by Tamara White
I bite my lip and Jesse smirks down at me. “You’re the strong one, Isobel. If you truly wished for me to stop, you would have made me.”
His lips slam down on mine, the force making my lip bust open and blood to fill my mouth. A gasp of excitement leaves me, but it’s drowned in the growl from Jesse as he gets a taste of my blood again. In an instant, the soft touch from Jesse is gone and I’m slammed into the side of the shower stall, the thin plastic paneling rattling slightly. I groan as he hoists me up, and without preamble slides into my slick opening. I should stop him, I should tell him to fuck off, but in this moment, my body craves his touch, and right now, I’m not going to be picky. It doesn’t matter, Jesse won’t remember this. It’s just the reaction he’s having to my blood causing him to want me, and who am I to say no when he clearly wants this as much as I do?
He fucks me against the stall wall, and despite the giggling I can hear, I don’t even try to remain quiet. It’s nice to enjoy the animal side of myself, and sure, maybe I’m being a little louder than I normally would, but it feels so fucking good. He’s the first supe I’ve been with since Jordan and Drake. And it’s so much more than I could have ever expected. The feeling that reverberates within me with each thrust is nothing short of euphoric. My whole body is on fire with need. The need to have him, to make him mine forever.
“Isobel, I’m so fucking close, sweet thing. Tell me what you need,” he groans out, his thrusts slowing as he holds back.
I know what he’s asking. I could get there on my own, but for a guy to finish me, it’s not exactly the easiest task.
“Bite me.”
His eyes widen but he doesn’t hesitate, gripping my hair and pulling it tight to bare my throat. He clamps down on my neck, the bite of pain drawing a pleasure filled moan from my lips. Even before becoming a monster, a bit of pain during sex always made the experience that much more enjoyable for me. My pussy vibrates, clenching around Jesse’s cock as he fucks me roughly, his thrusts beginning to lose rhythm as his release nears. He bites down harder and my orgasm crashes through me. My pussy contracts around him, and he lets go of my neck to cry out as his own release rushes forth.
He pants softly, resting his head against mine. After a few moments of catching his breath, he chuckles. “Damn, I don’t know what you are, Isobel, but you are definitely addicting.”
“I think you’ve confused addicting with pain in the ass,” I mutter, pushing Jesse back gently.
He withdraws from me, the soft dribble of liquid making me glad I’m in the shower.
“No, I’m not confused, Isobel. You have this don’t mess with me vibe, but I see you. Better yet, I feel you under my skin. The moment you shared your blood, it was like I knew you on a deeper level than I could have ever known anyone. You may be the strongest person I’ve ever met, but I think deep down, you’re just as scared as the rest of us.”
I don’t know what to say to that, because I truly am. Scared of what I am. Scared of what I can do. Scared of just what I’ll lose if I let the darkness in me win.
“I won’t let anyone hurt you, Isobel. On my life, I promise you.” His eyes are so sincere that it scares me but he doesn’t know my true fear.
“And what if it’s me I’m scared of? How can anyone protect me from myself?”
Chapter Fifteen
Isobel
After my shower with Jesse, we parted ways without another word. I think Jesse knew there was nothing he could say to my words. He thinks just because of a little of my blood he knows me completely but he doesn’t know the monster that hides in the back of my mind and heart. The being that craves destruction more than anything.
We both simply finished the shower quietly and got dressed in silence. Other stalls were running when we left the bathroom but thankfully none of the people I heard giggling were waiting for our appearance otherwise it could have made things a little more awkward.
I went straight back to my room, grabbed a couple of daggers, and left in search of coffee. After breakfast and having downed probably close to a gallon of coffee, I set out in search of my classes. Thankfully, they’re all in the one building, but it was still confusing as hell because the door numbers aren’t numerical. For instance, this class I have is in five-zero-eight, but the room number right next door is one-one-four.
After I finally found this place, I stuck around, leaning against the wall and watching other people pass by. I don’t want to be late to class, but it also gives me a chance to get a feel for what kind of supes are here.
One of my gifts is to feel the supernatural energy of another and their intentions. It’s taken me a lot longer to master the intentions part though, and even now it can still be wrong if the person is powerful. A strong supe is able to project a misleading persona, which makes it hard to judge them accurately. That’s why Jesse, Marcus, and their friends pose a conundrum to me. They are each powerful enough to hide their real intentions, but instinct tells me they were being genuine. At least I hope they were.
As I wait for the instructor, I think about the classes I signed up for—supernatural basics, hunting, ethics, training, and integration.
Seems stupid if you ask me, but I guess it’s a good way to ensure people learn all they can before going out into the world with humans. And even though I know all this shit, I have to play along until I can find answers in the library.
The council instructed me on the myths about the Supreme Alpha or at least what they wanted me to know. They explained that it was once an inherited title passed from father to son, mother to daughter. But when the last remaining hereditary Supreme Alpha had no living relatives to pass the title on to, and all efforts to create a child using DNA failed, she had to come up with a new way to create the next line. And so they started turning people. Only the turned Supreme Alpha’s seemed unable to have children, which is why they continued turning the next leader. At least, that’s what the council told me, and I don’t know how much to believe of their lies now.
