Jessamine
An icy wave of fear crashes over me, and I scramble back, despair freezing me at the edge of the field. It's too big, too fast, and murderous. What do I have to fight against that? Them? My tiny daggers? Oh, Goddess. I had gambled on the assumption that they would be too preoccupied watching their backs to attack me.
This held true for only one minute before Moira tore out a substantial chunk of Cassandra’s neck, rendering her unconscious in mere seconds. The crowd went mad and wild, clamoring for more with repulsive bloodlust.
I couldn’t even tell if Cassandra was dead or alive. She didn’t twitch, not once, as the men took her from the field. Ava didn’t miss a heartbeat after that; she fled from the scene with such frightening speed, I’d felt tempted to follow her.
Between Moira, Helen, Katherine, and Keisha— who didn’t hesitate to sink her claws into Vivian— taking down the rest was child’s play. Moira didn’t even bother with them; they were small fry. Me? I’m the one she wants gone. Dead. She’s been circling me, slashing my skin when I let her get too close or take my eyes off her to look behind me. Blood seeps from the slashes and bites she’s given me, but they could’ve been worse if I hadn’t chugged Kier’s blood down my throat.
Had I not, the cut on my neck that has healed over faster than normal just might have killed me. But all it’s done is make me harder to kill, but not impossible to, and with four wolves circling me, while reassessing themselves for the next one to go down, I feel nearly powerless. I feel all shades of stupid, standing in an open field between four wolves nearly tall enough to stunt me.
I tuned out the rest of the world, but I can hear them talk, and it’s getting to me. They call me stupid for even entering the Selection. They call Kier cruel for letting me go through this, but they don’t mind the entertainment. They are making bets on how long I’ll last before Moira has my neck between her teeth again.
My eyes narrow at the black wolf in front of me, its glacial blue eyes tracking every breath I take. Moira cocks her head at me, and I jerk when she bares her sharp canines at me, feinting an attack, only to have me shield up and get jumped from behind instead.
Paws slam into my back, toppling me over, and my dagger clatters to the ground as I crash violently. The impact sends my jaw clattering, and a cold slice down my back forces me into panic mode. I twist, grasping hide and fur, and I lend all the strength I have left to hurl it off me. I cry out as I feel another set of teeth latch onto my foot.
I kick out, barely hitting it, and I earn a growl of annoyance, and there’s another set of claws ripping into my thigh now. Goddess, I’m going to die, like right now. A scream rips from my lungs when another bites into my shoulder. I lash out blindly, ramming my fist into whichever I can, but I can barely coordinate my movement or think. Not when they are trying to maul me to death.
My fingers graze a familiar hilt of my dagger and I grab it, shoving it into the one biting on my shoulder—Katherine. Her wolf cries out in pain, brown eyes shuttering as she canines retract from my skin immediately. Someone screams in the crowd and another bellows with rage, the sound carrying well over the cries for more blood.
Thick, reddish blood swells around the blade, dripping down my hands until it coats my skin. I let go of the dagger abruptly, appalled by the stain on my hands. Horror widens my eyes when I look at where I’ve stabbed Katherine. My dagger is lodged in her chest, too close to her heart, and it doesn’t matter how hard she tries to breathe, or claw it out, nothing works. The poison. Oh no.
A guttural wail erupts on the world to my left, and only then do I notice that the Helen’s claws are no longer slicing into my thigh. I try standing to my feet, but there’s only pain. Helen is beside Katherine, wailing bitterly, nudging her with her snout, licking the back of her ear. Katherine twitches a little, her breaths labored.
I force myself into a low crouch, kneeling beside Katherine. Helen growls at me, but I ignore her. I’m no murderer, not even when they all tried to kill me. I’m no murderer. Should Kat die right now, my image will forever be ruined, and getting Kier to believe that I am not my mother will not be happening.
My fingers reach around my neck and I pull off the tiny bottle of antidote I’d worn around my neck, just in case I got clumsiness enough to get stabbed by my own dagger. Katherine’s brown eyes droop heavily, and the entire yard watches in silence as I lean over her, dangling it. “Open up or you’ll die, which isn’t a terrible option either.”
She stares at me, wide nostrils flaring, and a cry leaves her lips, a sound closer to a bay. Her sharp teeth part and I don’t trust her enough not to bite my hand off. I throw the bottle down the brown wolf’s mouth and Helen barks at me, teeth snapping.
I glare right back at her as I pull out the rest of Kier’s blood, emptying that down her throat as well. Then I reach for the dagger, and surprisingly, she lets me touch her, I take it out and she roars so loud, I think I’ve gone deaf temporarily. Her wound closes up slowly, and her eyes close, breaths evening out as she falls unconscious, shifting back into her human form.
