Chapter 5

Arianne

The morning call brought me out of bed before I could finish arguing with Ezra in my head. I pulled on a clean training shirt, tucked my red hair down the back of my brown jacket, and joined the others in the square.

Today, they could judge something besides my ability to grow fur.

The instructor stood at the front with a whistle hanging against his chest. Around me, alpha sons rolled their shoulders and watched one another instead of him.

The instructor raised his whistle. “Your second assessment begins in the marked area of the forest. You'll hunt each other.”

A boy beside me grinned, flashing a fang. I tightened the laces on one boot while the instructor continued.

“Knock another candidate out or force them beyond the boundary to earn points. Step outside the marked area, and you're eliminated. Survive longer than your opponents, and your score rises.”

Still bent over my boot, I muttered, “So we earn points for biting our classmates.”

Argent stirred. Then don't let them bite us.

A low branch caught my brown jacket as we entered the forest. I freed it and let the boys eager to prove themselves push ahead, watching the trees rather than their backs.

There were low branches to the right, tangled undergrowth beyond them, and a slope that would hide me from anyone on the path.

The whistle blew.

Someone hit the ground behind me. A snarl broke into a yelp, and a boy on my left tore out of his shirt as his shoulders changed shape.

I ducked beneath a swinging arm and slipped between two trunks. By the time a wolf crashed through the space I'd left, I was down the slope.

Branches dragged over my jacket. I caught one before it snapped back and eased it into place, then crouched behind a tangle of roots.

A gray wolf stopped above me.

His nose lifted. He sniffed once, turned toward a cry farther uphill, and ran past without looking down.

For years, having no wolf scent had meant there was something wrong with me. This morning, it meant he missed me.

I waited until his footsteps faded, then slipped out from behind the roots. With so many stronger wolf scents around us, mine was easy to overlook. I meant to keep it that way.

Not shifting didn't make me slow. My legs carried me up the next rise without trouble, and I pulled myself over a fallen trunk.

Beneath its raised end, I braced my back against the wood. I'd save my strength to hunt the survivors once the others had worn each other out.

For a while, it worked. Crashes and snarls spread farther apart, and twice I watched panting wolves pass my hiding place without finding me.

When the woods grew quiet enough to hear leaves scraping together overhead, I rose. My breathing was steady; my legs were fresh.

Ready? I asked Argent.

Find us someone unpleasant.

I started toward the last sounds of fighting.

“Help!”

The girl's voice came from my left. I changed direction before she'd finished shouting.

Through the brush, I saw her stumble against a tree. One sleeve was torn at the elbow, and dirt streaked one knee.

Several alpha sons blocked her way. The one in front stepped aside when she tried to run, letting another boy shove her back toward him.

I knew that face.

Yesterday, he'd offered me protection if I came to his dorm. Now he smiled while the girl searched for a gap they kept closing.

A flash of white hair caught my eye beyond the clearing. Ezra stood beside a tree in a dark training shirt, watching.

I crept toward him, keeping the brush between me and the boys.

I leaned close enough to keep my voice from carrying. “Why aren't you stopping them?”

His golden eyes shifted to me. Even now, that brief attention made my stomach tighten. Terrible timing.

“It's a competition.”

“They're hunting one girl.”

“That's the assessment.” He glanced toward the clearing. “Stay out of it.”

The girl tried to get past the leader, but he caught her by the shoulder and shoved her toward another boy, who sent her sprawling into the dirt. The others laughed.

They could have ended this already. They were dragging it out for fun.

“She could die,” I said.

Ezra's gaze returned to me. I backed away before he could tell me again to stay out of it.

Father had let me come here to see the difference between me and the other alpha children. I was looking at it.

I put my foot against the fork of a tree and climbed.

Bark scraped my palm. Above the clearing, the branches overlapped enough to carry me across, provided I stayed close to the trunks.

Below, the girl staggered upright. The leader reached for her again.

I caught the branch over his head, swung forward, and let go.

Both boots struck him high in the chest. He flew backward, and I landed hard, bending my knees to absorb the impact before turning toward the girl.

“Run!”

She stared for half a second, then bolted through the opening he'd left. One of his friends lunged after her; I shoved him into the tree.

The leader pushed himself up on his elbows. Recognition spread across his face.

“The wolfless.” He spat dirt from his mouth. “Good, I've been looking for you.”

“Try looking up next time.”

His mouth stretched around teeth that were already growing. Brown fur broke over his shoulders, and he dropped forward onto paws.

I jumped aside as he lunged. His jaws snapped shut beside my thigh, close enough for me to feel his breath through my trousers.

A second wolf cut off the route behind me.

I planted one hand against a trunk and turned around it, forcing the brown wolf to wheel back. Another set of paws scraped through the leaves on my right.

They weren't charging together. One drove me sideways while the others waited where I needed to go.

I kicked at a muzzle and ducked beneath snapping teeth. My heel caught a root; I dragged it free before the brown wolf reached me.

Behind you! Argent snapped.

I twisted.

Claws tore through my jacket and down my back. Pain knocked the air out of me, and I stumbled forward, hot blood soaking into my shirt. Its sharp smell reached my nose.

Argent growled.

The brown wolf advanced, his head low. I bared my teeth at him, and something sharp pressed against my lower lip.

Fangs.

My fingertips burned next. I spread my hands as my nails pushed out, lengthening into curved points.

Claws. Real claws. I'd spent years trying to make this happen.

I wasn't losing to this bastard.

Take them down! Argent snapped.

A shadow lunged at my side. Before I could turn, Ezra caught the wolf in midair and threw him into the brush.

“Get out.”

The brown wolf stopped. Ezra stepped between us, and the others backed off without another sound.

The burning in my fingertips faded, and my claws shrank back into nails. Before I could say anything, Ezra bent, caught me around the thighs, and hauled me over his shoulder. Pain flared across my torn back.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” I struck his back with my hand as he carried me away. “Put me down!”

“Ezra!”

The clearing disappeared behind the trees. A twig brushed my sleeve, and soon all I could hear was Ezra's breathing.

“Why do you have silver eyes?” he asked. “Only royalty has those.”