Page 93 of Midnight Hunt
Feeling the male storm up behind me, I raised my water glass and took a casual sip. In the next second, he knocked the glass from my hand and grabbed a chunk of my hair, forcing my head back.
“Want to repeat that?” he growled in my ear, clutching my hair so tightly that tears of pain filled my eyes.
Blinking them away, I crooned, “Why? Are you hard of hearing or just not used to being called a dickface?”
He let go of my hair, only to backhand me across the face. My head flew to the side, and I bit my tongue. But as blood filled my mouth, I ignored the pain and turned to spit it out.
Onto his boot.
He released an enraged growl and raised his hand again, but before he could hit me a second time, a commanding voice said, “Stand down, Jensen.”
Dickface—aka, Jensen—turned and snapped to attention. “But, Alpha Bane, she was talking back. You said—”
“I know what I said,” Atticus interrupted, and I turned my throbbing head to watch him approach. His eyes were on me, and they had that pleased look again. Stopping a few feet away, he said to Jensen without taking his eyes off me, “Escort the females back to their dorm room. They need rest before The Claiming tonight.”
As one, the females all rose from their seats and shuffled toward Jensen. I followed suit, only for Atticus to hold up a hand and say, “Not you. Ivan will take you back to your holding cell and administer another injection. You haven’t yet learned to submit and, therefore, aren’t ready for The Claiming.”
As he gestured for Ivan to come get me and turned to leave, desperation made me blurt, “Wait!” When he paused but didn’t turn around, I quickly added, “I’ll behave. I’llsubmit.”
The words tasted bitter in my mouth, but I refused to take them back. The girls needed me, and being strapped down with fresh silver in my veins would make me useless to them. If I had to submit in order to help them, then I would gladly do it.
Atticus slowly turned to face me again, but I could tell right away that he didn’t believe me. I broke eye contact and lowered my head,showinghim my submission. But that wasn’t enough for him, unsurprisingly. He might be a creep, but he wasn’t dumb.
Stepping toward me until he was only a foot away, he quietly ordered, “Get on your knees.”
I immediately obeyed, dropping to my knees at his feet and keeping my face downcast.
He clucked his tongue, but it wasn’t a disapproving sound. He waspleasedto see me this way. As he bent down, I stayed perfectly still, even when he placed his mouth near my ear and purred, “This is exactly where I want you to be after I claim you tonight, spitfire. On your knees before me, sucking my dick.”
As he straightened, I almost hurled up my meager dinner all over his shoes. So many angry retorts came to mind, but I savagely bit my tongue to keep them inside. He left then but not before telling Jensen to take me to the dorm room as well. As I rose to my feet, I managed to catch Ivan watching his alpha leave. Normally expressionless, there was no mistaking thefuryin his eyes.
Despite the humiliation I’d just subjected myself to, I perked up. Ivan clearly hadn’t expected Atticus to challenge his verbal claim on me. I could use that against them. I could use that against themall.
There was a reason why dominant unmated males often got kicked out of the pack. They were volatile when challenged, especially when it came to females. But this pack was entirely made up of possessive, testosterone-driven males.
Each and every one of them was a powder keg about to explode.
A wicked smile slowly curled my lips.
I could use that. I coulddefinitelyuse that.
32
VIOLET
I gently touched my collar for the umpteenth time, even though I knew I wouldn’t find an off switch.
The metal was smooth on the outside and tight enough around my neck that I couldn’t wiggle my fingers under it. If I wanted it off, I’d either have to break it—and risk triggering the needles hidden inside—or find the device that controlled it. I was currently thinking about the latter option, certain that one of the males had a remote control that could deactivate the collars.
Or activate them.
I needed to find out who had it if we had any hope at all of escaping during The Claiming. Once the collars were off, we could shift again, giving us the upper hand. The males outnumbered us by far and had weapons, but if the collars were off, we had a fighting chance.
I just had to convince the other females that submitting wasn’t the only option. Problem was, they probably didn’t realize my little stunt in the cafeteria had been an act. I’d have to do damage control first and quickly. We needed to all be in this together for an escape to work. If even one female panicked, it could spell doom for us all.
We were currently in the communal bathroom across from the female dorm room, preparing for bed. Jensen stood at the entrance, but with the sound of running water and flushing toilets, I decided to make my move.
“Remote,” I whispered to the blonde girl using the sink beside me. I’d chosen her after watching how she carried herself in the cafeteria earlier. I didn’t know if she was an alpha female, but she certainly wasn’t an omega. She still had fight in her despite the abuse she’d endured. When she glanced at me, I lowered my toothbrush to tap on my collar. “Where?”
