"Would you stop following me?"
I snarled and spun on my heel in the middle of the hall, crossing my arms over my chest as I fixed Drew and Eddie with a glare. They screeched to a halt, Eddie barreling into Drew's back. She growled at him, while Nadia cackled from beside me. She leaned against the wall of lockers, hands shoved into her hoodie pockets.
"Jack's still here," Drew said, as if that would somehow deter me from wanting space. When she saw it wouldn't, she tried a different tactic. "He may try to poison you again."
A low growl rumbled through my chest as the party and interrogation flashed through my mind. "I can handle myself," I snarled, spinning around once again. Besides, if he tried anything again, Nadia might just torch his ass with her strange fire magic.
My brows furrowed in thought. When we got back to the cabin and Nadia told me about her hike in the woods, she tried to produce the fire she had told me about, but had been unable to. It didn't matter. She was my best friend, and I knew she'd never lie to me.
Besides, I could tell something was different about her now. It was so subtle at first that I didn't even notice it, but the more I dwelled on the matter, the more obvious it became. It wasn't anything I could see or smell, but rather something I just sensed about her. There was a new sense of power about her, something that hinted at just how formidable she could become.
Drew growled in frustration. "Riley," she groaned, falling into step on my left side. Nadia walked on my right, both of us staring at her out of the corner of our eyes. I couldn't wrap my brain around the idea of Drew trying to help me. Our entire lives, she had gone through every length possible to make mine and Nadia's lives miserable. Now here she was, protecting me from Jack and his family.
"He's a hunter," she said, as if it were new information.
"Really?" I asked in a mocking amazed voice. "Wow, Drew, I didn't know that! Tell me more." Honestly, though, why not? I already had to deal with a psychotic werewolf, as well as a pack that cornered and threatened me into joining them everywhere I turned. Why not add a family of hunters into the mix?
"Why are you trying to protect me?" I demanded. "I'm not a member of your pack, so why bother?"
She opened her mouth to answer, her eyes flicking over to Eddie who walked on her other side. He shook his head slightly and I frowned.
"What the hell is going on?" I demanded, coming to a stop. I reached out and grabbed Drew's arm to stop her, but as soon as my hand made contact with her skin, I was sucked into a downward spiral, falling into darkness.
When I opened my eyes, everything was foggy, as if I were looking through a pair of old, dirty goggles. I was standing in what looked to be a study, much like one you'd find in a mansion. When I glanced around, I saw Drew and Eddie sitting on a bench in the corner, while Simon and Sierra stood in the center before a huge, oak wood desk.
The man sitting behind the desk was ordinarily plain-looking, and yet he carried himself with a powerful sense of authority. He was tall with neatly combed brown hair and broad shoulders, his eyes as blue and as bright as the twins'. Donovan. It had to be.
"Are you sure?" Sierra asked, glancing between her father and brother. Her eyes were wide, the blue and gold glowing brilliantly in the dimly lit study. The only light in the room came from the soft, cracking fire in the fireplace.
Donovan nodded and stood, coming around to the other side of the desk. He leaned against it, crossing his arms over his chest. "Yes," he said. "I'm sure, and so is Astrid. She sensed it before the girl was even bitten."
I blinked. Were they talking about me? I stepped forward, finally deciding to make my presence known. Which should have been obvious. You'd think that five werewolves would notice at least one more, right?
"Excuse me," I said, "but could someone tell me what the hell is going on here?"
Nothing. They continued with their conversation, as if I weren't even there. I glanced back at Eddie and Drew, more confused than ever. They were still sitting on their bench, hands gripping the edge as if it was the only thing keeping them from floating away. Their heads were bowed, but while Eddie kept his eyes downcast, Drew was glaring up at the alphas through her eyelashes. Neither of them acknowledged my presence.
"But how?" Simon asked. "There hasn't been a Silver Wolf in almost four hundred years, not since the last werewolf trials."
