Chapter 24 #2
“No!” Alistair roars, his entire body shaking. “He was rescuing you! You wouldn’t have been wild any more. You would have joined our pack. You would’ve—”
—been with me!
The words flash through my mind like a burst of flames, searing through my skull so hot that I choke. Alistair’s claws scrape my throat. “But instead, you tore his fucking throat out.” Shoving me away from him, he takes rapid steps back.
I don’t dare look over my shoulder as I gasp for air, the cuts on my neck stinging in the harsh wind.
“And then you took that monster as a mate,” he finishes, growling. “Everything is not my fault, Sienna. It’s yours.” As he storms away, I close my eyes and grieve in silence, the loss of our bond a strange, palpable pain despite never truly having Alistair as a mate in the first place.
We were doomed before we even met, and somehow, Revyn is to blame.
My heart aches, its attachments to both men twisting and tying into unbreakable knots.
Despite Revyn’s flaws, I love him.
Despite Alistair’s rage, I want him.
The fact that I can’t have one without breaking the other cracks my heart open more than it ever should.
We’re back to glaring at each other from across the room by the time the sun rises. I’m tempted to ask Alistair why he’s here in the first place with Mating Games happening across campus, but I don’t. I keep my mouth shut and ignore the stinging claw marks he left on my neck.
I definitely pretend that the throbbing between my thighs is because I’m sore from fighting him earlier.
Not because I want him.
Gods, I’m a fucking mess.
Every snowflake that falls on my skin sizzles as it melts, then evaporates. My hair’s a rat’s nest of tangles. I haven’t slept. I’m worried about Revyn and Callum. Then there’s Gemma and Thorn. Did they all pass the Games? Or will I find out that they’ve been expelled for failing?
The only saving grace tonight would be if Alistair failed for leaving before sunrise. Then he’d get expelled, and I’d never have to see him again.
Unless I’m expelled too.
The conference room doors swing open, and Alpha Thaddeus Dire walks through, his eyes sparking with lightning as they land on me.
If it weren’t for Alistair’s freshly-showered appearance, he and his father would be spitting images of each other—except, I realize, for their eyes.
Alistair’s are a honey brown while his father’s are a frigid blue.
Alpha Dire speaks in a low tone to his son, inclining his head just slightly, before stepping up to the flame basin in the center of the rotunda and crossing his hands in front of him.
I stare at him, and he stares right back.
I’m tempted to yell, but I don’t know what I’d say.
I didn’t kill your eldest son isn’t a great conversation starter, nor is saying your current heir is an arrogant sack of shit.
Neither would win me any points in my favor, and unfortunately, I may need his approval if I’m going to stay at the academy.
By the way he turns his nose up, I can tell that I’m already on his shit list.
“You’re lucky to be alive,” he says after a long, tense moment. “Wild girl.”
My eye twitches as I tamp down my annoyance. “I prefer to be called by my name.”
Whatever snarky comment is on Alpha Dire’s mind doesn’t make it past his lips, but I can see it in his eyes—the disgust.
“How does it feel to know that I’m destroying your bloodline, Alpha Dire?” I smile as sweetly as my sudden nausea will allow. “First, your eldest son, and now . . .” I glance at Alistair and immediately regret it.
He’s fucking fuming.
I guess I’m not fighting against the allegation that I enrolled at Heartsflame to ruin him. Oops.
Feigning indifference, I shrug. “Must suck to know that your sons have shit taste in women. I wonder if it runs in the family?” I tilt my head to the side.
“How’s your mate, Alpha Dire? Is she worth the trouble, or has she run off with a wolf whose dick hits all the right places?
With only two heirs to your name, I’m sure she’s hurting for a good fuck. ”
Alpha Dire’s muscles tense. There’s an unspoken rule in the shifter community about insulting someone’s mate—you don’t do it if you value your next breath. “Recant your statement,” he commands.
I’m too pissed off to regret my choice of words, no matter the danger crackling in the air. “No.”
His eyes flash bronze, and he takes a single, steady step forward. “You insolent child—”
The remaining elders and Alphas choose to exit the conference room at that precise moment.
Silently, they stand beside Alpha Dire at equidistant points in a semicircle and face forward, their eyes focused on me.
A few are scrutinous in their approach, assessing me like they would a sow at auction, while the vast majority—mainly non-shifters—take a softer, curious approach.
