Total pages in book: 109
Estimated words: 103548 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 518(@200wpm)___ 414(@250wpm)___ 345(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 103548 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 518(@200wpm)___ 414(@250wpm)___ 345(@300wpm)
You could stab the tension with a knife. Getting the omegas on my side was one thing, and having the alliance of the epsilons was a given, but it was different with betas. Betas never attained the full power or privilege of the alphas, but they still had a fuck ton more of it than omegas or epsilons did.
At least a beta wolf could leave all this shit behind and pack their bags for a ten-year-long backpacking trip around the world. The only place an epsilon could travel to was from the temple to the toilet.
Betas had a lot of freedom to choose their own path in our world. Some would say even more than alphas, so why would they turn their backs on the wolves who gave them said freedom?
They wouldn’t. Which is why they hadn’t for centuries. Instead they stood by, watched, participated, and cheered alphas on while they stomped on others’ throats.
“I pledge,” Davis said, shooting me a wink. “Daciana’s gotten me one step closer to mating a harem of beautiful ladies. I’d vote for her any day.”
I barked a laugh. I wasn’t expecting that, but I loved it all the same.
It seemed Davis taking the second step prompted more betas to do the same. They didn’t all stand up. Actually, less than half did, but that even more than two did bowled me over.
“Thank you, everyone, I—”
A noise cut me off, crumpling my brow. All eyes moved up the ceiling.
“What? That’s it?” Orion asked, howling away. “Aren’t you going to ask the alphas if they want to join your psycho killer pack? No? Well, I’ll do it for you, then. Hey, alphas! Interested in throwing your fate in with the woman who murders people as easy as she breathes?”
The laughs that came back at me blew my ears back, with no one laughing harder than the bruised-up fool on the ceiling—Johnson.
“Want to know why they’re laughing at you, Volana?” Orion’s taunting voice worked hard to crack my stoic mask. “Want to know why they’re always laughing at you? Because you’re fake. All you do is put on a show of strength, and power, and authority all to hide the fact that you’re a useless waste of space.”
I blinked lazily at him. “Uh-huh, that’s nice, dear, now pipe down. The adults are talking.”
“You—” A small metal band stuffed past his teeth and gagged him. “Hphmf!”
“Oooh, fair enough,” said Badr. “That was harsh. Mostly because you’re not putting on this performance to distract us from what trash you are. You’re doing it to distract us from the fact—”
I snapped my fingers. “Gag him too.”
“—that tonight’s a full moon.”
I froze. “Wha—”
“Now!”
The shout rang through the mess hall, propelling all the alphas to their feet. Whipping something out of their pockets, they shoved black skull masks over their heads—sending every student in their vicinity shooting away from them.
“What the hell are you doing?” Nia shouted.
“This. Kill the high priestess.”
“What?!” I barely got out the scream before more commands came—from everywhere.
“Attack the metal wolves.”
“Put down Edric.”
“Take back the school.”
“Kill the high priestess!”
“Kill. Kill. KILL!”
The omegas who just committed high treason to pledge their loyalty to me, turned on me with yellowing eyes, sprouting fur, and vicious claws.
“Stop,” I screamed.
They charged.
I jumped up. “Alphas, stop this—!”
Something moved out of the corner of my eye. I pitched onto the floor, narrowly flying out of the way as Paxton’s fist sailed through the spot my head had been in, and dented my metal throne.
“Paxton!”
Turning on me, our eyes connected. I looked deep into the cold, dead eyes of a wolf under command and shuddered—nearly throwing up. These eyes didn’t belong to the man who gazed at me adoringly as he peppered kisses on my face, chest, and breasts.
He raised his hands.
“Paxton, stop,” I cried. “This isn’t you! You can fight this. You can—” I choked, hands flying to my throat.
Water dribbled down my chin, flowing free from my filling throat—flooding out the very idea of air.
“Paxton, please, don’t. Paxton!” The scream resounded through my mind.
Paxton jerked, hands dropping and eyes clear. “Daze?”
Paxton ripped off his feet, sailing over my head. “Ahhh!”
Edric’s wind blast carried him off as Edric ran to me, reaching—
A large, heavy, wooden wrecking ball slammed into Edric, crushing him between it and the unforgiving stone wall. He crumpled into a bloody heap, leaving nothing but his imprint in the crumbling stone.
He didn’t get up.
“Edric!”
“Kill the high priestess.”
“Put down the metal wolves.”
“Attack the epsilons.”
“Obey the alphas now and forever.”
“Alphas on top.”
“Alphas rule!”
I pushed myself up on shaky hands and knees, spewing the remains of the water on the floor. All around me, the world plunged into a nightmare.
Friends turned on friends. Allies attacked allies.
Tracy and Nia tackled Ava, pummeling the girl within an inch of her life when just the night before, they stayed up late watching movies and drinking margaritas.