Chapter 3 THREE

Honestly, it's not surprising Raven and her little squad trip over themselves whenever the future Alphas and their crew stroll by.

Those guys are just a year ahead of us in school, but after returning from their elite summer training, they might as well be from another planet.

They've been attending annual training sessions at the Alpha King's estate, a tradition meant to prepare them for leadership when they take over their fathers' roles after high school.

Every summer, they spend a month immersed in combat drills, tactical planning, and lessons on running a pack. I guess it keeps them out of trouble and gives them a head start on their responsibilities.

The sessions also serve as networking opportunities-fifty or so ranked teens from allied packs all thrown together to form bonds, test limits, and size each other up. You can only imagine the ego battles in those first few days.

The training's not just about brawn. Future Alphas are schooled in diplomacy, finances, and conflict resolution.

They're expected to protect the pack at all costs and make the hard calls when it matters. Betas, their second-in-command, take on major duties that don't require direct Alpha input and serve as a stabilizing force.

Gammas operate similarly, but under the Luna's command, ensuring her safety and helping with female-centered pack concerns. Then there's the Delta, the head of all warriors, responsible for defending the territory and training others.

Each role is layered with expectations and pressure, though most people only see the titles, not the burdens.

I think that's part of why the Alpha King holds these summer camps-it's a reality check for these kids, stripping away the comforts of home and throwing them into a place where status means nothing unless it's earned.

He also gets a read on their personalities-alliances, rivalries, potential threats-without parents meddling.

Our Alpha King is known for reigning in the more power-hungry leaders, but politics always have a way of sneaking in.

Some packs even try to manipulate rank by arranging mates and alliances. That's why the King's training grounds are sacred-no outside influence, just raw instinct and grit.

There are Alpha Kings across the world, each ruling a region, all connected to the moon goddess through their Luna Queens.

They're the global governing body of our kind, stepping in during major conflicts or disasters.

When the boys came back this year, they didn't look like boys anymore. They'd grown tall, muscular, and downright intimidating.

Each one looked like they could tear through steel with their bare hands-and they might be able to.

Even my brother, who used to trip over his own feet, came back looking like a walking ad for supernatural fitness.

Their auras had started to manifest, too. Strong wolves radiate energy you can feel before they even speak-it commands attention, sparks desire, and screams power.

The girls noticed. Oh, they noticed. Half the student body practically lined up for a chance to get noticed in return.

I swear my brother has been out with someone new every day since they got back. And I've heard enough suspicious thumps and moans from his room at night to last a lifetime.

The whole lot of them seem to be embracing the bachelor lifestyle, and from the way the janitor's closet keeps getting mysteriously locked, they're not the only ones.

It's all a little pathetic, to be honest. We're all destined to have a fated mate chosen by the moon goddess-someone perfectly suited for us. I can't imagine giving my heart to someone now, only to have it shattered later if the bond chooses someone else.

I've seen it happen. People fall in love with the wrong person, only to be tossed aside the second their real mate walks in.

The pain is brutal. Some packs push arranged pairings, especially for ranked members, claiming it strengthens bloodlines.

But I don't buy it. I think we're strongest when we follow the bond. So, I'm waiting. Whoever they are, wherever they are-I'll know when the time is right.

"Hey, deaf bat, are you even listening?"

Her voice breaks through my thoughts like glass shattering in silence. I blink, pulled violently back into the hallway and the present moment.

Raven's expression is pinched, her perfectly sculpted brows furrowed in a mask of rage, and her perfectly glossed lips curling into a sneer.

I exhale slowly. "Not really," I say flatly.

I don't bother to match her intensity. Experience has taught me that apathy is armor. The more heat I give, the more she feeds off it. "Maybe let the little kids live their lives.

They're not tracking your designer shoes or how wide your friends need the hallway to walk. Your girl's the one who bumped the pup. Maybe start there before throwing punches."

A moment of stillness.

Then the slap comes. Sharp. Familiar. My lip splits again, blood trickling in a warm line down my chin. It'll be healed in a couple hours, but that doesn't make it less humiliating. Less real.

At least now I have my wolf to help speed things along. Last year, I had to get creative-layers of makeup, long sleeves in summer, careful posture to keep bruises hidden.

My father might not see me most days, but he noticed the first time Raven left her signature behind. A fading bruise beneath my eye and a scrape across my forearm.

It happened right before one of those stiff, formal appearances with the Alpha. I wore a short-sleeved dress. Mistake.

He didn't ask what happened. He didn't want to know. He just saw weakness-a liability.

I remember the sound of his voice. Cold. Clipped. "Fix yourself before you embarrass me again." No dinner that night. No school the next day. He waited until my skin was flawless before sending me back out, the perfect Beta's daughter.

It's not that he hates me.

At least, that's the lie I used to tell myself.

The truth settles heavier. He blames me. Always has. My mother died the day I was born, and he's never forgiven the child that cost him his mate. He's never said it out loud, but grief has a language all its own. I hear it in his silence, in the way he talks about her with everyone but me.

My nanny used to say I looked just like her. "A mirror," she called me once. Maybe that's the problem. A ghost in his house wearing my mother's face.

My brother used to protect me. We were nearly twins, less than a year apart. He used to sneak me pieces of candy under the table, whisper jokes when our father's lectures went on too long. But then the future Beta training started. And with it, a chasm opened between us. He belongs to the Alpha now. To the future. To duty. I barely belong at all.

Raven knows that.

And she makes sure everyone else remembers it too.

Talking to me-even looking at me too long-comes with a price. She decides what's acceptable and what's punishable, and I've watched classmates shrink away from me with apologetic eyes and terrified hearts. No one wants to be on Raven's list. And being friendly to me puts them there.

So, yeah. High school sucks.

Middle school wasn't much better.

But this year? Something's shifting. Cracks in the routine. Raven's usual reign of terror feels less... complete. And this hallway? This slap? This moment?

This is where everything starts to change.