2. Chapter 2
Chapter 2
Z eke watched Ava walk into the First Year block before he turned and joined Derek and Myles.
“Are you sure about this?” Myles asked.
He wasn’t sure about anything except the fact that Ava belonged to him.
“The pack might tell your father. We don’t know who his spies are yet,” Derek added. “The fact that she’s human—”
‘She’s still mine,’ he said in the mindlink with a growl.
‘And we accept that. We witnessed the bond, remember,’ Derek said. ‘I’m just saying if we don’t have a plan yet, we’ve just put a giant target on her back.’
Ava always had a target on her back, but at least now she had his protection. Only the really foolish would even dare.
He stopped walking when he saw Jared coming out of his car. He and Shadow watched him as he looked around and then stopped his gaze on them. Shadow growled.
Jared’s eyes glowed in anger before he turned away and started walking towards his classes. Shadow didn’t like that. That wolf had sent his minions to spy on Ava, and then he dared turn his back as if he had done nothing wrong.
“Easy, Zeke,” Myles said. “You’ve just got out. We don’t want to go through that shit again anytime soon.”
But he could feel Myles’ anger as well as they watched the arrogant coward walk into the building.
“Let's get to class before anything happens,” Derek suggested.
They started walking again and had to stop when someone called his name.
“Mr Michelson.”
He almost rolled his eyes as he turned back. Shadow had never liked the dean simply because he didn’t like submitting to anyone, but he now despised the man for throwing him into Isolation. Sure, he had admitted what he had done, but Alpha Russell should have given him the benefit of the doubt because of his otherwise spotless record.
“Good morning, Alpha Russell,” he said as the man approached.
“A word, please,” the dean said.
“We can discuss anything in front of my Beta and Gamma,” he answered.
The dean looked at his friends before he said, “Very well. I thought I should tell you that the vampires and Seers couldn’t find the missing wolves, and the witches couldn’t locate them. We have even conducted door-to-door searches. They’ve disappeared without a trace. So we have reported this to the Council. Expect to be called in for a meeting.”
“Because you still think I’m involved,” he stated.
“Because you confirmed the statements that the witnesses made when you admitted you attacked her,” the Alpha pointed out. “And I’m afraid that is all we have to go on.”
“Who was the last person to see her? Have you asked them?”
“I’m afraid they’re all missing, too. The witnesses said her friends arrived shortly after you attacked her to help, and then they were all seen going to the village on Saturday morning.”
There would have been plenty of people to see her between Friday night and Saturday morning, but it seemed no one had come forward. Someone wanted him to go down for this one, and the only one stupid enough to try this was Jared.
“How many wolves are missing?” Derek asked.
“Seven.”
“Seven wolves can’t just disappear without a trace, Dean Russell. Someone is messing with you.”
“And that’s why delegates of the Council are coming. I’d hoped not to see any of them until the evaluations,” he sighed. “I have to go and talk to someone else. Please check your tablet for your appointment.”
He watched the dean turn back with a frown. The last people he wanted to see were members of the Council, not after what their magic had done to him. He didn’t know how much information they had got from their probing in his head. Did something slip through? Had they found out about Ava?
“We should check this out ourselves. Something tells me they’re trying to pin this on you because they need a fall guy for the Council,” Derek said.
“I’ll keep my ears open,” Myles said, already moving towards the Fourth Year block.
All the fourth-year facilities were in that building, but after registration, they would all attend different classes in different buildings. Only the Omegas would remain in there for their simpler lessons. Myles was an excellent tracker and could usually get any information he needed without being heard or seen. He wasn’t as intimidating as he and Derek, so he would get to the bottom of this quicker. No one talked much when he was around.
“I’ll keep my ears open as well. Shall I speak to the pack?” Derek asked.
“Yes. Someone knows what’s going on. Find them.”
With that order, he walked into the building. The students still standing around in the halls quieted down the moment he entered, but he could still pick up the whispered conversations in the rooms.
“...killed Claire. The Council is coming to take him...”
“...deserves it. I heard he was running around the woods like he owns them. Almost killed a Beta...”
“...fucking shameful. What is he doing with that human...”
“...got himself a sex slave...”
“...I wouldn’t mind. She’s fucking hot. She’s mouthy, but I bet that mouth can be useful, too. I’d tie her up on my bed and...”
That comment made him change course. He headed to the room he had heard that whisper and opened the door. They all went silent when they saw him and looked down. Most in this room had Alpha blood like him, so they didn’t need to lower their gazes. But they always did. They knew who Shadow was.
His eyes landed on the wolf who had spoken. Another Alpha. He had never had anything to do with him before, but he was on Shadow’s radar now.
He didn’t speak. He watched the Alpha’s Adam's apple bob as he swallowed, and fear filled the air. He knew he could make this wolf piss himself like the other one had.
‘Kill him,’ Shadow growled.
‘I can’t kill everyone,’ he answered.
‘But I can,’ Shadow retorted.
But he wished he could. He knew he was looking at them with Shadow’s eyes now because the fear in the room increased.
“Can I help you, Mr Michelson?”
He looked at the professor preparing for the day at the front of the lecture hall. She couldn’t meet his gaze either.
“No. Just taking down names.”
He took a deep breath as he said that and catalogued all the scents for no other reason than the fact that it made them all shit themselves. Good. He had an impeccable record at the school. They had all heard of him, but they had never seen him lose his shit here. They had no idea what he was capable of.
He left the room without another word and continued to his room for registration. The whispers were considerably quieter by the time he got there, but this new development was worrying. If they pinned Claire’s disappearance on him, who would protect Ava?