04. Hibiscus

Sablecrest Pack House

Adella played around with the stuffed sheep on her desk, a smile stretching out onto her face. It reminded her of the soft-looking white hair of Kieryn, and she imagined the fur to feel the same.

"Alpha," Beta Madden says with a low growl. "I hope you did not forget about the topic at hand."

"I didn't know we had a topic about anything," the Alpha nonchalantly responds.

The Beta clenched his teeth, finding it hard to keep himself from snapping. He calmly said, "The Hibiscus Coven's leader has arrived."

"Already? Didn't I reply to him like, a day ago?"

"He was already residing in our neighboring Pack's territory. He used his magic to get here faster."

Adella stands up, preparing to leave. "Let him in and bring him to the front room. Tell Menena to serve them tea if her hand isn't still hurting. I heard witches drink it up like it was water in the Sahara Desert. I'm going to get changed."

He nodded as she walked away. He turned to the large window, peering at the car that was pulling through the front gates.

The black earpiece that allowed him to communicate with the security guards buzzed, signaling that they've called him. He pressed the earpiece with two fingers to hear the caller better.

"The Hibiscus coven leader arrived through the main gates.

Beta Madden responds, "Bring him to the lobby. I'll come escort him myself."

"Yes, Beta," the person at the other end replied.

The earpiece turned off. Beta Madden walked out the office to greet the Alpha's guest.

Later,

An inviting scent of incense enveloped the large room. The windows allowed the afternoon light to shine through, causing the clean floor to reflect it.

The maids spent their time cleaning every surface of the sitting room. That was because the Beta was a bit of a clean freak who would be annoyed at a single spot of dust on anything. The organized man could not see anything out of place, so he would stop whatever he was doing to adjust it back to its original place.

As Menena was pouring tea, Adella walked into the room.

A perfectly fitted suit hugged against her body and her five inch heels clacked against the floor. Her hair was brushed and kept out of her face, which was touched up by makeup. She would only dress up for a meeting if it was important or she would get something out of it, and a big shot witch definitely meet those requirements.

Seated on a luxe sofa was the leader of the Hibiscus Coven, legs and hands crossed in professionalism. Beta Madden sat comfortably in a seat next to him, sipping on his cup of tea. Adella's eyes traveled to a woman, looking barely 20 years old, sitting next to her guest.

Now she was confused. She was not told that there would be a second guest.

The woman's eyes followed Adella's until she broke contact by looking back at her guest. The young looking man stood up in front of Adella, raising his arm for a handshake. Adella took the man's hand in hers. A warm smile adorned the lips of the aged man.

"Alpha Channing," he said with a grin. "I didn't expect you to get back to me so quickly. Thank you for meeting with me."

"Of course. I couldn't pass up on the chance to meet a Flower Branch coven in the flesh." Adella chuckles.

As the current leader of the Hibiscus Coven, Zachary Morelli was an extremely powerful witch. The Hibiscus Coven gained many disciples and produced witches with a high talent with fire magic. The Hibiscus Coven was located in South Africa, but they've spread out into the lower parts of Africa.

Even though they were the weakest of the Flower Branch Covens, they were still extremely strong.

Adella turned her head and looked at the woman who quietly sat on the couch.

Zachary noticed her gaze and introduced her. "This is my daughter, Paige. Because she is my only daughter, she is soon to be the leader of our Coven. I hope it's alright that she's here. I want her to have a good relationship with Sablecrest's Alpha and she'll be able to turn to help if she needs."

Zachary informed her that Paige was only nineteen years old, but would take responsibility when she becomes twenty-two because witches live for an extremely long time.

Black, long curly hair revealed the girl's deep brown eyes and full brown lips. Her deep v-line dress hugged her curvaceous body, stopping at her thick thighs. Her legs were muscular and sculpted, her dress contrasting perfectly with her brown skin. She had a mature expression, like she was more intelligent than most adults. It was hard to believe that she was the same age as June, who has softer features and a slim, flat body.

