Claimed By The King(s) Of Kings

Aina

Aina walked down the grand, echoing corridors of Moonside Academy, her head held low, her hands tucked tight into her blazer pockets.

She was reminiscing about the day before, about the frantic, brilliant chaos she and Ally had pulled off in the woods. They had spent hours gathering armfuls of wild, pungent jasmine flowers from the forest floor. Aina had known the wild flowers weren’t an exact match for her own sweet, natural white-jasmine scent, but she hadn’t mentioned that to Ally. She had simply let Ally believe it was identical to the mystery Omega’s scent.

They had built a small fire, burning the wood and throwing the wild blossoms into the flames to let the thick, fragrant smoke carry into the air. And then, when Ally was gone and everything was in place, Aina came back and released a heavy burst of her real natural pheromones directly into the clearing before leaving the scene once more. It was a perfect seamless blend of wild flower and her Omega scent.

It had worked better than she could have ever dreamed.

As Aina walked through the halls now, she noticed an undeniable difference. The corridors were remarkably empty. More than half the students were missing, dispatched into the woods and surrounding valleys by the manic Royal Princes. Aina had even spotted Molly earlier, running off with her brothers to help search the forest, Molly had gleefully told Aina that helping her brothers would get them off her back for a while, and Aina had happily let her go.

I wonder how these students’ parents back home would feel if they knew the Princes were using their precious children as nothing more than foot soldiers? Aina thought bitterly to herself.

She reached her metal locker, her heart doing a nervous little flip. She closed her eyes tight, bracing herself, and pulled the latch open.

Click.

She opened her eyes slowly. No red paint. No crude insults. Just her textbooks sitting neatly on the shelf.

Aina let out a massive breath of relief, resting her forehead against the cool metal for a fraction of a second. She grabbed her notebook and slammed the locker door shut.

Click.

At the exact same instant her locker clicked, the sharp, distinctive click-clack of designer high heels echoed from the hallway right behind her. Aina froze before turning around slowly. Walking down the hall side-by-side were Ally and Sophia.

Sophia had a bright, dazzling smile plastered across her face, but her bright blue eyes were blazing with a terrifying, unhinged fury. Beside her, Ally looked like an absolute ghost. Her skin was drained of all color, her lips trembling, her brown eyes hollowed with pure terror as she walked beside her tormentor.

The sight sent a violent, icy shiver straight down Aina’s spine. Okay... Aina told herself, squeezing her hands into fists. I can do this.

Sophia paused in front of Aina, snapping her manicured fingers at her companions behind her. Flanking Sophia was her terrifying inner circle: a pale girl with wild, dark curly hair and blood-red eyes named Iris and a tall, muscular wolf-shifter girl named Greta.

”Grab them,” Sophia purred sweetly.

Before Aina could react, Greta and Iris lunged forward, grabbing Aina and Ally by their arms and dragging them down a secluded side corridor into the Exclusive Girls’ Private Lounge.

The lounge was luxurious, filled with plush velvet couches and soft lighting. A few high-born noble girls were sitting near the back, sipping tea, but the absolute second their eyes landed on Sophia, their faces turned white. Without a word, every single girl scrambled to their feet, gathered their bags, and booked it out the side exit. They were that utterly terrified of her.

I am screwed, Aina thought, her stomach dropping into a bottomless pit. I am definitely, 100% screwed.Ally caught her eye from across the room, giving her a desperate, terrified look that confirmed they were thinking the exact same thing.

Iris and Greta violently shoved Aina and Ally down onto two low, incredibly uncomfortable wooden stools in the center of the room. Sophia gracefully glided over to a plush white sofa, seating herself with delicate elegance. She reached for a porcelain teacup resting on a silver tray, lifting it to her glossy lips and taking a small, dainty sip.

”My, my...” Sophia giggled, her blue eyes glinting with cold malice over the rim of her cup. ”This is such an odd way for me to meet you agin, Travis. I mean... the last time we actually met, it ended with someone who I consider a dear friend trying to blind me with crushed nutshells.” She set her cup down with a delicate clink. ”So... this is a much better way for us to meet, don’t you think? Do you want tea?”

Aina cleared her throat, trying desperately to force a brave tone into her shaking voice. ”No. I don’t want tea.” Ally squared her shoulders. ”No. She doesn’t want tea.”

Sophia simply lifted her delicate shoulders in a graceful shrug. ”Suit yourself.”

She clicked her tongue softly, leaning her head back against the white cushion. ”You know, though... Travis Whitelock... that Whitelock name... I have heard it somewhere before. I just can’t quite pick out where...” As Sophia pondered, her face thoughtful, she casually flicked her wrist, snapping her fingers toward Greta while pointing a manicured nail directly at Ally.

Greta didn’t hesitate for a single second. She knew the routine by heart.

Greta stepped up behind Ally, reached down, and violently yanked Ally’s head back by her hair. With her other hand, Greta pulled a pouch from her pocket and threw a heavy fistful of crushed, jagged nutshells straight into Ally’s face and open eyes!

”AH!” Ally choked out, biting her bottom lip so hard it bled as she crouched double, agonizing pain searing through her eyes from the sharp shards. Sophia didn’t even glance over. She didn’t seem a single bit fazed by the horrific cruelty unfolding two feet away from her. She simply kept staring up at the ceiling, tapping her chin thoughtfully.

Aina’s blood boiled. Rage as always shattered her fear. This girl is absolutely crazy!