Dahlia ~
“I can't believe this is what our life has come to,” Sienna wailed as we headed to class. I truly did not want to be reminded of the previous night. “Can you stop wailing for once and just focus, you're not the only one going through shit,” I whispered as a group of males rushed past us, nearly knocking me over. “Hey!” I protested and the male turned back to give a wink and a middle finger to both of us. I rolled my eyes, I was getting used to their lack of morals. “We don't have to do it for like another week or so,” Sienna said. I turned to her and arched a brow in question. “Kaden said we needed to get fucked to reduce our pheromones, but he obviously overestimated it, the blowjobs were more than enough to do that, and it should be about a week from now before our pheromone levels rise again,” Sienna said. Dahlia did not like the sudden flutter of butterflies in her belly at the mention of his name. Not butterflies— roaches… she tried to convince herself. “As long as none of us go around getting turned on by any of them,” Sienna added with a drawl and I eyed her suspiciously. “You’re one to talk, I saw you with Orion, you both were having the time of your lives,” I commented. A deep blush stained her cheeks despite her frown. “He was so big, my mouth is still sore from him,” She said in a whisper and I chuckled. “Aurelian was so big too, but it was not enough to get my mouth sore!” I said. “Maybe that's because you only did one, try sucking off Silas, he's a fucking violent dog!” I still remembered how Orion’s strong hands were wrapped around his cock, massaging the tip as he watched Sienna sucking Silas while he rode her face… it was so hot— No! I was not supposed to get turned on by anything. “What happened with Kaden? I would like to know what he’s like when he loses himself,” Sienna drawled and I rolled my eyes at the remembrance. “I wouldn't want to know that,” I said truthfully. “It felt like he wanted nothing to do with me, he suddenly got irritated at the fact that I was drinking from him and he pushed me off and left the room, I felt so undesirable,” I said truthfully. “What the fuck is his problem?” Sienna asked and I shrugged… I truly did not know. “But you did get to bite him, right?” She asked for clarification. I remembered the way his fingers tightened into a fist on his lap… as though he was fighting the urge to touch me, and then his moans— I had to stop myself there. “Yes, he got the venom.” “Then he would not be able to resist craving more from you later, only you,” Sienna said. “I wonder what will happen once we find the kingmaker gemstone and leave,” I said. “How?” she asked. “They would still crave us violently to the point of madness, they will search the entire earth for us until they find us, and when they do, their wrath would be abominable because of the torture we put them through,” I said and a shiver of fear ran down my spine. “Well,” Sienna’s voice was shaky. “We just have to hope that they find their mates before then and leave us alone.” I knew it would not be that easy, I had seen first hand what venom craving did to people, it turned them mad, turned them into monsters… Another group of students rushed past us. “Out of my way, could you both be any slower? Fucking pussies,” they hurled insults at us. “Any idea why everyone seems to be in such a hurry today?” I asked and Sienna shook her head— no. We picked up our pace and when we got to class pretty much everyone was already seated, except a particular group of four boys. Dahlia and I slowly shuffled our way to our seats and soon enough the Proprietress, Naima entered the class with Vincent following closely behind her. Her eyes locked on the both of us immediately and she gave us a faint nod that was almost undetectable, we nodded back. This was the first time I had seen her address the whole school. She checked the time and tapped her stiletto heeled feet on the floor impatiently as though she were waiting for something or someone. And then the doors were thrown open. “Finally,” Naima muttered. The Vicious boys strolled into the class like they owned the school… well they practically did but still! Must be nice having the whole school wait for your arrival. They looked devastating as usual, dangerously so, if there were girls in this school, they would be flocking around them at all times of the day. Their combined aura was so imposing that it caused goosebumps to rise on my skin. Kaden’s eyes locked on mine as they approached and I tried to keep my expression as neutral as possible, he blinked his gaze away as he passed me. Oh, so that's what we’re doing now. Two could play this game. Someone