Chapter 154: Aeternum Biotechnologies

The next morning, while Scott and the pack were having breakfast in the kitchen of the pack house, Derek walked in with Peter trailing behind him, grinning like an idiot.

Cora looked at Peter with disgust. "So you survived."

Peter smirked. "Why do I get the feeling that you wanted your dear uncle to die, Cora?"

Cora snorted. "You should trust that feeling, Peter."

Peter ignored her and turned to Scott. "First, I want to thank you for saving my life. But more importantly, for making me part of your pack. I know I'm not a good person… but you have my word. I'll never betray you. Or anyone in the pack."

Scott raised an eyebrow. "Is that so?"

Peter nodded. "Yes. Derek told me about our pack's abilities, and I'm not stupid enough to throw that away. And…"

He looked over at Malia.

"…even though I didn't know I had a daughter until recently, I want to try. I want a relationship with her."

Malia frowned and looked at Derek. "You told him?"

Derek shrugged and said. "No. He saw the Deadpool." Then, he sat down and grabbed a plate.

Peter nodded. "Your real name was on it. It didn't take long to figure it out."

Malia narrowed her eyes at him. "Well, don't get your hopes up. You're just a sperm donor, and I already have parents."

Peter winced. "Ouch. That hurts."

Scott sighed. "Alright, stop playing around, Peter. Tell me, who were the people from yesterday? What did they want from you?"

Peter pulled out a chair and sat down. "I don't know who they were. I had just gotten back to Beacon Hills when the three guys you found in the vault jumped me. They shot me with a dart filled with something nasty. First I lost my strength. Then my control over shifting. Then came the black blood and pain."

Stiles leaned forward. "They took you to the vault after that?"

Peter shook his head. "No. They met up with two others. Two women. One of them was a banshee."

Lydia's eyes narrowed. "How do you know she was a banshee?"

"Because before she left, she spoke to me." Peter said. "She said. 'I didn't want to kill you, Peter. But too bad, they already poisoned you. You're going to die tonight. I can feel it. I'm a banshee, after all. I'm sorry.'"

Stiles blinked. "Why didn't she want to kill you?"

Peter shook his head. "I don't know why. Before I could ask anything, the other woman told her to shut up. But that Banshee didn't seem like the others. She was... hesitant. Emotional. Either she's new to this, or she's not onboard with what they're doing."

Victoria asked. "Tell us about the other woman."

"She was a shapeshifter. Strong. And definitely the one in charge."

Stiles frowned. "What kind of shapeshifter?"

"I'm not sure." Peter said. "She wasn't a werewolf, but something close. She was angry, and her eyes glowed red when she realized I'd been poisoned, so she's an Alpha."

Stiles tilted his head. "Why was she angry? Did she want to keep you alive too?"

Peter shook his head. "No. She wanted to read my memories, but because I was poisoned, she didn't dare to touch me."

Lydia said. "If they wanted your memories, they could've just let the banshee do it. She can read your memories just by touching you, and since she's not a shapeshifter, that poison probably wouldn't affect her."

Peter shrugged. "Maybe they didn't think of that, or they just didn't know she could do that. Or maybe the poison they used on me wasn't only deadly to shapeshifters."

Scott leaned in. "What did they want from you?"

Peter's face twisted with anger. "They took my money."

Stiles blinked. "Money?"

"I don't know how they knew it was there, but I heard them talking. They wanted to get into the vault but couldn't. So they captured me, used my claws to open it, and stole my money." Peter growled.

Stiles asked. "How much?"

Peter muttered. "A hundred and seventeen million. In bearer bonds."

Everyone stared in stunned silence.

Then, Stiles turned to Derek with raised eyebrows. "Was your money there too?"

Derek shook his head. "No. Mine and Cora's weren't in that vault."

Stiles looked back at Peter, grinning. "So it was just your money. They cleaned you out, huh? Do you have to get a job now?"

Peter narrowed his eyes. "That wasn't all my money, kid. But they took what's mine, and I'm getting it back."

Stiles chuckled. "Good luck with that."

Chris spoke up. "Did you hear them say anything about who they are or where they came from?"

Peter shook his head. "No, I don't know who they were or where they came from. All I know is that all of them answer to someone, and that person is the one behind the Deadpool."

Scott asked. "What happened after they took the money?"

Peter said. "The shapeshifter woman told those three guys—the ones you found in the vault—to pack up everything in there, including my corpse. She told them to call her when they were done so she could send someone to pick it all up. Then she took the money and left with the banshee. And not long after that, you guys came to the vault."

Stiles looked at Scott. "So… what now?"

Scott sighed. "I don't know. Our best shot at finding out who the Benefactor really is… is to capture that shapeshifter woman or the banshee and read their memories. Let's just hope they don't have a kill switch in their heads too when we find them."

