Page 39 of Ava: Part Three

The voice washed over her, and just like that, the pressure eased. The fog disappeared. The sickly feeling against her skin felt like a gentle caress. Her heartbeat relaxed to its normal rhythm. Something in his voice made her want to listen to him. It made her want to believe he was as gentle as his voice suggested. It is like a vampire’s allure but not so blatant. Her hands lowered from her temples, and she sat straighter in her seat to look around at the students in front of her, compelled by a force she couldn’t understand.

She looked at the stage and found all four pairs of eyes on her. They were so openly curious, eyeing her like a piece of candy. If she hadn’t felt so calm, she would have shrunk back in her seat in fear.

The three Council members were still as beautiful as she remembered, but the Head of the Council held all her attention this time.

“I called this assembly to assure you that you have nothing to worry about. You just have to do as I ask.”

It felt like he was talking only to her because he was looking only at her.

“The Council has decided that we will assess all our academies in a similar manner, just to make sure you are all getting the quality of education and training that you deserve as the future leaders of our community.”

And then he smiled again, but she felt no fear this time.

“I look forward to seeing what you can do.”

And then he turned away. She felt bereft as he walked to sit with the others until he turned his gaze back to her.

She didn’t even hear what the dean said afterwards as that purple gaze stayed on hers. She had never felt the weight of a gaze as much as she felt this one.

Someone stood up in her line of vision, blocking the President from her. Her senses returned to her as if someone had slapped her up the head with them. She sucked in a breath as she fell back into her seat.

What the hell was that?

How did he do that?

How had he made her lose herself entirely in him? Was that how easy it would be for him to make her do what he wanted?

She felt the vibrations in the chair and looked beside her to see Emily trembling like a leaf. Not just Emily but all the Omegas. Her whole section sat gripping their chairs or their hands clasped together on their laps, shitting themselves. They were terrified. They looked like they were stuck in that fog that had tried to catch her.

She looked at the Alpha section to try to find Zeke again and found all of them looking in their direction, studying the Omegas as if they had not been subjected to the same thing by the Council. They had not been targeted. But she had. And among all the Omegas, she was the only one with her head raised. And she had looked directly into the Council members' eyes in front of the whole student body without any thought of the consequences.

That was surely going to have her sent to Isolation faster than anything.

As the room started to clear, she realised that even though she couldn’t see them anymore, the Council members were still paying attention to her. And she’d had her thoughts unshielded.

She stood quickly, eager to leave their presence. But Emily remained seated, as did the other Omegas. She saw Samantha and Julie a few rows down, also in the same state. Was that magic supposed to make them stay here? Did the Council have plans for them?

“Emily,” she hissed.

The wolf tilted her head up but did not meet her gaze.

“Let’s go,” she hissed again.

She didn’t want to be left alone with the Council, and though she wasn’t so fond of Emily, she didn’t want her to stay there either.

Emily stood quickly and rushed past her to the back exit, but the others stayed seated.

“Samantha. Julie. Everyone, come on,” she whispered again.

The other students were leaving quietly, so she knew her whisper might as well have been a shout from the rooftop. The Omegas got up and did as she asked. All of them in unison. She stood in the spot, frozen for a moment as she watched them file out the back door after Emily.

She knew she had not commanded them, not like when she had—

And she still wasn’t shielding her thoughts. Shit.

She looked back at the stage and found the four of them smiling as they watched the Omega exodus. And she knew without a doubt she had just been set up. It felt like she had so far been giving them everything they wanted. She slipped out of the hall without another thought, trying hard to shield her mind.

Chapter 23

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