“You looked pretty sexy all sweaty and out of breath this morning,” he continued, not even touching his food. He stared at me like I was the tasty snack he wanted to devour. It almost made me lose my appetite. Almost.
“I’m gonna look even sexier when I kick your ass here in a minute,” I muttered in between bites. I really wasn’t in the mood.
He snagged my wrist as I lifted another shovelful toward my mouth. “I think it’s time you learned your place.”
Tugging me across the table towards him, he almost pulled me into my breakfast. My plate wobbled, distracting me. If I lost my food…
Teeth bit into my neck. Not in the fun way but in the super sucky painful way. The fork clattered to the table and I fumbled into my pocket, trying to find the pepper spray. He bit me harder, breaking the skin. Asshole. I reached out with my other hand and grabbed a handful of his shirt and chest--and hopefully his nipple. I dug in my nails and twisted sharply.
He jolted away from me, dribbling my blood down his chin. “Talk shit, get bit, bitch,” he snarled, licking my blood from his lips. His eyes glowed brightly. “Run your mouth at me again, and I won’t stop there. Someone needs to tame you.”
I cupped my hand over the bleeding wound, fighting back tears. “Touch me again and I will fucking kill you.”
He grinned, sat down, and took a bite of his eggs. “I’d like to see you try.”
I wanted to kick his ass. I wanted to beat him so badly that he’d piss himself before even thinking about touching me again. I wanted him to know that I was the alpha. But right now I was horribly exhausted and sore, I could hardly walk, let alone kick someone’s ass, and this was a fight I couldn’t win..
It killed me to have to take his shit and not give shit back, but I had to play it smart. But if I stayed at that table with him for one more second, I would attack him.
I stood and hobbled over to the trash bin and tossed my breakfast in before I changed my mind. The trip back to my room was a blur as I fought back stupid tears. I never cried. But everything felt like it was catching up at once. Trapped at this stupid place, with assholes lining up to piss me off and try to get me killed. Mom dying. No hope. No place of safety.
When I finally stumbled into my room, I collapsed on the bed and screamed into the pillow. God, this place was a nightmare. I couldn’t imagine spending long here. Everyone was out to get me. I was completely and utterly alone here.
After a few minutes of screaming, I pulled myself together. I had to shower and get ready for whatever shit show classes were going to be. I still needed to pick up my schedule, too.
I took a quick shower, washing the dried blood from my neck and hair. The bastard had broken skin, but the wound wasn’t too bad. It was more humiliating than damaging. I scrubbed my skin raw, trying to erase the ache in my joints and the feeling of weakness, but to no avail.
I bandaged up the wound, not wanting people to see the mark he had made and get ideas. I had to stick to my plan: tame my wolf, kill my father, and save Mom.
Once dressed, I grabbed my keys and pepper spray, and I made my way to the office to pick up my schedule. Thirty minutes and a headache later, I found myself standing outside a classroom filling up with brawny, bulky, and mostly beaten-up men. I was trying to muster up the courage to go inside, more and more annoyed by each glare I received by men entering the classroom. After about two minutes of loitering, I made my way inside. I went straight for the back, trying to find an empty seat away from everyone else, but a voice stopped me.
“Bitch!” Someone called out, and I froze in my tracks. I whipped around, eyes scanning for the asshole that was about to catch these hands. There was a tall, pristine looking man at the front of the classroom, wearing a well tailored suit and a sneer on his face. I’d bet my bottom dollar that I’d end up trying to kill him before I left this fucking campus.
“What the fuck did you just call me?” I all but growled through my teeth as I shifted my weight and clenched my fists. I could already feel the wolf twisting inside of me.
“That’s what you are, is it not?” He still had a sneer on his face, but his tone was almost dismissive. “A female dog meant for breeding.”
“It’s actually motherfucking bitch to you.” My lip curled into a snarl. “If we’re going by technicalities. Say hi to your mom for me, assbreath.”
He narrowed his wolf eyes. “Your seat is up here in the front row.”