"I'm Adella Channing. It's very nice to meet you." Adella stretches out her hand to shake Paige's.

Paige gives an equally stunning smile while shaking Adella's hand. "It's nice to meet you too. I hope I can learn something about leadership from you. I don't want to ruin my coven because I'm too incompetent to lead it."

Adella smiled back at the genuine woman and released her hand to face Zachary.

"I assume you didn't come here just for me to become friends with your daughter. I read in your letter that you were in desperate need of help."

Zachary chuckled. "Well, I didn't word it like that but you are correct. Tensions are high with the Jasmine Coven. They've been egging us on for a while now, hoping for us to make the first move. I think they've finally decided to do something."

Adella caught Beta Madden's eyes, who gave her an I-told-you-so look. She bit back the urge to flip him off.

"Avoiding a fight is my number one priority, and Sablecrest can help us. We know it is not easy to meet with you and there are probably more attractive offers but-"

Adella cuts him off with a hand, "You don't need to say more, Mr. Morelli. We can go on about the details tomorrow. Right now, it is late. My maids will arrange a room for you and Paige and show you Sablecrest hospitality."

He smiles, relieved that he wasn't being turned down. "Thank you."

Adella turned to the man who stood behind her guests. "Oskar, get Yuliana and tell her to arrange a room on the first floor for Mr. Morelli and Paige. Also, tell the chefs to prepare a meal according to their tastes."

"Yes, Alpha." Beta Madden says, signaling the two witches to follow him.

When they disappeared down a hallway, Adella fell back into one of the sofas. She sighed heavily and took out the hair-tie with a finger, letting her hair fall on her shoulders.

"Would you like some tea, dear?" Menena's soothing voice made her smile.

"I'm fine, Nena." She gives her a reassuring grin. "I just feel nostalgic for no reason whatsoever."

Menena blinked but a smile came across her features. She stacks the cups in her hand and balances the teapot in another before walking out of the sitting room, leaving Adella in her thoughts.

'The Hibiscus Coven can be useful. Whether they use me for their own benefits doesn't matter to me; I'm using them as well after all.'

The Flower Branch consists of the 6 strongest covens in the world today who stemmed from a single coven; the White Lotus Coven. It produced the strongest witches history has ever seen and contributed to the spread of witches around the world. There was even a great witch who was a part of that coven, but not much was known about him. Unfortunately, they died out thousands of years ago, so it was basically ancient.

Next are the current Flower Branch Covens:

The Peach Blossom Coven of Vietnam, the Oleander Coven of India, the Morning Glory Coven of Mexico, the Gladiolus Coven of Greece, the Jasmine Coven of Egypt, and the Hibiscus Coven of South Africa which was the weakest of the other 5.

Each coven also had unique magic that separates them from normal covens, which is why they were in a league of their own.

Adella still couldn't understand how there were tensions between Jasmine and Hibiscus. Although they occupied territory in the same region, they never had any problems with each other up until now. The Jasmine Coven were known to be passive and dependent on no one, which is why she thought that they wouldn't create tension with Hibiscus. Apparently, she was wrong.

Adella stopped thinking about it since it had nothing to do with her and thought of more important matters.

Obviously, Adella wouldn't arrange a meeting with just anyone. As the Alpha of Sablecrest, Adella will always find ways to expand her Pack and make them stronger. Adella was just as arrogant as other big-name Alphas. If she received an email or letter of a request to meet with her, and they didn't benefit her or her Pack, she would flat out ignore it without a reply back.

Adella stood up to go to her room to retire for the night. When morning comes, she would have to talk with Zachary about the alliance between his Coven and her Pack. Making a legal contract would probably take up most of her schedule, but in the end it was worth it.

