"A Pact with Fate"

Not me. Because if this room was the Savannah, everyone else would be the damn lion and I was the gazelle biding my time until my inevitable death.

Guilt ate at me for not helping Ava when she'd opened up to me in the bathroom. So, only one thing to do. Show her I wasn't a jerk like the rest of them at this school.

By the time class finished, hunger for the hunt echoed in every gaze. Most of the shifters were pumped, pushing and jostling against the desks before they spilled out into the hall.

Ava was fast out of her seat.

I scrambled after her, grabbing the book on predatory tactics, and tucked the Goliath textbook under my arm before I raced after her. "Ava, wait up!"

She slipped between the masses of students, each rushing to their next class, chatting with friends.

Shoving and pushing.

The air smelled of perspiration, fur, and freshly turned soil.

I lost her.

I pressed my back to the wall and pulled out the schedule from my school uniform's pocket, figuring l'd need a bag for my books and crap.

Rites and Rituals. Okay, didn't sound too bad. I followed the map on the back of the schedule, kept my head low, and pushed through the crowd.

The hallways spilled out into classrooms. I scanned the map, stopping at a gymnasium, except there were no basketball hoops in here, no sweaty jocks and pom-pom laden cheerleaders. A group of fifteen or so students sat in a circle in the center. I hurried over, clutching my book to my chest, scanning the faces, and when they landed on bitch face, fur ball, and their clans, my stomach sank. No sign of Ava. Where the hell was she?

It meant I was alone.

I met the teacher's gaze, a tall guy with tanned skin and long dark hair curled into dreadlocks falling to his chest.

He wore a purple cape with black pants and a button-up shirt. A black beaded chain swung as he moved, clutched onto a wooden cane.

He felt young...but who was I to know.

No one shifted to allow me to enter the circle. So, he waved me over, then poked one of the Judas' wolf boys to move. I squeezed in, sitting with crossed legs and my book behind me.

"I'm Professor Randall Gomez, your Rites and Rituals teacher." He walked within our circle, holding what looked like a shoe box, and stopped in front of a girl with red curls.

"Close your eyes and put your hand inside. Pick up the stone that you feel a connection with."

She followed his instructions, her hand rummaging in the box, and she pulled out a violet crystal the size of my index finger.

"Lovely," Mr. Gomez said.

"The amethyst is known for its anxiety properties. Hold onto your stone somewhere close because what you select is what your inner power needs you to work on."

He moved around the circle, and everyone was curious about others' selections and what they revealed about them. When it was Judas's turn, he put his hand in and pulled out a stone instantly as if he'd known already where to select from.

"Labradorite," Mr. Gomez called out, his voice darkening. "This stone shines a light in the darkness and is used for removing hexes."

We all fell silent as Judas studied the short wand-shaped crystal in his hand. It was the color of a dark opal, but what would he need warding from?

"I'm so excited." Bitch face giggled. Clearly too much attention had been on someone else for too long.

Mr. Gomez lowered the box in front. "Your turn, Nesrin."

So, she had a name after all.

When she pulled out a red round stone, her friends cheered and clapped, while I rolled my eyes.

"Garnet," the teacher said.

"This is strongly associated with magic. And you know that's illegal at this Academy."

Nesrin offered him her best puppy dog eyes, a hand to her chest. "I'd never."

I gagged a little at her sincerity and then stilled when he stopped in front of me.

Dark, solemn eyes found mine before he gave a small nod. "Just put your hand in... that's the way."

Fingers skimmed the inside until I touched the smooth, cold surfaces of all the crystals.

"God, she's taking forever," someone whispered.

A crystal vibrated under my touch, just slightly, sending tremors through my fingers. I grasped it, pulling it in tight against my palm before I dragged my fist free.

"Show us!" someone called out, and the teacher just nodded and offered me a smile that said everything would be alright. But I somehow doubted that.

I uncurled my fingers to the square shaped form. Light spilled from the edges, half red like a ruby, and the other side a perfect pale green.

Someone else snorted, while Mr. Gomez rubbed his jawline.

"Been a while since anyone selected a tourmaline." He met my gaze. "Morwenna, this is a rare selection."

Someone snorted a laugh, but he continued, "And the most powerful stone for protection against negative energy. Keep it close at all times." A worrisome tone lined his words as if a piece of rock could really make a difference.

I nodded and pocketed my pick.

"All right," he began. "Let's begin with a cleansing circle. Close your eyes and push everything out of your mind."

I followed, shoving the worry in my head away, and settled into the meditation, letting my muscles ease. Mr. Gomez's voice was smooth and soft, counting down the steps I followed inside my mind. My breaths stilled, my senses eased, and that throbbing in my temples drifted away.

By the time class finished, I was floating. I headed to the next class and then the next, in a blissful kind of trance. Nothing could touch me in this moment, no hate, no jealousy.

No Demon boyfriend waiting in the wings.

Gaze after gaze, lesson after lesson until I slipped, exhausted, into the seat for the last class. A class filled with lessons of the pact and how not to kill humans. I almost whimpered with relief when the bell finally rang. I shoved up from my seat, following the others. My arms were laden with books. I fumbled, stacking one on top of the other, and rushed out of the room.

Away from the prying eyes.

The whispers.

The hatred.

I hurried past Judas, who leaned against the wall. He just watched me, deep grey eyes focused on my every

move.

The fur ball was hot, tousled dark hair, brown eyes the color of a stormy sea, jawline hard like it was set in granite.

Panic filled me. I fumbled with the books, poked my tongue out at him, and high-tailed it out of there.

Nice one. I wanted to sink into a hole. Heat flooding my cheeks.

He knew he'd affected me now. Goddamnit. Who the hell sticks out their tongues these days? Ugh.

The heat burned me up from the inside out. I pushed past the doors and ran toward my dorm. The book tight in my grasp, I didn't stop until l reached my room.

And sank into the darkness.

The heavy books thudded as I dropped everything on the table and then flopped onto the bed. I dug into my pocket, digging out my phone.

Desperation welled inside me. It was so hard here, too hard.

Mor: How's your day?

I waited, tapping the screen for him to respond. When he didn't, I sent half a dozen more.

Mor: What are you having for dinner, A or O?

Mor: Have anything planned for this afternoon?

PAY ATTENTION TO ME! I wanted to scream

Chuck: Are you in danger?

Mor: No.

Chuck: Then you know where I am if you are.

Gah. I checked my emails. Two from Dad about behaving, and three from Thorin. My fingers hovered over the open button. I could open them and reply. One sentence was all l needed....

Thorin, there's a wolf at my school, and I think he likes me.

I thought of the fallout. There'd be terror...there'd be no more school.

No more of anything, really. I'd be whisked back home in an instant, where they could control my every move. An unseen fist wrapped around my throat, choking just like my life. Instead, I tossed the phone across the bed and snatched a pillow, curling myself around it as a heaviness sat in my gut.

Leaving was prohibited, not that there was anything nearby anyway. No place to get my nails done, or visit a cafe, or try on new clothes.