21. Addi

TWENTY-ONE

Woah woah woah. Is this girl insane?

My gaze narrows on hers as she smirks, victory already licking along her skin.

"Claim Cassian for themselves? That's not what I'm here for. It's not even something I have any interest in," I blurt, but it does nothing to calm her.

"Don't worry about it. You won't be leaving with him anyway," she promises as she continues to prowl toward me.

Yeah. This girl has definitely lost it.

Flicking my gaze to Cassian, I expect him to jump in and agree with me, but he simply stands there with his arms folded over his chest, eyes shifting between the two of us. I peer at Kryll, hoping for one of them to be present enough to interject, but his eyes are fixated on the building behind Leticia. Continuing around the group of assholes, I find Brody gaping in surprise at Leticia while Raiden rocks back and forth on his heels with his hands tucked in his pockets.

A low growl ripples from my throat. "Can one of you open your damn mouth and explain to her that I am not challenging anyone for Cassian." My pleading gaze lands on Kryll as he turns his attention back to the present, but he shrugs, disregarding me immediately. "Great. You're no help," I bite out with a scoff.

Despite my gut telling me not to bother, I spin back to Raiden, who stares at me with a bored expression.

Fucking useless. All of them.

Rolling my eyes at him, I turn back to Brody again. He has to help me out. This is all his fucking fault. As if sensing the thoughts turning over in my mind, he lifts his hands in defense.

"She's not going to hear anything from anyone but Cass," he admits, which makes sense but does nothing to help this work in my favor.

Turning to look at him, I don't get to utter another word before Leticia speaks up.

"Don't waste your time. This is between you and me."

"Is it, though? You're not hearing anything I'm saying!" I snap. I can take on a challenge for sure, but the semantics about this being over a guy that has nothing to do with me is what's pissing me off.

"I don't need to. I challenge you?—"

"You already said that," I grunt, pinching the bridge of my nose. "You can challenge me all you want, I don't mind, but don't force a prize on me that I don't want. This duel bullshit is pointless. I'm more than happy to let you have him."

"That's not how things work around here." She stops a few steps away from me, rolling her shoulders at her sides as she prepares to fight.

"Don't wolf rules apply to wolves only? I think it's quite clear at this stage that I'm fae," I point out, and she snickers.

"Wolf rules apply on wolf land, and that's exactly where we are."

Nodding, I sigh. "Okay. I can roll with that. But back to the duel shit, I would rather not, thank you. I can fight you, but there's no prize necessary."

"Oh, cute. She's playing hard to get. Maybe that's why he's so interested." Leticia's deathly glare spins to the wolf in question, who remains frozen in place, arms folded over his chest and his mouth closed. This fucker really isn't going to say anything. Such a dick.

The sound of hurried feet from the diner pull my attention as a guy rushes toward us. The moment he notices our eyes on him, he skids to a stop. "Is there a duel? I heard there's a duel," he rushes out, making my chest clench as Leticia nods eagerly.

"Yes."

It's on the tip of my tongue to clarify that it's simply a challenge, not a duel, but he's already hooting with glee as he rushes toward the diner to alert everyone else. The second he does, every damn person in the vicinity vacates the building to join us.

While their interest is occupying Leticia, I whirl my attention on the fucker who is allowing this to unravel. Marching toward him, I jab my finger in his direction. "Seriously, now would be a good time for you to open your mouth."

He shrugs. Fucking shrugs. "If she wins, there's less competition at the academy. And if you win, I don't have to worry about Leticia pawing all over me anymore."

I gape at him, his gruff voice rushing over me as he lays out his reasoning.

"You're an ass," I snap.

"I never claimed to be anything else," he replies, his husky voice low as someone claps their hands from behind me, pulling my attention back to the center of the makeshift circle that's now formed.

"Rules of a duel," the guy hollers, pointing at Leticia and me. "Use what you want, be what you want, we don't care. A winner is announced when someone is knocked out, taps out, or is killed. Any further questions?"

Leticia waves her hands in the air, ramping up the cheers from the wolves, which become almost deafening in my ears. How am I supposed to think of any more questions with all this noise? Fuck.

"Is this really necessary?" That's what I settle on, which only earns me a grin from the asshole explaining the rules.

"Excellent, let's go!" he shouts before tilting his head back and letting out a low howl.

I'm assuming that's the sign the duel has begun because Leticia is heading toward me in the next breath. I tug my jacket from my arms, the air around me heating from the tension building inside me.

"You know, you're pretty lacking for a fae. Your ears are embarrassing," she mutters with a cackle, and I frown as we slowly circle one another.

"Is that supposed to hurt my feelings? My ears don't determine who I am, and right now, I'm wishing when they were sliced that they had lopped the whole fucking thing off because then I wouldn't have to listen to your shit."

"Are you sure? You seem touchy, and I was only making an observation."