ruffled my hair and I looked up to see Silas’s handsome face. “Hey princess,” he said and I couldn't help the blush that stained my cheek… how embarrassing! I wondered how many people had heard him call me that, they probably would not think much of it, we were already seen as the weakest in school… at least I hoped so. Orion gently pinched Sienna’s cheek without saying a word to her before they took their respective seats behind us. I hated the fact that they were sitting directly behind us, it just increased my anxiety and self consciousness to unreasonable levels. Naima’s eyes narrowed knowingly at the small exchange before she took her spot on the stage. She looked absolutely gorgeous in her pencil skirt, white shirt folded at the sleeves, and blood red lips, her vibrant curly red hair was arranged in a messy bun. I couldn't help but wonder how many boys here had secret crushes on her. “Now everyone is here, I would like to welcome you all once more to this prestigious Academy,” She announced, all eyes turned to her and all chattering quieted into stillness. “As we all should know by now, the future Alpha king of this great continent is undergoing training here, it is such a privilege, but his identity remains a secret for confidentiality reasons,” she stated. I did not know that… Sienna and I exchanged confused glances. The future Alpha King? The one we were supposed to kill? “Now moving on,” Naima continued. “Full on training starts tomorrow and will continue until your final exams where life and death determine the winners and losers,” she continued… what the fuck? “This means only those who survive can graduate successfully,” she added for clarification. I choked on air and all eyes turned to look at me for a moment but I did not care, my mind was in turmoil. How were two Scarvyn girls supposed to survive trials and training meant for Alphas?Dahlia ~“So the first training is the Dominance and Leadership Training, as Alpha’s you need to learn how to take control of your packs. This involves learning conflict resolution, establishing authority, and commanding obedience even under pressure,” Naima explained. Then she pointed to the words projected behind her. “Next is Hunting and Tracking, you will be trained to lead packs, stalking prey, and organizing group attacks.”She kept explaining, number three was combat and self defense training, we would engage in physical training in both human and wolf forms, focusing on hand to hand combat training.How on earth were we supposed to fight in wolf forms? I let out a heavy exhale… we will cross that bridge when we get there.Number four was pack bonding, here we would participate in mock rituals under the full moon to increase the connection between pack members.We would participate in three tests after the training. Territory defense, crisis, and survival. They sounded impo
Dahlia ~The sound of movement around me dragged me from my slumber, and I groaned as Sienna stirred in the bed beside me.“Wake up,” she muttered, but her voice was thick with exhaustion. “I think we’re late.”My eyes peeled open to see that she had gotten up to make her bed. It was way too early for all this.It was barely even first light.“You mean ‘late’ as in a little late,” I said, dragging the words out, “or late as in we’re screwed?”Sienna glanced at me pointedly, her short hair wild. “Considering I just saw Aurelian and Silas walk out the door fully dressed, I’m guessing we’re screwed.”She wasn’t wrong. By the time I slid out of bed, the others were almost ready. To my right, Kaden stood near his bed, buttoning up a black shirt that fit him entirely too well. I caught glimpses of hard muscle beneath the fabric, the cursed black markings twisting over his skin glimmered as though tiny stars lived within them.And then there was Orion. He leaned against the wall as he waited
Sienna ~“Well, unfortunately, they’re our roommates,” I heard Dahlia say. Naima’s sharp eyes widened at us like we’d just confessed to treason.She sighed dramatically and pinched the bridge of her nose. “Roommates. Of course, the goddess loves to be entertained?”“There’s nothing we can do about it,” Dahlia said with a shrug like this was just another Tuesday.Naima raised a brow, lips curling in disbelief. “Have you fed on them yet?”I froze mid-breath. Dahlia, too. The air suddenly felt too thick.Naima’s gaze darted between us, her face twisting with frustration as understanding dawned. “Oh, for the love of—” She let out a string of curses so creative I was impressed.My brow also arched in confusion.“But—” I started, “in our defense, you told us to find males to feed on.”“Yes,” she hissed, waving her hand like I was missing the point. “Males. Could have been anyone, not them.”Her glare could’ve burned through steel.“You two listen to me,” she said, her tone icy and low. “Th
