Chapter 101
Chapter 101
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The training room was empty when Damien brought me in. He shut the door behind us and locked it, then rolled his shoulders like he was trying to act calm. He was not calm. I could see it in the way his jaw kept tightening.
I stood in the middle of the room, arms crossed. “So what now? You throw me around until I magically become Luna material?”
He pulled off his jacket and tossed it on the bench. “I teach you how not to freeze when they push you.”
“I did not freeze yesterday.”
“No,” he said, walking toward me. “You accepted a trial that could get you locked away.”
I rolled my eyes and raked my fingers through my hair. “Cute. We’re starting with emotional attacks?”
His mouth did not even twitch. “We’re starting with truth.”
I hated when he did that. I hated it more because he was right. I stepped back when he got close.
“Why did you move?” he asked.
“Because you walked at me like you were about to do Alpha intimidation nonsense.”
“Good. You noticed.”
“Damien, don’t praise me after annoying me. Pick a struggle.”
He came closer again, slower this time. My wolf pushed under my skin the second his scent hit me properly. Warm. Blood. Leather. Him. My fingers flexed at my sides, and I looked away fast.
He stopped. “What happened?”
“Nothing.”
“Sienna.”
I clenched my jaw. “Your scent is too loud.”
His eyebrows lifted slightly. “Too loud?”
“Yes. Don’t look smug. It’s not cute.” I pressed my palm against my stomach. “It’s like my wolf recognizes you before I do.”
His face softened, but then he stepped to the side. “Then use it. Track me.”
He moved fast. Too fast for human eyes, but my head snapped toward him before I thought. I turned and caught his shoulder with both hands.
11:49 Thu, May 21.
Chapter 101
He nodded. “Again.”
སྙ
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We moved across the mats. He lunged, I dodged. He grabbed for my waist, I twisted out. My body reacted before my brain did. My hearing caught the shift of his feet. My nose caught his skin. My wolf kept pushing forward, impatient, angry, wanting control.
“Stop fighting her,” Damien said.
I backed away, breathing hard. “Easy for you to say. You’ve been a wolf your whole life.”
“And you have been surviving your whole life.” He lifted his hands. “That counts.”
I stared at him, chest rising fast. That stupidly hit me. I looked down before he could see too much on my face.
He reached for my wrist.
I moved before thinking.
One second his fingers were around my wrist, and the next my other hand was at his throat. Claws pushed from my nails, sharp against his skin. We both froze. One tiny move, and I could hurt him badly.
My breath caught. “Damien.”
He did not pull back. He did not even blink. His hand stayed around my wrist, firm but not painful. His eyes locked on mine.
“Good,” he said quietly. “Don’t hesitate. Not even with me.”
I stared at him like he had lost his mind. “Are you insane?”
“A little.”
“This is not funny.”
“I’m not laughing.”
My claws pressed closer when my fingers twitched. A thin line of red appeared under one claw. My stomach dropped so hard I pulled back, but not fast enough. The claw dragged across his skin and cut him.
Blood welled at his throat.
I stumbled away, hand flying to my mouth. “Oh my god.”
Damien touched the cut, then looked at the blood on his fingers. “Sienna.”
“No.” I backed up until my shoulders hit the wall. “No, no, no. I told you this was a bad idea.”
His voice stayed low. “It’s a scratch.”
“That is your throat.” My eyes burned, and my wolf surged so hard my vision flashed gold. “Back away.”
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11:49 Thu, May 21
Chapter 101
He took one step toward me.
“Damien, I said back away.”
He stopped, but only for a second. “Look at me.”
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“I can’t.” My fingers curled against the wall, claws scraping the paint. “I can feel her. She’s angry. She thinks you are hurt because I got distracted. She wants out.”
“Let her hear me.”
I shook my head fast. “No. You do not understand. If I shift, I might hurt you worse.”
He took another step.
I bared my teeth before I could stop myself. “Don’t.”
He kept his hands open at his sides. Blood slid slowly from the cut at his throat. He ignored it like it was nothing, which made it worse.
“You are not going to hurt me,” he said.
“You don’t know that.”
“I know you.”
“You know the human me.” My voice cracked. “You don’t know this.”
His face changed. “She is not separate from you.”
“She feels separate right now.” I pressed one hand against my chest. “She is loud. She is furious. She wants to attack anything that makes me scared.”
“Then tell her I am not the threat.”
I laughed once, messy and panicked. “Oh, perfect. Let me just have a quick meeting with the wolf in my head.”
Damien’s mouth softened. “Sienna.”
“No.” I pushed harder against the wall. “You need to move.”
“I’m not moving.”
“Please.” My voice dropped. “Please don’t make me hurt you.”
He stepped close enough that I could smell the blood clearly now. My wolf snapped at the inside of my head, but Damien reached slowly and placed his palm against the wall beside mine.
“Breathe with me,” he said.
hu, May 21
Chapter 101
“I can’t.”
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“Yes, you can.”
He breathed in slowly, then out. I watched his chest move. My fingers stopped scraping the wall.
“That’s it,” he murmured. “Again.”
I copied him once. Then again. My eyes still burned, but the gold faded at the edges. Damien lifted his other hand, waiting until I nodded before touching my cheek.
“You came back to me,” he said.
My knees weakened. I reached for him and pressed my hand over the cut at his throat. “I told you to move.”
He covered my hand with his. “And I told you I’m not scared of you.”
My eyes filled, but I blinked fast. “You should be.”
“No.” He leaned his forehead against mine. “I’m scared for you. Not of you.”
I closed my eyes, breathing through my nose. Then another scent slid under the blood and leather. Sweet perfume. Too familiar. My eyes opened.
Damien noticed immediately. “What?”
I looked toward the small side window near the training room door. The curtain moved slightly.
“Alice,” I whispered. “She was here.”
Damien turned, but the hallway outside was already empty.
11:49 Thu, May 21
