Chapter 3

Ava

Combat Training was the one class at Blackwood Alpha Academy I dreaded every single week.

English couldn’t bruise me.

History never left me sore for days.

Combat Training had managed to do both to my body and my pride more times than I cared to count.

The worst part wasn’t getting knocked down.

It was hearing the whispers every time I got back up.

“She doesn’t belong here.”

“Why is she even taking this class?”

“She’s basically human.”

I tightened the straps around my wrists as I stood near the edge of the training floor, pretending I couldn’t hear them.

If I acknowledged every cruel comment people made about me, I’d never have time to do anything else.

“Ava.”

Sara bumped my shoulder gently.

“You’ve got that look again.”

“What look?”

“The one where you’re trying to convince yourself this is going to be a wonderful experience.”

I laughed.

“I’ve never once thought Combat Training was a wonderful experience.”

“No.”

She smiled sympathetically.

“But every Wednesday you try to pretend it won’t be as bad as the week before.”

I adjusted the sleeves of my training shirt.

“It might not be.”

Sara gave me a look.

“You’re adorable when you lie.”

“I don’t lie.”

“You do to yourself.”

I looked around the massive gymnasium.

The room buzzed with energy.

Students stretched, laughed, and lightly sparred while waiting for class to begin. Future Alphas and Betas treated Combat Training like another chance to prove themselves. For them, it was exciting.

For me…

It was survival.

“You could talk to your dad,” Sara said quietly.

“I already know what he’d say.”

“‘You don’t have to prove anything to anyone.’”

I nodded.

“And he’d try to pull me from the class.”

“So?”

“So I’d hate myself.”

Sara sighed.

“Ava…”

“If I quit…”

I swallowed.

“…they’re right.”

She didn’t answer.

Because she knew exactly who “they” were.

The students who believed a wolfless girl had no place at Blackwood.

The ones who smiled politely to my face and whispered behind my back.

The ones waiting for me to give up.

“I’m not giving them that.”

Sara squeezed my hand once.

“I know.”

A whistle echoed across the gym.

“Line up!” Coach Reynolds called.

Conversation immediately died.

Coach Reynolds wasn’t particularly tall, but he carried himself like someone who had spent decades commanding respect. His silver hair and weathered face hinted at years of experience, while the scars across his forearms reminded everyone that he’d earned every one of them.

He paced slowly in front of us.

“Combat Training is not about proving who is strongest.”

His eyes swept across the room.

“It is about control.”

He stopped.

“Any fool can overpower someone weaker.”

Silence.

“A true wolf knows when to hold back.”

Several students shifted uneasily.

Coach continued.

“When your opponent is smaller…”

He looked toward the taller students.

“…you adjust.”

“When your opponent is inexperienced…”

His gaze moved again.

“…you adjust.”

“When your opponent cannot match your strength…”

His voice hardened.

“…you adjust.”

He folded his arms.

“Anyone who ignores that lesson has learned nothing.”

My stomach tightened.

I already knew where this was going.

Coach began pairing students.

“Marcus. Noah.”

“Emma. Chloe.”

“Ethan. Ryan.”

One by one, students stepped onto the mats.

Then—

“Lacey.”

She looked up confidently.

“…Ava.”

The room fell silent.

Not completely.

Just enough.

Enough for me to notice.

Lacey actually sighed.

“Seriously?”

Coach’s expression didn’t change.

“Is there a problem?”

She quickly shook her head.

“No, Coach.”

But the damage had already been done.

She hadn’t wanted to be paired with me.

Not because she was afraid she’d lose.

Because she thought I wasn’t worth the effort.

I stepped onto the mat.

Lacey followed.

She was taller than me by almost four inches and built like every future Alpha’s daughter at Blackwood seemed to be—strong, confident, and completely certain she belonged here.

Coach looked directly at Lacey.

“You know the expectations.”

“I do.”

“Control your strength.”

“I will.”

He stepped back.

“Begin.”

Lacey came at me immediately.

I sidestepped her first strike.

She blinked.

Apparently she hadn’t expected that.

I blocked the second.

Managed to twist free from the third.

“Good,” Coach called.

“Keep moving, Ava.”

I focused on my footwork.

Dad had always told me that if I couldn’t outmatch someone with strength, I’d have to outthink them.

So I moved.

Lacey swung again.

I ducked beneath her arm.

For a brief second…

I actually smiled.

