Chapter 19

Adrian

"How dare you set foot on this ground!" It sounded like an accusation and less like a question.

This Dr. Copeland , who Bastien had said was the Alpha dog of the wolves, had kept his cool until just now. But at that moment, it was over. He paced back and forth while nervously playing with the cufflinks of his vest, decorated with noble patterns.

Wolves , as always, did not have their emotions under control.

I had never met an Alpha before, but Nickolas confirmed that it was a waste of time. I did not doubt his strength, or the danger that his kind posed to ours. But his nervousness took away all seriousness from him.A dog who thought he had something to say.

I sat with my blood brothers on one of the two dark green leather couches in a larger salon adjoining the university director's office. A huge glazed arched window provided a view outside to the campus lawn and parking lot.

Bastien's car was still there. I knew those morons wouldn't dare touch our belongings. If they had parked their car on our property, we would have reduced it to rubble.

"We have a contract," the Alpha warned more calmly now.

"And this one still stands," Bastien retorted.

If my mentor was tense, he didn't let it show.

Were they talking about the contract that so drastically limited our lives?

"That contract includes keeping your boys away from my pack!"

I suppressed a dry laugh.

Boys . What was his son if I was a boy? A toddler ?

"But it does not include privatizing educational institutions, Dr. Copeland."

Bastien maintained his composure the whole time. As professional as our clan was, we tried to handle the matters we got into in a businesslike manner. Bastien was not only the best example from the family in that case, but also the one who knew how to act in difficult situations. He had his job to thank for that.

He looked a good fifteen years younger than Dr. Copeland, although he wasn't. That was because of the blood that ran through our veins. Pure Ruisangor blood. Legacy blood.

The wolf didn't respond to Bastien's argument, which led me to conclude that we had hit a sore spot.

"The three of them wanted to come here. Any one of us would have gladly sent them somewhere else."

That was an extremely bald-faced lie, Bastien.

Miles next to me cleared his throat audibly, whereupon he earned a warning look from his trainer – our family bodyguard – Laurent.

Laurent was standing by the window in his three-piece suit and had been looking out, watchfully surveying the surroundings until just now.

Bastien, on the other hand, skillfully ignored the three of us on the couch. He had been the one who had persuaded us to come here rather than to a prestigious university in the States, where Nicolaj, the clan head, would have liked to see us. When Nicolaj had learned what Bastien was planning with us, Bastien had almost lost his head. But his benefit to the clan was enormous, which is why it hadn't come to that. Bastien had known, and he had taken advantage of it for whatever ridiculous reason.

I didn't care where I studied as long as I could take the economics course and finally satisfy Nicolaj. I had already studied twice, but I had centuries ahead of me. Why not collect graduation hats?

It wasn't like I had ever wanted to, but in the DeLoughrey clan, it wasn't about wanting . It was about the consequences of the actions of all brothers and sisters.

Laurent, who had been standing at the window all this time getting an overview of the campus, now turned to face us completely. His eyes flashed reddish, giving me to understand that he had used his powers.

"Someone is coming," he remarked, addressing Bastien.

We all looked at the door, which flew open with a crash, presenting us with an angry young wolf. To be precise, the unpredictable son of Nickolas Copeland.

"What are you still doing here!!!" he growled in our direction, his eyes turning yellow, showing us his teeth. Black veins stood out wildly under his skin.

Beside me, Miles jumped up, and I just barely got a hold of his wrist to pull him back onto the hard leather couch. He looked at me, sighing, as if I had once again spoiled his stupid fun, his brown strands almost falling into his red glowing eyes.

What was wrong with everyone? Had they forgotten that we were superior to this lowlife?

It was clear to me that Miles had always had trouble with emotions. He was a Ruisangor who couldn't manage to keep his feelings in check. And he had absolutely no manners.

"We are where we belong, mutt," I murmured, unfazed by Nash's ridiculous threatening tone, and leaned back even further into the back of the couch.

The alpha dog's eyes snapped open wider.

"How dare you show up here and talk to us like that..." Nash began and was about to jump on me when Laurent intervened.

"Enough!" it escaped Dr. Copeland, who was still struggling with his own emotions.