I rolled my eyes at his little power trip, but figured it wasn’t worth the argument. I was already so over this fuckass class. “Fine.”
I went to the seats in the front, and he pointed to the one right next to his desk. I bit my lip to keep from swearing at him, and I sat down in the seat. My ass had barely settled when my head snapped to the side, my cheek burning. I jerked my head back around and glared at the fucking professor who’d dared to slap me.
I hadn’t even seen it coming! What exactly had that morning run done to me? I was off my game. At this rate, I’d be an easy, mid-afternoon snack.
“Do not speak to me like that again. Next time, I will not be so kind.” His eyes still glowed with his wolf, but he straightened his tie and turned on his heel as if nothing had happened.
Dr. Aspen was right, none of my professors would be forgiving or nice. Like, at all.
9
My classes sucked! They were the biggest waste of time I had ever seen in my entire life! I had to go and sit through an entire day of bullshit. It was nothing but asshole men calling me a bitch, making advances, and putting me down all day. I recognized a few of the men from the dormitory, but I was totally on my own.
When I made it to my last class, I was ready to lie down. Why was the history of werewolves, males in particular, so important? All my classes talked about pack structuring, history of the werewolves, pack bylaws—it was a bureaucratic nightmare. My last class was Combat with Dr. Aspen, and I was horrified to realize how relieved I was that it was him and not one of those other idjits I had throughout the day. I followed the map that the rude desk guy had given me with my schedule throughout the day. This class was at the Brick, which I was really beginning to hate. Especially the arena, where Ethan had died. Of fucking course that was where this fucking class was. Naturally.
I found a group of twenty men already gathered and talking, all in various athleticwear. They didn’t pay much attention to me, but they did keep their distance.
At least someone had scrubbed the blood stain off the patio, though the area was lightly sprinkled with sawdust. Shivering, I averted my gaze, determined to block out the way Ethan had stared up at the sky with surprise. Blood leaking from the hole in his forehead.
Class was supposed to start in another five minutes when Lobo and Nyx came in, chatting together. Another man was with them, and it took me a second to remember that he was the man I’d met at the door when I first got here. They looked almost relaxed and happy as they chatted. Lobo spotted me first and began to walk my way, the others in tow. The other two looked wary at best, but Lobo practically came bounding over.
“Mel!” If I hadn’t scowled at him, he might’ve tried to hug me. “How was your first day?”
“Just peachy,” My tone fell flat, and my forced smile was more of a grimace.
Lobo smiled sympathetically. “That good?”
Nyx snickered. “I didn’t think she’d make it through the run this morning.”
The other man, who’s name I still didn’t know, laughed. “I remember those. That always sucked.”
“Remember? You don’t run anymore?” I felt slight hope. How could I get out of running that much?
Lobo shrugged like it was common knowledge. “Once you can shift fairly consistently, you don’t have to run anymore. Instead, you learn wolf-to-wolf combat.”
My heart sank. I wasn’t even sure if I could ever shift. I’d probably have to run the rest of my life here.
“You’re lucky you got out of the extra five this morning. The newest pup always gets st
uck with that,” Nyx added, refocusing on the topic.
“That’s shitty.”
“It’s tradition,” Lobo explained. “We all did it. How’d you get out of it anyway?”
I snickered to myself. “Shaggy tried to pull a fast one on me by tackling me to the ground—”
“Shaggy?” Nyx interjected.
Lobo grinned. “She means Hunter. It’s a whole thing.”
I rolled my eyes, continuing my story. “Anyways, he tackled me, making us the last two to reach The Brick. When we both got up, I punched him in the dick and took off.”
The other guy winced. “That’s cold.”
“What? It’s not like we’re friends or anything. Eat or be eaten,” I reminded him.
“I’ll keep that in mind,” he replied, his tone dark. Fuck, that’s ominous.
“Line up!” A familiar voice hollered above everyone else, and once again, the men scurried into order, leaving me alone in the open.