Maybe today wouldn’t be so—

A hand slammed into my shoulder.

Hard.

The force lifted me completely off my feet.

I crashed onto the mat, the impact exploding through my ribs and knocking every bit of air from my lungs.

The gym fell quiet.

For a second…

I couldn’t breathe.

Somewhere above me, Coach Reynolds shouted.

“Lacey!”

“I barely touched her,” Lacey argued.

Coach’s voice cracked through the room.

“I told you to control your strength!”

“I did.”

“No.”

His expression hardened.

“You got frustrated because she kept avoiding your attacks.”

Lacey crossed her arms.

“She’s impossible to train with.”

“Why?”

“Because I have to think about every movement.”

She looked directly at me.

“If she doesn’t have a wolf to absorb the hits, that’s not my fault.”

The words landed harder than she ever could have.

A murmur spread through the room.

Someone whispered,

“Too far.”

Another student quietly muttered,

“Coach warned her.”

Coach Reynolds knelt beside me.

“Ava.”

I nodded even though my vision blurred.

“I’m…”

I sucked in a painful breath.

“…fine.”

“No, you’re not.”

“I can finish.”

“You can barely breathe.”

“I just need…”

I planted one hand on the mat.

“…a second.”

Every muscle protested as I pushed myself upright.

Pain shot through my ribs.

The room tilted.

My knees buckled.

Strong hands caught my shoulders before I hit the floor again.

Coach steadied me.

“I’ve got you.”

Heat flooded my face.

I hated this.

Not the pain.

The pity.

“I don’t need the trainer.”

Coach didn’t even pretend to consider it.

“Yes.”

“I—”

“That’s enough.”

His tone left no room for argument.

He looked toward one of the assistants.

“Take Miss Peters to the athletic trainer.”

As I slowly stood, the students parted to let us through.

Nobody laughed.

Nobody pointed.

Some looked uncomfortable.

Others looked guilty.

I kept my eyes on the floor.

Halfway across the gym, another class entered through the opposite doors.

Future Alpha Leadership.

They were finishing field strategy outside before rotating into the building.

At the front of the group walked Jace Walker.

His academy blazer was slung over one shoulder, and his expression was the same as always—confident, unreadable, completely in control.

For just a second…

Something felt…

Off.

The tiny hairs along my arms stood up.

The air seemed strangely heavy.

Like the pressure before a thunderstorm rolled in.

I glanced toward Jace.

He never looked my way.

The feeling disappeared almost as quickly as it had come.

Weird.

Maybe I was just lightheaded.

The assistant coach gently guided me toward the hallway.

“Easy.”

“I’m okay.”

“You don’t have to pretend.”

I smiled weakly.

“I know.”

But pretending was easier than admitting how much it hurt.

⸻

Nearly an hour later, the athletic trainer finally released me with instructions to take it easy for a few days.

As if that was ever going to happen at Blackwood.

I adjusted my backpack carefully and stepped into the hallway.

“Miss Peters.”

I turned.

Mrs. Donnelly stood outside her classroom holding a folder against her chest.

“Do you have a minute?”

“Of course.”

She smiled sympathetically.

“I heard about Combat Training.”

“I’ll survive.”

“I know you will.”

She opened the folder.

“I actually wanted to speak with you about something else.”

“What is it?”

“Jace Walker.”

I blinked.

“The hockey captain?”

“The very same.”

“What about him?”

Mrs. Donnelly sighed.

“He earned a sixty-two on his last essay.”

“…Seriously?”

“I’m afraid so.”

I couldn’t hide my surprise.

“I thought he was one of your better students.”

“He could be.”

She smiled knowingly.

“If he actually applied himself.”

I nodded slowly.

“I’m not sure what that has to do with me.”

“I’ve decided he needs mandatory tutoring.”

“Okay…”

She looked directly at me.

“I’d like you to be his tutor.”

For a full five seconds, I was convinced she’d confused me with someone else.

“I’m sorry…”

I laughed nervously.

“…you can’t possibly be serious.”

Mrs. Donnelly didn’t laugh.

“I’ve already submitted the paperwork.”

My smile disappeared.

“You are serious.”

“Very.”

I stared at her.

Then at the folder.

Then back at her again.

Out of every student at Blackwood Alpha Academy…

She had paired me…

With Jace Walker.

Somewhere, the Moon Goddess had a very strange sense of humor.