She nods.
“He’s the Alpha of the Redstone pack, just South of Higala,”
she answered. “So yes… I understand that Alpha duties come before everything…”
she paused. “And everybody.”
There was a ping of hurt in her voice.
I knew of the Redstone pack; their Alpha was said to be fierce. It made sense that their daughter would be some kind of authority figure as well. She had Alpha blood and leadership qualities. I wasn’t surprised to hear this.
“Thank you for understanding,”
I said to her, giving her a nod.
She gave me a small smile in return before squaring her shoulders.
“There are some things I need to take care of. Let Lila know I’ll be at her bake sale in a few,”
she told me, forcing a smile before walking in a different direction.
I looked after her for only a moment but then turned away and went to go see my mate.
…
Lila’s POV
Student after student arrived at the bake sale. I couldn’t believe how many students actually showed up and continue to show up.
“These brownies are delicious, Lila!”
One girl cooed, taking a giant bite of the fudge brownie she had just bought. “You’ll have to send me the recipe.”
“I’ll send it to your school email,”
I chuckled, just as another student purchased a couple of the cookies.
“What’s the cause?”
The student asked, staring at the cookies with such hunger that it made a smile form on my lips.
“The cause is for students,”
I said, motioning with my hands to the school. “The committee will use this money for fun events, gatherings, and items that students want and need. I thought it’d be nice if we all contributed to those things.”
“I love that idea!”
“Thanks,”
I said with a smile.
My thoughts were interrupted by Sarah’s friends yelling from nearby.
“Free ice cream!! Get your free ice cream!!”
Some students eagerly left my line to go get ice cream, making me scowl in Sarah’s direction. That’s when I noticed that a couple of her friends were holding clipboards and making students sign before they picked out their ice cream.
What were they up to?
“What are they doing?”
Rachel asked, mimicking my thoughts.
“I don’t know…”
I answered. “But I’m going to find out.”
I left the stand and approached the ice cream stand.
“You can’t get ice cream until you sign this,”
one of Sarah’s friends told a student.
“What is it?”
The student asked, a tremor in his voice.
“It’s to assure us that we can count on your vote in the election,”
she answered.
My heart stopped beating and I completely froze.
“You’re buying votes?”
I hissed. getting Sarah’s attention who had a smirk on her face.
“Oh, please. It’s not much different than what you’re doing.”
“You’re wrong,”
I growled. “I’m raising money for the students, not buying their votes. I thought you wanted a fair election?”
“What I want, is to win, just like you. You might have everyone else here fooled by your nice act, but I see through you.”
“What the hell are you talking about, Sarah?”
“You have this entire school wrapped around your pathetic little fingers just because you have abilities,”
she scoffed. “News flash, Volana, you aren’t the only one at this school with abilities. You aren’t as special as you think, so get off your high horse, bitch.”
I had never felt such anger before; I thought Val was going to break loose and rip her throat out with her claws. It took a lot of restraint to hold her back.
What calmed me was the familiar and glorious scent of Enzo. It washed over me like the ocean breeze and made me stagger back from Sarah who took this as a sign of weakness.
“Alpha Enzo?”
I heard Rachel saying from behind me. “What are you doing here?”
“Well, my cook, my beta, and my gamma are all here. It’s only right that I be here too, don’t you think?”
Enzo asked a little humor in his tone.
My eyes were still fixed on Sarah’s smug face, but I could feel Enzo’s eyes drilling a hole in the back of my head.
“Seems your professor’s boyfriend came to pay you a visit,”
Sarah sneered. “I wouldn’t keep him waiting.”
Sarah’s friends chuckled from behind her.
“Oh, my goddess. Are they dating??”
“Lila is dating the professor?! What a slut!!”
Lila’s POV
“Get a life, Sarah,”
Rachel seethed, stepping beside me. “You can buy all the votes you want, but you’ll still lose.”
I stood frozen as the girls continued to laugh; I felt my face warming, but I wasn’t going to let them get the best of me.
I forced myself to laugh.
“I’ve been meaning to ask, Sarah… how’s Scott? Haven’t seen him since you left him rotting in jail. Heard he’s back at school,”
I said coolly, turning away from her. “I’m sure I could count on his vote.”
I knew she was glaring at me, but I couldn’t care less. I walked toward Enzo having a conversation with Ethan, both looked very serious. I felt a knot forming in my stomach; I knew Enzo went to speak with Dr. Todrick before this and I wondered if they were talking about the protein shake.
What did they find in it?
I wanted to ask but now was not the time.
I went toward Dee who continued selling baked goods to a line of students. We were getting busier; there wasn’t any time to waste.
The bake sale went on for a while, and soon, Headmaster Prescott arrived.