by River Ramsey
Feral
Felidae Academy #2
River Ramsey
Contents
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Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
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Copyright © 2020 by River Ramsey
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Model credit to Period Images.
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Chapter 1
Ella
Ella’s phone was buzzing so much, she was starting to get weird looks from the cluster of girls gossiping by her locker. They weren’t trying too hard to hide the fact that she was the subject of their conversation.
She might have been recognized by the high priestess herself as the next Empress, but Marissa was still Queen of the school, as far as the student body was concerned.
She took her phone out of her pocket and silenced it. It wasn’t necessary to look at the screen to know all those missed calls and texts were from Axel.
He’d been harassing her continually since their confrontation in the girls’ bathroom the night before, and he’d even had the gall to show up at her dorm in the middle of the night. At the risk of infuriating her neighbors, Ella had pretended like she didn’t hear the incessant pounding.
Whatever he had to say to her, she wasn’t interested. At the very least, she didn’t trust herself. Standing up to him had taken enough guts, and she didn’t want to risk backsliding to her old ways.
Yes, he’d saved her life, but he was also the reason it had been in danger in the first place. He was a big part of the reason her life before the Academy had been so difficult, and all the reason why her life ever since had been intolerable.
He could sweat it out as far as she was concerned.
Ella knew she would see Axel in class, assuming he didn’t throw another temper tantrum and run outside, but hopefully the teacher’s presence would keep him in line. If it didn’t, he couldn’t force her to talk to him no matter what he thought.
Not that he really wanted to talk. Ella knew better. The only thing he wanted was to get into her pants, and the only reason he even wanted that was the status it would bring him.
The thought that the intimate encounter she’d once fantasized about was probably being discussed like a strategic play between Axel and his mother made the whole thing even cringier.
Ella shut her locker and walked to class, surprised when she found Axel’s chair empty. Maybe he had skipped after all.
As she sat down and got out her books, Ella found her right hand twitching in anticipation. It was all she could do to resist that deeply ingrained impulse to swipe up on her phone and see what the latest message read.
No. She had to stay strong. She’d already gotten this far, so she might as well see her newfound resolve through all the way.
As class began, Ella forced herself to focus on the material the teacher was discussing at the front of the room. She couldn’t afford to fall any further behind. That was the main reason she’d insisted on staying in the first place, as much as the idea of leaving the Academy for an extended period of time appealed to her.
The day’s lesson was a particularly dry one, which she assumed was at least part of the reason for Axel skipping class. She despised the lingering part of her that worried about him whenever he didn’t show up somewhere he was expected. As if he’d ever been reliable, or in need of saving.
It was laughable how irrational her heart could be when it came to him. Even now, as much as she hated him, there was still a part of her that longed for him. Part of her that wished his interest in her was anything more than practical or political.
It was all the more reason to refuse him.
The bell rang after what felt like forever, and Ella gathered her things to leave. It was no surprise when the students by the door purposely jammed the exit to make it inconvenient for her. She normally would have stepped back and waited for them to get bored of toying with her, but she wasn’t in the mood. When she shouldered through, forcing her way out into the hall, she caught the stunned glimpses of the students still in the doorway.
Axel wasn’t the only one it felt good to stand up to. Ella figured it was about time she showed Marissa she wasn’t the fragile kitten she’d once been. And if that meant using the fact that she’d been the object of attempted murder to extort her civility, so be it. She just didn’t want Axel taking the matter into his hands on her behalf.
“Ella?”
The smooth, familiar voice stopped her in her tracks. No matter how much confidence she’d mustered, Ella would never be able to look Sterling in the eye without feeling woefully inadequate.
Or thinking about the humiliation she’d suffered during their last tutoring session.
The incident had confirmed that Sterling was every bit the gentleman he was trying to mold his students into, but that only made Ella more nervous around him.
“Yes, Mr. Bryant?” she asked, wandering over to the door.
“You missed your session this morning,” he said, looking over her with more concern than the irritation she might have expected.
She had warred with herself over whether she should go or not, but the idea of him looking at her in horror over the presumption that he would want to continue their lessons had been enough to deter her. “I didn’t think you’d want to continue,” she stammered. “Not after…”
She trailed off, unable to bring herself to say anything more.
He frowned. “I see. Well, that’s not the case. Unless, of course, you’ve changed your mind.”
“No,” she said, a bit too quickly. “Not at all.”
“Good. Then I expect you an hour early tomorrow to make up for the missed session,” he said, glancing at his watch.
