Chapter 186: Like moths to a flame

Looking at the manic glint in Ian’s eyes, a sick sense of relief washed over me: the buyer was Nyland. Back at university, Nyland had tried to force his protection on me. I was terrified of him—terrified to my very core—but if these two had kidnapped me solely for my gland, they would have tortured me and carved me into pieces without a second thought.

As long as Nyland wanted me intact, I still had a chance to survive.

The horror of their words, their unspeakable acts, and their blind, ruthless greed terrified me to my very core. My heart broke for that poor, unknown girl whose gland they had ripped out before discarding her to die. By their own admission, she was just a young child. For a sin like that, there could be no forgiveness—not in this world, nor in the next.

Monsters like them needed to be put down like rabid dogs. They were the true beasts here, a visceral danger to society.

Slaughtering an innocent child and preying on a defenseless woman for a stack of cash... Yet, for all his grand talk, Ian hadn’t carved out his own gland to sell. Oh no, taking someone else’s was far easier. He wept over his own scarred face, yet stood ready to butcher me and others for parts or sell us into human trafficking. A bastard. A filthy, vile, irredeemable bastard.

After that, they paid no more attention to us. I could feel the deep, steady vibration of a powerful engine humming beneath us, the container swaying rhythmically from side to side. It was obvious we were hurtling down a major highway at breakneck speed, weaving past traffic.

Adam and I sank quietly onto the cold steel floor, tucking ourselves behind the trunk of our disabled car, away from the watchful eyes of those monsters. They hadn’t even bothered to confiscate our belongings—there was no point, given the total lack of signal inside the metal vault.

"Adam... what he said... is it true?" I breathed into the older man’s ear, my voice barely audible. "If that fluid is reinjected, will she survive?"

"Yes," he replied in an equally hushed whisper. "Though preserving that secretion is extraordinarily difficult. It requires the precise body temperature of an unawakened breeder—exactly thirty-four degrees Celsius."

"Why specifically an unawakened one?"

"Because they cut it out of a child. Notice how dark and cloudy the fluid is? The hormone was still maturing... Damned bastards. Even if we miraculously found the girl—which is impossible right now, considering we need to save ourselves—the window for her body to fully mature spans anywhere from eighteen to twenty years. And there’s no guarantee she would ever awaken after such a trauma. The longer she goes without her secretion, the faster her body degrades. Her chances at a normal life bleed away with every passing year..."

"Why is it so coveted? Why go through all this?" I asked, watching the color drain from Adam’s face.

He rubbed his inflamed eyelids with trembling fingers and exhaled softly.

"You know I used to be a chief surgeon, right? I held high-level clearance to government archives. Not top-tier, but enough... One night, after a hospital gala, the chief physician and I drank far too much and accidentally swapped badge cards. I had no malicious intent, but the next morning I unlocked my terminal using his key out of habit and landed straight on his classified desktop. He had left confidential research files open. Research heavily bankrolled by the state and classified under national security."

He paused, leaning closer, his eyes sharp despite his exhaustion. "The truth, Jane, is that an Alpha Breeder is the absolute pinnacle of evolution. She can bear strong, genetically superior offspring with any mate—not just her true bonded Alpha. True bonds are exceptionally rare for Alpha Breeders not only because their numbers are low, but because biologically, they don’t need them. Any male is instinctually driven to protect her at all costs. They are drawn to her like moths to a flame. She can command anyone. That’s why those studies were conducted exclusively by humans—though the reports noted she exerts a passive, overpowering influence over humans as well."

Adam took a shuddering breath. "I never told you the full truth because I am, in fact, on an international wanted list for accessing those files. I wasn’t just living on the streets because of my illness—I was hiding from hit squads sent to silence me. Magnus wanted to spare you the anxiety, so he kept it from you. But you need this knowledge now, Jane. You need it to survive."

"Is... is that for real?"

The truth Adam laid bare shredded my reality to pieces. Being an Alpha Breeder was already life-threateningly dangerous, but now my existence was public knowledge to practically every predatory werewolf in the city—and perhaps across the globe. It felt as though a blinding red neon signal was painted across my back. I was destined to be a target for the rest of my days. Always hunted. Always in danger.

"Yes," Adam whispered, his eyes dark with grim gravity. "But there is more. If that secretion is correctly synthesized and administered to a standard breeder... she can be forced to evolve into a breeder like you. If a vaccine is engineered for recessive, weaker breeders, it could trigger mass awakening across the population. That tiny vial holds a terrifying, world-altering force. It goes beyond granting immense physical capability—it can overthrow entire global empires. Superpowers would tear each other apart just to possess it."

"But why?!" I pleaded, cold sweat breaking out across my neck. "Breeders are vulnerable everywhere. We’re—"

"You are, yes," Adam interrupted gently. "But Alphas form the core might of every major nation. Do you see now? They occupy the highest positions of power, possessing astronomical wealth, influence, and physical strength that dwarfs baseline humanity. If a dominant Alpha loses control, his released aura alone can crack a concrete structure to its foundation. Yet werewolf populations rarely produce the true Alpha gene, while in many nations, the harsh, polluted environment prevents breeders from ever awakening naturally. The resulting disparity in power is catastrophic. Unbound dominant wolves are volatile liabilities to national security—yet easily controlled when they have something precious to lose."

Adam leaned closer, his whisper cutting through the hum of the truck’s tires.

"Think about Magnus. He is an absolute dominant, possessing unimaginable strength. You are an Alpha Breeder. Together, the two of you represent an uncontrollable, existential threat to the global status quo. And the only thing more terrifying to the establishment than the two of you... is the child you carry."