Page 153 of Her Rabid Beasts

“Yeah, I just need a second.” I get up from our table and walk to the window, trying to calm myself down. I take Henry in my hands and hold his cheek to mine.

Blood on human hands.

A blistering dry heat.

Screaming, broken and agonising, tearing through a raw throat.

Frank Ulman did that. However Lyle saw it, this human male had broken lion cubs down, and in Lyle’s case, it turned his animus into something that would protect not only himself, but those around him. My mate suffered so greatly for… what? Entertainment. Curiosity. Power?

The window looks out to the back of the academy, where a group of wolves kick a football around on a green field. A coupleof animas are making out on a picnic blanket at the edge of the field. This is Lyle’s school, his pride and joy. He came from such a disaster, only to dedicate his life to helping young, lost beasts. It’s only this that calms me down enough to return to the table.

“What does the rest of the report say?” I ask quietly.

My friends eye me warily. Minnie is chewing her lip.

Stacey shows me a highlighted paragraph. “The humans all showed signs of being ravaged. They were ripped apart so badly they couldn’t even account for who was present. They only give educated guesses. But… the animals were all left intact. And…” She blows out a breath. “One male lion was missing.”

I glance at Minnie.“It was Lyle,”I tell her mind to mind.“That’s where he grew up.”

My best friend’s face turns ashen.

“There are always repercussions,” Connor says quietly, “when dealing with dangerous males. Human or animalia.”

Chapter 62

Scythe

Ido not appreciate being summoned by Titus Clawson, but being the son of a fellow crime boss from a neighbouring territory, the tiger has every right to request an audience of me.

Me and apparently every other member of this academy.

After dinner, he commandeers Raquel in the animus dorm and pays the wolf anim in cash to broadcast a school-wide message. Loyal as Raquel is, they tell Savage first, giving me a five-minute allowance to assuage my irritation.

The message broadcasted to the rest of the school bears the cadence of black intention. I suspect what this is. And it’s been a long time coming.

It’s been all of four days since the previous trial, and this is Titus trying to regain his power. If he’s going to be much more of a problem, he’s going to be given a ticket out of here, whether his father wants that or not. Killing him would start a war. That’s the only reason I’ve not pursued that beckoning path already.

“This is not going to be good,”I say to Lyle, mind-to-mind. Since Aurelia’s nesting in his apartment, the lion has been more forthcoming with these telepathic communications with me.

“Is he?—”

“It’s not for Aurelia,”I say quickly.

“Do you need me there?”

“No.”I pause for a beat.“But be nearby. And inform Lady Celeste.”

The headmistress never gets involved in the day-to-day running of the school, no matter how severe it is. That’s Lyle’s job, and she’s Lady of this land only.

The rec room is more crowded than any in previous trial as I enter to stand on the stage next to Xander and Savage, because even the guards, counsellors and teachers have been invited. The three chandeliers above us cast golden light against the gathering dusk and they make long, wavering shadows along the sides of the room.

Theresa, Aurelia’s cassowary counsellor, waits along the walls behind the birds of prey, frowning as Connor leads Aurelia, Minnie, Raquel, Sabrina and Stacey through. The nimpins cower into their hosts’ necks, tiny wings tight around their round bodies.

They can feel what’s coming. Can feel its dark, unholy presence in the energy of the room. The breath the world takes before something truly devastating happens. Something that has every right to destroy a person.

Something that even I, in my darkest, most nightmarish states, would never even consider. It’s a depth Iwould neverconsider. I’d come close to it with Aurelia when we first met, but I chose her death as the wiser path. The thought makes a shiver pass through me now. Makes my shark snap his jaws.

Titus stands in the centre of the room. Dramatic, proud, egotistical. His aura radiates black, grey, and dark green. It’s oily and sharp as an executioner’s axe.

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