POV: Ben Archer 

The gold-plated trophy for "Texas State Champion - Academic Decathlon" sat on Ben's desk like an accusation, catching the morning sunlight streaming through his bedroom window in the Archer family mansion. Eighteen years old and he'd already accumulated more awards than most wolves twice his age, but every shiny piece of metal felt hollow when he knew the truth about how he'd "earned" them.

Ben stared at his reflection in the trophy's surface—familiar brown eyes that had ...