Councilwoman Navarro, who was interested in me as soon as her nephew Callum expressed his interest after the entrance trials, smiles fondly at me.
Her porcelain skin, delicate cheekbones, crimson eyes, spiraling dark curls, and perfect posture are reminiscent of him, and I wonder what he’d do if I’m suddenly expelled.
At least then he won’t feel the need to follow me around anymore if I’m literally not here. I shiver as his voice whispers in my mind, reminding me that he isn’t helping me out of the kindness of his unbeating heart, but rather, for his own good.
Assisting you helps me determine if we’re a good match.
If I make it out of this meeting alive, Callum will be waiting for me on the other side.
“You can’t say I’m want for choices,” I mutter, unable to stop a blush from warming my cheeks. The councilwoman’s smile grows, and my blush deepens. Shit, I didn’t mean to say that out loud.
Headmaster Loreander walks slowly among his comrades and takes a position at the front, edging slightly in front of Alpha Dire, standing nearest to the flickering violet flames in the center of the rotunda.
His robes are more vibrant tonight, the flame embroidery along the edges reflecting the glow of the fire.
He twirls a strand of his hair around his finger as he speaks.
“Sienna Ashburn.” At least his smile is kind.
Some of the others wear pinched and puckered expressions like they’re going to be sick.
“We have discussed your predicament as well as your enrollment here at Heartsflame. Would you like to hear the verdict?”
I brace myself by taking a deep breath. “No need to sugarcoat it. Shoot.”
The corners of his eyes crinkle. “You’ll be pleased to hear that your enrollment stands.
We are happy to continue your education at Heartsflame provided that you abide by additional rules.
” Lowering his chin, he levels me with a serious gaze.
“What you’ve experienced tonight is something we haven’t seen in many centuries, and until you can harness its power appropriately, you need to use caution when calling upon your power. ”
Blinking, I try not to feel incompetent but fall short. “I don’t call upon any powers. I can’t even heal.” I swallow, and the cuts on my neck sting as evidence. “I also never intended to shift into . . . whatever that was.”
Loreander nods. “Precisely. Your power lies dormant within you.” Lifting his hand, he taps the space directly over his heart.
“When your lover was in danger and your own life threatened, it unlocked something. In here.” He taps his chest repeatedly.
“That is not to say that living in the wilds was without its dangers, but we believe that being near your fated mate—”
Alpha Dire’s jaw clenches.
“—and under the influence a full moon during the winter solstice, no less, may have amplified what little of your power you already harness. Therefore, you should not be able to complete such a dangerous shift on your own again anytime soon.”
One of the other elders—a fae judging by the slight jade glow of his skin—smiles broadly. “This is a good thing, Sienna. We believe that your powers will grow the longer you are in contact with your fated.”
My gaze flicks to Alistair, who’s turned to stone.
“However,” Alpha Dire interjects, his gaze as icy as his tone. “We agree that completing a mating bond is too dangerous. You are not permitted to mate with anyone until you have proven control of your . . . gifts.” His lip curls. “Not that your true mate even exists. That remains to be proven.”
“The Dire boy shows genuine connection with her,” another elder scoffs. “Just because you do not approve of the union, Thaddeus, does not mean that it is illegitimate.”
“There is also the wild wolf,” someone else murmurs, the pale blue scales trailing down their arms iridescent in the moonlight. “He has proven his loyalty time and time again.”
“And my nephew Callum has taken interest,” Councilwoman Navarro says brightly. Her eyes glitter like shimmering rubies. “We would be happy to welcome her into the Navarro bloodline.”
A calculating gleam enters the others’ eyes.
I’m not a person beneath their gazes; I’m merely a weapon to add to their arsenal.
The headmaster claps his hands lightly. “There is still time for her to choose.” Nodding, he addresses me next.
“You have three years at this academy, Sienna, and it’s only been a single turn of the moon, if even that.
Let us see what your heat cycle brings, and we will reevaluate your connections with your suitors. ”
Gag me.
“Sounds wonderful,” I reply, hiding my bitterness beneath a cheery lilt in my voice. “Can’t wait for my next assessment.”
A vein pulses in Alpha Dire’s forehead. “This is no laughing matter. You are a hybrid, and as such, shifter law demands your death.” His face blotches as he speaks. “I have every right to demand your head—”
A chorus of protests erupts from his colleagues. The few shifters on his side fall in line, but the rest oppose on various grounds.
She’s too interesting not to study first.
We don’t yet know her true nature.