Weak . These wolves were not only uncontrolled but also extremely weak . It was a wonder they had survived all these centuries without being discovered by humans.

"Nash!" a voice rang out from the hallway.

I could immediately place it with the English professor from earlier, who seemed to be the only wolf with brains in this facility. "You shouldn't always overreact like that..."

The Senseque paused in the doorway as his alarmed gaze met that of Bastien, who also seemed to slip out of his trained mind for a few seconds. Something very unusual. Bastien had always been a master of his emotions.

For a few seconds, the two stared at each other, though I didn't know why exactly. They had to know each other. I couldn't explain it any other way.

"I'm glad you found your way to me as well, Alarik. We need to clarify some matters that, according to my son, have been going on behind our backs."

The Alpha sounded calm, but there was anger in his voice.

Bastien glanced at the white gold Rolex that was on his wrist and matched his dark blond hair. I had given it to him five years ago to make room in my collection.

"We have to go. Nicolaj is waiting."

If you kept Nicolaj waiting, you had messed it up with him. There was only one among us who could afford that. And that was Bastien.

Even though I knew that Nicolaj was not waiting, but was currently on a business trip to Toronto, I was grateful to my mentor for ending this ridiculous conversation.

I rose from the couch and buttoned my suit jacket, whereupon my blood brothers did the same.

Nash just snorted disdainfully, but I ignored his threatening looks. Because even if they seemed so, he wasn't. Not here on a campus full of humans.

"If there will be a single incident that has anything to do with your boys in the smallest way, three de-registrations from Vanderwood University will follow!"

The Alpha's words sounded harsh, but I would not break the rules. After all, they also corresponded to the interests of our clan leader, who I did not want to mess with at any price in the world. However, I was worried about Miles .

Bastien didn't answer and went to the door, where the English professor was still standing, gazing firmly into his eyes.

We followed Bastien and a short time later we found ourselves back in the large stairwell of Vanderwood.

No one said a thing, because we all knew that the Copelands could overhear every word from that distance.

I was still wondering about the meeting of Prof. Copeland and Bastien. Everyone my mentor was involved with worked in his department or was dead.

"Did you see their faces? As if they wanted to get their asses kicked," Miles laughed with a grin, tying his hair into an undercut man bun.

"And that's exactly what they won't get," Bastien warned him. "That's what they want. For you to make a misstep."

"Should we tell Nicolaj about this?" Laurent asked, visibly tense.

I listened up.

"Nicolaj has other problems," Bastien countered intently.

"Maybe we should, Bastien. They were verbally attacking us," David, who had been quiet the whole time, agreed.

David, the platinum blond blood brother to my left, was best at this of the three of us. Staying calm and waiting it out. Observing the situation as we had learned to do. He had always been thoughtful. On top of that, he had strong powers.

Miles liked to tease him about it, even though we both had respect for the fact that he could do telekinesis. Something usually only the Air Quatura could do.

"We can't run to our leader every time we have a problem like the children of Nickolas Copeland."

Bastien was right. We would not act like those dogs.

"Surely you must have noticed the tension that exists between the Alpha and his brother."

My mentor said nothing back to Laurent's statement.

"It proves that you should be careful what you hide from the clan head if you don't want him to get suspicious."

Laurent sounded serious, yet he remained composed because Bastien was above him, and what he said could have consequences for his job in our family dynasty. Every word.

I knew that Bastien didn't care about this rule of power because he was different from us. He had never wanted power, or control. Not like Nicolaj. But he was good at hiding what he really wanted.

"It just proves that the pack obviously has problems within its own ranks." Bastien murmured with a strained expression.

Whenever Copelands were involved, there were unnecessary problems.

First, they had come to Blairville almost 250 years ago, becoming a thorn in the side not only of us, but also of the Quatura, because their kind existed solely to eradicate ours. And now, under the rules of the Quatura, they already owned the largest third of the island, and they still didn't have enough, trying not to give in to their murderous urge to wipe us out.

Nicolaj had warned us that the Senseque did not want the peace treaty any more than our clan did – if you excluded Bastien, Camille, and Laurent.

I decided to stay away from them, hoping that I would only encounter them in English class. Inwardly, however, I already suspected that it would not stay that way.