Dahlia ~ I searched around for Kaden for about a minute and I was starting to get irritated, why did he make me search for him? I considered approaching Naima and demanding for a partner change, but I knew the likelihood of that happening was low because everyone was already paired up— My thought processes came to a halt when I bumped into hard wall, the force knocked the air out if my lungs and sent me flying to the floor.What the—An imposing shadow covered the light of the sun and I looked up to see Kaden, his mismatched eyes glaring down at me with delight at causing me pain.He did not make a single attempt to help me as I scampered to my feet. His broad shoulders appeared stiff, and his dark hair curled at the edges, just messy enough to make him look dangerously good… as usual.“Are you just going to stand there?” I asked as I crossed my arms.He tilted his head slightly, his piercing eyes locking onto mine. “What do you want, Caleb?” His voice was low, rough, and so calm
Dahlia ~“I really think you should stop getting on his nerves so often,” Sienna muttered as we strolled through the dimly lit hallway toward the dining hall. Her voice carried a half-joking, half-serious tone.“It’s not completely my fault,” I replied, flicking a strand of hair out of my face. “He’s utterly insufferable. I hate him, I hate all of them.”“How couldn’t you?” Sienna sighed. “I’ve been trying to hide how much they disgust me.”I clenched my jaw. “It’s getting harder to pretend I don’t want to set this entire school on fire with everyone in it.”The words had barely left my mouth when we rounded the corner and ran straight into some students. Four of them… it was a pack. The Alpha stood in the middle and his sneer was instant. He shoved Sienna so hard and she hit the ground with a thud that echoed through the hallway.“Watch it, dimwits,” he said with a voice that dripped with disdain, “You both reek of abominations.”My blood boiled instantly. I grabbed Sienna’s arm a
Kaden ~“I would kill that fucking bitch! Strangle her until there is nothing left in her but audacity, and then I will squash that as well.” Anger welled up in my veins even more as thoughts of what she had just done ran through my mind's eye. “So what exactly is pissing you off right now?” Orion asked as we entered the dorm room. I was once again assaulted by her scent. Of all the scents in the room… hers, hers penetrated my nostrils and branded itself in my brain, never to be forgotten. This was fucking torture.“Is it the fact that she won you, or the fact that you can't get her out of your mind? If it's the latter, losing to women isn't as bad as you think.” Orion continued.“What?” I asked, looking up at him sharply. “Who the fuck are you, and what have you done with Orion?” I questioned and he lifted his arms in surrender with a small smile playing on his face.“I have to admit, Sienna’s witchery or whatever it's called might be getting to me, but I love it, you know, I want
Dahlia ~“Kaden, Orion, Aurelian, Silas, Theo and Caleb.” The instructor called.All students were gathered once again at the training fields, it wasn't even dawn yet and I had barely managed to get enough sleep the previous night because of how irritable Kaden was, he intentionally bumped into me so many times that I feared I might have developed a concussion. He was such a sore loser.And when it was finally time to go to sleep, my duvet was nowhere to be found. Now, everyone else was fully dressed yet my training gear AND my uniforms were discovered missing this morning. I would kill the son of a bitch, slowly, ensuring he felt every single agonizing moment, and then I will kill ALL werewolves, they were all vile creatures that did not deserve breath.A shiver racked through my body as I stood bare foot on the grass, wearing nothing but my skimpy silk pajamas.Yes, my shoes were missing too.I was lucky he left my chest bandages. Otherwise one look at me and everyone would know
Dahlia ~They would easily track us with the shirt, plus the scent of my blood was so strong because of all the cuts on my feet. The footsteps were right outside the cathedral now. Sienna snatched the stone from its spot and handed it to me. I looked at her with confusion in my gaze.“You need to shove it down your vagina,” she said.“What? That's the best you could come up with?” I grabbed it from her hand.“Have any other plans? My pockets are too exposed and the gemstone could fall out at any moment, plus, I'm too dressed to shove it into my—“Fine… just give me a second,” I pulled my pants down.Luckily, the gemstone was rather small, about a quarter of a fist. But it was still too large as nothing had ever entered me before through that entrance.My fingers ran through my folds and I realized just how treacherous my body was when I found them wet. I momentarily hated myself. The gemstone slid in easily and it was properly nested when the doors were busted open.Kaden strolle