The next morning,

Christine entered the sitting room, dragging Kieryn by the arm behind her. He was still hesitant to socialize with anyone else and stayed holed up in his room. Christine had to basically drag him downstairs to get him out of his comfort zone, but he didn't resist.

The man looked around the large area, marveling at all the expensive objects he could never dream of seeing before. He did feel a little jealous, but he shook it off.

Since Beta Madden was with Adella in her office, going over matters about the Hibiscus Coven with Zachary, the maids took advantage of that freedom and socialized with each other.

Menena was pouring tea but Damineh took the teapot away from her, nagging her about how she shouldn't put pressure on her brittle hand. Vanessa was styling Soo-Yun's hair in Dutch braids, who was excitedly grinning. Himari was helping Yuliana set the dining table. Haylee was on the floor drawing a portrait of the landscape outdoors.

Christine sits the man down on a couch, and he felt the stare of all the maids on him. He fidgeted with his fingers on his lap, feeling out of place in the room.

"Staring's rude." Christine says to them. "Introduce yourself."

Menena was the first to approach him, giving him a friendly smile to calm his nerves. "I'm the head maid, Menena. If you want to ask anything, you can talk to me any time."

"I'm Vanessa, but a lot of people call me Nessa." The blonde woman braiding Soo-Yun's hair said. She patted her head, making her look up. "This is Emily. Himari's the only one among us that knows sign language so if you want to talk to Emily, ask her."

At the mention of her name, Himari walked into the room. Kieryn laid his eyes upon the black straight haired woman with monolid eyelids, and her sharp eyes reminded him of a cat.

Another woman with brown skin and thick black hair walked up from behind her, waving to the man.

"And that's Yuliana."

"Hello," she greeted the man.

"I'm Damineh." The woman whose head was covered in a decorated scarf briefly introduced herself. She raised her hand to wave, which Kieryn then noticed the brown designs on her four-fingered hand. Her fierce gaze caused him to look away.

"Hey, don't forget about me!" A younger woman with blond hair approached him. A wide grin was stretched onto her face. "I'm Haylee. Do you like drawing?"

Kieryn raised his eyebrows, remembering that Christine told him she had a sister named Haylee. He didn't expect her to look so different, noticing that Haylee looked nothing like her.

The women went back to what they were doing, but that didn't make him less tense. He shifted in his seat, feeling even more out of place. Kieryn hears the whispering of two individuals and turns his head to see Christine and Menena were away from the rest of the group, speaking privately to each other.

"Does he know?"

Christine shakes her head. "Alpha doesn't want to tell him yet."

Menena sighs, rubbing her temple.

"I think if we just give her a little push, she'll eventually start talking to him."

"She needs a big push, that's what she needs." Menena glances over to Kieryn with another sigh. "You know how stubborn that girl can be."

Christine follows her gaze, seeing her sister grabbing Kieryn's arm and bringing her to the little table where she draws. She gives him her sketchbook and a pencil, gesturing to him to draw something for her.

Unsure, Kieryn glances at Christine. The woman nods with a shrug, unable to stop her sister. Defeatedly, Kieryn starts to draw something on the page. Haylee brings her head closer, making him flinch backwards and almost drop the pencil. She didn't seem to notice though, smiling at him.

"A flower? Do you like flowers?"

Kieryn slowly nods her head, ready for the criticism that was to come. But she grins wider, a twinkle of interest in her eyes.

"Me too! I love daisies and Hima always holds my hand when we walk in the garden."

"You're lucky Emily can't hear you," Damineh unattractively snorted as she laughed.

Haylee narrows her eyes with a small pout. "Emily loves me, so she wouldn't mind if I hugged Hima. Right Emily?" She called out to the girl, who didn't turn her head to answer her.

Vanessa turned her head and glared at her. "Did you forget that she's deaf?"

"The silence means yes," Haylee said, not bothered at all by the glare.

Soo-Yun tilted her head up, seeing the glare Vanessa gave to Haylee. She then looked at Himari and asked what was happening.