"Nah, observations usually contain facts, and you're just letting your opinion get the better of you. I bet you wear all your emotions on your sleeve. It's going to make beating you that much easier. I should thank you in advance," I snarl back, her eyes darkening as she bares her teeth.

"Fuck you," she bites out before charging toward me.

Earth magic. Earth magic. Earth magic.

Planting my feet shoulder-width apart, I reach into the earth beneath me, tugging on the magic inside me as vines rise around Leticia. She yelps in surprise, eyes darting to mine for a brief second, but before they can take hold of her, she launches into the air, shifting into a stunning white wolf.

She's not so stunning when she lands before me with a thud, teeth bared and claws ready to take me down. Her snarl vibrates around us as I release the magic in the vines to prepare for impact as she charges toward me.

I feel the comfort of my daggers against my palms as I pull two from my chest. Her claw slashes across my face as I manage to nick her with a blade. I hiss as she yelps. Her eyes narrow on me as the crowd cheers. The feeling of blood trickling down my face has me slightly distracted as we circle each other again.

Twirling the daggers in my hands, I take a deep breath, remembering everything my father taught me. The people around me disappear from view, the lick of pain from my cheek fades into the background, and the sounds of hollering and howls evaporate as I focus every piece of me on the enemy.

Her left paw hits the ground harder on her next step, the only hint of preparation I get before she's charging toward me with purpose. Eager to use her own weight against her, I take off too, the pair of us set to collide in the middle, but she leaps in the air at the last second, making me duck and dive, sliding across the dirt and out of her reach.

Rushing to my feet, I remain crouched as I watch her turn back to me. My heart races in my chest, adrenaline coursing through my veins, and I inhale it all, letting it fuel me.

She lowers her front legs, eyes fixed on me as her nose twitches and lip curls. I take off first this time, refusing to remain on the defensive. If she wants a challenge, I'll give her one.

My grip on the daggers tightens as I barrel toward her, but someone from the inner ring of the crowd trips me mid-step, sending me careening through the air. I land on my back with a resounding thump.

My breath leaves me with a whoosh as I blink up at the moon, but my vision is quickly filled by the frothing jaws of a pissed off white wolf. Her claws slash at my chest before I can react. Agony burns through me, forcing a scream from my lungs while channeling every ounce of my mind and body to focus on protecting me.

Leticia howls up at the sky, reaping the likely cheers that echo around her instead of finishing me. The pain is consuming me completely. Whatever damage she's done, it's more than I've ever known or expected. I need to act fast before it worsens.

Using her victorious stance above me to my advantage, I toss aside the daggers in my hands, replacing them with those from my boots and slamming one into her left side, wedging it perfectly between her ribcage. Her howl of anguish reaches my ears as she stumbles forward a little, eyes wide as they settle on me.

I poise my other hand at her right side, ready to do what's necessary. "Does it hurt?" I rasp, glaring up at her despite my vision blurring from my own pain. Her tiny whimper is the answer I want. "That's because these daggers are a little more special than the one I caught you with at first. Want to guess why?" I twist it, her agony vibrating between us as she snaps her teeth in my face, but doesn't actually touch me. "Are you guessing it's because they're made of silver? You would be correct if you did." I can feel the maniacal smile curve my lips. "Now, it's small, so it's not flooding your bloodstream just yet, but with the other ready to slice through your body, that will change very quickly." I nod down at my other hand, ready to cut through her flesh. Looking back at her, everything around us fades away as I offer her an ultimatum "Tap out, or I add that one too."

She snarls, spit slobbering my face, but the fierceness doesn't last long as she grimaces. The dagger is doing its job, and she's struggling.

"Last chance. Tap out, or I'll kill you." My words hang heavy between us, her left side trembling, and I twist again, driving home the fact that I'm not fucking around.

I'm certain one of us isn't going to walk away from this when she lifts her right paw and taps three times on the ground beside me. A beat later, I pull the blade from her ribcage and she flops to the ground beside me, curling in on herself as she turns back into a human.

Fuck.

Everything hurts. It's like the pain from my chest is spreading throughout my body. Peering down at the wound, all I can see is the crimson blood staining my clothes. Staring at it won't heal it, and I need a second to catch my breath before I figure out my next move, so I opt to look up at the moon as the blades of grass ruffle against my knuckles.

Happy birthday, Addi. What a celebration.

No sooner do I think it am I hoisted in the air. Panic courses through my body as I start to swing my arms and legs to stop the attacker.

I grunt when my stomach hits someone's shoulder as I'm thrown over their back, and a slap on my ass follows a moment later, rendering me speechless long enough for them to respond.

"You've gotten in enough trouble as it is. Fight me, and I'll make it worse."

Kryll. Fucking Kryll? It's a little late to help now, buddy, but I don't get to say that as he moves so quickly the world blurs around us, leaving me to recoil with nausea.

Fuck these guys. They've got some explaining to do.