“Miss Lopez,” Dr. Aspen said with a soft smile. “Your new spot will be the back of the line.” I nodded in acknowledgement and took my place.
“Today, I’ll be pairing you up to spar. It’ll be a review class so that I can work with Miss Lopez to assess her skill. Break into your usual pairings and play by the rules. Dismissed!”
The men scrambled to follow orders, leaving me alone before Dr. Aspen. “I’ll be your sparring partner today, until I can partner you with someone at your level.”
I followed him past a few men already fighting, and he led me to a fairly open area in the middle of the chaos. Despite the activity around me, I could feel their eyes on me.
“You gave quite the show yesterday. I’m intrigued to know what you’re capable of.” He dropped his bag off to the side and pushed his sleeves of his light athletic jacket up his arms. “Let’s review the basics. We only have three combat rules at Wolf Point. The first is always fight in the same form: skin to skin or wolf to wolf. Second, no toys or weapons, just man to man. Third, unless instructed otherwise, fight to immobilize, not to kill. Do you have any questions?”
It all seemed fairly straight forward. “No.”
He quirked an eyebrow at me. “Some of the other professors prefer formalities, so I would suggest getting in the habit of saying ‘yes, sir’ or ‘no, sir.’”
It took all of my self control not to roll my eyes at him. Of course they prefered formalities here. “Yes, sir.”
He nodded as he shifted into his fighting stance. I mirrored him, preparing to fight. “How long have you been fighting?”
He began to sidestep, and I countered him, getting in the headspace and trying not to let his questions throw me off rhythm. “Since I could walk.”
Smoothly, he threw a punch, but I easily deflected and returned to my stance. I wanted to get a sense of his approach before I struck. I always preferred to learn about my opponent before I kicked their ass.
“Where did you learn?” He faked another hit only to try and sweep my legs, but I dodged both attempts, still calculating. All of his attacks were from his right side, but he held his left fist slightly closer to his ribs than the other, indicating that he had vulnerability there. When he shuffled around, his left leg dragged just a fraction, showing an injury there as well. Overall, his weaknesses were on his left side, unless he was deliberately faking. He was a right focused fighter, so I needed to watch his advances from that angle.
“All over. I would give you names, but we’d be here all day.”
He tried to strike again as I talked, but I sidestepped that too. I was beginning to get the sense that he was toying with me. There was no way that he could be this bad at fighting and be the combat teacher.
“How’d you learn of Wolf Point?” His question caught me a little off guard. That was personal information. He distracted me enough that I was a little too slow to dodge his next hit, and he grazed my ribs.
“I’d rather fight than talk.” I tried to redirect without being disrespectful. I didn’t want him digging too deeply. I needed to keep my personal life on lockdown so that no one could get in my way.
“Then fight.” This time, he moved much faster than his other attacks and landed a solid punch to my cheek. My head jolted back and a flip switched.
It was time to fight.
I threw a casual punch, which he easily dodged, but it gave me the chance to start analyzing his defensive moves. I threw another, and he deflected, still protecting his left side. I threw two hits consecutively, the first one a throw away shot, the second fast and sharp, aimed for his left ribs.
He hissed out a sharp breath and shoved me back, but I twisted away from his hands, ducking and wheeling around to his exposed back. I delivered another jab to his kidneys as he turned on me. We began to move faster, throwing hit after hit, his strikes growing in intensity the more it progressed. It wasn’t long until I had a split lip and my ribs were aching, but it was nothing I couldn’t handle.
“You’re holding back on me, Miss Lopez,” he chided.
I spit out blood to my side and wiped some from my chin. “So are you, Dr. Aspen.”
Chuckling, he threw another punch. As I dodged, he grabbed a handful of my hair and swung me off balance. I stumbled and struck out at his ribs, but I couldn’t shake him. He yanked my head backward, baring my throat and the bandage.
I brought my knee up to his crotch, making him wince and readjust his grip, but he didn’t release me. I raked my nails down his exposed forearms and snapped at his hand, but he easily kicked my legs out and followed me to the ground. My head smacked off the bricks, smarting my old wound.
