Wyatt chuckled softly as he came forward. He tugged on my belt with a finger. “I’m well aware of your… issues,” he said, winking. “The better to eat you with,” he added, his voice sultry and smooth.
I gasped at his nearness, at the need building in my body. All coherent thought rushed out of my head.
“It’s my job to make you shift.” Wyatt’s eyes narrowed. “No matter what, I refuse to let you fail.” One side of his lips quirked up. “There are cameras inside the cage, so let’s make this a good fight and don’t go easy on me.” His features became serious, and I almost saw the gears in his brain turning. “Soon enough, you’ll know who I am and what I did to you.”
Okay, that was cryptic and made no sense.
He backed up a few steps, and before I knew what was happening, he sent a right hook slamming into my cheek.
My head snapped to one side. Searing pain shot through my face and nose and up into my head as I stumbled back. In the past, had someone hit me like that, I would’ve ended up on the ground, probably unconscious. Now though, my wolf growled beneath my skin. I could feel her, but I didn’t know how to set her free.
I shook my head, blinking several times to get rid of the tears blurring my vision. My hands went up, and my feet spread apart as I prepared for another hit.
Vaguely, I was aware of the crowd cheering, but the noise sounded far away, and I focused on Wyatt.
The look on his face said he was surprised, and he shook his head and chuckling. “I punched you hard. You should’ve shifted, or you should be unconscious.”
I tasted blood in my mouth where I’d bitten my cheek, and I spit it on the ground between us. “You’re going to have to do better than that.” I was angry because I wanted to change into my wolf, too. Also, because I’d been fighting opponents in karate for years. That he got the advantage on me was irritating as hell.
Wyatt straightened and turned, lifting his arms as though telling the crowd he couldn’t believe I hadn’t fallen.
My father spoke in his commentary voice. I didn’t listen to what he said but took the opportunity to use Wyatt’s arrogance against him. Without a sound, I kicked him in the side. When my foot connected, there was a snap. I’d broken one of his ribs. I flinched and was about to apologize.
But he turned, his eyes flashing yellow and his face shifting. Seconds later, he was a wolf. But not just any wolf. I recognized him as the black wolf who saved my life. The one that pulled me from the river and licked my face. I was alive because of him.
“You,” I whispered.
Wyatt’s wolf lowered his head and growled menacingly. Then he launched at me. I was used to full-frontal attacks in karate class, but he’d caught me off guard. Was he the wolf who saved me? If so, he was my hero.
Wasn’t he?
I couldn’t really consider before he knocked the wind out of me, and I fell to the ground. His front paws were on my chest while his back paws straddled me. He bared his teeth and got so close I could feel the heat from his breath.
What should I do?
I couldn’t think it through before he bit my shoulder, in pretty much the exact place he had before when he saved me from drowning.
Pain lanced through my shoulder, and red hot lightning shot through my body. Amid the ringing and fiery haze came a thousand bee stings.
There wasn’t time to consider the pain. Before I could, I shifted.
All around me came gasps, including from Wyatt, who jumped off.
A silver wolf! Even in wolf form, I could see his animalistic shock, like he was staring at a ghost.
I glanced down at myself. Sure enough, my fur was all silver and shimmered a little against the glare of the lights. “Is that bad?” I tried to ask with my wolf mouth.
He didn’t answer, just came at me.
In my mind, it felt like slow motion. I knew our fight looked like the others, a ferocious tangle of fur and teeth, barking and whining. His teeth went for my throat and pierced my skin.
I tried to fight him off, afraid of what was happening. Did he intend to kill me? It felt like it. Warm blood leaked from my wounds as he pinned me down once more, growling deeply. “Wyatt, stop,” I tried again with my mouth. Then shouted in my mind, you win!
Wyatt shook his head as though unsure what to do, but he bit me again, this time sinking his teeth into my other shoulder.
Pain radiated through my arm.
