Page 121 of Reckless: Corruption

My heart stutters as I decode it: Secondary asset secured. Proceeding to rendezvous point. Phoenix Protocol initiated.

“Is it them?” Theo asks, hope cracking through his heat-strained voice.

I nod once, relief washing through me like a physical force. “Phoenix Protocol. They’re alive and heading here.”

“With the booster?” Jinx demands, already preparing to leave, to meet them halfway.

“Unknown.” I pocket the device. “Message was minimal for security.”

Finn convulses again, the seizure more violent than before. When it passes, his breathing comes in shallow gasps, skin taking on a deeper bluish tinge that spreads visibly beneath his skin.

“How much time does he have?” I ask quietly when Theo rejoins us. His heat scent has intensified despite the crisis, his body fighting both biological imperatives and emotional distress simultaneously.

Theo’s eyes shimmer with unshed tears. “Hours, maybe. The oxygen’s helping, but his body is fighting something it can’t beat.” He presses a trembling hand to his abdomen, wincing. “And my heat won’t wait much longer. Once we stabilize Finn and reunite with Cayenne, we’ll need to address it. All of us, together.”

“Will he last until they arrive?” Jinx asks, the question stripped of his usual bravado.

The truth claws at my throat. I don’t know. None of us do. This virus is an unknown entity, and without Mona’s expertise, we’re operating blind.

But what I do know is this—pack doesn’t abandon pack. Not ever.

“We hold position,” I say firmly, the alpha in me rising to meet the challenge. “Secure the perimeter, stabilize Finn with everything we have, and prepare for their arrival.”

Jinx nods, already moving to reinforce our defenses. Theo focuses on keeping Finn’s fever under control. And I stand watch, eyes scanning the darkness beyond our temporary sanctuary.

As the night deepens around us, something strengthens in the pack bond—a distant but unmistakable pulse of determination. Cayenne. Our connection may be stretched, but it isn’t broken.

Beyond these walls, Sterling’s forces hunt us. Finn fights for his life against an engineered virus. Theo battles biology itself. And somewhere in the chaos, Cayenne and Mona race against time to reach us with the one thing that might save us all.

This isn’t defeat. This isn’t even retreat.

This is pack, adapting. Surviving. Finding its way back together against impossible odds.

And when we reunite—because we will reunite—Roman Sterling will learn exactly what happens when you threaten what’s mine.

Every. Last. Piece.

Epilogue

Roman

Laboratory lights castclinical shadows across my specimen cases, each one meticulously labeled and cataloged. The silence feels almost reverent—this is my temple of science where biology itself bends to human will.

I observe the chaos theory equations Mona left scrawled across whiteboards. Clever girl. Even in her rebellion, her brilliance shines through—a Sterling trait, however much she might deny it.

“Report,” I say without turning, sensing Alexander’s presence at the doorway. My son’s footsteps carry the slight asymmetry he’s had since childhood—since Mona’s little accident.

“We disrupted the pack structure,” Alexander states, voice carefully modulated to hide disappointment. “But failed to recover the primary assets.”

“Both of them?” I finally turn, studying the bruises darkening his jaw and the lingering unsteadiness in his posture. “Interesting.”

“Cayenne has... evolved beyond our projections.” Something flickers in his eyes—respect, perhaps. Or resentment.

I allow myself a small smile. “Of course she has. She’s a Sterling.”

I move toward the central display—genetic sequencing data scrolling across multiple screens. Under bright lights, vials of iridescent liquid gleam like captured stars, embodiments of years of painstaking research.

“The revised formula is performing as expected?” I inquire, already knowing the answer.

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