CHAPTER 3

NYX

Everything in me shut down the second I heard that name.

I wished it was about the threat he had given, but it was far from that.

Heck, if it was the tension, in his words or the way his gaze pinned me in place, I would have still survived through it.

But it was neither, It was the name one of them threw out behind him. Aiden.

If I thought I knew fear before now, I must have been kidding, because there was only one person in the entire werewolf realm who bore it. No one else dared to. Not because it was forbidden, but because no one wanted their bloodline tied to it. It was a name of Royalty

Aiden Callum.

My lungs seized. My heartbeat slowed to a crawl. Even Vee, my inactive wolf who I hadn't heard from in years, shifted in me. I felt her shudder, as though begging me to retreat, to run, to turn back, go to back to the park, and tell them a it didn't work out.

Aiden Callum wasn’t supposed to be here, the man before me looked like he could be twenty three, and the only man that bore that name was supposed to be in his fifties, or maybe sixties.

He was the one they said ordered our exile. The Alpha King who ruled with violence and fear. The reason my father, our whole pack was stripped of everything.

But this wasn’t an aging tyrant. This wasn’t the man I imagined for years as a monster in my head. The one in front of me now looked no older than me

And that could only mean one thing.

The Alpha King didn’t exile my people.

His son did.

Which meant the one person who has been ruling the wolf realm, wasn't the alpha, it has been the son all along. The cruel alpha every feared, no one tried to name their kids after. Had not been the father, it had been the son.

With each time it echoed in my head, it made more and less sense

I felt rage bloom in the pit of my stomach, raw and cold. My hands curled into fists against the carpet. I hadn’t even realized I still stayed on the ground.

He didn’t look surprised by my silence. If anything, he looked… bored. Like he was waiting for me to realize exactly who I was dealing with.

“I will kill you,” I said, my voice too even for how badly I was shaking inside.

A smile played at his lips like he’d been waiting to hear those exact words. Like this was a game, and I’d just passed the first level.

“You’re already making threats?” he asked, crouching low again, elbows resting on his knees as he met my eyes. “You probably don't know this, but I do not do well with threats. And I do not repeat myself either.” His gaze flickered over my face, reading every twitch, every breath. “Last chance, what are you?”

I held his stare. If he wanted answers, he’d have to rip them from me.

But I couldn’t. I couldn’t risk that. I wasn’t here for pride or rebellion. I was here for them. For the ones who sent me.

So I drew a deep breath, blinked slowly, and forced the panic to slip off my face.

“I’m nothing,” I whispered. “Just a weak alpha born to a weak pack. They sent me here to grow stronger. I don’t think it’s working.”

The lie burned on my tongue. I hoped he’d believe it.

Someone behind him chuckled. “I don’t blame them. He looks like he’d cry if you raised your voice at him.”

I ignored it. I didn’t even flinch. But Aiden's gaze on me did not falter. It didn't take a pack witch to know he wasn't buying my lie.

My eyes twisted the second the bell rang through the halls, for a second, Aiden looked past me and towards the bell sound. I didn't think twice after that, I stood off the ground and sprinted out of the room, rushing the same way I had come in.

***

First thing to know about this academy, don't expect anyone to help you when it comes to them. The three elites.

The front office barely let me finish a sentence before the woman behind the desk rolled her eyes and muttered something about not wasting her time.

The Elites didn’t follow rules.They were the rules. It didn't matter what you were in rank, you answered to them. And to be honest, after realizing what exactly Aiden Callum was, I didn't blame them. I'd be scared of him too.

And I am.

Curfew hit not long after. It was announced with a glowing scroll that floated into my palm and disappeared as soon as I read it. I didn’t care. I wasn’t going to the dining hall. I wasn’t going to the dorms either.

I hid out in the restroom for an hour until I was sure everyone had slept, heading back to the suit was my only option, but I hoped they'd all be asleep by the time I returned.

The suite door accepted my facial recognition immediately I stood before the door. I didn’t even bother wondering how they added me so fast.

The lights were off. The moon poured in through the massive glass windows, coating the beds in faint silver. It was quiet, showing I had been right and everyone had slept

I crept toward the corner where my bags had been dropped, grabbing one bottle of my scent blocker, I slipped into the room Aiden had come out from last time, that had a bathroom.

The second the door closed slowly, everything went black.

There were no lights, safe for the little one from coming from the moon, the one that had made the room a blue hue

goosebumps filled my body as I tried to not think about scary things that might have been hiding in the darkness of the rest room. I had to apply my scent blocker, and find a way to survive the night. Pressing my palms to the wall to feel my way around. My breaths were shaky now, too loud, too fast. The bottle clinked softly in my pocket.

My eyes widened as something touched my wrist.

I flinched violently.

In one sharp pull, I was yanked backwards. My back collided with a wall of heat and muscle. I gasped, my fingers splaying out against the chest behind me, trying to push, but it was useless.

His hands gripped me, one locking around my waist, the other catching my wrist.

He spun me.

My body slammed against his, and I choked out a curse.

I couldn’t see him. But I didn’t need to. I already knew who it was.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?!” I shoved, trying to break the grip he had on my arm. “This is—”

He didn’t let me finish.

His hand caught the side of my neck, it was tight but I could still breathe, his hand on me increased in intensity, reminding me could cut the air privilege I had if pissed him off. He tilted my face toward where his should be, and even in the dark, I could feel the smile in his voice.

“Say the word, Sunshine,” he whispered. “Go on.”

His grip didn’t move, but I could feel his chest rise and fall against mine, the rage radiating off him.

“You want to call it assault?” he asked, tilting his head with his breath close to mine. “Then maybe I’ll show you what assault actually looks like.”