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My heart went out to her. “I can’t imagine what it must be like to have that burden on your shoulders, of living up to your family’s expectations, but I understand the need to earn a council spot.”
She furrowed her brow. “Is that your goal?”
“I’d like a shot at a new life. My alpha, Branson, is a wildcard. He’s vicious, ruthless, and doesn’t care who he has to hurt to get what he wants. The whole pack is afraid of him, except for his misguided followers. It’s only me and my sister Jenna left in my family. So, if I could get on the council, it would be my ticket out of my pack—and I’d find a way to bring Jenna with me.”
“I’ve heard my father speak of Branson,” Jessica admitted. “He has nothing good to say about him.”
“Neither do I.”
We finished our lunch and then returned to the classroom, where our instructor informed us we’d be learning about the history of pack wars before going onto the grounds for a short, tactical training exercise. Many decades ago, there had been much infighting among the regional packs within the North American pack, and many lives had been lost.
Ultimately, the alpha at the time had stepped in and acted as judge and jury, taking it upon himself to dole out punishments, removing and replacing alphas, and punishing those who broke pack law. It had been before the council was formed, but the tradition of the North American alpha’s word being final had never changed. He was literally the most powerful man in our world.
After a couple of hours of history lessons, everything started to sound the same, so I was thrilled when we moved outside for the training exercise.
A tall man I hadn’t seen before was waiting for us out in an open field, so far from the large buildings of the estate that all we could see were trees surrounding the vast clearing.
“Good evening, lovely ladies of the Contention,” he greeted us with a smile. “My name is Kyle. I’m going to teach you how to set up a defensive perimeter.”
Oh, interesting. This could be fun. I recalled Willow’s words from dinner last night and wondered if this could be something we needed for the first competition. I made a point of paying attention to everything Kyle taught us.
Even better, we got a chance to put the lessons into action.
“Okay,” Kyle said, clapping his hands. “We’re going to split everyone into four teams. Two teams at a time. Each team will create, then attempt to breach the other team’s perimeter within the woods behind me. First team to get tagged by the other is out.” He handed each of us a whistle. “If you tag someone, blow your whistle, and the round ends. Two other teams will go, then the winners will take on each other.”
“Oh, and one more thing,” he added. “The team that shows the best efforts will earn a dinner with Kessa tonight, since Holden is still meeting with the council.”
That actually intrigued me. I’d like to learn a little more about the alpha’s wife.
I was teamed up with Aubrey, Adriana, and Katie—who was one of Sydnee’s devoted followers. This time, I took the lead, not wanting to leave my fate in the hands of others, and I wanted that dinner.
Nico had worked with me on similar techniques to set up a defensive perimeter, so I felt confident I could handle this. Using his advice and the strategies Kyle taught us, my team headed into the woods and quickly set up our perimeter to the south of our opponents. We then started working our way through the woods, carefully clearing each area as a unit before moving forward.
We were paired against Sydnee’s team and were making good progress when I spotted Sydnee up ahead—alone. Had she not been paying attention?
Silently, I gestured to get my teammates’ attention, then pointed toward the area Sydnee was attempting to navigate on her own. It was almost too easy to sneak up behind her and tap her on the shoulder.
She spun around, rage in her eyes, especially when she saw who had gotten the best of her. I only grinned as I blew my whistle and could practically see the steam coming from Sydnee’s ears as she marched back toward the clearing without a word.
My team and I also made our way back, then participated in another round, which we also won easily. I sent up a silent prayer of thanks to my brother, who had prepared me for this more than I realized.
Sydnee stood pouting the rest of the time. Clearly, she had quite a fragile ego.
“Congratulations to Kayden, Adriana, Aubrey, and Katie—you’ve earned a dinner with the alpha’s mate,” Kyle said with a broad grin. “Excellent job, all of you.” He gave us a few more tips and tricks, though they were nothing I hadn’t already learned from my brother, then dismissed us for the day.
Sydnee stomped off and gathered her posse to head back to the estate, and Jessica and I walked together. Sydnee was ahead of us, whispering to Grey, though we couldn’t hear what she said. As we made our way into the building and up the stairs toward our rooms, Sydnee’s whispering became more intense, and Grey was nodding along. It almost looked like Sydnee was trying to hype her up for something.
I found out why when we rounded the corner from the main hallway. A sudden snarl erupted as Grey randomly shifted, charging toward Adriana. The tiny brunette barely managed to shift before Grey was on top of her with an aggressive attack.
Adriana struggled to keep Grey at bay, barely avoiding the sharp fangs that snapped dangerously close to her throat. The wolves tumbled and fought, and a crowd gathered around them, all of us stunned but still intrigued over what might happen.
However, it was a short show. Petite Adriana was no match for Grey’s larger wolf, and she submitted with a whine.
I started to turn and head for my room, but a hand darted out and wrapped tightly around my arm. Someone spun me around and shoved me into a wall before I could react, then got right in my face.
Sydnee. I should have known. She shoved me again, pressing my back against the wall. “If you dare make me look bad again, I will take you down. Mark my word. I’ll have you submitting and begging for mercy just like in class yesterday.” Her dark eyes glittered with malice.
My pulse ratcheted up, adrenaline pumping through my veins as I realized I might have to fight her right now. Would she attack just like Grey had? My stress response kicked into high gear, and I struggled to take a deep breath.
