Page 64 of Dead Wolf Walking (Bad Moon Academy 1)
I stay in the ballroom for a few more minutes, sorting through everything Raven said. Every reaction she had. Her eyes were wild when she came out of the locker rooms, but after her run, whatever disturbed her faded away.
Cool air whispers around my ankles. “I’m going,” I say though no one will answer.
Brayden better be right.
Chapter 13
Raven
“Hey, there.” Morg slides into the seat across from me. Her curly hair is an unruly mess, but her tight black pants and cute pink top are on point.
“Hey,” I say, eyeing the clock on the wall. I have twenty minutes until my next class.
Did I time my lunch run so I didn’t have to spend a ton of time with my new friend?
Perhaps.
Draco’s question bothered me.
“How’d combat go?” she asks.
I watch her cut a piece of steak and shove it into her mouth before I respond.
“Weird.” It’s the only word which seems appropriate.
“Ah, yeah,” she says around a mouthful. “The class is rough, huh?”
I nod. “You can say that.”
Truth be told, it wasn’t so bad. Minus the strange moment on the mat where I hit Draco and he fucking liked it, the lesson had been pretty easy.
Humiliating, but easy.
“So, did you have any brothers or sisters?” I take a sip of water, carefully watching her reaction.
She slices another piece of meat. “Youngest of eight.” She grins. “Mom probably hasn’t realized I’m gone if I’m being honest.”
While she tries to make light of it, there’s an undercurrent of pain there. Choosing not to tug on that volatile thread, I fiddle with my napkin.
“I’m the only child.”
She finishes chewing and ruffles her hair. “So your parents miss you then, yeah?”
“They’re dead.”
The color drains from her face. “Shit, Raven, I didn’t know.”
I shrug. “It’s okay. So where are you from? Before this place, I mean?”
“We moved a lot, but we were living near Seattle when I was bitten.” She pushes her food around. “Is it sad that I don’t miss them?”
“I’m sure you miss something about your family.”
She shakes her head. “No. I don’t. My brothers were assholes, and my sisters treated me like a leper. My mother was too busy trying to keep the oldest brother out of jail to spend much time worrying about me. I mostly kept my head down and watched T.V.”
Feeling bad for prying, but happy she’s opened up to me and proved Draco wrong, I shove my plate aside and lean forward. “DexterorHannibal?”
“Dexter, obviously.”
