by May Dawson
“I thought you were supposed to be selling this place,” Piper said drily. She elbowed me, flashing me a mischievous grin. “You’re used to having men do all the chores.”
“It’s just that Callum is so good at cooking. Much better than you,” I said. “Anyway, I do my own laundry.”
Then I really pictured myself handling sweaty werewolf laundry. It must have shown in the look of horror that crossed my face, because Piper burst into laughter.
“You’re the one who won’t take my advice,” she teased. “I’m trying to save you from handling gross man-laundry.”
“It’s just for a year or two,” I said, but it sounded like I was trying to convince myself.
Lex flashed us a curious look but held open the door for us. We walked inside, into a big space with a handful of tables and chairs and two staircases twisting away to an upper floor.
“Each house has their meals together in the cafeteria in the asylum,” he said. “On the ground floor of each house is space for us all to gather, like you see here.”
“Is this your dorm?” I asked.
He nodded. “Oh yes, you’re in my house.”
For some reason, there was something about the way he said that in his low, warm tone that sent tingles racing through my chest.
He pointed down the hallway. “Down the hall is a library for quiet work and mandatory study hall—mandatory if your grades dip—and in the basement there’s a big gym and the laundry rooms.”
“What’s the gym like?” I asked promptly. I loved to work out. My ‘big brothers’ had adored training me to fight.
“I’ll show you,” he said promptly. He brought us downstairs and led us through a big, gorgeous gym with a fitness center and a dojo. He grinned, as if he saw my eyes light up when I looked around the big, light-filled dojo. The basement walked out to a green lawn, and floor-to-ceiling windows and French doors along one side let in sunlight and a distant view of the pines.
Lex clapped his hand on my shoulder and said, “Well, something makes me think you’ll fit in here, even with…”
My sister was eying him, and he suddenly tucked his hands in his pockets.
“Even with what?” I asked. I’d liked having his hand on my shoulder; he’d seemed so easily familiar. It felt like the two of us were going to be friends.
“Even with you being a woman,” he said.
“Girl,” Piper said under her breath, so softly that I wouldn’t have been able to hear her without my wolf’s senses.
“It won’t change anything, right?” I asked. There were two ways to become a werewolf—by being born one and by being turned—and for some reason, born female wolf shifters like me were rare. It was against pack law to turn a child. That meant only born shifters were young enough to be admitted to the academy.
“It shouldn’t,” Piper said, but the look she gave Lex was hard. As if she thought my being a girl would change everything.
I shrugged my shoulders. “I’ve always been surrounded by guys. It doesn’t bother me.”
Piper sighed as if she was holding her tongue. “Well, what else is there to see?”
She didn’t say anything, but I could read my sister.
She thought it would bother me in the end.
I bumped my shoulder into hers. She tucked her arm through mine, the gesture comfortable and familiar, and rested her head on my shoulder. Without her heels, I was a little bit taller than she was, even though I was the little sister.
“Thanks for not trying to talk me out of what I want,” I said. “Even when you think I’m making a mistake.”
“They’re your mistakes to make,” she said. “Lord knows, I’ve made plenty.”
“Maybe it won’t turn out to be a mistake,” I said.
“From your lips to Saint Cain’s ears.” Her voice had a teasing note as she invoked a saint she didn’t believe in anyway. She squeezed my arm, and the two of us followed after Lex.
Lex walked backward down the hall, telling us everything about the academy except for the things that mattered most.
Chapter Three
When Lex sped ahead of us to meet another prospective student who had just arrived, I elbowed my sister swiftly in the side. “Why did you call me a girl in front of Lex?”
“You’re seventeen,” she whispered back. “Technically, you’re a girl.”
“You didn’t say it because I’m technically—”
Piper interrupted me. “You think he’s cute, huh?”
I glanced at Lex’s back. His brown hair was sexily tousled, like he ran his hand through his hair while he was thinking about more important things. His school uniform—a fitted black military jacket over black slacks—clung to broad shoulders, a lean tapered waist, and an absolutely adorable ass.
“Maybe,” I said non-committally.
“Because otherwise you wouldn’t care,” she said, a smirk breaking across her face. “Oh my god. This is exciting. You never think anyone is cute.”
I raised my eyebrows at her. “You are twenty-six years old. You’re a werewolf queen leading three packs. Your ability to kick ass in high heels is legendary. You’re not supposed to be antagonizing your little sister anymore.”
“Can’t quit, won’t quit,” she said mischievously, and when I wasn’t looking, elbowed me back.
Sisters, man.
The bell rang again, and a stream of students left the academic building and headed across the lawn for the house. Two students were arguing. One stopped the other, pressing a hand against his chest. The second one glowered at his hand and then at his face. His lips curled back from his teeth, snarling.
Piper automatically stepped in front of me. Oh my god. I stepped back up next to her, flashing her an exasperated look, and she pursed her lips.
“Sorry I’ve spent my entire life trying to protect you, and it’s a hard habit to shake,” she said.