Himari signs back, 'Nothing. Don't worry about it.'

She nods, waiting patiently for Vanessa to continue braiding her hair. When she does, Soo-Yun goes back to playing with Himari's fingers.

Haylee taps Kieryn on the shoulder, bringing his back to the sketchbook to complete his drawing. The perfect shading and realism made it look like she was staring at an actual flower. But she didn't recognize it, so she turned to Christine.

"Christy! What is this flower?"

Christine walks over to the two at her call, bending down to look at the picture. Her eyebrows raise at the detailed portrait and she nods. "I think this is a lotus."

Kieryn nodded, confirming her guess.

"Do you like lotuses, Kieryn?"

Kieryn nods again.

"You draw really nicely. You should teach me how to draw sometimes."

His glance shifts from all around the room, trying to avoid the eyes of Christine. The praise made a light blush appear on his cheeks, which was much noticeable to all the other maids. They chuckled under their breaths as Kieryn's blush turns redder. He covers his face with his hands to hide the embarrassment, making Christine shake her head with a smile.

"I'm not making fun of you, Kieryn. I really like your drawing."

Haylee jumps up and down in her seat. "Can I keep it?"

Kieryn removes his hands to look at her, nodding at her request. Haylee's expression turns into glee, taking the sketchbook out of his hands.

"Thank you!"

Kieryn felt a spark of happiness in his chest. A smile threatens to break out on his face, but he bit his bottom lip to hold it back. Haylee turns to the next page, starting to copy Kieryn by drawing flowers. It didn't look the same at all and more like wobbly lines connecting together. She looked like she was having more fun doing that though.

"It seems like you're all busy lazing around instead of getting to work."

The maids' heads snapped to the doorway where a man well over six feet stands, clad in a perfectly tailored suit and black Oxford shoes. His arms were crossed as his eyes glanced at each of the maids, focusing on Kieryn.

The man flinches, looking away and crossing his arms over himself as if it was enough to protect him from that dark stare.

Beta Madden averts his gaze to the maids. "Well? Get a move on."

Groaning under their breaths, they cleaned up the sitting room. One by one, the maids left the room. Himari holds Soo-Yun's hand and brings her along, chuckling as the girl looks in the mirror to see the perfect hairstyle. Christine speeds past him, keeping her gaze on the floor. Menena was the last to walk out, being held back by Beta Madden who asked if her hand was alright.

"My hand is perfectly fine. Why does everyone think I can't take care of myself?" She grumbles as she leaves the room.

Haylee sat at the small table as Beta Madden narrowed his eyes at her.

"That means you too, Haylee."

The girl pouts as she stands up. "You're so mean! I hate you," she says as she stomps out.

Beta Madden's eyes train on Kieryn again, studying the posture of the man. He shakes his head at him. "I'm the Beta of Sablecrest, Oskar Madden. You don't need to be afraid of me. I work under the Alpha, so I can't in any way, shape, or form harm those that she's responsible for."

He didn't raise his eyes from the ground, clutching the bottom of his shirt tightly. A gaze like his immediately sounded the danger alarms in his head, so his fear couldn't be stopped.

The Beta notices that he was only getting more nervous and exhales through his nostrils.

"Dinner will be served in an hour. If you'd like, I'll ask Christine to serve it to you in your bedroom."

When Kieryn didn't answer, the man walked off without another glance.

A heavy breath leaves Kieryn's mouth, which he's been holding the moment Beta Madden looked at him. His hands lay over his chest, where his erratic heartbeat was starting to calm down now that he's left. Kieryn looks at the sketchbook where an unfinished picture made from crayons drew him in.

He quickly looked around, making sure no one else was nearby. When the coast was clear, he took the sketchbook and crayons to finish the picture himself.

Afterwards,

Adella walked out the office, finishing her meeting with Zachary. They've both signed documents that were equal on both ends, with no loopholes to find. Now, those documents were being taken to be legalized. After that, Adella can finally start officially working with him.