Footsteps rush on either side of me—a man and woman, both as naked as a minute old baby—and they fall on either sides of Katherine, clutching her softly. I recognize the man as Alpha Lord Zuri, Katherine’s father, and when he turns to me, I brace myself for hate. Maybe even an attack. But he looks at me, relief crinkling the line of his eyes and he lowers his head in deference. “Thank you.”
Too stunned to believe that actually happened, I stare, unable to utter one word, and I watch as they take her off the field. Helen, the blonde wolf, narrows her eyes at me, and swishes her tail in my face as she prowls off the field, following Katherine closely behind; withdrawing from the field as she taps her foot three times on the drawn line.
She just…withdrew? Why in the world would she do that?
My reprieve is over in an instant when the crowd suddenly comes alive again, followed by the sound of a snap. I swivel in time to see Moira toss off Keisha’s unmoving body. Lips curling from her muzzle, she let a soft growl slip from her, her blue eyes snapping to me. If wolves could grin evilly, I would say that was the expression she was wearing.
I crawl back on my hands, my pulse surging and I feel for the dagger around me. Moira glances down at her foot where the blade lays and she kicks it in the opposite direction. Her movements are graceful, her eyes aglow with feral delight. They dare me to run. To escape. She growls again; a promise of pain.
My leg burns with icy pain as I lift them under me, staggering to my full height. Wiping the sweat off my face with the back of my hand, I stare at Moira. It’s hard to believe that I’m alive for long enough to stand against Moira. The Goddess must really be on my side, though, I can’t tell which one.
Something catches my attention and I take my eyes off Moira, eyes drifting to Kier. He stands by the north edge of the field, watching with a bored expression. The crest glints in his hands, the reward for this fight. My fists clench. I can own that. I can actually win—
A force slams into me, a snarl rippling through the air. Teeth snap inches away from my face and I swing my aching arm, my arm shuddering as it connects with the wolf’s jaw. Bone crunched—mine or hers, I can’t tell. There’s too much adrenaline surging through me. I can’t feel anything beside fear and panic.
She breathes into my face, the stench of blood and death shoving down my throat. I gag. She lunges, reaching for my neck, no doubt to rip it out, and I know it’s over if I let her. I force my neck up, slamming my forehead into her muzzle. Stars explodes in my head, warmth trickling down my face and a yelp of pain bursts from her, giving me a surge of hope.
The wolves around us scream their approval as Moira rolls off me, backing up a step on all fours. She doesn’t give me a moment to catch a breath. She attacks and I instinctively raise my hand to shield my face and neck. Her jaw closes around my hand and shook it, her strength terrifying. Pain flames, but something far greater spikes. White-hot anger.
I growl and sink my teeth into her neck, tightening my jaw so hard, blood splurges. She shrieks, tossing me aside and I cry out as I feel and hear the bones crack. I gasp for air, swallowing more of her blood and my stomach heaves at the acrid taste of it. Moira springs forward with a savage sound. I can’t run or block fast enough. Claws slash my chest and fire erupts underneath.
I hear a gut-wrenching scream somewhere beside me—it’s me. Tears spring to my eyes and I squint to see her figure looming over me. She raises a paw and I can’t move. The adrenaline washes off, and not even fear can lend me strength to fight back. I’m so tired, and there’s so much pain.
Someone yells out my name, yelling to tap out—Lloyd, maybe. I would, but I can’t feel my hands. Angling for my neck, she brings down her paw. I shut my eyes, bracing for…
“That’s enough, Moira,” a single voice cuts over the clearing, the authority behind it vast and timeless. My body stiffens under the weight of the command and I feel Moira jerk beside me. My eyes snap open in time to see her drop her paw, disappointment and anger darkening her eyes.
But it’s the soft crunch of boots against sand that snags my attention. Alpha Kier emerges, every movement as smooth as silk. My lips part and I feel a cry of relief rising in my throat. Only to have my breath stolen when he stares at Moira and murmurs, “You win.”
Cheers erupt and…
The world stops. My world halts. I skid through the stillness staring as Kier halts at the center, crest in hand as he walks to where Moira stands, now on her two feet again, naked, save for the cloak she clutches around her. My throat aches and heart pounds harder in my chest as he lifts the crest over her head.
I can't...I can't watch. It should be mine. That should've been mine. I've worked too hard to fail. To lose.
Yet, I have. I have...lost. I mean, I knew I would lose, but…failure tastes and feels so bitter. Too bitter.
I close my eyes, and burst out laughing.