Van
Van thought pretending to be a model Novitiate was hard before, but it was nothing compared to the control it took to keep from crying out as Bane and Luca came together in a clash of fists and claws, the two changing so quickly she had trouble tracking their shifts. Beside her, Abe watched the fight, chin tilted smugly and his arms crossed over his chest. But she knew the pose was as much a lie as her behavior in school. He was waiting for her to react. Expecting it.
Which meant, he wasn't buying into her new dedication to the family business like she'd hoped. She could only pray it was less about not trusting his willful daughter and more about being smart. If roles were reversed, she'd test him for loyalty too.
"Interesting choice, Supreme," Isaiah said, surprising Van enough to make her drag her eyes away from the fight. The Novitiate spoke with a calm assuredness that even a full Slayer couldn't project when speaking to her father.
"From time to time it's necessary to cull the herd," Abe responded, his voice warm.
She didn't turn her neck, and she went over every nuance of her tone and word choice before asking, "What do you mean, Supreme?"
The addition of her father's honorary title had the desired effect. The rigidity in his stance melted until it was almost indiscernible to anyone who wasn't looking for it, and she was glad she wasn't completely wrong about his ego. All it took was a little stroking to settle his unease.
But it wasn't her father who answered her. Instead, Isaiah circled her, his gaze splitting between her face and the fight. When he ceased moving, he put his hand on her in that unsettling way of his and spoke in an almost whisper.
"Shifters strong enough to be Alphas typically avoid fighting one another unless they're challenging for position within the pack."
She waited for him to continue. He stared down at her, his taunting lips vibrating as he hummed a tuneless song. Thirty seconds of silence stretched out until she realized he was going to force her to press for more information. She looked behind her where Hailey had been only to find her ally had moved to the back of the crowd.
"And Luca and Bane are both classified as Alphas."
There. She wouldn't let him force her to admit her ignorance by asking question after question.
Isaiah lit up. "They are."
This boy could make a saint curse. She heard a gasp across the room, and she swung her attention toward the sound. Livy hovered at the edge of the fighting ring, her slender fingers wrapped around her neck, her chest heaving as if she struggled to breathe. Bane pinned Luca against the waxed wood floor and raised a hand to strike. Claws extended and dark fur rippled over his skin.
A strange knowledge invaded Van's brain. In a single moment, she knew the trajectory of that strike with certainty, and if it landed, it would be a killing blow. Bane was a monster, but she didn't think he was a murderer.
"He's going to kill him." Another loss. Another person she would have to say goodbye too, and it was in that moment she understood just how much she'd come to care for Luca.
"Yes. Alphas fight to the death," Abe replied. He leaned forward. "This is certainly the best outcome."
"You-" Son of a bitch is what she wanted to say, but when he jerked his unforgiving eyes toward her, she smoothed her tone and continued, "Arranged this?"
Luca snarled and bucked his hips, throwing Bane across the floor. In a flash, he was a panther, all sleek, black fur and rippling muscle. He was upon the boy before he could rise, and as they tussled, blood smeared across the ground. She wanted to let out a shout of joy.
Abe released a disappointed exhale as victory inched closer to Luca's grasp, and he turned back to his daughter. "We prefer the Forests to be in charge of the shifters. They hate us, and they fight us at every turn."
"Those are interesting qualifications to be favorite. No wonder you like me so much." It slipped out before she could stop it, but perhaps, it was for the best. A Van without snark was a suspicious Van.
And to her surprise, it actually earned her a chuckle from her father. "I don't mind a little fight. A good soldier follows blindly, but a great leader must know his own mind. You will be a great leader."
She wanted to tell him she'd rather have her toenails removed one at a time without a numbing agent, but that was probably too much of the old Van. "But the shifters are more like soldiers. Why would you put someone who hates you in power?"
"Because they lead with an iron fist. Their people do not step out of line because of fear. It keeps them from being able to rise up against us because they are too divided."
"And the Brooks would not rule the same way?"
"No, they would be loved, and that is far more dangerous."
All warmth was gone, and she shivered as they turned their full attention back to the fight. Two panthers circled one another. Only the color of their eyes clued her in on their identity. Bane dragged his back, left leg, and he hissed with every step.