She yawned, having spent most of her afternoon sitting down in her office. Her back ached, which she stretched to relieve it.

She makes her way down to the sitting room to find Menena, where she usually was most of the time. Stepping into the doorway, she lays her eyes on a white haired man sitting on the couch, drawing on a sketchbook.

The man seemed to immediately know her presence, snapping his eyes towards the doorway. He looked into her eyes for only a second before he stood up abruptly, dropping the sketchbook on the floor. He turns to the other doorway to escape, but Adella stops him.

"Wait! You don't need to run away." Her voice made Kieryn stop, slowly turning his head to look at her. She gives a reassuring smile so as not to scare the man. "I don't bite."

Kieryn fully turns his body to face Adella as she sits on the single sofa chair. She nods to the couch he was sitting on, gesturing to him to take his seat. He inches to the couch and sits as far as he possibly could from her.

Adella notices but doesn't say anything. She too was also nervous, as strange as it sounded. A confident, powerful Alpha should not be swayed by a weak, vulnerable mate like him, but she did. All rationality left her as soon as she smelt his scent, which was heightened now because of his fear.

"I see you like to draw," she says, gazing at the sketchbook.

He quickly picks up the sketchbook, clutching it between his arms as he looks down at his feet. Adella crosses her leg over the other, holding her hands together on her lap.

"May I see?"

The man looked baffled at her suggestion. He studied her expression for mockery, but she looked genuine.

Hesitantly, he gives her the closed sketchbook. Her fingers wrap around it, brushing over his. Kieryn flinches at the strange feeling that her touch gave him and snatches his hand back.

The woman didn't seem affected by the touch and he wondered if it was just him. In truth, Adella's heartbeat quickened as feelings of happiness and panic entered her. A mere man's touch did this to her.

'Shit, I'm being affected by this way too much. I should have let him go.' Adella hides her panic behind a stone mask, flipping through the sketchbook to see all of Haylee's childish doodles.

She finds a realistic drawing of a flower made out of pencil. Her eyes raise in surprise, just like Christine had.

Nervously waiting for her reaction, Kieryn taps his finger on his lap. He wondered why a single woman's opinion of his art mattered to him, but it did and it feared him.

Adella flips to the next page, seeing a colorful picture of more flowers drawn by crayons. She finally looks up at the anxious Kieryn, who waited in anticipation for her comment.

"It's very nice. Do you like flowers, Kieryn?"

The way his name rolled off her tongue made him shiver. He nods at her question, making a small smile find its way on her face. It was strange to him, seeing a woman like her give a heart-warming smile.

"Personally, I don't like flowers. They smell weird to me, like grass after it rained."

Kieryn found himself listening to every word she said with interest, finding the way her soft but confident voice sounded. Each sentence had a bit of a pitch at the end, and every word held a soft tone, as if she was trying to calm his nerves.

And it worked. Kieryn forgot all about running away soon after, subconsciously relaxing in his seat.

Adella looks at his relaxed posture with a small frown. 'Why aren't you afraid of me?'

"What do you like to do other than drawing, Kieryn?"

The sudden question made Kieryn jump. His nervousness seemed to have come back.

"Oh, you don't have to answer that if you're uncomfortable." Adella gives him another heart-warming smile.

Kieryn looks around frantically, not wanting to leave her waiting. Adella understood immediately.

"Ah, yes. Christine informed me that you couldn't speak." Adella pulls out a pen from her pocket, handing it to him. "Here."

Kieryn reaches out for the pen, brushing his fingers against Adella's as he takes it. He falters as fireworks buzzed in his fingers, but he didn't drop the pen. She also handed him the sketchbook, which he took in his other hand and scribbled something on the side.

He shows Adella, who reads it and nods.

"Painting, hm? I see you're the artsy type."