“Yes, sir.” She wasn’t going to complain about extra time with him, even if that provided her with twice the opportunity to make a fool of herself.
Again.
“How are you doing?” he asked, growing all the more serious. He was the only tom who’d ever looked at her with such genuine concern, other than Bishop. She still wasn’t sure what to do with that sincerity, but it was flattering, to say the least.
If only she could get that other look out of her head--the one he’d given her when the heat first came on. When their bodies had been so close, just shy of touching, and his hand had rested on the small of her back...
In the brief time that had elapsed since that fateful moment, Ella had convinced herself she was just imagining things. It was easier that way.
And yet, as she stood near him once more, one of those three silver rings burned a hole in her pocket. Her instincts were far from rational, and the longing to offer one to him had been present ever since Natalia and Tessa had informed her of the ritual.
Now that would be the greatest social faux pa
s of all. The idea was absurd, and yet, it became clear to Ella in that moment that her feelings had only grown stronger.
“I’m doing fine,” she answered. “Thank you for asking.”
“It didn’t seem like it yesterday.”
There was no hint of guile or censure in his tone. The man’s social graces were perfect, but he was brutally honest all the same.
“Marissa and I have a complicated past,” she said, choosing her words carefully. The last thing her reputation needed was being seen as the wimp who ran to her professor because she was being bullied by another queen. “Nothing I can’t handle.”
“Marissa?” He raised an eyebrow. “I was referring to Mr. Hill.”
Ella’s cheeks immediately grew red hot at the memory of Sterling walking in while Axel had her pressed up against the bathroom wall, his thigh pushed between her legs. “Oh. That.”
“Let me guess. You and he have a complicated past as well.”
Ella gulped. “You could say that.”
“Far be it from me to intrude on student affairs,” he said with an edge to his tone she’d never heard before. If she didn’t know better, she’d think it was jealousy, but that was even more absurd than the idea that he might be attracted to her. “But I feel it’s my duty to warn you there are going to be eyes on everything you do from now on. Take careful consideration in how you spend your time, and more importantly, with whom you spend it.”
His words made Ella want to crawl under a rock, even though she knew she wouldn’t have felt the same way if they’d come from Natalia or any of her other teachers. It was the fact that she wanted Sterling to want her that made it so difficult to know he’d seen her in such an uncharacteristic display of recklessness.
“It was a mistake,” she said firmly. “And it won’t happen again.”
A strange look came over his face and he seemed to be thinking of saying something more, but changed his mind at the last moment. “Enjoy the rest of your afternoon.”
“You, too, Mr. Bryant.”
Ella turned and headed toward her next class before she could melt onto the tile. That was one encounter she’d been dreading down. Now she just had to find a way to make it through the school day without running into Axel, and she would consider the day a success.
Chapter 2
Ella
The day was halfway over, and by some miracle, Ella had managed to avoid Axel. He’d stopped texting and calling eventually, which was a double-edged sword. On one hand, she was relieved, but on the other…
Taking a walk was always a risk on campus, but Ella found herself in desperate need of fresh air. She was also less than eager to return to her dorm room before the lunch rush was over. The cafeteria was even less appealing.
She walked the winding track that led all the way around campus. It was strange to see it from a new point of view. She’d spent so many years gazing at the castle-like structure on her way home from the market, and now she almost wished she was back out there.
There was freedom in anonymity. In invisibility. For so long, she’d lamented that she was just wasting her life, but now that it was all planned out for her by the moon itself, she couldn’t help but feel trapped.
She couldn’t even blame it all on Marissa and her harpies. They were just part of the problem. The real root of the issue was that Ella had never belonged to her pride, or the world of shifters as a whole. It was a cosmic joke that she was expected to lead them, and with the way things were going, she was pretty sure she was the punchline.
The shouts that sailed through the air alerted Ella to the fact that the soccer field was in use even before it came into view at the top of the hill. She watched as the players ran across the field, fiercely competitive even though it was only a practice session.
Soccer was a bigger deal at the school than most, as she had learned. With so many toms trapped under one roof, having a physical outlet was imperative. There was a fan club forming over on the bleachers around the field, and Ella recognized a few of the queens as belonging to Marissa’s crew.
Then again, who didn’t?
She thought of turning back before any of them decided to ruin the otherwise beautiful day, but before she had the chance, a shadow from overhead closed in on her. Ella looked up just in time to see a black-and-white ball hurtling toward her. It struck her face hard enough to make her stumble back, and somehow, her feet slipped out from underneath her and she went down hard.
