01

EMMA.

The sound of the plates clattering to the floor echoes loudly across the room as my tray of food is knocked off my hold and the chatter of the students comes to a stop; all eyes landing on me.

My hands fold into fists by my sides as I stare at the food smeared across the floor in front of me, some of it getting to my shoes and staining my white socks.

The entire cafeteria is silent for the next few minutes and I can feel their eyes digging through my skull, each one of them waiting for the next scene to play out and no doubt entertained by this, like always.

I hear a few snickers and that’s when I finally raise my head, rage surging through my body as I meet the gaze of none other than bright blue eyes with an evil twinkle shining through the orbs.

It’s her. Of course, it’s her. It can be none other than her.

With a tilt of her head, she crosses her left arm over her chest and brings the right to cover her mouth mockingly as she says, “Oops. Sorry, love. I hope you weren’t going to eat that?”

The sound of my labored breathing drums through my ears as I stare at the smirk that’s slowly covering her face and I dig my nails into my palms in an attempt to calm myself down, trying to ignore the way the only voice in my head tells me to grab her stupid red hair and smash her perfectly sculpted face into the food on the floor.

I do not listen. I can’t listen. That’s a line I don’t dare to cross, no matter how badly I want to. There’d be consequences even if I’m doing nothing other than defending myself. That thought alone is why I swallow a deep breath before exhaling loudly.

She takes a step closer and lifts a perfectly trimmed brow. “What? Got something to say, Troll?”

I ignore the sound of laughter that comes from the crowd that’s watching us after that ridiculous nickname and shake my head once. “I don’t.” Before she can attempt to pull another trick from her sleeves, I turn away from her cruel gaze and head out of the cafeteria, hundreds of eyes following me.

My movement is sharp as I run down the hallway and I don’t stop until I get to the restroom, hidden away from their taunts and punishing. I let out a shaky breath as I slam my back into the closed door and lift my head to catch my breath.

After several minutes of standing by the door, I make my way to the sink and hold on to the edges as I stare at my reflection in the mirror.

I let out a chuckle and jerk my head. “You should be used to this, Emma.”

“Used to what? Being a pest?” Her haunting voice penetrates through my mind, and I move away from the sink before turning my body to her.

I didn’t hear her come in and she’s standing by the door with her minions behind her, each gaze just as evil as hers.

“What do you want?”

She expresses fake shock and turns to Ella, who’s by her right, “Did you hear that, darling? She just asked me what I want.”

They both laugh for a minute before she turns to me again. The smile falls from her face and her expression toughens as she takes a step forward. “What I want is what I’ve always wanted. For you to leave and never return.”

“I can’t do that.”

She comes to a stop only a few steps away from me and clicks her tongue. “Right. Because your family despises you, right?”

Her words tick off something in my brain, an emotion she’s never had access to before. A part of me she’s never been able to crack no matter how hard she tried and my voice shakes when I open my mouth, “What did you… what did you just say to me?”

The satisfied look in her eyes tells me I’ve given her exactly what she was looking for, and she continues. “Didn’t they ditch you here or something?”

I shake my head and fall back. “No. Stop.”

She doesn’t. Of course, she doesn’t. It’s Zoey after all and she’s always been after one thing since we met—to shatter my every being and make me crumble.

“It’s sad when you think about it, isn’t it, girls? A young girl rejected by her family. Hated to the extent she was traded off at quite a young age.”

“Stop speaking. Please.”

“But when you look at it again; she kind of deserved it, don’t you think?” Her gaze burns through mine and her smile is utterly evil. “You earned it, didn't you? For causing harm to them. For being the worst kind of kid anyone could ever ask for.” She’s ruthless with her words and with each term that leaves her mouth, she takes yet another step closer, slowly erasing the distance between us and peeling layer after layer of the thick skin I’ve managed to build around her off.

She comes to a stop in front of me, our chests almost brushing and her breath caresses my skin as she lets out the final blow. “I heard you killed your mother and your twin.”

My vision blurs and I stagger back as my breathing gets heavier. The sound of my heartbeats echoes loudly across the room and I crumble, those words more than enough to bring me to my knees even before someone like her.

I’ve known Zoey to be cruel. She hated me from the very moment she arrived at this pack and laid eyes on me. She hated me even more when she found out I was friends with Ethan; the Alpha’s son and her betrothed. From the very beginning, her only purpose has been to break me, to make me leave Ethan’s side and stop being the threat she sees me as. She’s done everything from physical to emotional abuse and while she’s said very harsh words that break my heart each time I remember them, never once has she used this against me. Never once had she included my family.

She got to me. Hard. The defeat I feel is only for a few seconds before the rage settles in and I do something I’ve never done before.

I stand up to her.

My jaw clenches as I drop a hand on her shoulder. “What did you just say to me?”

She chuckles and attempts to slap my hold off her, but I don’t budge and instead let my fingers sink through the soft fabric of her shirt—not enough to hurt her, but just enough to make her stay in place. The smile on Zoey’s face drops when she realizes she can’t push me off and she seethes, “Get those dirty fucking hands off me.”

“Take back your words first.”

“Troll. I’m warning you. I’ll make you regret this.”

I don’t listen. My entire body shakes as I drop my other hand on her other shoulder and say, “Take back your words.” I keep my gaze on her, nothing else mattering to me at the moment than for those words to be swallowed back.

For a second I thought I saw fear, but I was wrong because Zoey tips her chin and laughs. “Why should I? That’s the truth, isn’t it? You killed your mother and you disgust your father—“

“Stop!” I yell, interrupting her before she can finish. “You don’t know—“

“Zoey. Now!” Ella’s voice rings across the room from where she stands, and it’s only then I realize her minions are still in the room, watching without bothering to interrupt.

Before I can gather my thoughts again, Zoey suddenly drops to the floor with a cry and my eyes widen as I watch her clutch onto her stomach.

“What the hell are you—“

“Zoey? Zoey!” My brows furrow at the sound of Ethan’s voice, and he’s entered the room when I lift my head. His concerned eyes are on Zoey and he runs to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulder as he brings her into his arms.

“Zoey. Are you okay? My God. You’re bleeding!”

My heart skips a beat at Ethan’s words and truly there’s blood running down her legs.

What the hell? Where did that come from? How…

I stand there baffled and frozen by the turn of events and it isn’t until Ethan lifts his head, the look he gives me completely unrecognizable, that I realize I played right into Zoey’s cards.

I’ve given her exactly what she wants.