Chapter 44
“I… failed my classes?” Shatter’s voice was weak. “I’ve never failed a class in my life.”
“How do you know that?” I asked curiously, placing my arm around her as I sat at her side.
“I…” She swallowed, and—shit, she was fighting back tears. “I just do.”
We were sitting around the fireplace outside on the cabin deck as the sun set over the trees. Dusk had just got the fireplace going, and Umbra was finishing making us hot chocolates.
The dancing fire was enough to keep away the cold, though not enough that Shatter wasn’t huddled in a fluffy Snuggie that she’d unwrapped as a gift from Roxy. The decorating had, apparently, included Christmas gifts. Umbra, and Dusk and I were all wearing ugly Christmas sweaters at Shatter’s behest—even though Roxy had left. It was Tuesday and she would miss too much class if she didn’t return to the academy.
Shatter, unfortunately, didn’t have the same concern.
“I’m sorry, Little Reaper.” I tugged her close under my arm. “You missed one class too many, even my title isn’t enough for the Dean this time.”
“We’ve already submitted the application for next semester,” Dusk said. “And… we secured you a sponsor.”
“A new pack sponsor?” she asked.
“No. Actually. He’s sponsoring you as an individual. The Dean allowed it, though it took a few days for them to figure out how it fit in the system. They’re set up for pack applications.”
Shatter was frowning.
“Turns out Professor Eugene Howard made an inquiry about your class scores.”
“Uncle?” she asked, eyes wide.
“Given the PR disaster of his last choice, he wrote to the Arkology board, and I quote, ‘I need a home run to redeem my reputation. I’ve never seen a student with more potential.’ The Dean couldn’t argue, so you’re enrolled for next term.”
“Really?” Shatter asked.
“Yup. And he’s made the request for you to be moved to second semester anyway, since your scores speak for themselves and he doesn’t want to waste any time.”
“So… I didn’t actually fail?”
“Well. You missed too many classes to pass, but you did so well that it doesn’t matter.”
She pouted. “I suppose that’s a bit better.”
“There is one condition, though,” Dusk said.
“What?”
“I told the Dean there was no way in hell you were doing classes by yourself, so he has to accelerate me, too. He said he’d allow it if you caught me up.”
She brightened. “I can do that. You’ll be much easier to teach than Ransom.”
I straightened. “Excuse me?”
She blinked up at me. “You never cared about Arkology.”
I let out a huff. “Not particularly, no.”
“I knew it.”
“I did like what studying with you entailed, though,” I said, pulling her onto my lap and drawing her close.
“So, are we ready?” Umbra was stepping through the doorway with a tray of mugs.
“I’m ready,” Dusk said, straightening and picking up the huge envelope at his side.
“Still going to risk it?” Umbra asked as he handed out the hot chocolate.
“I can’t believe you’re not,” I said.
“I think… I might, too,” Shatter said. “If I had mine, I mean.”
“Actually…” Dusk said, scratching his chin. “About that.”
Shatter’s whole body went rigid. “What?”
“Last few puzzle pieces came out. Decebal was in contact with your uncle for more details and… well. He found something. A history. He’s pretty sure it’s you.”
“Pretty sure?” she asked, voice weak.
“He wouldn’t have given it to me unless it was indisputable. There’s just very little hard evidence because the Institute covered their tracks well.”
“I can find out where I came from?” I felt her through the bond, ever so vulnerable all of a sudden.
“Only if that’s what you want.” Dusk handed Shatter her own envelope.
Her hands shook as she took it. “Is this… real?”
“It is.”
“You okay, Nightshade?” Umbra asked as he sat beside Dusk, gaze fixed on her.
She nodded, drawing the envelope against her chest.
“You think you want to open it?” I asked, leaning closer and tucking her hair behind her ear.
“I’m not sure. Maybe… you guys go first?”
“Dusk goes first,” Umbra said, turning his file in his hand. “Since he might be the only one.”
Dusk caught my eye, shaking his head. Neither of us believed Umbra was seriously going to chuck his past into the flames. Dusk tapped his envelope for a moment, looking around at us. I don’t think I’d ever seen him this nervous.
“I mean, we could just all—” Umbra leaned forward, about to drop his in the fire. Dusk grabbed his hand with a growl.
“Just. Wait. I’m going to look.”
“Why does that matter for me?” Umbra scoffed.
“What if I find something… good and then you want to, as well?” I asked.
Umbra cocked an eyebrow, but shrugged. “Go on then.”
With a breath, and not wasting another second, Dusk tugged out the paper from within his envelope
We were all silent, Shatter clutching hers to her chest with eyes wide as Dusk scanned the page.