They told me that since that time, it’s been impossible for a Supreme Alpha to procreate and pass on the line, which is why the old Alpha came after my family at the lake, but after my recent discovery, I know that’s a lie.
“It’s ridiculous, isn’t it? You’d think they would at least be on time since they’re insisting we attend this place.” The words come from my left, startling me a little. I felt the panther when she sidled up next to me, but rather than acknowledge her, I just ignored her, not interested in dealing with another person.
I turn with a glare on my face, ready to tell the newcomer to fuck off, but the words choke in my throat. A woman, at least thirty years my senior, stands beside me, casually leaning against the wall with one leg crossed over the other. Her gray eyes are shining with kindness, but it’s hard not to stare. Her body shows the wear of age, from her soft white hair to the obvious wrinkles around her face that make it clear this woman has lived a full life. The aura around her, however, is that of a woman my age.
Surely this older woman isn’t a newly turned? Who would turn someone at this age?
“You’re staring, dear,” she whispers with a wink.
All my manners my parents ingrained in me when speaking to the elderly come to the surface of my mind. “I’m so sorry. I’m just a little shocked.”
“About my age?”
I nod, noticing I’m not the only one who’s staring. But at least I’m not talking about her and how easily she’ll die because she’s so old like the others who are gawking. And if this woman hears it, she lets it roll off her without a care.
The woman chuckles softly. “Trust me, if I could be back at home in my world with my family, I would be, but I’m too much of a danger to them. The fact I survived the change was shocking enough that the local Panthera insisted I come here before they let me return to my family.”
I frown, feeling for her. It sucks balls to not be with your family, but I guess at least she has family out there missing her.
&n
bsp; “I’m sorry you were turned,” I offer, unsure what exactly to say. But no one offered me an apology for turning me, it was more of a “get over it” that they all gave me. “I’m Isobel,” I say, introducing myself and holding out a hand for her to shake.
She smiles warmly at me. “Ellen.” She takes my hand in a firm grasp and I try not to grin at just how strong it is.
Before I can try to summon up something nice to say, the door to our class opens to reveal a smirking and upbeat Marcus. I drop Ellen’s hand as I fight the urge to throttle him. He’s our professor? Just fucking great.
“Good morning, everyone. If you would like to step inside, we can begin today’s lesson,” Marcus declares loudly to the people waiting out here in the hall. When he steps back, a bunch of eager young girls rush to enter the room, followed by the rest of the class. Ellen and I are the only two who hang back.
“Well, isn’t that a fine specimen of man meat,” Ellen whispers conspiratorially, as she leans close to me with a grin. “If I wasn’t married, I would take that boy for a ride,” she comments wistfully.
I don’t respond, because if I was in the market for a guy, I, too, would be all over him. But I already messed up by fucking his brother in the shower. I need to contain my hormones, and if that means ignoring him and his brother for the rest of my time here, I will.
Right now, though, I’m a little spooked by the fact he’s not a student here but an instructor. How could I have missed this? It just means I have to be more cautious around him, I guess.
Ellen pushes away from the wall and enters the room, and I follow after her at a slow pace.
When I enter the classroom, the first thing I see is Quinn glaring at me from the other side of the massive space while Marcus stands in the center, instructing the class to fan out around him in a circle.
I take my place just off to the side of Marcus and on the opposite end of the room to Quinn. Ellen takes the spot to my right, while a young guy reeking of lion is on my left.
With all eyes in the room on Marcus, he claps his hands together loudly. “Right, let’s get this show on the road. For those of you who are unfamiliar with how this school is run, it’s very simple. There are no school terms, there are no Mr. or Mrs., sirs or madams. You simply call us instructors by our names. For those new to today’s class, I’m Marcus, while my friend over there is Quinn. And we’re both shifters.”
Quinn just glares as if he’d rather be anywhere but here. How did he get a job near newly turned with such a sour disposition? It doesn’t exactly scream warm and friendly.
Marcus sighs in annoyance before plastering a smile on his face. “It looks like we only have two new people joining us today, so if you ladies would like to come forth and introduce yourselves, maybe let us know about your shifter species, then we can get to the real shit.”
The class turns their gazes toward me. Ellen shifts uncomfortably and that’s when I realize it’s her first day here too. She doesn’t hesitate to step away from the circle though, moving closer to Marcus who faces her with a warm smile. “Name and species?” he requests softly.
She has a nervous smile on her face as she answers, “Ellen Bennet and I’m a panther shifter.”
“Welcome to Midnight Society, Ellen. You may step back.” She does so just as Marcus swings his gaze to mine. “Please step forth, young lady.”
Young lady? He did not seriously just call me that!
Rather than step forward from my place, I cross my arms over my chest and remain where I am. “No.”
He splutters, a little surprised by my response. Maybe he thought because of our meeting last night, I would be nicer to him, but I’m not some little girl who’s looking to be teacher’s pet. I’m a grown ass woman with enough power behind me to send him screaming for the hills. I don’t need to obey him.
“Excuse me? Every one of your classmates has offered up a piece of themselves when they joined this class. What makes you think you’re special? How do you expect to bond with your fellow turnees if you don’t offer up the same information they already have?”
