Page 152 of Knot Heirs: Serenity's Reign

Relief washed through her, quickly followed by renewed determination. Darius hadn't betrayed her. None of them had. Which meant they were still looking for her, still fighting to prevent whatever these people had planned.

"You've missed your window," Serenity said, forcing confidence into her voice despite the growing discomfort of her accelerating heat. "The deadline for the hunt expires at midnight. Whatever claim you think you have on me ends then."

Victoria checked her diamond-studded watch. "It's only nine, my dear. We have three hours—more than enough time for our purposes."

Elena moved to a metal case positioned on the table, opening it to reveal medical equipment. Syringes, vials, monitoring devices arranged with clinical precision.

"What are you planning to do with me?" Serenity asked, unable to keep a tremor from her voice as she watched Elena prepare an injection.

"Since you missed your appointment with the island selection," Nikolai explained, "we've had to improvise. The Primal Circle requires a Vale contribution this cycle—particularly after your father's defiance."

"You can't force a mating bond," Serenity argued, though her certainty wavered as another wave of heat crashed through her. "It requires mutual acceptance, willing submission."

Victoria's laugh was cold. "Is that what they taught you in your expensive Omega biology classes? How charmingly naive. Biology doesn't require consent, Serenity. Put an Omega in full heat with compatible Alphas, and nature takes its course."

Horror crawled up Serenity's spine as their plan became clear. "You're going to—what? Lock me in a room with random Alphas and hope one of them bonds with me?"

"Not random," Nikolai corrected. "Specifically selected for genetic compatibility with Vale bloodlines. The Primal Circle has maintained careful breeding records for centuries."

Elena approached with the prepared syringe, its contents a pale amber liquid that seemed to glow under the harsh lighting. "This will accelerate your heat cycle to peak intensity within approximately two hours. By eleven, you'll be in full biological receptivity."

Serenity struggled against her restraints, panic lending her strength despite the drugs still circulating in her system. "You can't do this! The Society has laws—even you have to follow your own rules!"

"The Society serves the Primal Circle, not the other way around," Victoria replied, watching Serenity's struggles with clinical detachment. "When the lower council refused to sanction direct action against your father, more decisive measures became necessary."

"You're going to rape me," Serenity said bluntly, abandoning diplomacy for the harsh truth. "That's what this is—regardless of how you dress it up in tradition and biological inevitability."

Nikolai's expression hardened. "What we're doing is ensuring the continuation of bloodlines that have maintained our way of life for generations. Your discomfort is regrettable but temporary."

Elena positioned the needle against Serenity's neck, the metal tip cold against her overheated skin. "The Alphas we've selected are waiting in a secured facility. Once you're prepared, you'll be transported there."

"What happens after?" Serenity asked, stalling for time as she frantically searched for any avenue of escape. "After one of them forces a bond, what then?"

"Then you'll fulfill your biological purpose," Nikolai said simply. "Breeding. The Vale-Ryker combination is particularly valuable—your offspring will strengthen our genetic pool immeasurably."

The needle pressed into her skin, the injection burning as it entered her bloodstream. Almost immediately, she felt a new wave of heat surge through her, more intense than anything she'd experienced before. Her vision blurred at the edges, her focus narrowing as her Omega biology fought to overtake rational thought.

"Why?" she managed to ask as the drug took hold. "Why go to these lengths? Why not just kill me like you did my father?"

Victoria leaned down, her face inches from Serenity's. "Because, my dear, death is a waste of good breeding stock.Your father's defiance cost us our quarterly contribution to the island program—a setback, but survivable. Losing the Vale-Ryker genetic line entirely would be unforgivable."

"The Society has maintained balance for centuries through careful management of bloodlines," Nikolai added, watching as Serenity's breathing became more labored, her pupils dilating as the drug worked through her system. "Every ten years, a select group of Omegas is transported to our island facility to form bonds with compatible Alphas. The resulting offspring strengthen our collective genetic heritage."

Through the growing haze of artificially induced heat, Serenity forced herself to focus on one critical detail. "And if my father had agreed? If he'd offered me to your island program?"

"He would still be alive," Elena confirmed, her expression almost regretful. "And you would be on the island now, paired with an Alpha selected specifically for genetic compatibility with Vale bloodlines."

"Instead," Victoria continued, "we find ourselves in this regrettable situation. If we can't send you to the island as our contribution to the Primal Circle, we must bring a piece of the island here."

Nikolai checked his watch. "The Alphas will arrive at eleven. That gives the accelerant time to fully integrate with your system."

Serenity fought against the chemical fire spreading through her veins, desperate to maintain control of her faculties. "Alphas? Plural?"

"Insurance," Victoria explained with clinical detachment. "We've selected three candidates with optimal genetic compatibility to the Vale-Ryker line. Feral Alphas, rejected from civilized society but maintained for their superior genetic traits. Primal, unrestrained by social conditioning—they'll respond to your heat with purest biological imperative."

"You mean they'll fight over me," Serenity translated, horror cutting through the drug-induced fog. "Like animals."

"The strongest will prevail," Nikolai confirmed. "And bond with you. Nature's selection at its most efficient."

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