Stars danced across my eyes as he moved to pin me. I rolled beneath him, kicking up my legs to keep off of me. He still had me by my hair, but I managed to turn and bite his forearm. This time, he growled and released me, his wolf pressing forward in his eyes. I sprung up from the ground, ignoring my blurred vision, and he followed suit. Gouges bled down his forearms, and the bite looked angry. I’d managed to break the skin. He had slight bruising on his cheekbone from one of my hits, but if anything, he just looked more vicious.
I lunged for him again, this time aiming to wind him and bring him down, but he smacked my attack away like an irritating fly. Up this close to him, I could see exactly how close his wolf was to surfacing inside him. Not a glimmer of humanity remained in his eyes. Even his teeth were elongated.
He grabbed me by the throat, his grip tight on the tender bite. The bastard really loved fisting his hand in my hair because he did it again, pinning my head in his hands. I kicked and scratched and bit at him, but his wolf was so preoccupied that my efforts were futile.
For the first time in my life, I was actually afraid of my opponent.
“Submit, pup,” he growled out.
My wolf squirmed inside me. A strange urge pulsed through me, leaving me shaking. Weak. The urge to bare my neck to him. To submit.
But it wasn’t me. It was the fucking wolf.
“No,” I whispered hoarsely.
His grip on my neck tightened, making it harder to breathe.
He leaned down to glare into my face, baring his canines. “Submit.”
I steeled myself. I’d promised Mom that I would never submit to a man. I managed to rasp out, “Never.”
He snarled and snapped in my face, his breath a hot threat on my skin. My chin. My neck. Right before his teeth sank into my throat.
10
His bite was sharp, harsher than the other one I had received. I couldn’t help but cry out at the pain. It was quick, but it still hurt like a bitch.
He pulled away, moving his hand to cover my throat again, and his eyes still gleamed with his wolf.
“Submit,” He rumbled.
Throat stinging, this time, I couldn’t find the resolve to resist within me. My wolf knew she’d lost. In my mind, she crouched. Cowered. It made me want to throw up, but I forced the words out. “I submit.”
My insides turned stone cold. Instinctually, I tilted my h
ead down and to the side, baring my neck to him. When he finally released me, I stumbled back, clutching my bleeding throat. What the fuck? I thought this was combat training, not Take-a-Hunk-Out-of-Mel training.
Dr. Aspen stood before me, his canines still elongated and covered in blood. His wolf still shining in his eyes.
Everyone around us had stopped fighting, and they were staring at us. Oh my god, everyone probably saw the whole thing. “What just happened?”
“You disobeyed an order from an alpha,” he replied smoothly despite the glow in his eyes.
Shit. “That was an order?”
He took a step towards me, inches away from my face, not threatening, but a reminder of what he could do. “Yes, Miss Lopez. When I tell you to do something, I believe that is called an order.”
“B-But I thought we were sparring!” God, I never stuttered. What’s wrong with me?
After being bitten, the sharp gleam of his teeth made my belly tremor. “Even in a spar, remember your place. When I tell you to submit, you submit.”
“Even if I can still win?” I tried to keep my voice small. The last thing I wanted was for him to think I was challenging him.
“If you can still win, then I won’t order you to submit.” His tone indicated that this conversation was over. “Sometimes the best way to win a fight is to submit.”
We stared at each other, and I practically bit through my tongue to avoid mouthing off to him. I didn’t think my ability to win was his call to make. And who the hell took a chunk out of someone’s neck in a spar?
He cleared his throat. “You’re an advanced fighter. Once you shift and become accustomed to your new abilities, I believe you could be a very deadly weapon.”
I heard his slip up, but I wasn’t sure if everyone else had caught it. He had said “once you shift,” not “if you shift.” Dr. Aspen was probably the only person here that believed I might actually have a chance to survive.
Lone Wolf's Attack (Wolf Point Academy Book 1) Page 6