In the face of his fury and my agony, there came a snap inside my head. Human worries faded into the background, and the wolf took control. She—I wanted Wyatt to stop, to get away from me show him I wasn’t to be dominated. I rolled to get away and jumped to my feet. We were practically nose to nose. He barked and snapped.
I wasn’t having that. My anger became furious, and so big it seemed to leave my body, rise, and hover above me.
What the holy hell? A monster from the Shade! How are you doing that? Wyatt said into my mind as he backed away.
Doing what? I was confused. There was a snap, like a rubber band inside my head. My anger was replaced with confusion, and I lowered my head, submitting to Wyatt. Because I just wanted the whole frightening moment to be over.
The coliseum was quiet for one breath and then two.
Finally, my dad said, “The winner is Wyatt Wright.”
The crowd clapped slowly as though confused. In a few beats, it got louder and louder.
I breathed in a quick breath. I did it, I thought. I shifted, and it wasn’t that bad. All I felt was relief. I glanced at Wyatt, but he was already out of the cage and trotting away.
Without understanding, I trotted off the field and back into my little enclosure.
As soon as my door shut and the locked clicked, I glanced over at Fallon. He was changed back into his human form and wearing his clothes once again. “How did you do that?” he asked, his voice hovering between disgust and awe.
I shook my head. “What?” I tried to ask, but the word came out garbled.
“When you shifted, it was the craziest thing. It looked like one of the spirits of the monsters from the Shade Rasa came out of you. Like you possessed its spirit, or it possessed you.” He shuddered and went over to his bench, sitting down, but kept his focus on me. “There’s been speculation that using the power of the monster whose blood we possess should be possible, but you’ve proven it.” He rubbed a hand over his face. “Maybe it’s because you’re a silver wolf. That’s like the rarest wolf color in existence. I thought they were myths or just fairy tales.” A wondrous smile crossed over his lips. “Apparently not.” Fallon carefully came back over to the cage. “Did you see the spirit of that monster—I think it was a lupangus—hovering above your head? I swear it was going to kill Wyatt.”
“I wasn’t,” I said, feeling defensive even though there was a part of me that had felt murderous. After a deep breath, I swallowed. “Tell me more about the spirit thing,” I tried to add, but it came out garbled and growly. Damn wolf couldn’t speak.
Fallon tilted his head to one side. “Not sure what you said there, but yeah, the spirit thing was outlined in blue and looked ominous, like a cross between a snake and a wolf. I’m thinking lupangus, but I could be wrong.” He paced and mumbled, rattling off different things that made no sense to me, and I got the feeling he was a total monster blood nerd.
Some kids have a thing for dinosaurs, trains, or even video games. This guy… I barked, hoping that would stop the gibberish.
He clamped his mouth shut and came in close. “You didn’t feel the spirit?”
“No,” I began, and then just shook my head. Now that I was shifted into my wolf, I had no idea how to turn back. Not to mention the places where Wyatt bit me stung.
“That’s crazy. Theoretically, I guess it’s possible. There’s a one in twenty-two thousand five-hundred-and-five chance the spirit was just there and showed itself at the exact right moment…” He let his voice trail off, but not for long.
I couldn’t listen to him anymore. All I coul
d think about was Wyatt and why he’d almost killed me. I wanted to ask Fallon why being a silver wolf was a big deal, but he was too focused on the monsters.
In the back of my mind, I heard my father speaking to the crowd.
More clapping.
Then the noises faded, and I guessed people were leaving.
After a while, the guy who'd led us to our prison cells passed in front of them and opened the doors. When he reached Fallon, he pressed open the cage. “Mutant by association,” he said.
Fallon stopped rambling, glanced over, and then shrugged. “I don’t know that girl, which makes me no more of a mutant than you.”
“Watch yourself, initiate. Calling me names will get you thrown out,” he seethed, speaking between clenched teeth.
Fallon hung his head. “Fine.”
Then the guy came over to me. “Definitely a mutant. Dean Valene must be so proud.” He laughed harshly. “No wonder no one knew he had a kid.”
