The crane came down like a falling giant.
Metal screamed as the massive structure twisted and collapsed toward the pier. Chains snapped, cables whipped through the fog, and the ground shook beneath Vivian's feet.
"MOVE!" Jamo roared.
He grabbed Vivian around the waist and threw both of them toward the side of the dock just as the crane slammed into the wood with a thunderous crash.
The impact sent a shockwave across the pier.
Crates exploded.
Men were thrown off their feet.
One of Vale's soldiers was crushed instantly beneath the metal arm of the crane.
Smoke and dust swallowed everything.
For a moment there was nothing but ringing silence.
Then the shouting started.
Vale's soldiers scrambled, trying to regroup through the chaos.
Lucas dragged himself out from under a fallen pallet, coughing.
"What the hell did you do?" he shouted.
Vivian stared at the detonator still in her hand.
Her pulse hammered violently.
"I didn't mean to trigger that one."
Jamo stood beside her, eyes blazing.
"That crane nearly killed all of us."
Vivian snapped back, "You're still breathing."
Across the ruined dock, Vale stepped out from behind a steel container.
Unharmed.
Calm.
He brushed dust from his coat like the destruction was nothing more than an inconvenience.
"I must admit," Vale said slowly, "I didn't expect that."
His gaze settled on Vivian.
"Impressive."
Jamo growled low in his throat.
"Next time I won't miss."
Vale smiled faintly.
"Oh, Alpha… you misunderstand."
Behind him, several of his soldiers were already repositioning, rifles raised again.
"The real game is only beginning."
Lucas stepped beside Vivian, his voice tense.
"We can still bring the whole place down."
Vivian looked at the detonator again.
The blinking red light meant most of the charges were still active.
One press.
And everything would burn.
But now the situation had changed.
Half the dock was already destroyed.
Vale's men were scattered.
But Jamo's pack was still here.
If she pressed it now…
Some of them would die.
Jamo noticed where she was looking.
"Don't do it."
Lucas turned sharply.
"We don't have time for second thoughts."
"There are innocent wolves here," Vivian said.
Lucas's voice hardened.
"There are traffickers here too."
Jamo stepped forward.
"And my pack."
Lucas met his gaze coldly.
"You knew the risks when you built an empire in this city."
Tension exploded between them.
Vivian felt trapped between two fires.
Lucas.
Her brother.
The man she had spent years believing was dead.
And Jamo.
The Alpha who had somehow become the only thing keeping this city from tearing itself apart.
Vale watched them argue with clear amusement.
"You see?" he said quietly. "Even reunited, family remains… complicated."
He stepped closer.
And then he made an offer.
"Vivian," Vale said smoothly, "give me the detonator."
Everyone froze.
Jamo's voice dropped into a dangerous tone.
"You're not serious."
Vale ignored him.
"You want the traffickers stopped," Vale continued calmly. "So do I."
Vivian frowned.
"You run them."
"Some of them," Vale admitted. "But not the ones who took your brother."
Lucas's head snapped toward him.
"You're lying."
Vale shrugged.
"Believe what you want. But the wolves being moved tonight… weren't part of my operation."
Silence fell over the damaged dock.
Vivian felt her stomach twist.
"If that's true," she said slowly, "then whose operation is it?"
Vale smiled faintly.
"That," he said, "is the question you should be asking."
Lucas looked furious.
"Don't listen to him."
But Vivian couldn't ignore the possibility.
What if Vale wasn't the top of the chain?
What if someone else was pulling the strings?
Vale extended his hand.
"Give me the detonator. I'll let you and your brother walk away tonight."
Jamo stepped in front of her instantly.
"You're not touching that device."
Vale's soldiers tightened their aim.
Lucas leaned close to Vivian and whispered urgently.
"Blow it now."
Her heart pounded.
Jamo spoke low beside her.
"If you give him that detonator, he controls this battlefield."
Lucas countered.
"If you don't press it, he controls the city."
Vale waited patiently.
Like a man who already knew the outcome.
Vivian looked between all three men.
Her brother.
The Alpha.
The enemy who might be telling the truth.
The fog thickened around them again.
The ruined crane sparked as damaged wires snapped overhead.
The detonator blinked red in her hand.
Lucas whispered one last time.
"End it."
Jamo's voice followed.
"Trust me."
Vale smiled.
"Choose."
Vivian took a breath.
Then she did something none of them expected.
She tossed the detonator.
Not to Lucas.
Not to Jamo.
But directly to Vale.
For one stunned second
No one moved.
Jamo's voice dropped into pure disbelief.
"Vivian… what did you just do?"
Vale caught the detonator smoothly.
His smile widened slowly.
"Interesting choice."
Lucas looked ready to explode.
"You just handed him the city!"
Vale turned the device in his hand thoughtfully.
Then he pressed a button.
But not the one Vivian had pressed earlier.
Somewhere beneath the dock
A completely different explosion detonated.
The ground cracked open near the far end of the pier.
Revealing a hidden underground tunnel.
Inside it…
Rows of cages.
Filled with wolves.
Dozens of them.
And standing among the cages…
A man Vivian never expected to see again.
Her breath caught in her throat.
Lucas whispered in disbelief,
"That's impossible."
Because the man standing inside the tunnel…
Was supposed to be dead.
And he was looking directly at Vivian.
Smiling.