"Good luck with the baby!" Lena shouted over a sudden rumble of thunder, waving a hand as the black limousine pulled a frantic three-point turn on the narrow mountain road and sped back down the incline.
Her eyes darted back to the narrow path up the mountain she was supposed to follow. It took them seven hours to drive all the way from North Ridge to the Central City where Sanatio Academy was.
What was worse those hours was the funny smell in the car. Even after it had driven off, the smell was still around. She sniffed herself. It was almost like it was following her now.
Miguel had been sweating bullets when the call buzzed on his dashboard. His voice had trembled so hard as he explained his wife had just gone into sudden labor that Lena had practically leaped out of the back seat, insisting she could walk the rest of the way.
He had sworn the main gates were "just a short, easy stroll up the path."
It wasn’t an easy stroll.
To any student who had actually found their wolf, a mountain trek would have been an effortless warm-up. But for Lena, who was entirely wolfless, the steep hike was a lung-burning torture.
She hated when they went on school trips that involved hiking. So much that she’d rather fight her way into suspension than go on a hiking trip.
The same activity she had avoided desperately in school was the one she was forced to do right now.
That baby better be worth it.
Lena cussed when the wheels of her suitcase got stuck on the rocky side of the Mountain.
Her knuckles turned white as she hauled the dead weight upward, cursing Kourtney under her breath. What the hell had that girl stuffed in here? It felt like she was dragging a bag full of bricks.
By the time the massive, dark iron gates of Sanatio Academy finally loomed out of the thick midnight fog, Lena was completely spent. Her muscles screamed in protest, and her breath rattled in her chest.
If she stood on her tippy-toes, she could just barely glimpse a distant light flickering from a grand building deep within the massive campus.
Breathing heavily, Lena leaned her weight against the cold iron bars of the gate to steady her trembling knees. Right on cue, a sudden hammer of thunder rattled the sky.
It didn’t take two seconds for the showers of heaven to open up. Pouring directly down on one exact spot—right where she was standing.
Lena looked up at the dark cloud, water instantly plastering her hair to her face. She let out a heavy sigh. One hell of an arrival.
She hoped to get some shelter soon. Staring at the massive iron bars, Lena wondered if she was supposed to knock or just wait out the storm. There was no buzzer or intercom in sight.
Before she could make a decision, a loud click sounded from the base of the massive watchtower just beside the entrance.
High up in the architecture, the bright beam of light swept down from the tower and locked directly onto her drenched frame.
"Hey, watch it," Lena shut her eyes tight, shielding her good eye with her forearm from the sudden light.
Footsteps crunched against the wet gravel on the other side of the fence.
However, the gates didn’t open. Lena decided to introduce herself.
"I’m a new student!" She shouted over the downpour, squinting into the brightness. "I just arrived!"
The light clicked off. To Lena’s surprise, the person behind the lighthouse turned and walked back inside.
What? Did he not believe her? She flexed her balled fists against her thighs, wondering if she should have held up her silver-branded palms to prove her right to be there.
But a second later, the iron gears clinked open.
An older, grey-haired gatekeeper stepped out into the storm, holding a black umbrella-for-two over his head. He hurried toward her, his brow furrowed in deep concern.
"I am so sorry. I didn’t see the transport. Where is your Academy ride?"
"His wife went into labor," Lena explained, wiping rain and sweat from her forehead. "He had to rush to the hospital."
The gatekeeper stopped dead in his tracks, staring at her for a second before a dry sigh escaped his lips. "Mr. Miguel did that again?"
Lena blinked, water dripping from her eyelashes. "What?"
"That man is..." the gatekeeper shook his head as he ushered her through the gates. "Well, he doesn’t have a pregnant wife. He just absolutely hates being around our kind at night. Especially since the Ascendants are fully awake right now. You don’t want to know what happens when these boys catch the scent of a human on the wind."
"Hypothetically speaking, let’s say there was a human here. What would they... What would happen?"
The gatekeeper stopped dead in his tracks.
The grandfatherly warmth instantly vanished from his face, replaced by a sudden, rigid pale look. He just stared straight ahead into the dark, foggy courtyard, his knuckles turning white around the handle of his umbrella.
The silence stretched between them, louder than the thunder rolling overhead. His refusal to speak told her everything she needed to know. It was too gruesome to put into words!
Lena swallowed hard, a cold chill running down her spine. Thank God she had packed a whole pack of Beta and Omega scent spray in her suitcase. Phew.
But that meant she couldn’t go a day without her Beta and Omega spray. What if something prevents her from using it or it wears off? Would that mean she’d smell like a human?
"Let me take that heavy bag for you, Miss," the gatekeeper offered kindly, reaching down toward her suitcase and ignoring her question.
"Oh, thank you, I can—"
Lena tried to lift the handle, but the worn-out, rusted zipper completely gave way under the strain. The flap flew wide open.
A pile of damp, stained underwear tumbled out onto the wet gravel, instantly soaking in the puddles. But it wasn’t just dirty. The fabrics were completely coated in a thick, slimy layer of grey slime and rotting pink chunks.
It was fish guts.
With Lena’s jaw hanging open, the unpleasant smell entered her mouth, causing a bile to form in her throat. She immediately covered her nose.
Where were her sweatshirts? Her underwear?
Her unlimited supply of Beta and Omega spray?
Her breath was completely hitching in her throat as her eyes traced the unfamiliar color of the suitcase. This wasn’t hers.
Kourtney hadn’t packed this. The bag handed by the Luna’s personal announcer was not hers.
Written inside the suitcase by a spray paint were two words:
DIRTY WHORE!!!
At that moment, the insult didn’t even land. The humiliation of the ruined clothes became irrelevant.
The only thing Lena could think about was her missing Beta and Omega spray.