I didn’t respond, not that I could anyway, in my wolf form, but I waited anxiously for him to unlock my door.
He just looked at it. “You want out?”
I heard myself whine.
“Too bad. Since this was your first time shifting into your wolf, it might take days before you change back. Of course, then you’ll have failed your initiation.” He snorted and came in so close I could smell his stinky breath. “Do yourself a favor and just stay in here. The sooner you’re expunged from the program, the better. We don’t need the likes of you in our school.” He spat on the floor in front of him. “Mutant Valene,” he said with a harsh laugh. “Has a nice ring to it.”
I barked, wishing he would tell me how to shift back. That’s all I needed. Pointers. But he walked to the exit, flipped a switch, and walls like those accordion doors at storage facilities began to close over the throughways. When the hall was sealed shut, he turned off the lights. “Night, mutant. Careful of the monsters living inside your head.” Then he was gone, the metal door slamming behind him.
Silence permeated, the only sound coming from my panting breath.
I waited for him to return, thinking he must be joking. Surely, he wouldn’t leave me in here all alone. He would tell someone, and they would come back and help me.
I waited and waited, my eyes adjusting to the darkness as I panted in fear. Then I paced. Finally, after what felt like hours, I lay down and closed my eyes, hoping to pass the time with a nap.
When I opened my eyes, my first glance was at my skin. I was naked, one side of my head resting on my arm. It was still pitch black, but I could see enough to get dressed, which I did in a hurry. Once my boots were on, I went to the cage door, reached through and unlocked it, then hurried over to the exit.
Outside, the sky was hovering between early evening and night. There was still a little light in the sky. But no one had waited. The horse-drawn sleighs were gone, and the coliseum was like a ghost town. That meant I would have to run back to the Academy, and it wasn’t close.
“Great!”
Chapter Eight
I was hungry and thirsty and madder than hell at the guy who left me, at my father who abandoned me, and even at my mother, who was too afraid to tell me the truth about our family. We were descended from an ancient legacy of wolves for goodness sake. I should know so much more than I did. The initiation tests should’ve been easy.
As I stomped across the field, furious about my lot in life, I became aware of something following me. My thoughts forgotten, I turned, searching the shadowy landscape. About three feet away was what looked like an oversized rock. The problem was, there hadn’t been a rock there when I walked by only moments before.
Worry caused my heart to beat faster, and I started to run. Faster and faster. The problem was that the thing behind me, which wasn’t really a rock, was keeping up.
My fear became anger, and I whipped around, my wolf pressing against the inside of my skin, causing it to prickle. With the small shift came a growl, the likes of which I’d never heard come out of my throat.
The thing that was chasing me stopped at the same time I did. Its oversized ice blue eyes, the same color as mine, peered at me eagerly. I would even say, hopefully. Then it whined softly and opened its mouth, letting its forked tongue dangle.
The… creature was small, about the size of a newborn kitten, but it looked nothing like one. Well, except the four legs. It also had patches of burnt orange fur on its pointed ears, parts of its body, and bushy tail. The way it sat with its tail wagging reminded me more of a puppy. Or a wolf, but the tiniest wolf I’d ever seen. The areas not covered in fur were smooth and reminded me of snakeskin. Its face wasn’t shaped like a wolf but a snake, and it had two tiny fangs poking out on either side of its mouth.
As I wrapped my brain around what I was seeing, I should’ve been repulsed. But the damn thing was cute in a wholly unfamiliar way.
It whined again and took a tentative step forward.
Whatever it was, it was just a baby. “Are you lost?” I asked, searching the dark landscape for its mama. Even as I thought about seeing the parent, my pulse racketed up a notch. The Shade Rasa stood dark and shadowy in the distance, and I guessed the creature must have come from there. But I didn’t have time to return it. Plus, if it was so far from the forest, the mama thing probably abandoned it.
While I debated what to do, the creature had snuck even closer, keeping its body low to the ground, not quite slithering. Every once in a while, it would flick its snake tongue out as though smelling the air.