He looks down, a blush creeping up to cheeks. His pale skin turned bright red, which turns Adella's smile into a small smirk. The way he reacted to compliments, even subtle ones, made Adella chuckle.

The man snaps his eyes to her, narrowing them at her attempting to stifle a laugh. Although he was annoyed, the sound of her melodious laughter made him relax.

Adella brushes her hair behind her ear, causing him to follow the motion. She opened her mouth to speak, but Kieryn was lost in his thoughts.

Since when has this woman had an affect on him? He was ashamed of himself, thinking that Adella probably thought he was easy. He even forgot that this was a reputable Alpha for goodness sake!

But her lips moving looked seductive for some reason. Why did they look so soft? Adella was seducing him without either of them knowing.

"Kieryn?" Adella's voice brings him back to reality. She smirks, leaning forward in her seat. "What were you thinking about?"

His widened eyes basically give him away. He shifts his glance from all over the room, thinking up an excuse. The smirk never leaves Adella's face as she watches him, his face growing warmer and warmer..

"You don't need to be shy, Kieryn. Your drawing is a masterpiece and you should feel proud that you made it."

Kieryn felt a flutter in his chest, which he subtly clenched his shirt to stop it. He looked down once more as a smile threatened to appear on his face. Adella notices his fiddling fingers on his lap, which he does when he's either nervous or happy. And he definitely looked happy.

"I also would like to ask you for your opinion on something."

Kieryn raises his eyebrows, not expecting her to ask him for his opinion. It made him feel like he was useful to her, which made another involuntary flutter appear in his chest.

"Cookies or cake?"

In the afternoon,

Kieryn hears a knock on the door, and he immediately knows it's Christine. She had a certain type of knock that was distinguishable to him, so he always knew when it was her.

He opens the door to see the woman grinning as she holds a solid white storage container in the shape of a dome. He blinked at the container as Christine stood there with her wide smile.

"So, you going to let me in?"

Kieryn hurriedly opens the door wider for her so she can walk inside. He looked at the woman in confusion, but he was also eager to see what she brought. This man enjoyed any type of gift someone gave him, even if it was something useless.

Christine places the container on the small coffee table in the room, gesturing to Kieryn to take a seat. When Kieryn is seated, Christine puts her hands on the side of the cover.

"You're so going to love this." Christine sees his anticipation and smiles. "Voila."

She takes off the cover, revealing to Kieryn a multicolored cake with words made from icing to name the different cake slices. His mouth starts to water at the mere sight of it. Christine chuckles and picks up the knife and fork provided with the cake.

"Alpha didn't know what flavor you liked, so she told the chefs to make this beauty."

At her words, Kieryn's eyes widened. 'She told them to make this? For me?'

He glances at Christine for confirmation. She notices his hesitation and nods.

"It's all for you. And you don't have to feel pressured to eat it all. I'll give some to the others." Christine hands him the fork and the knife. "Enjoy."

As Kieryn cuts through the brown slice, which is written 'Chocolate' in brown icing, he notices the white frosting in between each slice to hold them together. He uses his knife to cut a piece of the slice, poking it with his fork and bringing it to his mouth. He inwardly gasps as the cake melted onto his tongue, eliciting a soft hum from him.

He looks at Christine in wonder at the taste. He remembers having chocolate before when he was young, but it wasn't rich and flavorful like this. In less than a minute, there were only crumbs left in place of the chocolate slice. He peered at the second slice that was opposite to the first one, ready to devour it. However, he stopped himself, deciding to try the other first.

Next was a slice with a light brown color on the outside, the inside a light yellow. The icing on the cake was a clear white and there was extra on the top that read 'L. Pound Cake'. Kieryn looks at Christine.

"It's lemon pound cake. One of my favorites, so save me some."

Kieryn nods, cutting the slice in half and tasting it. It wasn't as good as the chocolate cake, but it was still delicious. He ate another piece of the cake with a smile, noticing Christine's smile getting wider as well.

