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Chapter 16
~Valerie’s POV~
This damn house was cursed, I finalised in my mind.
Twenty minutes. Twenty whole minutes of walking, retracing my steps, and even using Astra’s heightened senses, yet I was no closer to finding the damn exit.
Every hallway twisted into another; every turn led back to where I started, and my frustration grew with every second.
I wasn’t stupid. There was so kind of spell—so enchantnt keeping trapped in here. And there was only one group of assholes responsible for it.
Begrudgingly, I turned back, marching toward the main hall where I knew they’d be waiting after the last two tis I saw them there. Sure enough, the mont I stepped in, four smug faces turned toward .
Axel was the first to speak, leaning casually against the wall with his arms crossed. "Lost, sweetheart?"
I gritted my teeth. "Shut up."
Kai smirked, watching with that sharp amusent. "Didn’t take long."
Xade whistled low. "Told you she’d co back."
Dristan, of course, was the worst. He just tilted his head, cyan-blue eyes gleaming with sothing unreadable. "Done running in circles?"
I inhaled sharply, forcing myself to keep my temper in check. "Just show the damn way out."
Axel pushed off the wall. "Happy to help."
I hesitated. "You?"
He grinned, winking. "Don’t look so disappointed. I promise not to let you get lost—again."
I rolled my eyes, but Dristan’s voice cut through the air before I could follow him out. "Aren’t you forgetting sothing?"
I frowned, turning back to him. "What?"
Dristan smirked, tossing sothing into the air. Instinctively, I reached out and caught it.
The second my fingers curled around the cool tal, I knew what it was—my necklace.
"We wouldn’t want the world drawn to our mate now because of her heat, would we?" There was a grin and a hint of a smirk in his eyes.
My breath hitched. I turned it over in my palm, tracing its familiar shape. It was mine. Finally, it’s back in my hands.
Sothing warm curled inside —relief, gratitude. But I refused to show it. Instead, I lifted my gaze to Dristan as I wore it around my neck with an urgency that betrayed my facade.
His eyes burned into mine as he said smoothly, "Whenever you wear that, rember who got it back for you."
I scoffed. "You an ? I was the one who tracked it first."
Xade chuckled. "What D ans is—think of us."
"Think of ," Dristan corrected sharply, ignoring Xade’s interruption.
Axel sighed. "Here we go again."
I clenched the necklace tightly, my heart hamring against my ribs. I wanted to argue, to throw so sarcastic retort, but sothing about the way Dristan was looking at made my throat dry.
Imdiately, I was reminded of the handso young man I saw in his poster in the room. He looked breathtakingly handso. More so was the feel of his powers when I touched the necklace.
It was charged with him. I was going to be rembering him.
I quickly turned, shoving the thought to the back of my mind. "Whatever. Just get out of here."
Axel laughed. "Right this way, sweetheart."
I followed him toward the door, pretending I didn’t hear the low chuckles behind . Pretending I didn’t feel the weight of four pairs of eyes on my back.
Pretending I wasn’t still tangled in sothing far more dangerous than just a mate bond, one which I knew my uncle would freak out if he ever found out.
There was ant to be no distraction, which is why the no-boys rule has stuck since the beginning.
I trained every day for this reason—to avenge my family.
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I pushed open the door to my dorm, exhaustion pressing down on like a weight. The mont I stepped inside, I was t with three pairs of curious eyes.
Isla, Astraea, and Erald were all seated in the common area, their gazes snapping toward the second I walked in.
With everything that had happened, I arrived at the dorm later than expected, already behind schedule for class. My roommates had already left and returned, still dressed in their training outfits, making realise what day it was.
Morning training.
The senior years had spent the early hours out in the mountains, pushing themselves to their limits. Afterwards, they had an hour to cool down before resuming classes at noon.
"There you are," Isla said, setting down her cup of tea. "Care to explain why you missed morning training? And why did one of the Alpha Kings send a ssage about your health?"
I stiffened. They did what now?
Erald scoffed, eyeing from head to toe before pushing her hair back. "You look fine to ," she asserted, taking a sip of her juice.
"Yeah," Astraea added, tilting her head. "Just a little... bashful?"
Bashful? I wonder why? My thoughts ran back to Dristan’s picture, and I imdiately slapped so sense back ntally.
I sighed, dragging a hand through my hair before stepping closer to the kitchen counter. "I’m fine. I just—" I hesitated, debating how much I should tell them. "—overslept."
Isla humd, unconvinced.
Without warning, she stepped forward, placing a hand on my forehead before moving to my neck. Her fingers were cool against my skin as she tilted her head in thought, tapping her chin like a doctor evaluating a patient.
"Well, you feel fine. No fever. Though..." Isla trailed off, her eyes narrowing slightly. "That would explain why the heat I sensed earlier seems to have faded a little."
I blinked. "The what?"
Her lips pressed into a thin line. "It’s subtle, but your scent was definitely stronger before. Now? It’s dulled. Which I can say may have sothing to do with... the mark on your neck."
My stomach dropped.
"What?"
Instantly, Astraea and Erald perked up, their heads snapping toward .
"What mark?" they chorused, already moving closer.
"Is it a mate mark?" Astraea demanded, her sharp eyes gleaming with suspicion as she reached for my hair.
Before I could react, they were all over , fingers pushing my black strands aside to get a better look.
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