I watched as his brows furrowed, jaw clenching.
“What… what does it say?” Shatter whispered.
“Uh…” Dusk seemed lost.
Umbra peeked over his shoulder, reading over the words.
His eyebrows rose.
“Tell us.” Shatter begged.
“Looks like…” Umbra scanned a bit longer. “Grew up in New Oxford. He was a… street kid pickpocket turned con-artist…” Umbra read on. “…Ejected from the Harpy gang after an unexplained seizure ruined a heist operation. Aura triggered upon rejection from the community. Admitted to Cimmerian Vaults due to chronic IAVD… It says the Doctors theorise illness is connected to the seizures, which are also… idiopathic in nature—or…” He frowned. “Something like that?”
“What… does that mean?” I asked.
“Chronic idiopathic aura volatility disorder,” Shatter supplied. “AVD. It’s when an alpha goes into violent rages they can’t control. It’s really rare, but happens mostly when someone’s aura emerges for the first time because of extreme trauma—only… that type of AVD is often temporary or curable. Chronic idiopathic AVD, though, that means… Well…” She trailed off awkwardly. “Well, it means they don’t know why it happens, and it won’t stop.”
There was a strange silence and Shatter slipped from my lap, tugging the papers from Dusk’s grip and peering over them.
He let her take them, looking a little shell shocked.
He cocked his head. “I was put in one of the most secure facilities for dangerous alphas on the continent and they don’t even know why?” he asked, stunned.
“Oh—but, look,” Shatter said. “Decebal connected it all—he knew all the time, right? He thinks after you got the Atropa’s poison, most of the AVD symptoms vanished. Even your seizures became much more intermittent. That’s…” She frowned. “Well, that’s fascinating. You haven’t had any seizures in ages, right? Decebal said a few when you first got out, but that’s it?”
“The trials…” Umbra had to cover his spluttered laugh with a cough. “Cured you?”
Dusk tugged the paper back. “This all has to be wrong.”
Umbra snorted. “What did you want it to say?”
“I don’t know. Not this. Something… dramatic, like I went crazy and lost control of my aura protecting my baby siblings from a bad guy or something? Like… heroic.”
“You were heroic,” Umbra scoffed. “Apparently, you got five high-ranking members of the Harpy gang apprehended because you elbowed the fire alarm when you went down.”
“Decebal got the wrong file.”
“What about family?” I asked curiously. “Do you have siblings?”
“No,” Shatter said, scanning the document again.
“So… you were a spoiled Harpy-runner only child.”
“I’m not Harpy,” Dusk snapped.
“No, you’re not,” Umbra said. “Says here they didn’t want you after that, anyway.”
Dusk picked up his hot chocolate as if wanting to find something to do with his hands as he glared into the fire. “That was lame as fuck,” he grumbled at last.
“Exactly why I’m burning mine,” Umbra said with a grin.
“What if there’s someone out there looking for you?” I asked.
Umbra’s frown was stiff for a moment as he looked down at the paper. “There isn’t.” He looked at Shatter. “What about you, Nightshade?”
“I…” She chewed on her lip. “What do you think? Maybe… could someone read it and tell me if I should?”
I shook my head. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“Why not?” she asked.
“Because… if we know, and it’s not good. I don’t know. You’ll always wonder. And besides, Decebal has seen them, if there was anyone looking for you, he would…” I frowned, realising what I was about to say.
“So… there’s no one,” she whispered.
My throat was dry, but she steeled herself, always so much stronger than I gave her credit for. She swallowed, glancing between us, and looking sure as she crossed back to me and settled into my lap.
“What are you thinking, Little Reaper?” I asked.
Are you sure?
a little voice asked as I held the envelope over the flame.
This was it, and somehow, it felt final.
But seeing Dusk read his, had changed my mind in a way I didn’t expect.
His was wrong.
Nothing I’d read on that paper had anything to do with the alpha I knew. He’d changed so much since the experiments, been forged into something so different that I’d lost all faith in anything these strokes of ink on paper could mean.
There was a person on this paper. A girl turned omega with a past and a life.
Maybe it was good.
Maybe it wasn’t.
But she wasn’t me.
And good or bad… Would it haunt me? Or might it change things?
I met Umbra’s sandstorm eyes, the curve of a smile on my lips as I dropped mine first. He grinned, matching me, and we both stared as the corners of the paper curled to black in the flickering flames and turned to ash before our very eyes.
No.
This pack was my family—more than I could ever have dreamed when I’d stepped up to those academy doors, a broken omega in search of my mates. Now I knew I wouldn’t change anything—not one second, not for the whole world.