Donovan shrugged. "It's rare," he said, "but it can happen. No one knows how or why, but it's likely a sign of difficult times to come."
"And Astrid's sure of this?" Sierra asked. "How confident is she in her assessment?"
Donovan scoffed. "Seeing as how she's been around since the appearance of the first Silver Wolf, I think she has the most authority in recognizing it. Aside from the Elders of the High Council, who were also there in the beginning." He let his eyes flick over to the two omegas in the corner, leaning forward so he spoke only to the twins. "She could be a threat to us once she learns she can start her own pack. She could take our wolves, making them her own, and there would be nothing we can do about it."
Sierra snarled. "We'll make her join," she vowed, looking to her brother for support. He nodded and she turned back to her father. "We'll make sure she—"
I gasped as Drew pulled away, holding her arm to her chest as if she had been burned. I stumbled back several steps, my back slamming against the wall of lockers. The loud, crashing sound echoed down the hall, causing several people to stop what they were doing and look up. I tried ignoring them, heat flushing up my neck and into my ears.
"Riley! Are you okay?" Nadia grabbed my elbow, helping me straighten. Eddie put a hand on Drew's back, steadying her as she swayed in her spot.
"I'm fine," I said, keeping my attention on Drew. "What the hell was that?" I asked.
She bit her lip, looking up at Eddie. He nodded, and she sighed. "A memory."
"What?" Nadia frowned, her head rearing back slightly in surprise. Drew nodded, her eyes flicking over to Nadia before returning to me.
"How was I able to see into your memories?" I demanded. "And what the hell is a Silver Wolf?"
Eddie shook his head. "We don't know," he said. "We've only heard the name a couple of times, but no one in the pack thought we were worthy enough to learn about it."
"And the memory thing?" I asked, turning to Drew for answers.
She shook her head as well, her brows scrunching together as if she were trying to solve a difficult calculus equation. "I don't know," she murmured. "I've never heard of any werewolf having that ability."
A frustrated snarl tore through my teeth. What the hell was going on? Not only was I a werewolf, but apparently I was some kind of freaky, mutated one. Just something else to add to the list of "How To Fuck With Riley's Sanity."
"So what now?" I demanded.
"We're still under orders to convince you to join the pack," Eddie answered. "Though, if I'm being honest, I don't think that's ever going to happen."
"You've got that right," I growled, stepping away from them. "Let's go, Nadia." I turned and strode away, keeping my back straight and gaze straight ahead. One problem at a time, I thought to myself. Unfortunately, between Dominic, the Wolf Valley Pack, and the Bryan family, I didn't know where to start.
~ ~ ~
Eddie and Drew growled on either side of me, signaling someone's approach. I sighed and dropped my head, lowering my fork back into the leftover spaghetti I'd brought from home. I peered up and to the right, watching as Jack Bryan came up to our table.
"What do you want?" I snarled as he approached, anger welling up inside my chest. A tremor shook through my body, and my gums ached. Colors became brighter, and I had to sudden urge to rip his throat out. With my teeth.
Jack raised his hands in surrender, keeping his posture and expression open and friendly. "I just want to talk," he said. His eyes flicked over to my unwanted bodyguards then back to me. Anxiety rolled off him in waves, making me want to gag.
"Then talk," I growled.
His eyes flicked to the seats, then back to me. "Can I sit?"
I glanced past him to the table behind him, where the other three werewolves of Wolf Valley High sat. I met Sierra's gaze, waiting for her reaction. She only nodded, narrowing her eyes at the hunter. Bringing my attention back to him, I straightened and pressed my hands against my jeans, balling them into fists. They were clenched so tight the nails dug crescents into my palms.
"Fine," I growled, repressing the urge to lunge forward and kill him.
Jack sat on Nadia's right side. She turned her attention to Jack, glaring at him while Eddie and Drew growled, fangs bared and eyes glowing. I snarled once, baring my own fangs at them. They stopped immediately, low warning growls rumbling from their chests before they finally fell silent.