Ella’s hands flew to her nose, which had borne the brunt of the blow. It was bleeding, but she didn’t think it was broken. She could hear the startled cries coming from the field and hurried to get to her feet before anyone decided to capitalize on the opportunity. For all she knew, it was no accident that ball had found her.
“Oh, shit!” cried a familiar voice. Ella looked up to find Bishop jogging toward her, his glorious abs on display and glistening with sweat. She should have known he played. She’d gotten a good enough feel of his muscular body to know he was an athlete. “Ella, are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” she said, her voice too nasally to sound convincing. She pinched her nose with her fingers in an attempt to stop the bleeding.
“No, you’re bleeding,” he said, frowning as he approached and took her face in his hands. He looked her over with the same concern as he had that night she’d nearly drowned. The first time, at any rate. “Here. Keep your head up, like this.”
She let him position her head back, keeping her hand on the bridge of her nose. As if he hadn’t already seen her in enough humiliating positions, now she had to add blood running from her nostrils to the list.
“Is she okay?” another guy called, jogging to the top of the hill.
Bishop spun around with an unexpected amount of rage in his expression. “No thanks to you.” He grabbed the ball and threw it at the other tom hard enough to stagger him. “Keep your fucking plays on the field before you kill someone.”
Ella had never heard him speak so harshly, or use profanity for that matter, and his teammate seemed equally stunned. Nonetheless, the tom grumbled an apology to Ella before running back to join the others.
“I’m fine,” Ella repeated. “Really.”
“He’s an idiot,” Bishop muttered, clearly unwilling to be pacified. “This isn’t the first time that’s happened.”
“And here I thought I was special,” she teased in hopes of lightening his mood.
Bishop snorted. “Well, you do seem to be particularly prone to peril.”
Ella found herself reddening in embarrassment. She hadn’t run into Bishop since word had spread of her unique situation, and she was sure he’d heard by now. Everyone was talking about it, and she was surprised he wanted to talk to her at all.
She felt the awkward silence between them growing, but before she could put it to death, he spared her. “This is probably a bad time to ask, but are we still on for dinner tonight?”
“Dinner?” Her face went blank as she remembered. “I forgot.”
Bishop winced dramatically. “Ouch.”
“It’s not like that,” Ella said with a sigh. “It’s just with everything that happened yesterday…”
Understanding crossed his handsome features. “Yeah, I heard. I tried calling you, but you didn’t answer.”
She pulled out her phone and realized that sure enough, several of the missed calls were from Bishop. “I’m sorry. Axel’s been blowing up my phone since last night, so I haven’t checked.”
“Well, in that case, I understand,” he said in a wry tone. “I’d probably throw the damn thing into the bay, or at least change my number.”
Ella couldn’t help but laugh. “You and I are probably the only two people in school who feel that way.”
“Us and Marissa,” he said, seeming to immediately regret it. “Sorry. I heard some shit went down with you two in the girl’s bathroom,” he added, the look of concern returning to his gaze. “What happened?”
“Nothing” was already
on the tip of her tongue, but Ella stopped herself. She wasn’t sure if it was the fact that she trusted Bishop, or merely that she was tired of lying to everyone around her, but the temptation of having someone she could be honest with was too much to resist.
“She hates me. That much is probably obvious.”
He didn’t look surprised in the least. “I heard about how Axel broke up with her in front of you. It was shitty of him to put you in that kind of position.”
“He does a lot of shitty things,” she agreed. “But to be honest, she hated me a long time before that. Ever since we were kids. I’m not sure what I did, and I doubt even she remembers now.”
“You don’t have to do anything to get on the bad side of someone who doesn’t have a good one,” he scoffed.
“So you know her,” Ella teased.
“Oh, yeah. She and Axel were a match made in heaven,” he snorted. “Or hell.”
Ella pursed her lips, trying not to laugh before she realized there was no point in holding back. Bishop was the only person she’d ever felt safe to be herself around, even if it hardly made any sense. He was even more out of her league than Axel.
After the conversation between Natalia and Emily the night before, there was one unsettling possibility that had occurred to her. What if Emily was right and the only reason he had any interest in her at all was because he wanted to maintain his close connection to power?
She shook the thought off immediately, feeling guilty for entertaining it at all. Bishop wasn’t that kind of person, and neither was his mother.
“Are you sure you still want to go out with me?” she asked, deciding to shift the subject away from Axel and Marissa, since they both had a way of bringing out the worst feelings in her--and she didn’t want to waste a second in Bishop’s company on either of them.