Dahlia ~The battlefield was flled with screams of the dying and struggling.Steel clashed against steel, and flesh, the scent of blood and smoke was thick in the air. The Jorrans were relentless in their fierceness.Kaden was a storm.He moved like he was born for battle, his black sword seeped with smoke anc he handled it as though it was an extension of his body. He cut through enemy after enemy without hesitation, his expression was calm, cold and calculating… I came to the realization that back in the training room, he had let me over power him for some reason.And I should have hated it.Should have hated seeing just how much of a challenge he would be to kill. But there was something maddeningly intoxicating about the way he fought. Like war was nothing more than a game he knew he would win. Like death was an inconvenience he didn’t have time for.He turned and his back was to me for just a second as he struck down a warrior to his left. Another enemy lunged from behind him wi
Sienna ~The battle had barely begun, and already, Orion was at my side.Where has he materialized from? I have no idea. I should have been annoyed.I should have rolled my eyes, brushed him off and told him I didn’t need a bodyguard.But the way he looked at me as though I was the only person in this entire palace that mattered… yeah, made my pulse stutter.His voice was rough, urgent. “Are you alright?”I blinked and gripped my machine gun tighter. “Why do you care?”His jaw clenched. “That’s not an answer.”I hated that my heart fluttered at the way he said it. Like my well-being was something personal to him.I forced a smirk. “I’m fine. But really, Orion, don’t you have more important people to protect?”He didn’t hesitate. “No.”I swallowed.Damn him.I shook off the warmth threatening to settle in my chest. “You know nothing about me.”Something changed in his eyes.“You remind me of someone,” he said slowly. “Someone I once knew, she meant a lot to me.”My breath caught and m
DahliaKaden drove fast and hard until we got to the area where the smoke was coming from. I rushed down from the car and a massive fire was set to the kingdom.Bombs were dropped from fighter jets and explosion after explosion rattled my bones.For a second, I couldn’t move. The smoke plumes curled into the sky, thick and dark, the scent of burning wood and blood clogging my lungs. My heart slammed against my ribs.Gunshots rang out and my eyes darted to the kingdom where people fought with guns and knives. A scream tore through the air and a warrior charged at me. He was fast and deadly. His golden blade gleamed in the light as he swung toward me. I willed my body to move, to dodge, to fight, to go anything, but my feet stuck to the ground.But Kaden was quick to counter his attack.His dagger sank into the warrior’s chest before I could even gasp. The man choked, eyes wide, before crumpling to the ground.Kaden swore under his breath and yanked his blade free, his other hand alre
Dahlia ~The training session was a total mess. I had barely made it back to my chambers before the shaking started.I slammed the door behind me and pressed my back against it, trying to catch my breath. My pulse was still unstable and my skin was on fire from Kaden’s proximity.Damn him.Damn his strength, damn his eyes, damn the way he got under my skin without even trying.This wasn’t supposed to happen.I squeezed my eyes shut, but all I could see was the way he had looked at me—like he saw something beneath the surface, like he was trying to read me. Like he knew I was Dahlia.He can’t know. He can’t.I shoved off the door and paced the length of my room. My muscles were still tight from our fight, my body still wired from the way he had pinned me, so close, so solid, so unbearably there.I should have laughed it off. I should have played along. I should have leaned in and let him fall deeper into the trap I was supposed to be setting.But instead, I had panicked.Like a foo