Give in, she urged in her mind. He had to know he was beat. Why not just throw in the towel? If Bane knew how easily her father was manipulating him, he might, but there was no way to tell him if he didn't survive this.
"Bane, give in," Livy said the words Van couldn't. She stepped over the circle, her hands raised in a shaking plea.
"Back up Miss Brooks," Slayer Frances admonished.
The girl flipped him the bird, earning dark glares and a few undetectable hoots of amusement. And she didn't back up.
Luca's tail twitched, and he chuffed at his cousin. It was a small thing. A moment of distraction, and Bane took advantage of it. He launched forward. Long teeth sank into Luca's shoulder. They drove down until blood bubbled up over the white. A roar echoed through the gym, but it wasn't from the boy in pain.
Livy shifted in the air and tackled Bane. To Van's surprise, the girl was nearly the same size as the boys, but unlike her male counterparts, her coat was white and gray with dark spots and close set rosettes.
Abe grunted. "Is she registered as a snow leopard?"
Isaiah looked unsettled for the first time. "We have no records of any snow leopards in the packs. The last one died over fifty years ago."
Livy and Bane rolled. Luca shifted into his human form, and she wanted to reach for him as he shouted his cousin's name with anguish. She showed no signs of hearing him other than a strange flickering in her coloration. From white and speckled to black and back.
"Impossible. Frances. End this at once."
"Yes, Supreme," the Slayer said with a salute before pulling a black wand from his belt. He rushed toward the animals, and with a single touch to both, they collapsed. He whipped around to Luca, but the boy lifted his hands up in surrender.
"Everyone is dismissed. Leave now," Abe shouted. His face was menacing as he marched toward Luca. "Were you aware? Answer me!"
"Come on, Vanessa. That was a direct order from the Supreme. Even I do not disobey those."
"But," she stuttered, letting herself be dragged away even as she looked over her shoulder. What had just happened?
"Now."
When they were in the hallway, she snatched her arm free. "What was that?"
"Nothing that concerns you right now," Isaiah said as they maneuvered through the bustling crowd.
All around them, she could hear whispering peppered between the orderly clicks of heels on marble floors. No tile or linoleum for the Holy Asylum of Light. Van wanted to curse and scream at the students, but as she studied them, she noticed most looked as confused as she was. Only a few possessed that same grim surety that Isiaiah did.
"I am the Supreme's daughter, and your future leader," she snapped, "So you can tell me, and one day I'll remember you were helpful."
He paused, and for a second, she thought her display of confidence had worked. "You won't be a leader for a very long time. Your father will explain if he decides you need to know. Until then, don't ask questions that will get you in trouble. I'll see you tomorrow Novitiate Vanessa.
When he was gone, she pushed her way through the students. A few started to snap at her, but they swallowed their comments when they realized who she was. She didn't care about any of them. She was looking for a familiar baby face, but it wasn't until she reached the parking lot that she spied Hailey climbing into her car.
"Hailey!"
The girl slid into her front seat and started the car, but from the hunched shoulders, Van was sure she'd heard her. And was avoiding her.
"Like hell," she hissed, sprinting across the pavement.
"Holy shit," Hailey screamed when Van slapped her palm on the windshield. Rolling her window down, she blinked rapidly. "How the hell did you get here so fast?"
"I ran at a normal speed."
"I'm sorry. Most people can't run a hundred meters in two seconds."
Trixie's words during training came back to Van. "As a Helsing you have certain gifts. Enhancements unique to your bloodline." She wondered if Hailey was aware of the Helsing's enhancements, but she shook her head. Now was not the time for that question.
"You know what happened back there." It wasn't a question.
"Yes and it's nothing good. I told you not to get involved with them."
"Just tell me already."
Hailey sighed, looking as if she might cry. "You saw Livy's coat flicker? From black to snow leopard?"
"Yes. I thought she was just struggling to hold her shift."
"In a way, I guess she was, but not like you're thinking. She wasn't shifting back to human. Shifters only have one form, Van. Unless-"
"Unless..." She trailed off as the answer hit her. "Unless she's not all shifter. But the Proteans are dead. That's what Luca said."
Hailey looked at the Holy Asylum of Light. It looked darker and more imposing than usual as the winter sun sank behind it.
"That's we all thought, but I guess we thought wrong."