Chapter 18: Olivia

I will not be a victim my first day.

I dress to impress: putting on some concealer to cover the bags under my eyes and my bruises, then I draw sharp eyeliner. I apply blush, lip gloss, and tie my hair back with a ribbon.

Once I put on my iron-pressed uniform, and pack my homemade ham sandwiches for lunch, I contemplate not wearing Ryker’s ring, but I can’t resist swinging it over my head. His smoky vanilla scent floods me.

I eventually talk myself into leaving, making it to class with only a minute to spare.

The moment I burst into Defense and Danger 101, I know I’ve made a mistake with wasting so much time.

Dillon is already on his feet, the class full, and every single eye in the room turns to face me.

I gulp.

I catch Clarissa’s icy eyes almost immediately, in front of Ryker. She leans over and whispers something to one of her friends. A second later, thanks to her, the rest of the class joins the gossiping. It takes all my strength not to bolt out of the room.

“Enough.” Dillon snaps, forcing them back into silence. He smiles at me, and some of the tension inside me knocks loose.

“Olivia, what a pleasure to have you in my class. We do have a policy that everyone must be seated 5 minutes before a class starts.”

My cheeks heat. How am I already messing everything up so badly?

“Sorry, Mr. West.” I mumble.

“No apology needed. Please, take a seat.”

I glance around the room, but every free seat is suddenly filled by someone’s bag or blazer. A girl even puts her pen on a seat, eyeing me like I’m the scum of the earth.

Message gotten loud and clear.

That only leaves a chair between Ryker and Axel. My heart lurches as I catch Ryker’s eye., but Axel doesn’t even look up at me.

“Olivia.” Ryker greets as I settle beside him, “You look good.”

“Thanks.” I don’t turn to him. He can’t distract me today. I’m already half-drooling at his muscled arms, free of his uniform cause Ryker rolled up his sleeves and took off his blazer.

I clear my throat. I have to stay clear-headed to get Clarissa to delete that video.

Like he can read my mind, Ryker whispers, “I saw the video, I’m so sorry—”

“Sorry wouldn't fix things.” I whisper, “Where’s Hunter?”

“He doesn’t take this class because his dad teaches it. Plus, he went to—”

“Shut up, both of you.” Axel commands.

Annoyance clips at me, but I keep my mouth shut. I’m still scared of him, I admit, but I feel safer knowing Ryker is finally advocating for me.

Dillon’s teaching fills my ears, “So, as we know, today is a sparring class. Learning how to pin an opponent in any fight is important, especially if you’re up against a rival pack. Now, Miss Blackwood has missed a significant amount of lessons, so I would like to gauge her strengths on the sparring floor. Olivia, if you don’t mind?”

I tense. I mind a whole freaking lot. Sparring is the main thing Rick taught me, and I think I’m pretty good at it, but having to spar in front of the whole class? Goddess, just open the ground and swallow me whole.

I nod curtly, making my way to the front of the class as all eyes stay glued on me.

Dillon pats me on the back once I reach the front, then looks around his students, “Any volunteers?”

I see Ryker begin to raise his hand, and I relax a little, but the dark-haired witch in front of him shoots her manicured hand up first.

“I’ll do it Mr. West.” Clarissa says sweetly.

“Wonderful!” He beams, probably thinking some sweet-sounding girl would be best for me, but Dillon doesn’t know he probably just signed my death certificate.

Clarissa saunters to the front of the class, wolf-whistles trailing her as she comes.

She winks back at them before her icy eyes fix on me, causing me to shiver.

“Remember Clarissa, we’re only testing Olivia’s progress. Go easy on her, okay?” Dillon insists.

“Of course Mr. West.” She promises, even as she looks at me like she’s about to put me in the ground.

“You know the basic starting pose, right? Or do you need my help?” She asks innocently, but everyone begins to snicker.

“I know it.” I deadpan, getting into the slight crouching position. She seems briefly shocked before mimicking my pose.

She’s not even doing it right, tilting a little off-center.

That restores some hope into me. Maybe I’m actually as good as her.

“Begin.” Dillon waves us in.

We circle ourselves, squaring up the other.

Not only is she a little off-center, but she has terrible posture, almost slipping at least twice. If I didn’t need her to delete that video of me, I would have taken her down in 3 seconds.

“You look a little stiff, Olivia,” She says softly, like she’s trying to help, “Maybe some alcohol will clear your head?”

The class bursts into laughter, and I feel my throat tighten.

“Dillon, come on, that’s not allowed.” I’m surprised to hear Ryker’s indignant voice. It shocks most of the class into whispers, but not silence.

“Agreed St. Claire. No more talking from this point forward. If you have something to say, get it off your chest now.”

“FUCK HER UP CLARY!” A boy yells from the back, just like at the party, and everyone whoops and cheers.

“SHUT UP!” Someone growls.

Axel.

This time, everything goes silent, even the birds outside.

I gasp, so sure my ears have deceived me, but when I turn to him, he’s leaning forward, looking at me with a spark of interest that feels like being undressed. Arousal burns in my belly, hot and unwanted.

Clarissa uses my distraction as an opportunity.

With a snarl, she lunges.