Total pages in book: 121
Estimated words: 114617 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 573(@200wpm)___ 458(@250wpm)___ 382(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 114617 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 573(@200wpm)___ 458(@250wpm)___ 382(@300wpm)
I laughed. “No one pays me to be rude, so why waste the energy?”
“Now that’s a good saying. I’m stealing it.” She looked around. “Hey, it’s not on the menu for the students, but we’ve got a nice, hot pot of Tanzanian coffee brewing in the back. Would you like a cup?”
“I’d love some. Thank you...?”
“Holly,” she added, then flashed me a wink and took off for the kitchen.
The mess hall started filling up with students loading up for their first official day of classes. Loud and clear above the chatter, Ava and her friends complained about the mixing.
“—ridiculous,” Ava spat. “Dagem’s making the alphas and epsilons pay because a homicidal fugitive forced her way into our school? Sunella said she had a breakdown and flipped out, but why does that mean she gets away with killing Castor?”
“Sunella lied,” Edric dropped. “I listened to the entire interrogation—if you can even call it that. She spent hours questioning her while the psycho demanded a cheeseburger. Volana didn’t give up a single thing about where she’s been for the last year, or why she killed Castor. The whole thing was a joke.”
“What the hell?” one of their crew cried. “Why did Sunella lie? Why did she let that bitch go to our school?!”
“Because she’s blackmailing Dagem and the council.”
I didn’t expect Edric to keep the secret... and he didn’t.
“A murderer is running free through our school, and no one is going to do anything about it. They can’t piss her off, and they damn sure aren’t going to kill the mother wolf,” Edric continued. “Are you seeing where I’m going with this, or do you need me to keep spelling it out?”
“What?” she rasped. “What does this mean?”
“Dammit, Zania,” Ava snapped. “He’s saying that if we want the bitch out, we’ll have to do it ourselves.”
I kept my gaze fixed on my nails as all eyes in the room turned on me. If I heard Edric from clear across the room, then so did everyone else. Alpha, omega, beta, and epsilon. I didn’t know what they were thinking— Well, to be accurate, I didn’t know what the silent ones were thinking. For all the ones who were whispering and hissing their threats and agreement, they were coming through loud and clear.
“You’re all alone I see.” Badr dropped on the seat in front of me. “Just how it should be.”
I didn’t look up from my nails. “Something I can do for you?”
“Yeah, I was listening to that pathetic boo-hoo sob story you were spinning for the omega.”
“Which one?” I replied conversationally. “Was it when I was moaning about Luame’s shit taste in mates?”
“No, that wasn’t the one.” Badr’s tone was just as light and friendly as mine. “It was when you were doing that piss-poor impression of a normal person and fake crying over Mommy.”
I kept my reaction off my face. That’s what he was looking for. “You think I didn’t care when my own mother was murdered?”
“You didn’t feel a thing,” he hissed, getting in my face. “How do I know? Because you’re the soul-sucking leech that rips good people out of this world. If you really knew how that felt, you’d never have done it to Castor.
“He was the best of people. We both had a claim for alpha of the clan, but our father wanted Castor. Castor fought against him.” Badr’s voice shook. “Knock-down, drag-out fights all to back me up. Said our claims were equal, and if we both graduated on top, we’d be co-alphas and he’d accept nothing else.
“Co-alphas. Can you believe that? Nothing like it had ever been done before.”
That was hard to believe. As hard as it was to believe mundane USA would ever have co-presidents. Power didn’t like to be shared.
“But Castor was willing to do it, because my brother wasn’t going to let me get anything less than my due.” There was barely a sliver of distance between us. “That was the man you killed, leech, and I swear on the goddess, you will not get away with it.”
I blew out a gusty sigh. “You know what, Badr? Let’s settle this right now, so that all the people listening can know why you’re really mad.
“It’s because I saw you piss your pants.”
Nia choked from across the room, hacking and spraying water on the table. Our many, many listeners gasped, reeled, or had to keep their bulging eyes in their head.
“What the fuck— No I didn’t!”
“That nasty, ripe yellow stain is there for everyone to see,” I breezed. “You peed yourself, I saw it, and you’re desperate that no one finds out you’re incontinent because how can anyone respect a wolf who wears a diaper?” Badr flushed deeper purple with every word. “Look, it’s not a big deal, man. Just make sure to change it out more frequently. Might feel nice to have a warm sack of piss against your balls, but that’s how leaks happen.”