She chuckles at the confusion on his face. "It always makes me happy to see someone enjoying what they're eating. Especially if it's my food. I don't know why."

Kieryn looked down at the cake, poking the last piece and holding it up to Christine. Her face becomes filled with glee.

"Aww, you're the best, Kieryn," she says as she eats the cake with a sound of happiness.

He goes to the next slice, which is a yellow-ish color with white frosting in between the slices. In the frosting were pieces of cut strawberries evenly separated. The pink icing on the top read 'Strawberry Shortcake'.

A smile makes its way on Kieryn's face as he cuts a piece of the cake. Strawberries were always his favorite fruit, which he would whine for some.

He takes a bite, sighing as the flavors burst on his tongue. A memory crossed his mind and he couldn't help but think that it tasted like home.

'Home...' Christine notices the shift in Kieryn's previously happy mood.

'Does he not like the cake?' "Are you alright, Kieryn?"

He snaps out of his thoughts and he immediately nods. Not wanting to worry her, he takes another bite of his cake. Christine raised an eyebrow but didn't comment on it.

Suddenly, a loud sound similar to an explosion disrupted the calming atmosphere inside the room. Christine gasps as Kieryn freezes, looking around for the sound. Christine sees the flickering and bright light of fire. Without looking back, she rushes outside the room, leaving Kieryn with a confused and worried face.

Christine dashes to the second floor of the House, heading for Adella's office. She didn't know if she was in there, but it was worth a look. Knocking frantically, it swings open to reveal the Alpha in a red, solid lapel collar blazer over a white shirt paired with red tailored trousers. She was already putting her feet in her black heels, getting ready for the day.

"Christine? What's up-"

"Outside!" She huffed out, putting a hand over her chest as she wheezed. "There's a fire! It's by Kieryn's window-"

Adella didn't need to hear anymore before she ran out the room in the direction of the main entrance, Christine failing to keep up with her speed. She knew exactly where Kieryn's window was– at the end of the House that allowed him to look over the vast green land with seemingly no end in the distance.

With more trees being cut down and natural land being overturned for construction of buildings, the Sablecrest Pack House was probably one of the only estates left in the world with so much land.

As she passed by the security guards, who were alarmed by her running and followed after her, she glanced up in the air and saw the fire getting taller. The smell was also getting stronger as she got closer.

Adella sees two girls in the distance; Paige and June. Paige's fire clashed with June's ice, which really stood no chance as it was being evaporated as soon as it was released. Adella also sees Zachary leaning standing a safe distance away from the two.

She rushes up behind June, grabbing the back of her shirt and pulling her away as an erratic, fiery rage was thrown at her. June crashes to the ground with a yelp when Adella throws her a safe distance away.

June looks up to complain, but her words die in her throat as she sees the fierce look in the Alpha's eyes. Her pupils were filled with anger and her hands clenched into fists.

Adella turns to Zachary, who only has an amused twinkle in his eye. "I'm sorry, Mr. Morelli. I should have kept an eye on June. It was all my fault for being irresponsible-"

"So this is the girl you wanted me to train?"

Adella sighs. "Yes, that's her. But I see that won't work now. I apologize for wasting your time-"

"I'll do it," he says, making Adella raise an eyebrow. "I'm quite a good mentor, to be honest. I've trained Paige into the witch she is today. A young wild girl won't make me turn tail and run."

"But... are you sure?" She looks at June, who continues to bark curses at the composed Paige.

"I didn't come here just to waste your time, Alpha. I know that you won't help me without getting something in return." Zachary smiles slyly, making the woman cross her arms.

She then stares at Paige, ready to speak, but the girl already beats her to it.

"It's alright, Alpha Channing. I'm a trained witch and the future leader of the Hibiscus Coven. It would be embarrassing for me and the ones I'll lead if I were to be harmed by such cheap magic."