Melissa said. "Alright, kids. For now, you need to go to school. You're going to be late. And be careful."

With that, Scott and the pack members who needed to go to school finished their breakfast and left, and the rest of the pack went about their day.

---

Meanwhile, somewhere in Beacon Hills...

Inside a sleek, modern six-story corporate building on the outskirts of town, with a massive silver plaque above the entrance read Aeternum Biotechnologies, while a crimson infinity symbol gleamed atop the structure.

Meredith walked beside a black-haired woman through the polished glass doors. The lobby smelled of artificial lavender and something faintly chemical. Employees in lab coats and business attire moved through the space with quiet efficiency.

The woman guided Meredith to a private elevator that required a retinal scan. She leaned forward, the scanner blinking green as it recognized her. The doors slid open, and they stepped inside, ascending in silence to the sixth floor.

When the elevator doors opened, they revealed a spacious, high-tech office blended with a research lab. Two desks and shelves lined with carefully labeled vials filled the space. The scent of antiseptic lingered in the air, tinged with something metallic—blood, most likely, from a recent experiment.

A middle-aged man with a full beard stood over a holographic projection of DNA strands. Across the room, a blonde woman in glasses traced her fingers along a glass vial containing a swirling black liquid.

Both wore white lab coats.

They were Dr. Elias Lumen, a geneticist, and his wife Dr. Vivian Lumen, a biochemist—the co-founders of Aeternum Biotechnologies.

The black-haired woman entered first. Meredith followed, her expression unreadable.

Vivian turned from the window and addressed the black-haired woman.

"Morrigan. We were occupied yesterday and couldn't debrief you. Tell me, how did the mission go?"

Morrigan said. "We retrieved the 117 million, as ordered. The Hale vault artifacts were being packed when we left last night. But..."

Vivian's gaze sharpened. "But what?"

"I instructed the three guys from the Colectores team to contact me when they finished packing." Morrigan said. "I was going to send a team for extraction. But I haven't heard from them since."

Elias frowned. "Could Peter Hale have done something to them?"

Morrigan shook her head. "I don't think so, sir. The Colectores poisoned him. The toxin they used should have finished him off within minutes after we left yesterday."

"He's alive." Meredith said.

All eyes turned to the banshee.

Morrigan stared at her. "That's impossible. The toxin was developed in our own labs—no werewolf has ever survived it."

"I'm a banshee." Meredith replied flatly. "I can feel death. And Peter Hale isn't dead."

Morrigan frowned. "Why didn't you tell me this yesterday?"

Meredith said. "I went straight to my room after we returned. And you didn't ask until now."

Vivian stepped forward, eyes cold and calculating. "And the Colectores?"

Meredith's voice was calm, detached. "Dead. All three."

Elias let out a frustrated breath. "Then someone must have saved Peter. The question is—who? Meredith, do you know?"

She shrugged. "No. But if I had to guess... another Hale."

Vivian waved it off. "It doesn't matter. The money was the priority—and we got it."

Elias leaned back in his chair, expression darkening. "Beacon Hills is proving... more problematic than we anticipated." His eyes narrowed as he turned to Morrigan. "Hire real hunters for me. Professionals, not amateurs. Promise them a bonus on top of the Deadpool bounties. And tell them I want the True Alpha and his pack hunted as soon as possible—preferably alive."

Morrigan nodded. "Yes, sir. Consider it done."

Elias's lips curled into a grin. "This town has surprised me. Do you know how many supernaturals we've cataloged here in just three weeks? More than anywhere we've operated before. The genetic diversity alone is..." He inhaled like a man savoring fine wine. "Exquisite."

His voice lowered, almost reverent. "We'll capture them all. Study them. Break them down into their most valuable components."

Meredith's expression darkened as she looked at him. Doubt flickered in her eyes. "I didn't join you to torture people or turn them into experiments." She said, her voice tight. "I joined you to cleanse Beacon Hills. To help it start over, to protect the humans. That's what you promised me in Eichen House."

Vivian stepped forward, resting a hand gently on her husband's shoulder. She offered Meredith a serene smile. "Our goal hasn't changed, Meredith. We want to help humanity—free it from disease, make it stronger, help it evolve. But evolution demands sacrifice. We're doing what must be done, for the greater good."

Meredith said nothing, her jaw tense as she turned away.

"Alright, we still have work to do." Vivian said, dismissing them with a wave. "You're both dismissed."

Morrigan nodded, then quietly guided Meredith out of the office.

As the door shut behind them, Vivian turned to Elias.

"We need the banshee, darling." She said calmly. "Don't scare her off. Without her, we never would've found half the supernaturals hiding in this town."

Elias chuckled. "My apologies. I got... carried away."

To be continued... 😊