please them or anyone else,' I thought. 'Now it's time to end this.'

Philip fired again, the bullet heading straight for my chest. I didn't dodge this time. Instead, I summoned a barrier—invisible to most, but I knew Philip could see the slight distortion in the air as his bullet flattened and dropped harmlessly to the floor.

The look of shock on his face was almost worth all this trouble.

My eyes scanned the room, settling on a thin man giving orders from the shadows. 'Somehow, I know he's the one in charge... I just need to get to him, but I'll deal with this piece of shit first.'

"Yeah, I always knew you were a monster," Philip sneered, backing away. "All of you!"

I moved with inhuman speed, seizing his throat and lifting him off the ground. "Yet you craved to be one? Is that why you're so fucking angry?" I snarled, tightening my grip.

I was acutely aware of the security cameras recording everything, but at this point, it hardly mattered.

I maintained my barrier, shielding myself from the excruciating sound that was incapacitating other werewolves. I wasn't sure how long I could sustain it, but I needed to buy time.

Disgusted, I threw Philip aside and retrieved two guns from fallen attackers. Without hesitation, I opened fire on the men attempting to surround me.

"Stop!" a female voice cried out. I recognized Kate, one of the nurses, stepping forward. "He's just one man against all of you!"

A black-clad figure viciously kicked her to the ground. "Shut up! Are you one of them too?!"

Kate cried out in pain as she fell.

"Stand down! We don't harm civilians!" a soldier shouted at the man in black.

'Those in black clothes must be the Hunter Organization. Their faces are covered, but I'm sure I'm right...' I thought, mentally cataloging every detail.

Philip was attempting to escape through a side door. I fired twice, but my magazine clicked empty.

"Stop, Hunters! You'll gain nothing from this!" I shouted, trying to draw attention away from the civilians.

A sudden impact struck my back—not a bullet, but something else. The piercing sound abruptly stopped.

I felt my vision blur slightly, but I'd been trained to withstand extremes. I staggered backward, feigning greater disorientation than I felt, and dropped to one knee.

"Gain nothing?" Philip laughed maniacally, blood still streaming down his neck. "Don't you see? Tonight's massacre will prove you're nothing but killers, just as you said! Harlan?"

"Proceed," came a calm voice from the thin man I'd noticed earlier.

I looked up, recognition dawning as I identified the seemingly unremarkable man. I'd seen him before—one of the human president's people. The politician Harlan Burke.

'I knew I recognized those eyes... He can try to hide... try to fucking disguise himself, but I've analyzed all of them...'

A commotion erupted at the entrance as the massive doors slammed shut with finality. Shouts and struggles intensified as people realized they were trapped.

'They're going to kill these people and frame me—us. One man's massacre, proving we're too dangerous to live among them...'