CHAPTER TWO

ACADEMY

Zima.

“Aria, you need to listen to me! That video is a lie. Please, just let me explain!” I cried, following her out to the balcony.

People were already leaving the hall. Some stayed behind in small groups, whispering about me, their eyes filled with judgment. No one wanted to hear the truth, not even my own sister.

Aria stopped and spun around, her eyes glowing red with fury.

“Nothing you say will ever erase what I saw in that video. Nothing!”

“Please, it was Kael. I know you do not believe me, but he tried to touch me. I did not…”

“Listen to yourself. No, listen!” Aria snapped, her lips twisting into a wry smile. “You were pinned against the wall, enjoying his lips on your neck.”

My heart dropped. “Aria, do not say that…”

“Our parents made a mistake when they had you,” she hissed.

The door burst open. Kael walked in with that smug smirk plastered on his face, holding a folded sheet of paper.

“From the elders of Silverpang Pack,” he announced, handing it over.

“Kael, please, tell them it is not true. I need you to say it,” I pleaded, my hands trembling as I clutched the paper. Tears blurred my vision.

“It is Alpha Kael,” he corrected proudly, stepping back with folded arms, his chest swelling with arrogance.

“Alpha Kael, my foot,” I muttered, tearing open the envelope with shaking hands.

I read through the paper, and my heart sank like a stone.

“What? No… please, no. I cannot…” The tears I had held back finally spilled down my cheeks.

“Aria, you cannot let them send me there!” I begged, but she only stood by the balcony, staring into the distance.

“I cannot go to Nightowl Academy!” My voice cracked, my eyes darting between Aria and Kael. He leaned against the wall, smirking as if my pain amused him.

Two soldiers stepped forward.

“The letter is effective immediately. Go pack your things. They will take you there,” Kael said, then walked out casually, as though he had not just ruined my life.

“Aria, you know the tales. Mother said people never return from that academy. Few survive. I cannot even imagine going there. Please, do something!”

Her shoulders stiffened. “I am sorry, Zima. I cannot help you. Maybe that academy is where you belong. Maybe there you will be reformed, and I will finally have a chance to restore our home.” With that, she walked away.

“No… no…” My knees weakened, my cries echoing in the empty hall.

***

The ride to the academy was the most dreadful of my life. I did not know how long it took or when the soldiers finally dropped me in front of a massive tree.

“Get down. You can walk from here.”

“What? I cannot drag my boxes by myself. And there is no gate in sight.”

“Leave your box by the tree and go in. The tree is the gate. Now get out,” one of them said, his voice deep and heavy like the forest around us.

I stepped out of the car and obeyed, gripping my boxes with shaking hands. I forced myself forward, step by step, toward the tree. The closer I came, the harder it was to breathe.

And then I saw it. The air shifted, and a huge castle appeared, hidden until now. Its tall towers loomed above me, dark and cold.

I took a deep breath and began the longest walk of my eighteen years.

I finally reached one of the castles where a crowd stood in sharp black suits, their faces cold and unreadable. My palms clenched tight, my body fighting the urge to tremble.

“A new girl,” a blonde whispered, and heads turned toward me.

“Ooh, the Alpha snatcher,” someone called out, loud enough to pierce through the silence.

Heat rushed to my face as every stare pinned me down. I bit the inside of my cheek, refusing to cry, forcing myself to keep my chin high.

“Who betrays their own sister? Iconic Alpha snatcher! We all saw the video, your sister’s husband sucking your neck!”

The words sliced through me. I wanted to scream, to tell them the truth, but my voice stayed trapped in my chest. How did that cursed video even reach here?

“She belongs here,” the blonde sneered. “She needs to be reformed.”

Laughter rippled, each sound pressing harder against me until my chest ached.

Then the hall fell silent.

“Alpha Damon is here!” someone shouted.

Just like that, their attention shifted to the podium. I turned to see who was walking in.

He wore a black suit that fit him perfectly, moving easily on his tall frame. His skin was smooth and dark, catching the light in a way that made him hard to ignore. His black eyes were calm but dangerous, and even his neat hair carried a hint of wildness

Each step commanded silence, and without meaning to, I held my breath. He looked like the sin dressed in a suit.

“I will go straight to the point,” his voice carried, calm but commanding.

“I will rank everyone for the new academy season…”

Then it hit me…a pull. Strong, unshakable, crawling under my skin. Goosebumps rose, my chest tightened, and no matter how I fought it, it drew me closer. The strangest part was it led straight to him, standing there like sin itself.

“You will check your cards and find your ranks…” He paused. His eyes scanned the crowd, sharp and searching, until they locked on mine. My heart drowned in the silence.

“You are dismissed. We meet in the dining hall,” he said, but his gaze never left me.

“You’re dead when he looks at you like that,” the blonde whispered before hurrying off with the others.

He walked closer, eyes cold as ice.

“We are mates?” His voice was low, almost cruel.

I forced my tone steady. “This is the first time I’ve ever felt this, so… yes, I guess.”

He stepped nearer, his cologne filling the air, his stare unyielding.

“You’re the sister traitor, aren’t you?”

“It’s different. I think—”

“The last person I felt this pull for is long dead.”