“You don’t sound all that sorry.”
“Observant of you.” Her blond eyebrows furrowed. “I’d stop them, but you know. Wolfish boys are going to wolf.”
The two of them were circling each other now, looking as if they might transform at any moment.
And then they didn’t. One of them stopped, frowning, and shook his head. The other one stared at him, his lips still curled back from his teeth. Both of them seemed suddenly distracted from their fight.
“They didn’t shift,” Piper said softly. She stepped forward suddenly toward them, and there was the whip-crack of command in her voice when she said, “Knock it off. Talk it out like normal people.”
I raised my eyebrows at Piper, but she was already turning away from their surprised faces. She hustled me away from them.
“There’s something going on. I think they can’t shift,” she whispered to me.
The two of us hurried around the corner of one of the houses. Piper was already stripping off her jacket.
She was going to try to shift. I bit my lower lip as I steeled myself. The transformation feels like getting hit by a bus, except that you know you’re going to survive. It’s still hard. Especially when you’re new to shifting, like I was. I’d been so excited for my first time, and now it filled me with dread.
Her lips parted, a far-away look coming into her eye, and her arms and legs began to shake as if she was trying to transform. It was still just Piper, sweet-faced and demure.
I closed my eyes, blocking her out as I tried to concentrate. Stories suggest that wolves can shift by accident when they’re scared or angry enough, but so far, I’d always had to work for it. No matter how much I focused now, as I imagined my bones and muscles and teeth shifting in place, nothing happened.
When I opened my eyes, Piper was shrugging her jacket back on. She drew her long blond hair out of her collar, and then touched the necklace she wore, murmuring a spell softly. I waited as she sent out the call to our pack.
We didn’t need cell phones to stay out of trouble, no matter what that man at the gas station had thought.
>
When she finished, she nodded at me. “There’s dark magic in the air. We’ve got to give Lex the slip and talk to the Dean.”
I headed to the edge of the building to check on Lex. He was still talking to a prospective student and his family, his face lively and his hands animated as he punctuated his words. I watched him a few seconds longer than I needed to, before Piper came to my side.
“Lead on,” I said.
A few minutes later, Piper and I were in the anteroom outside the dean’s office. I glanced around the room, which was flooded with light from the windows, brightening a tan leather couch against the wall and shelves lined with books. I studiously avoided looking at the secretary, who had risen from his desk.
“The dean is not to be disturbed,” the secretary repeated firmly. His cheeks flushed above the neat dark lines of his beard. “You have an appointment with him this afternoon—”
Piper stared at him and crossed her arms, heaving a sigh that caused him to break off, his cheeks flushing even darker.
“You’re not in Virginia anymore,” he reminded her.
Her lips parted in a cool smile. “Oh, is that what this is about?”
Her voice was suddenly very soft. My sister was never more dangerous than when her voice went quiet. I wanted to hiss at the secretary to run.
We were making a great impression at this school I desperately wanted to attend, the only one of its kind. I chewed my lip. But I had Piper’s back, no matter what it cost me. I always would.
“No, of course not,” the secretary sputtered.
Just then, the dean’s door opened. A big man with dark red hair came out, frowning.
“What seems to be the problem?” he asked impatiently.
“Dean McCauley,” Piper said.
“Yes?”
“Piper Northsea,” she said, enunciating too precisely, the way she did when she was exasperated. She extended her hand for him to shake. “I believe you have a problem on your campus right now.”
He looked at her as if he was perplexed, his brow furrowing. I glanced at my sister, wondering why he was reacting that way. Right—she was barely five-foot-four in her heels, her blond curls framing a doll-like face.
Then he came to life as if his brain had suddenly caught up. “We can speak in my office.”
“Thank you.” She glanced toward me, then the door, indicating I should come with her, and I followed them into the dean’s sumptuous office. Things had certainly changed since the days when I played poker with Finn and Kai on the floor outside Piper’s makeshift office.
The dean looked at me and then, as if he didn’t find me too interesting, back to Piper. “Well?”
She eased the door closed behind her and regarded him with cool blue eyes, crossing her arms over her chest. “I believe the school is under attack by the covens.”
“And why do you think that?”
“Because I can’t shift, and neither can your students. Can you?” She looked at him pointedly.
He looked at her as if he was going to dismiss her out of hand, but then he sighed, slipped off his suit jacket, and hung it on the back of his chair. His movements were quick and impatient, as if he thought this was a ridiculous effort. He closed his eyes, held out his hands, and went very still.
After a second, he opened his eyes back up again.
“Why do you think the witches are behind this?” he asked.
“It’s generally been my experience that witches are up to no good,” Piper said coolly.
He raised his hand wearily, as if he agreed. “Yes. But there could be other causes. There’s no need to panic just yet.”
“There’s no need to panic at any point,” Piper said. “But there’s certainly a need to go on alert. Send out the student patrols.”
“This isn’t like in your day, Piper,” he said. “When the school was under constant attack and the students spent as much time fighting for their lives as sitting at their desks. We have fantastic security.”
