“Think you can have it all?” she challenges. “Jesus, you can’t even keep them under control. No wonder you keep getting burned.”
I growl. “Shut up, Tabitha.”
“Hmm. Make me.”
I lunge for her, my outstretched hands banging into the metal locker behind her when she moves. I cringe while stumbling back, trying to recover my position. “You would do the same thing in my position.”
“Oh, I’d be doing plenty more in your position, sweetheart. You’re not fit to be the alphas’ toy. You’re just…” She trails off with a smirk and then clicks her tongue with disappointment. “You’re just a waste.”
“I said,” I grumble while dropping my things to the ground. “Shut the fuck up.”
A few girls circle us as I take a few steadying breaths. I keep my limbs still, watching how Tabitha crouches into a fighting pose to prepare for me. She has no idea what I’ve been doing lately. She can’t even comprehend the kind of training I’ve been receiving. I made a mistake by letting my emotions fuel my attack.
It won’t happen again.
This time when I lunge, I feint left, catching her as she dodges right. I wrap my arm around her throat and squeeze her into a headlock, the jeers and cheers from the students surrounding us egging me on.
Despite the fact that I have her in a chokehold, Tabitha keeps pushing me to the limit, croaking out one insult after another. It’s not until Demetra peels me off the dumb bitch that I realize I was actually choking her out.
Tabitha gasps. “God, you’re psychotic.”
I sneer at her. “I’m coming for your father next, bitch.”
Her eyes go wide as the girls around her stare in shock. Smiling triumphantly, I grab my things and wander off with Demetra, pumping my legs until we’re safely away from that group.
“Alex,” Demetra whispers as I lean against a locker. “Did you mean what you said?”
My lower lip quivers as I reply, “I absolutely fucking did.”
Tears of frustration flood my cheeks. Everything is spinning out of control so fast, and I’m helpless to stop it. All I can do is grab on to something stable and pray that I don’t fly off this ridiculous ride. Demetra embraces me, clutching my head to her bosom like I’m a lost child searching for my parents.
But that’s so far from the truth.
These tears aren’t of loss—they’re tears of realization. I’m fighting the demons I’ve let loose while mourning the loss of my greatest lover. It’s a painful transition, one that seems to have no end in sight. It’s always darkest before the dawn, I hear, and I know I must accept my destiny to make it through to the other side.
I must accept the fact that I am the heir to the Moretti empire.