After looking at Aggy’s sketch, we searched online and narrowed it down to an old, abandoned castle. According to Genesis, it was probably King Max's old palace.
The trip took nearly two days. Zach brought a car he had secretly taken from his family estate, so our journey was comfortable. We didn’t have to deal with buses or transfers.We pulled up in front of a small-town diner around 7 p.m. The place was empty when we walked in.The diner owner greeted us with a slight nod and said, “Hello.”We headed straight for a booth in the corner. Genesis buried her head in the menu while Shirley remained glued to her phone."There's no map to that castle ruin. Should we just ask the owner?” Shirley asked.Zach nodded. "Yeah, sure."The diner owner walked over with a small notepad in hand."What can I get you folks?" he asked.“Sir, do you know the way to the old castle ruins?” Shirley jumped in right away"You bastard!" I screamed in rage.Something surged inside me, filling my entire body with energy. Then, I felt my bones cracking, my vision sharpening, and all the pain vanishing. I felt powerful. So powerful."Your end is here!" My voice merged with Beorn’s.My body moved effortlessly as Beorn took control of me. Suddenly, a knife flew toward me as I lunged at the king.Crash!I froze as Zach pulled me into his arms. He released me, stepped back, and blinked at me."Bern..." he whispered.Then I saw it—blood soaking through Zach’s shirt. He groaned and dropped to his knees."Zach! No! Zach!" I held him tightly as tears streamed down my face.It hurt so badly. I could feel his pain as if it were my own."Run, Bern..." Zach cupped my cheek. "Run...and live."Then, his body collapsed, soaked in blood.Suddenly, memories flooded my mind. The first time I met Zach was at school. Our conversation on prom night
After looking at Aggy’s sketch, we searched online and narrowed it down to an old, abandoned castle. According to Genesis, it was probably King Max's old palace.The trip took nearly two days. Zach brought a car he had secretly taken from his family estate, so our journey was comfortable. We didn’t have to deal with buses or transfers.We pulled up in front of a small-town diner around 7 p.m. The place was empty when we walked in.The diner owner greeted us with a slight nod and said, “Hello.”We headed straight for a booth in the corner. Genesis buried her head in the menu while Shirley remained glued to her phone."There's no map to that castle ruin. Should we just ask the owner?” Shirley asked.Zach nodded. "Yeah, sure."The diner owner walked over with a small notepad in hand."What can I get you folks?" he asked.“Sir, do you know the way to the old castle ruins?” Shirley jumped in right away
I nodded politely at the two Alphas as they approached me."Thank goodness you're all right," said Alpha Hartwin, clearly relieved."Thank you for your concern, Alpha," I replied weakly.Alpha Gibson looked at me with sad eyes. "If it weren't for you, Genesis might've died. I owe you my deepest thanks for saving my son, Bernice.”Actually, though, it was all thanks to Aggy’s carelessness in hiding the antidote from King Max, who had apparently planned to poison half the academy with wolfsbane.That made me even more anxious about Aggy.What if King Max found out that his massacre had failed because of her mistake?“It wasn’t me, Alpha Gibson. It was Aggy who hid the antidote in the dorm,” I corrected him."Still, if it weren't for you, I'd have lost Genesis."I simply nodded and didn’t push the conversation further. My thoughts were too messy; I needed to figure out where King Max was hiding.“We’ll go check on the others in the infirmary,” Zach said.Suddenly, he reached out and took
I leaned against the balcony railing and stared at the vast, dark forest behind the academy. Hours had passed since King Max revealed himself, and I had no idea what would happen next. I felt like darkness was creeping in, ready to swallow me whole.King Max had targeted me.Out of all the werewolves in the world, why me?Why had I, once just a human, been dragged into something this massive? Good grief.'He’s not immortal.'Beorn’s deep voice echoed in my head."Isn't that true for all of us?" I replied weakly.'Max can be defeated.'“Wait, why did you become my wolf in the first place? You were supposed to stay with King Max, not suddenly attach yourself to me like some clingy ghost.”Beorn burst out laughing, his voice booming in my head. I waited until he calmed down. Somehow, it felt like he wasn’t taking any of this seriously.'Do you know why you survived and became a werewolf?'I shrugged. “Dunno.”'Because I was so sad seeing you on the brink of death. You were supposed to li
I kept my eyes on Axel, who was sitting alone and seemingly enjoying his dinner. His eerie calm sent chills down my spine. All day, I had only heard from Genesis and Jasher, and neither of them had mentioned anything suspicious about Axel.When I mentioned Aggy, they were just as confused. How could Aggy be close to Axel without any of us knowing? It didn't make sense.“Bern, are you not going to finish your food?” Aggy’s voice snapped me out of my thoughts.I turned to her and glanced at her plate. "You're not eating either. Are you feeling sick?”“No, I’m just not in the mood to eat.” She shrugged. "I want to go on a diet."Even her excuse sounded off.Genesis and Jasher, who were sitting with me, exchanged suspicious looks. I could tell they were beginning to realize that something was wrong with Aggy, too.Piper and Paige, who were sitting across from us, suddenly started coughing softly at the same tim
Healer Theresa entered the infirmary with Genesis. Her face tight with irritation, she looked at Jasher."Did you apologize to Bernice?" she asked.Jasher nodded. "I did, Healer.""Well, I don't know if this will be reported to the dorm head or your homeroom teacher. But for me, the important thing is that you regret your actions and don't repeat them.""I understand, Healer.""Not everything can be solved with anger, Jasher."Jasher let out a quiet sigh. "Yes, Healer. I regret it.""Go back to your dorm with Genesis," said Healer Theresa, then turning to Shirley. "You too, Shirley."I cleared my throat softly. "I'm fine now. Can I go back to the dorm, too?"Healer Theresa looked at me with surprise but simply raised both hands and nodded.We all left the infirmary together and walked side by side back to the dorm hallway."We have to expose Axel," Genesis murmured. "Who is he, really? Could he be a spy from the Alpha Council?""A spy for whom?" Shirley asked skeptically."Bernice, ob