"What do you want?" I repeated, staring at the hunter.
Jack sighed and said, "I wanted to say that I'm sorry. About Friday night, and how we went about questioning you. It should have never happened that way."
"But to be clear," I said, "you're not sorry for poisoning me."
He shook his head. "No," he said. "I'm not." The rage continued to build, and my body reacted. Spasms trailed up and down my arms as he said, "You needed to be weakened, in case our questioning got to be too much and you changed to attack us. Besides, I had to be sure you were a wolf."
Drew scoffed and I turned my head to snarl briefly at her again. She pursed her lips and crossed her arms over her chest, leaning them on the table. I sighed in exasperation and turned back to the hunter, giving Jack a pointed look. "Why did you have to poison me to figure that out?"
"I had to test you," he said. "And when you failed, my family wanted me to bring you in so they could question you. So long as you cooperated with us and answered them, you would have been fine."
Anger surged through my chest once again. From their table, I heard Sierra, Simon, and Ethan laughing and howling. It took me a moment they weren't laughing at me, but at Jack. If I interpreted correctly, and I believed I did, they probably thought he was foolish for spouting off the things he was saying.
Drew and Eddie snarled beside me, and Nadia was glaring at him. I growled and leaned in closer to him, eyes glowing. The hunter leaned back, eyes wide and fearful as I came closer.
"But I wasn't fine," I snapped. "I answered your questions—three simple, little questions—then your father tried to kill me. So tell me, how was that fine?"
He shrunk in his seat, eyes cast down as shame overwhelmed him, and my nose. "That should never have happened," he said quietly before lifting his eyes back to mine. "He was out of line, and I'm sorry for that."
"You also didn't think," I said in a low voice, "that it would have been better to just ask me your questions at the party? Or any other time? Don't think I haven't noticed you watching me. I'm assuming with all of the surveillance, you must have figured out what I am. Why not just be upfront and come directly to me?"
He shook his head. "It doesn't work like that," he responded. "There's a protocol, a way to go about doing things."
"And what does your protocol tell you to do?" Nadia snapped, lacing her fingers together as she leaned her forearms against the table. Her rage had been growing along with mine throughout the entire interaction, to the point where I could sense her body temperature rising.
Jack flicked his gaze between the two of us before answering with, "To treat all suspected werewolves as if they were one, and to not give away the hunt."
Nadia snorted. "Unbelievable," she muttered. "What do you think would have happened if your father did kill her, huh?" She raised a fist in the air, lifting a finger with each point she stated as she spoke. "One, you had witnesses. Two, her aunt's a surgeon at the nearby hospital. Three, she's well-known in town and her disappearance would have been noted."
Jack opened his mouth to speak, but she held up her other hand to silence him. "I'm not done," she snapped. "Four, her parents were also well-known, and loved and respected. Five—there's more I could say, but we'd be here all day—she's my best friend and my father is the Sheriff."
"And those are just a few of the reasons Jadyn and I tried to stop him!" He exclaimed.
Drew scoffed. "Some effort you made," she growled. "By the time we showed up, all three of you had weapons drawn on her." She shrugged and added, "Looked to me like you were all ready to kill her."
Jack sighed and nervously rubbed the back of his neck. "I know it looked bad," he murmured. "But all of that was just instinct."
I leaned closer to him across the table. Putting all of the malice and rage I could into my next statement. "Maybe you should brush up on your common sense before rushing to your instincts' defense. Now get the hell away from me," I snarled. "If I see you anywhere near me other than our scheduled classes, I'll rip your throat out with my teeth. Got it?"
He nodded vigorously, stumbling as he stood and hurried away, glancing over his shoulder at all of the wolves in the room. When he had turned the corner, fleeing the cafeteria, I sighed and dropped my head, leaning heavily against the table.
Nadia cleared her throat, taking a sip of her bottled orange juice. When she set it on the table again, she said, "Well... that was terrifying.