I shrug my shoulders, a smirk playing on my lips. “Firstly, I don’t want to bond with them. I’m here for one reason and one reason only. Something that doesn’t concern you. Secondly, I’m special. I bet right now if you asked the class if they feared anything in this room, all of them would say me. They would be unsure why, but they still wouldn’t wish to be near me for too long. And thirdly, just because you made them offer up information doesn’t mean I have to be stupid enough to let you bully it out of me. Everyone in this room has the right to keep their species to themselves if they wish to, which is what I’m choosing to do. If you don’t like it, then you can look in my file.”
I feel the entirety of the class staring at me, but I don’t acknowledge them, my eyes fixed on Marcus’s who seems to be having trouble keeping a smile hidden. Finally, he caves, his eyes twinkling in delight. “You’re right. You don’t have to offer the information if you’re uncomfortable, Isobel.” He draws out my name, and I curl my lip in annoyance. “However, maybe if you told us what species you were, you could find another of your own species that you could forge a bond with? Someone to help you out in the world after you leave here,” Marcus suggests, but I know he’s just digging.
“Not gonna happen. If you really want to know, then maybe one day I’ll tell you, unless the administrators deem to share my file with you,” I respond smugly. The kicker is, even if they saw the records I filled in, my species is simply shifter, so he still wouldn’t exactly know.
Quinn stalks toward me, the students in the circle parting for him as he makes his way closer. “I checked your file. It says shifter, but not what kind. How exactly were you able to get away with that? All students need a species verification to ensure we meet all of their needs. So just what exactly did you do to get enrolled here?”
“I’m not sure what you mean,” I lie with a coy smile. “I’m certain my species is in the records. I remember because I went into very graphic detail as to how I was turned.” I continue to play dumb about my lack of exact species on the forms, though I do find it very intriguing that Quinn decided to search my species already.
Quinn stares me down, trying to intimidate me into revealing my secrets, but I keep my mouth firmly shut. I don’t even know how I would begin to describe what species I am when I don’t know the specifics of it. Is there a name for multiple species inhabiting one being?
Marcus steps closer and puts a hand on Quinn’s shoulder. After a second, Quinn lets out a sigh and goes back to his place across the room.
Tense silence fills the space until Marcus clears his throat and claps his hands, turning back to the class. “Well, for you newbies, this is a learning class. We discuss everything you need to know to make your transition back to the human world seamless. We want you to survive in the world rather than be stuck inside the isolated communities of our kinds. To test your ability to survive, we put you through a variety of different challenges. The first one being a partnership exam. You have two months to train with your partner, both with your human form and supernatural attributes. At the end of the two months, you’ll complete a course that will test everything we work on in this room.”
Huh, that’s a bit weird. Like an obstacle course? And why only two months?
Quinn’s gruff voice can be heard over the excited mumblings of everyone. His eyes meet mine with a twisted smirk. “It won’t be easy. There have been instances of people dying in the past, but we have worked to get it to a level most can handle. Some of you will need to train harder than the rest, because while your supe is strong, your human side is weak. If you don’t pass this course, we’ll be unable to allow you near humans. You will be isolated in a community of supernaturals, never to be integrated back into society. This one chance is the only way to prove you can handle the world of supernaturals.”
He looks so cocky that I’ll fail, and it pisses me off. Wolves, in general, annoy me, even t
hough technically I am one, but his attitude reminds me so much of Drake’s that I know he’s not a man to be trusted.
Marcus glances over at Quinn with a disapproving glance before plastering on a smile as he faces me again. “Right, well, let’s get this class started, shall we? Zane, you can partner with Terrence,” he directs, pointing to the lion shifter and a vamp on the other side of him. Then he turns to Ellen with a soft smile. “Ellen, if you would be so kind as to partner with Isobel, then we can begin.”
Quinn scoffs and looks between Ellen and me before voicing his clear lack of faith. “You think these two will survive together? I bet they’ll both die before the first part of the course is even over.”
I grin over at Ellen, who looks close to punching Quinn as she glares at him with her hands on her hips.
“What are you saying, young man? You think just because I’m older than the rest of these titty suckers that I won’t last? You got a problem with older women, is that it?”
“Oh no, I don’t think that’s his problem,” I muse, winking at Ellen. “I think it’s all women in general. He has a problem with women who are better than he could ever be. It threatens his manhood, doesn’t it, Quinn?”
People in the room are muttering and breaking the circle in an effort to get closer to the impending disaster.
“That’s enough,” Marcus interjects, but I see the twitch in Quinn’s right eye, the one that says he’s dangerously close to losing his shit. Part of me just wants to keep pushing, but Ellen rests a hand on my shoulder, silently telling me to back off.
My mouth snaps shut, but I can’t help feeling the need to pick at Quinn. His behavior is borderline bullying, and I won’t stand for that shit. I endured torture in school, and when I finally got old enough to stand up to my bullies, I vowed to never stand by while another was being terrorized. Whether it’s because of how someone looks, how they talk, what kind of supernatural they are, or what age a person is, there is no damn excuse for someone bullying someone else.
