Page 14 of Queen of Vengeance

To Jax, this was all a game.

He couldn’t admit it to anyone but often found these little jobs fun.

“So long as no one was getting hurt, what harm could it do?”

“There’s no one around for miles. I told you this job was a piece of cake.” Jax looked back at his best friend, Zayden Willow.

Jax had to make sure he didn’t look like he was having too much fun, or else he would get a lecture from his friend.

Zane’s attention was nowhere near the horizon despite that being their only job.

Instead, he watched in horror as Diesel’s band of thugs tore men and women from their burning home. Zane couldn’t believe the enjoyment on their faces as they terrorized this seemingly insignificant pack of werewolves.

“Hey, man. It’s fine. Diesel promised me he wasn’t going to kill anybody.” He reached out to grab Zane’s shoulder, but Zane jumped away from Jax.

Zane’s eyes dug into Jax, and Jax knew that Zane was wondering what kind of person his close friend truly was. “I only took on this job to help feed my brother and sister, but this… This is sick, Jax. You have to see how vile this work your uncle is doing really is.”

“It’s how those of us at the bottom have to survive. Diesel isn’t willing to roll over and suffer being at the bottom of the food chain. He’s rising above it.” Jax knew that Zane had become more desperate than most since his mother went missing nearly a year ago. He even wondered if Zane secretly blamed his uncle for her disappearance, but Diesel would never cross that line and hurt the families of those I cared about… Would he?

“Do you call this ‘rising above it?’ Stealing from others who are poor, making it impossible for them to live. That’s not thriving. If you ask me… It’s just as parasitic as the rich men in Theskin.” Zane wasn’t usually one to be outspoken.

That was how Jax knew what Zane was seeing had raddled him.

Suddenly, an ear-piercing scream ripped through their conversation, and Zane turned around to see one of Diesel’s thugs beating a woman to the ground.

“That’s it!” Despite Jax trying to stop him, Zane jumped down from the caravan and pushed the thug off the woman. “That’s enough. You’ve taken everything. Just leave them be.”

The thug Zane opposed was three times his size in pure muscle. The thug was already half-transformed, with his claw extended and ready for a killing blow. “Who do you think you are? Do you think you’re the hero here?”

The thug chuckled in the back of his throat, sounding like stones rolling around in a graveling mechanism. “You’re trash—just like the rest of us.”

“I may be, but I’m nothing like you.” Zane bore his teeth, egging him on.

Jax jumped down and intervened before this thug ripped off Zane’s head. He pressed his hand into Zane’s chest and pushed him back. “We got what we came here for. Let’s just go. Solare’s going to come up soon anyway. Diesel wanted us back before first light.”

Zane’s attention completely fell away as he turned to Jax with wide eyes. He repeated in a low voice, “First light?”

That was when it clicked for Jax, too.

They were supposed to be at Paladi School for Potionists at Solare Rise to prepare for the school’s Annual Mixology Competition.

“Shit.” The boys uttered to each other in horror.

5

LEA

Where are those two?

I couldn’t believe that, of all days, they decided to sleep in.

They would be disqualified from the competition if they didn’t hurry up.

I bit down nervously on my fingernail as I looked down the hall at the menagerie of students walking in, none of whom were Zane or Jax.

“All the contestants, please report to the auditorium at once. We will begin momentarily. If you haven’t turned in your ingredients list, I urge you to do so immediately. Tardiness will not be tolerated and will result in immediate disqualification! Thank you,” said Headmaster Katrina’s voice over the intercom, blaring its way through the tall corridors.

The hallways quickly emptied.

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