“And yet, it would still be convenient for the covens to wipe out an entire generation of the packs’ best young warriors.”
“They are the best,” he agreed. “And many, many of those best are here teaching and patrolling. I’ll send them out. We’ll get to the bottom of this event.”
“They’re going to be slow patrols since they can’t transform,” Piper said. “If a full alert ends up being nothing but a drill, the students will survive.”
He glowered at her, and after a second, she added, “But if the war is about to come to campus and there is no alert, they may not.”
In a full alert, the student body would all move out on patrol. I’d spent my life being protected by other wolves, despite my best efforts to fight my own battles. I loved the idea of being the one on patrol myself. I felt a thrill of anxiety, a restless pull to do something even though I was also nervous.
I’d been just a little girl the first time I saw what the covens could do, as sea monsters crawled onto land and dark fog crept over the water.
Werewolves could be used to power witches’ magic.
Especially born female werewolves like me.
“Thank you for letting me know about this problem,” McCauley said. “I will let you know what we’ve discovered when we meet this afternoon. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to see about sending out those patrols.”
He flashed Piper a dismissive smile, already moving to the door and holding it open.
His gaze flickered to me as I reached him. His eyes were cool above that smile, and I had the distinct feeling that he already hated me.
So that was a great start.
“We’ve had our differences, but I do know you care for your students just as much as I cared for mine. So what exactly is the problem here?” Piper demanded.
“There is no problem,” he said. “Times have changed. The school has changed as well. We no longer have to be so…reactionary.”
Piper’s smile was more of a baring of her teeth. “I see.”
“Enjoy your lunch,” he said.
“Hopefully we make it through lunch without any killing,” Piper said.
“Well, the food is usually pretty good in the cafeteria,” the dean said blithely.
I had to wonder how his attitude would change if there was some challenge to the wards out on the walls.
Wolves are supposed to hate magic.
But some of us can manage a trick or two.
Chapter Four
By now, you might see why I couldn’t suggest to my sister that we briefly disrupt the wards protecting the school. I love her, but she easily tips over from adorably protective to a fucking hazard.
“The guys should be on their way,” she told me as we left the admin building. She pointed across the green yard to where Lex was talking to a small knot of prospective students. They were clearly not students yet, given their t-shirts and jeans. “Stay with Lex. Stay out of trouble, okay? Try to enjoy the tour.”
“What are you going to do?” I demanded. “Are you going to stay out of trouble?”
Piper nodded and then broke off, shrugging. “I am not a student here and never will be. Let’s not ruin your reputation before you ever get to crack open a book.”
“Piper Jane Northsea.” I scolded her.
“Madeline Mae Northsea.” My sister matched my tone and mimicked my hands-on-hips pose perfectly. I guess I did learn all that from her. Then she sighed. “Just trust me. Please. I don’t want you to start the school with any more black marks besides just being my sister.”
“What are you talking about?” I frowned. “You’re famous. You’re a hero.”
“It’s never that simple,” she told me drily. “Come on. Go stare at Lex’s ass some more and try out the cafeteria. If the coven attacks, you’ll know.”
“Is that supposed to be comforting?” I muttered.
She rested her hand on my shoulder, although she had to look up at me. “Yes. I’m not afraid to split up because I know you
can handle yourself.”
I stared back at her, pursing my lips. Piper would usually want me to stay close if she thought there was danger. I wanted her to see me as an equal, not someone she had to protect.
“Well, except for around boys,” Piper muttered, as an afterthought. “I’m confident in your weapons-handling, but I have serious concerns about your flirting skills.”
I gave her a look. “Are you really mocking me right now when we’re under imminent attack from the covens? What’s wrong with you?”
She shrugged. I shook my head at her as I walked away, heading across campus toward Lex.
Lex looked over the heads of the three other students he’d collected and flashed me one of those devastating grins. “Ah, she’s back! Where did you wander off to?”
My head always went blurry when I tried to think of a lie. “I grew up hearing about the ghost in the church,” I blurted out. “Had to check it out.”
“No ghosts here,” Lex promised, although something shifted in his face. “And if we had any, they’d be freshmen who didn’t listen to their cadre.”
There was something about his suddenly crisp tone that felt like a challenge. I stared back at him, at the sudden set of his jaw and his chestnut-brown curls waving in the wind, before he grinned, like it had been a joke.
He took a step back toward the main building, gesturing toward a few students who had just stopped outside and were looking toward us, all alike in their uniforms. “It’s lunchtime. You each have a guide that you’ll sit with at lunch and that will take you around the rest of the afternoon after we hear from the dean.”
He waved a hand at the students, and they headed over. He quickly paired up each student with a guide until it was just the two of us and a friendly-looking boy in glasses who flashed me a smile.
“Thank you so much for being willing, but your student is M.I.A.,” Lex told him, instead of introducing us. Lex flashed him a smile and then grabbed my upper arm, towing me with him toward the big brick building.