Kaden ~I couldn’t stop thinking about her.The way she had leaned over the map, completely unbothered and completely in control. The way she had traced her finger along the ridges, pointed out weaknesses in my defenses like she had studied war her entire life. Like she had been born for it.It rattled me.Because I had not expected seduction. She was compliant, almost eager to obey me and prove herself to me.And I had liked it a little too much.I let out a sharp breath, rolling my shoulders as I struck the training dummy in front of me. The crack of impact echoed through the empty dark arena, but it didn’t help. My body was still tight with tension, my mind still raced with the venom craving.I hit the dummy again. And again until it came off its base.No matter how hard I trained, I couldn’t shake the memory of her. The sharp intelligence in her eyes. The way her lips had curled into a knowing smirk when she realized she had surprised me. If only she knew how much I needed…Fuc
Dahlia ~I slammed the door to my room shut behind me, and I pressed my back against the hard wood. My breath was uneven and my pulse a wild, unstable thrum in my neck.What the hell was that?I squeezed my eyes shut in an attempt to drown out the memory of him, but it didn’t help. Kaden was still there, etched into my mind’s eye. The heat of his fingers on my skin, the unwanted goosebumps I got. The way the bond had roared to life the second he touched me, the hunger in his gaze and the way he looked at me as though he might kiss me…Oh damn it! Why did he have this effect on me? It was simply because of the mate bond right? It had to be.And when I killed him, all these stupid, silly feelings would be morphed into sorrow and pain.A quick knock sounded at the door.I barely had time to compose myself before Naima strode in, her sharp eyes raking over me like she already knew everything.I exhaled through my nose, turning away. Not now. I didn’t have the patience for one of her lec
Kaden ~I simply couldn’t get her out of my head.I hated it so much, fuck!Her scent lingered in my mind, a whisper of something wild and dark, curling around me no matter how much I tried to shove it away. I had spent the entire night battling the thought of her, but it clung to me like a second skin. Even now, standing under the cold rush of water in my chamber, I could still feel her. The way she had looked at me in the training grounds, wide-eyed with her lips parted.Like she wanted me, but then I was probably just being delusional.My mind had been ruined.My hands pressed against the wet stone, steam curling around my body. Forget her. She’s just another Scarvyn.But it wasn’t that simple, was it? Because I had sworn to myself that no Scarvyn would ever hold power over me again. That I would never let another one get under my skin after what Dahlia did to me.And yet here I was, feeling like my body was betraying me. My wolf, Tiernan was restless, pacing, growling. He want
Dahlia ~I sharply snapped my gaze away from him before my mind wondered to places it shouldn't.Kaden stood in the training arena, he was looking at me with that suspicious mismatched gaze of his as sweat glistened on his sun kissed skin, his chest rising and falling with steady breaths. He was strength and dominance carved into flesh, and I hated that I noticed. Hated that my body reacted, that my throat felt tight, that the memory of his hands on me last night clawed at the edges of my mind.I swallowed hard and forced my focus elsewhere. Orion sat nearby, watching me, his intelligent green eyes looked at me as though he knew exactly what was running through my head.I ignored them both and walked past sharply.I focused on the hunger gnawing at my stomach. Focusing on it was probably a mistake but I couldn't help it. I had barely fed last night. I just tasted a few drops before that cursed mate bond had flared to life between us. I had pulled away then, terrified of what I woul
Kaden ~The sun was brutal that morning. I could hear the sizzles of my sweat with each drop on the hot sand of the training Arena.The sound of steel crashing against steel resonated around me as Orion and I circled each other. I wasn’t focused on this training session. Not really. My thoughts were unwillingly elsewhere… on Maeve.Her scent, her taste, the way her lips had trembled against my neck when she felt the tug of the bond. The way her venom felt as it saturated my needy veins—Pain seared across my back.I gritted my teeth and stumbled forward as Orion’s sword sliced sharply through my shirt, and jerked me from my thoughts. I rapidly turned to face him with a vicious snarl. An annoying smirk tugged at his lips.“Distracted?” he asked in a mocking tone as he rolled his shoulders. “You’re slow today, your Majesty. On a normal day, I would be regenerating my hand by now.”I rolled my shoulders and flung the sword in my fingers, loosening my wrist. “I’m fine.”He tilted his he