Page 186 of Caelum

The girls flounced off in mass mortification, but Genny didn’t. Instead, her hands balled into fists as she spat, “You’re obviously better at keeping them entertained than we ever were.”

I knew her words were made to embarrass me. Hadn’t Samuel said something similar before the mission to Aboh? I’d heard Nestor and Eren growling about his ‘slut-shaming’ me, and I knew Genevieve was pulling the same move. Rich, considering she’d given at least one of the guys at my side something I certainly never had.

Around me, the guys growled, and Stefan bit off, “Who the fuck do you think you’re talking to, Genevieve?”

But even though I appreciated his defense, I didn’t need it.

It was during moments like these when I actually felt like Ihadbeen torn in two pieces. There was the bumbling girl who was only just starting to understand slang, who could trip over her feet on the treadmill, and who was still trying to figure out things that people at Caelum had known since Iwas a kid. Then there was this creature. The one who appeared when she was backed into a corner. Who could and would fight anyone who got in her face.

The boys said that most people believed creatures had something called schizophrenia. That they had split personalities.

I truly wondered if Idid.

Getting to my feet, I let my fingers curl into my fists as I stepped closer to Genny. “You have a problem with me?” I asked, and my voice throbbed with a power that confused me.

Today, the Succubus was in control, and yet, that voice? It was the Lorelei.

Genny’s eyes flared wide at the sound, one most would recognize from all the training here, and she bit off, “Yeah, I do. You think you can just come here and steal my boyfriend?”

“Boyfriend? What the fuck are you talking about?” Stefan began, and I felt him surge upright as anger overtook him.

“He’s yours, is he?” I inquired quietly.

“Yeah. He is,” she grumbled, her eyes darting over to an evidently pissed-off Stefan who didn’t appreciate the claim Genevieve was staking on him.

“You marked him?”

“Well, no. Of course not.” She huffed. “Christ, how can you stand being around her for more than ten minutes? She doesn’t understand anything, Stefan. Come on, baby. Come have fun with me?—”

With her attention split, I let the creature inside me, the one that was blurring lines, that had glowing lights in my soul dancing as I seemed to pull on traits from all of them, soar. My hand shot out, and I grabbed ahold of her ponytail and tugged.

Hard.

Her head snapped back, and she let out a yelp. People looked around and saw what was happening. Genny didn’t let my surprise move overwhelm her for long. Her hands flared out, trying to pummel me with her fists, and the music crashed to a halt as the chant of, “Fight, fight, fight!” surged around us.

I’d started this, and I had no problem ending it.

With my hand still on her hair, I tugged harder, ignoring the fists that were flying at my face, and even disregarded the pain as one connected with my jaw. Instead, I used my hold on her hair to draw her face down. Straight into the knee I jacked up.

The second her face connected with it? She was out for the night.

Silence fell at the abrupt end of the fight, and the six girls who’d flounced off but had returned when they’d heard the chants, stared at me like they weren’t sure whether to attack or retreat.

I grinned at them, aware that blood coated my teeth from the punch Genny had managed to land, and murmured, “Any of you feel as possessive as this one?”

Eyes flared wide, heads shook, and two moved forward, hands raised in surrender, as they grabbed their friend and hauled her away.

Someone turned the music back on, and the easy vibe from mere moments before disappeared, but chatter began to swirl. The party continued, and I turned on my heel and returned to my seat beside Nestor, well aware that I’d just cemented my fate—first Samuel, then Lewis, and now Genny? Goodness, everyone was going to be afraid to come near me.

Trouble was, I didn’t see anything wrong in that.

Because I was behind, they’d thought me weak. Vulnerable. I’d shown them several times that I wasn’t to be messed with.

“Did anyone else find that hot as fuck?”

The words startled me, and I blinked before glancing at Reed who was beaming at me like I’d done something to be proud of, not started a fistfight with a bunch of cats.

Nestor’s hand settled on my knee. “Are you okay?”

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