June stands up quickly and stalks closer to her with a glare. "I'll show you cheap magic by shoving a block of ice up your scorching pussy you arrogant bitch!"

Paige scoffs, holding up one hand as flames flicker above the skin. Adella steps forward to break up their fight but Zachary holds her back by grabbing her shoulder.

"You come out of nowhere and start talking shit," June spits. "Is this how the future leader of the Hippy Coven acts?"

A scowl melts onto Paige's composed face as the air bursts into flames. "It's the Hibiscus Coven. That's a lot coming from a kid who can barely shoot anything more than a few miniature icicles."

"I'm nineteen, you prissy bitch!" June gets ready to attack, the air becoming denser and the tips of her fingers buzzing as magic is released.

Just as the security guards approached at full speed to the group, a voice called out from behind.

"Enough."

It was a smooth, ringing voice that commanded attention from them. June stopped in her tracks at the familiarity and Paige looked up to stare into the penetrating green-blue eyes of the speaker. All the attention turned to the woman who entered the scene of the commotion.

She was Delta Elmarie Faugne; Sablecrest's best fighter and the one who took control of the Hunters and Scouts training. Clad in lace up combat boots, a white t-shirt, and camo pants, she walks closer to them. Her curly auburn hair bounced in its ponytail with each step as she made her way behind June.

No one moved or breathed because her presence was just that intimidating. Her fierce gaze was trained on only June, who didn't turn around to see it. Instead, she was tense when her back was so close to the heat of Elmarie's body. The height difference was noticeable even from afar, and the woman seemed to tower over June easily.

Zachary notices how June was no longer loud and hot-headed. "Ah, the little witch seems to be docile when the Delta is around."

June snapped her eyes at the man with her mouth open to say something, but Delta Faugne speaks first.

"Watch it, scrawny."

The coven leader immediately silenced himself at the slight threat in her tone. He was a smart man, after all. He knew when it was time to speak and when it wasn't.

Adella watched all of this unfold before her, and the Alpha felt powerless. A horrible feeling turned in the depths of the stomach. June may have had a short fuse, but she would not fight unprovoked. By the way it looks, Paige probably said or did something that really pissed her off. She didn't even look guilty for it afterwards.

Even Zachary didn't even seem affected by anything. He stood there with his arms crossed and a small smirk playing on his lips.

The Hibiscus Coven sure was proud.

"Elmarie, bring June back to her room," the Alpha said, deciding that she has to take control of the situation.

"Yes, Alpha," said Elmarie, who bends down to whisper something in June's ear.

The girl did not protest and walked off with her quietly, as if she lost her ability to speak.

Adella feels a headache appear in her temple and she rubs it with her fingers. 'I'll have to speak to June later.'

"Well, you're Pack members don't seem too keen on us being here," Zachary sighs.

"I apologize if you feel that way, but you are still a guest here. They won't touch you." Adella pauses. "On the other hand, June..."

"I'll still teach her. It was also my fault for allowing this fight. I wanted to see June's strength for myself."

"And what did you see?"

Zachary grins. "I see a young girl with a lot of potential and magical power. I'm excited to teach her alongside Paige."

"You're going to teach her?" Paige asks with disbelief crossing over features. "With me?"

He nods to the girl. "Even as a powerful witch, there are still some things you can learn. Training with June will be a good thing. You can even help her reach your level."

"She'll never reach my level," she scoffs.

Zachary chuckles at the girl's haughtiness.

Adella heard rushing footsteps in the distance, turning her head to see a breathless Christine. Her footsteps slow down as she loses the last bit of her energy.

"W-what... did I... miss?" She wheezes with each breath, sweat collecting at her forehead.

"You're fine, Christine," Adella says, putting a hand on her back.

She then feels a stare on the back of her head, turning to see Kieryn peeking through his window. He flinches as he meets Adella's gaze and hurries away.

A ghost of a smile plasters onto Adella's face.

'I wonder if he likes the cake.'