Chapter 30
ASHER
The next three days passed in a blur of anxiety and preparation. I took my last dose of suppressants Thursday morning, watching the clear liquid disappear into my bloodstream. By tomorrow night, which is the full moon, there would be nothing left to protect me, and my secrets would be exposed. This was it, my last stand.
By evening, my nerves were shot. I’d barely eaten all day, my stomach too twisted with dread to handle food.
Scott met me outside my dorm at sunset, looking almost as nervous as I felt.
“Last chance to back out,” he said, though his voice held no real hope. He knew I wouldn’t.
“No backing out,” I confirmed.
We made our way towards the woods behind the Academy where the party was being set up. Music played in the distance, lights strung between trees casting everything in a warm glow.
Students gathered in groups, laughing and talking, the pre-full-moon energy making everyone more animated than usual, and the air hummed with Alpha pheromones, aggressive, dominant, and primal.
My Omega instincts wanted me to run butI forced myself to keep walking. I rather expose it all tonight, thank risk being caught and letting them touch my mother again.
“Are you sure about this?” Scott asked as we reached the edge of the clearing.
“No,” I admitted. “But I’m doing it anyway p>
Scott gave me a look that was half admiration, half concern. “You’re either the bravest person I’ve ever met or the most suicidal p>
“Probably both, and that leaves the same for you as well.” I said and Scott was still beside me. I could tell he was scared by his unsteady hormones but we have no choice but to do this.
We stepped into the clearing together. Immediately, I felt the shift in energy, every conversation continued, but eyes turned toward us, and whispers started.
That’s Asher Graham, the one who challenged Reed Jackson.
Is he here with Scott Hanson?
Reed’s going to kill them both.
I ignored the stares and scanned the crowd, and then I found him. Reed stood on the opposite side of the massive bonfire that dominated the center of the clearing, his usual minions surrounded him. Callum, Marcus, Tyler, Jax, and several others were all laughing at something someone had said but Reed wasn’t laughing, he was staring at me.
Even across the distance, through flames and smoke and the crowd of people between us, I felt the impact of that gaze like a physical blow.
His gray eyes locked onto mine with an intensity that made my breath catch and my heart start racing. The entire party seemed to fade away, the music, the voices, and the laughter all of it became background noise.
There was only Reed, and the promise of violence in his eyes. He stood completely still, no smile, no acknowledgment except for that burning stare that seemed to strip away every defense I had.
My Omega instincts screamed at me to look away, to submit, and to run but I held his gaze. I’d come here to make a statement, and to prove I wasn’t afraid, so looking away now would ruin everything.
Reed’s lips curved into the slowest, most dangerous smile I’d ever seen, then he turned his attention back to his friends, dismissing me like I was nothing, like I wasn’t worth his immediate attention.
The calculated insult made my blood boil.
“He’s looking at you,” Scott whispered, his voice tight with nervousness.
“I know p>
“He looks like he wants to murder you p>
“I know that too p>
Scott shifted uncomfortably beside me. “We can still leave. No one would blame you p>
“I’m not leaving p>
I forced myself to move deeper into the party, Scott trailing behind me. We grabbed drinks from one of the tables, a non-alcoholic punch that tasted too sweet, and found a spot near the edge of the clearing where we could observe.
From here, I had a perfect view of Reed, and Goddess, he was magnetic. I hated that I notice, i fucking hated that even now, even knowing what he was, knowing he was dangerous, ccruel and obsessed with me, I couldn’t stop watching him.
Reed stood at the center of his group like a king holding court. Every Alpha there orbited around him, desperate for his attention, and his approval.
He was taller than most of them, broader, and more commanding. The firelight caught on his dark hair and tanned skin, highlighting the angles of his face and the tattoos that decorated his muscular arms.
He moved with the fluid grace of a predator, every gesture controlled, and his scent even from here, even through all the other competing pheromones I could catch traces of it. His pheromone made my mouth water and my body respond in ways I couldn’t control.
A female Alpha approached him, laughing at something he said, touching his arm in what was clearly meant to be flirtatious. Reed smiled at her, charming, and devastating. Then his eyes flicked across the bonfire to me.
The smile changed, it became colder, and more cruel. He was performing for me, showing me exactly how many people wanted him, how desired he was, and how I should be beneath his notice.
