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The officer leaned back and crossed his arms. “Well, it seems he had a reaction the moment he putyourdrink in his mouth. We have video evidence of that and every step of this competition.” His shifter animal wasn’t obvious, but from the aggressive pride I’d pin him as a wolf. I’d met enough of them in my life and they all held themself over everyone else, only content if they were the top of the chain.
“Good, then this can be resolved quickly,” I said. “I’ve literally done nothing. We used the ingredients we were presented with. I prepared a tray of drinks that had nothing with pistachio in them. If he ingested some, it was not from me.”
He shifted again in his seat and gave me a smug smile. Not only was he a douchebag, he was enjoying every second of this.
“What exactly do you have against Judge Orson Graves? Was this your ploy to win? Knock one out and give yourself a leg up?”
“If someone was trying to poison him, they wouldn’t be this obvious,” I countered. “And I don’t need a leg up.”
“We all heard that you had some issues with Stanley,” he continued on, ignoring my logic.
And there it was, the comment I was waiting for.
“Oh, you mean in regards to the false accusations?” I challenged. “That was already resolved since it was completely absurd. Honestly, I’m questioning the validity of this entire competition and board.”
The way his face reddened meant that he very much knew someone on the board or had ties in this competition somewhere.
“Maybeyouare the biased one. You don’t like when I question the board. Should I request a new officer?” A vein bulged dangerously in his neck but he simply let out a huff of air and closed his notebook.
“I think we’re done here, anyway,” he growled as he grabbed his notebook and left. Or rather, stomped angrily out of the room. What was with Madison and all these men acting like children? The fact they were predator shifters made it even more comical.
My anger and frustration only grew as hours ticked by. They were obviously trying their best to throw me off my game or intimidate me. I wasn’t sure what they were trying to accomplish but it didn’t matter. At this point, my horse was stomping around my mind while I fumed in my chair.
This wasn’t going to just be pushed under the rug. I fucking refused to allow it.
I’d take Stanley, the board, the judges, and the asshole interrogating officer down with me if it came to that.
It was a different officer that came in at the three-and-a-half hour mark. I was tired, hungry, and seven shades of pissed off.
“You’re free to go,” was all she said before walking away again but I literally laughed at her, which had her turning around. The woman shifted uncomfortably on her feet as she faced me.
“You’re kidding, right?” I demanded. “You left me in this room for hours. Before you say anything, yes, I watched the clock. All of that just to say I’m free and give me nothing else? No answers on why I was singled out here? No apology for the rude behavior of the previous officer?”
She didn’t meet my eyes but started to wring her hands. “Reviewing the footage, we found that one of the staff members was responsible. They are being prosecuted accordingly, that’s all I can give you.” This officer wasn’t annoyed but I could see the frustration on her face and I knew it wasn’t aimed at me. She glanced behind her to ensure the hall was clear. “Look, you should leave. I’m sorry this happened to you, but this is not a fight you want to take.”
She scurried away after that, letting me make my own choice. I was livid but I took her advice and left the small office I’d been trapped in. The other officers and staff were still walking around and it took everything in me not to flip them all off as I passed.
Instead, I kept my head held high as I walked out of the main doors. I had so much nervous energy and anger in my body that I almost didn’t know what to do. If I was home I would go for a run but I couldn’t exactly shift here, not to mention I never truly felt safe in Madison. And today was yet another example of that.
“Oh, thank fuck,” Riven’s voice echoed out just as I reached the gold-plated elevators in the lobby. “I’ve been panicking out here for hours. I just finally sent El and Zathrian after food.”
“Get in the elevator,” was all I said as the doors opened, grabbing his wrist and pulling him in with me. He made a startled noise but thankfully, didn’t argue. Until the doors closed, at least.
“Are you going to tell me what’s going on? What the fuck happened in there? Why did it take so long?”
“Look. I’ll explain it to you all later but right now, if I don’t get this energy out I’m going to scream or tear into someone. So, do you want to help me get the energy out or should I figure it out myself?”
“How am I going to…?” he trailed off as it dawned on him, his eyes widening at the prospect. “Oh, I’m definitely helping.”
“Good,” I bit out as I dragged him with me to my room. The moment the door was closed and locked behind me I flipped the latch and started pulling off my clothes. This was not going to be one of those ‘mates finding each other’ moments; it was definitely more of an ‘I need an angry fuck right now and he’s the target’ kind of moment.
To his credit, Riven wasn’t complaining. He started pulling off his own clothes just as fast as I did. I took about thirty seconds to appreciate the well-toned muscles and dusting of dark hair on his chest. I’ve never been one who enjoyed overly hairy men, but it was the perfect amount to fit my bear mate perfectly.
“Are you always going to be this bossy?” he teased as he walked toward me. I didn’t answer him; instead I slanted my lips over his, fingers digging into his shoulders as I held him close to me. He met me with just as much fire. I had a feeling this was about to be explosive and exactly what I needed.
Riven swept his tongue into my mouth, tasting me and fighting for dominance. We were a clash of groping hands and teeth. If he wanted a fight, then he was going to lose. I had righteous indignation on my side today and the last thing I was going to do was take it easy on him.
Riven hardly seemed like the submissive type, hell, I knew he wasn’t, but for right now, he was giving his mate exactly what she needed. I appreciated him for that.