I glanced around, wondering if this thing were just a joke. Maybe part of the second test? Initiation could equal humiliation. But there wasn’t a soul in sight. If it were a test, the cameras and people were very well hidden. I squatted down, and the little thing quickly closed the gap between us, putting its body under my hand and rolling onto its back.
“Aren’t you adorable?” I said and softly scratched its belly. It felt like fur and snakeskin too. Weird. “Did you want to come home with me?” I paused, remembering where I was. Without a home at the moment. Hell, I didn’t even know the location of my room.
The creature snuggled against my hand and made a noise that sounded a little like purring. “You’re lost and lonely, aren’t you?” I was projecting my own feelings, but it could very well be. And I didn’t want to leave it out here alone. There were wolves in the area, and I couldn’t let the little guy become a midnight snack. “Alright, I’ll take you inside, but you need to keep quiet.
I picked it up. The thing fit into the palm of my hand. It rested there a moment, before making its way up my arm until it found purchase on my shoulder. Its little claws dug through my sweater and shirt and into my skin, but it didn’t hurt.
With it situated there, I picked up speed, jogging until I reached the Academy’s entrance. Then I tucked it into my sweater pocket.
At the enormous double doors, I took a deep breath. “I can do this,” I whispered.
The creature tittered softly, and I patted it lightly, hoping it would stay silent. Then I yanked open the doors.
I had no preconceived notions about what the inside of the Academy would look like. Not a single one of my random thoughts did it justice. It was regal. Majestic even. With lush cranberry wallpaper covered in golden filigree on the walls. A grand wooden staircase with a thick rail led to an upper level. Pictures of handsome men and women—half-wolf and half-human were framed and hung on all of the walls. Above was a twinkling chandelier dangling from a black ceiling interspersed with thousands of tiny glittering lights, almost like the night sky. The floors were checkerboard in black and gold colors. On the gold squares were the emblems representing the different houses. Directly in front of me was a supersized wooden desk carved with intricate designs of wolf heads.
An elderly man with silver-rimmed glasses and a balding head with side tufts of gray hair stood behind it. When he saw me, his already permanent frown deepened.
“What are you doing out of bed? Curfew
was ten minutes ago.”
How late was it? Time seemed to move much more quickly here. Or at least haphazardly. “I was left in the coliseum after the first test.” Anger at what the guy did by deserting me caused my cheeks to get hot. “No one told me how to shift back to my human form. I was all alone.” I tried not to sound as annoyed as I felt, but some of it leaked out anyway.
“I see.” He leaned over the counter, getting closer to me. “Name.”
“Diana Valene.”
At my name, surprise lifted his caterpillar eyebrows before his eyes narrowing shrewdly. “Well, Miss Valene, your father is expecting you.”
“Oh good,” I said, my lips tight. “And where is he?” I had a few things I wanted to tell him.
“Right this way.” The man turned and bent over, disappearing. There was shuffling before he appeared to the right of the desk. He was a slight man. Shorter even than the desk.
My mouth fell opened as I studied him.
“Close your trap and keep up.” He glared a moment, then turned and walked away, hurrying.
He was fast, and I had to jog. He quickly crossed the spacious common area and reached a set of colossal double doors. They were thin but went all the way up to the ceiling.
The man pounded the door once with his fist and stepped back.
Both doors opened simultaneously, but there was no one operating them.
He started off again before I could question how they worked. On either side of the long hallway were doors. Some were open, and as we went by, the person inside would pause and catch my gaze. Others smiled.
At the end of the hall, the man turned left, and I followed him down another hallway until we reached another set of double doors. These were propped open, but the man stopped just before entering and cleared his throat.
My father, who sat behind a sleek golden desk, looked up, irritation on his face. Until he saw me, and then he was less irritated. At least for a moment. He didn’t acknowledge the man but spoke directly to me. “Come in. It’s about time. I was beginning to wonder if you really were my child, after all.”
Initiation (Wolf Blood Academy Book 1) Page 7