The female Alpha said something else, and Reed’s attention returned to her but I could tell he was still tracking me in his peripheral vision, always watching, always aware like a wolf circling prey.
“He’s surrounded by admirers,” Scott observed quietly, “but he’s only looking at you p>
“I noticed p>
“Asher p>
“I know what I’m doing p>
That was a lie, I had no fuckinv idea what I was doing. I was making this up as I went along, driven by desperation and the knowledge that I had nothing left to lose.
More students arrived, swelling the crowd.
The music got louder, the bonfire burned higher, casting dancing shadows across everyone’s faces. I kept watching Reed.
The other Alphas deferred to him without even realizing it, they shifted to give him space when he moved, they laughed at his jokes and agreed with his opinions and competed for his attention like it was the most valuable thing in the world.
He was cruel in the most casual ways. I saw him mock one Alpha’s haircut, reducing the guy to stammering apologies, I saw him dismiss another’s attempt at conversation with a single cutting remark that made the Alpha slink away in shame, and through it all, he kept glancing at me. Quick looks, assessing, and predatory like he was waiting for something.
The perfect moment to strike, and I took a sip of my drink and tried to calm my racing heart.
Soon, I’d make my move. Soon, I’d approach Scott more obviously, touch him, flirt with him, and draw Reed’s attention in a way he couldn’t ignore but not yet.
My thoughts cut off as Reed’s entire body language changed. He’d been relaxed, leaning against a tree, drink in hand but suddenly he straightened, his eyes narrowing on something across the clearing.
I followed his gaze, Scott had wandered a few feet away to talk to another student. Nothing unusual, normal casual conversation but Reed was staring at him with an expression I recognized.
The same look he’d had that first day when I’d stepped between him and Scott. Possessive, and territorial.
Mine to torment.
Reed handed his drink to Marcus and started walking, not toward me but towards Scott.
Oh no.
“Scott,” I called out, but my voice was drowned out by the music and chatter. Reed moved through the crowd like water, and students instinctively parted for him. He reached Scott just as Scott was turning to rejoin me.
“Scott,” Reed’s voice cut through the noise, smooth and dangerous. “I’m surprised to see you here. I thought you’d learned your lesson about attending social events p>
Scott froze.
The students nearby went quiet, sensing the shift in energy, I started moving towards them, but the crowd was thick and I was too far away.
“I—I have every right to be here,” Scott stammered. “It’s mandatory p>
“Is it?” Reed circled him slowly, like a shark. “Funny, I don’t remember seeing your name on the approved list p>
“There’s no approved list p>
“There is now.” Reed’s smile was cruel. “And you’re not on it p>
I pushed through the last few students separating us.
“Leave him alone, Reed p>
Reed’s eyes slid to me, and the smile widened.
“There you are,” he said softly. “I was wondering when you’d show up. Fashionably late, as always p>
“I said leave him alone p>
“Or what?” Reed took a step toward me, away from Scott. “You’ll challenge me again? We both know how that worked out last time p>
The crowd was growing around us now. Students sensing drama, pulling out phones, and forming a circle.
This was it, the moment I’d been planning for.
Reed had given me the perfect opening.
“Actually,” I said, forcing my voice to stay steady, “I came here with Scott as my date p>
The lie hung in the air, and Reed went very, very still.
“Your date,” he repeated, his voice soft and deadly.
“That’s right.” I moved to stand beside Scott. “We’re together. So why don’t you go back to your admirers and leave us alone p>
The silence that followed was deafening.
Even the music seemed to fade into the background. Reed stared at me, his expression unreadable but his scent, Goddess, his scent was changing. It was becoming sharper, and more aggressive.
Alpha pheromones flooded the clearing, so strong that several weak Alphas in the crowd actually whimpered and backed away.
“Together,” Reed said again, as if testing the word then his eyes slid to Scott, and I saw something dark and terrible flash across his face.
“Is that true, Scott?” His voice was steel wrapped in honey. “Are you Asher’s date p>
Scott looked at me, then back at Reed, clearly terrified but to his credit, he straightened his spine and nodded.
“Yes,” he said, voice shaking but defiant. “I am p>
Reed’s jaw clenched, the crowd held its breath, and then Reed laughed. It was the most chilling sound I’d ever heard.
“Well then,” he said, his smile returning, sharp as broken glass. “This just got interesting p>