Chapter 161
Heather
The group at the table had grown today. They had two girls sitting with them—a blonde and a red head. My gaze stuck on the blonde. Something about the way she moved her hand...
If that’s Callista, then—
She turned, and I got a full look at her face.
Shit. That was Callista Hoel. Just fantastic. Her father was part of the reason our pack was so fractured. If she was sitting with those guys, then this was definitely more problem than I’d thought.
And now I wanted to kick myself. I’d stuck up for her when they were going to boot her out of the pack... Which was one of the stupidest things I’d ever done. It’d seemed right at the time, but apparently it was coming back to bite me in the ass.
Callista sneered at me and nudged the redhead beside her. The redhead turned.
Leslie. I fought to keep my face neutral as I returned her glare. Serena was going to freak out when she found out that Leslie was hanging with that group.
Leslie shot me a nasty look and said something to the boys, who started snickering. I guessed she wasn’t over me yelling at her for going through my spell books. Or maybe she was still peeved that I had Brent and she didn’t. Whatever the reason behind that look, I didn’t care. I didn’t want anything to do with her anymore.
I made my way to the food. Leslie and Callista would probably ignore me as long as I ignored them, but seeing them with those guys made me wonder about their connection to the pack.
As I heaped my tray with food, I focused on the pack bonds—the little strings of magic that tied all the Weres in the pack together. I’d never spoken to the guy who stood next to me, shoveling pancakes onto his plate, but I could sense my connection to him and to everyone else who obeyed Mr. Langdon as their alpha.
The strings of magic and alpha energy created a web through the cafeteria, connecting the werewolves to each other. Even some of the Cazadores who weren’t exactly part of this pack had distant ties—barely visible, but there. Which made sense since nearly all Weres were tied to each other through the rule of the Seven.
Everyone except for Leslie, Callista, and their round-table of sucky people. I couldn’t feel anything from them.
Brent. I called to him through our bond.
As soon as I focused on him, I could feel his rapid breath as he backed away from whoever he was sparring. Are you okay?
Yeah. But that group is at the table again and I still can’t feel their bond. And now Callista and Leslie are with them...
We already told Presley. He said they’re cleared.
Maybe they shouldn’t be. It wasn’t like Mr. Langdon was totally infallible.
I’ll tell Presley about Callista and Serena, but there’s nothing we can do until they act out against the pack. Just keep an eye on them.
Will do. I didn’t like it, but if the pack alphas wanted to hide in a room and argue all day pretending the pack was fine, then it wasn’t my place to question.
Pushing my frustration aside, I ordered my usual bacon, cheddar, and avocado omelet.
The more calories packed in there, the better. I had some serious studying to do and I needed to focus until lunch. I had a few witchcraft books I’d dug up at the back of the library, and I planned to keep working through them. The more I knew about magic, the better.
As I moved past their table, the hair rose on my arms. The group stayed quiet, and I purposely knocked my elbow into one of the guys.
"Watch it," he said.
"Sorry," I mumbled the word as I hurried past, but I’d already gotten what I needed.
There was no connection when we touched. It didn’t make sense.
Unless they were working with another alpha who didn’t answer to the Seven. But that was impossible. Mr. Hoel was dead. I knew it for a fact. I was the one who’d killed him. And the wolves loyal to him had left or been driven out.
So, maybe magic had made their bonds disappear. But they couldn’t be working for Luciana... Could they?
No. And they weren’t what I needed to be focusing on. Finding the magic to defeat Luciana and her demons was priority number one. I couldn’t let whatever pranks they were pulling divide my attention. Especially when Mr. Langdon said not to worry about it.
I settled at a table by myself and flipped open a book—Crystals: The Art of Harnessing Magic Through the Elements—while I ate.
I was halfway through my second plate when Serena finally showed. She saw me wave and headed my way.
"Hey." She looked flawless in her cut-off shorts and tank. Her hair was pulled back in a messy ponytail, showing off her red hair on her head. "I missed you in the dorms."
"I know. Where were you?"
A slow grin spread across her face. "On a run."
"Should’ve guessed." Now that she could shift, she was making up for lost time, going on forest runs with Donovan at every chance.
She pulled out a chair and settled down. "How was training after I left?"
I played with my half-eaten plate of hash browns. "It was fine. Ate more mat than I wanted to."
"That sounds awesome." Like every other Were, Serena was an amazing fighter. Watching her and Leslie sparing during my first martial arts class had been insane. Not to mention intimidating.
"Yep. It was super awesome." Sarcasm dripped from the words.
"Did you make any progress with your visions?"
I flipped the book shut and leaned back in my chair. "No. I don’t know what’s wrong with me, but I feel like there’s something on the tip of my tongue. Something big that I’m forgetting. And it’s driving me mad..." I trailed off when I noticed Serena staring hard at something behind me. I quickly glanced over my shoulder. "What?"
"What’s Leslie doing with that group?" Her lips pressed into a tight, thin line. "And is that Callista?"
Serena and I might be split on how we felt about Leslie, but we totally agreed on Callista.
I turned back to my now-cold omelet and took a bite. "I know," I said after a second. "Looks like they’re BFFs now."
She scrunched up her nose as she thought. "Why is she with those guys? Leslie has nothing in common with them. She’s from the Irish pack. And Callista? Really?" Serena stared at them like she could glean answers from them. "Maybe if we all try reaching out to her, she’ll sit with us again."
I’d explained what happened between Leslie and I while Serena was sick, but she didn’t understand. For better or worse, they’d been friends since forever. Their parents were friends and they’d grown up taking vacations together. Serena was loyal, almost to a fault, and that meant she refused to give up on Leslie. "We tried that, remember? It didn’t work."
"I should go over. Try talking to her again."
I nearly rolled my eyes. Serena had tried talking to Leslie, and in her defense—Leslie was still nice to her, but it was a losing battle. Leslie would obviously rather be with her new friends than us.
Serena started to stand up, but I grabbed her hand. "I wouldn’t—"
"I have to try."
I let her go as I tried to think of a way to say what I needed to say without making it worse. "I don’t know. I still can’t feel anyone at that table through the pack bonds. Including Leslie."
Serena crossed her arms as she stared down at me. "Whatever happened between you and her, she wouldn’t do anything to harm the pack. Leslie’s not capable of that."
I disagreed, but saying so would only hurt Serena’s feelings. "What if she thought it would help the pack?" And what if they aren’t part of our pack anymore? I thought the words but didn’t say them aloud.