Page 1 of Feral
Chapter 1
Ella
Ella’s phone was buzzing so much, she was starting to get weird looks from the cluster of girls gossiping by her locker. They weren’t trying too hard to hide the fact that she was the subject of their conversation.
She might have been recognized by the high priestess herself as the next Empress, but Marissa was still Queen of the school, as far as the student body was concerned.
She took her phone out of her pocket and silenced it. It wasn’t necessary to look at the screen to know all those missed calls and texts were from Axel.
He’d been harassing her continually since their confrontation in the girls’ bathroom the night before, and he’d even had the gall to show up at her dorm in the middle of the night. At the risk of infuriating her neighbors, Ella had pretended like she didn’t hear the incessant pounding.
Whatever he had to say to her, she wasn’t interested. At the very least, she didn’t trust herself. Standing up to him had taken enough guts, and she didn’t want to risk backsliding to her old ways.
Yes, he’d saved her life, but he was also the reason it had been in danger in the first place. He was a big part of the reason her life before the Academy had been so difficult, andallthe reason why her life ever since had been intolerable.
He could sweat it out as far as she was concerned.
Ella knew she would see Axel in class, assuming he didn’t throw another temper tantrum and run outside, but hopefully the teacher’s presence would keep him in line. If it didn’t, he couldn’t force her to talk to him no matter what he thought.
Not that he really wanted to talk. Ella knew better. The only thing he wanted was to get into her pants, and the only reason he even wanted that was the status it would bring him.
The thought that the intimate encounter she’d once fantasized about was probably being discussed like a strategic play between Axel and his mother made the whole thing even cringier.
Ella shut her locker and walked to class, surprised when she found Axel’s chair empty. Maybe he had skipped after all.
As she sat down and got out her books, Ella found her right hand twitching in anticipation. It was all she could do to resist that deeply ingrained impulse to swipe up on her phone and see what the latest message read.
No. She had to stay strong. She’d already gotten this far, so she might as well see her newfound resolve through all the way.
As class began, Ella forced herself to focus on the material the teacher was discussing at the front of the room. She couldn’t afford to fall any further behind. That was the main reason she’d insisted on staying in the first place, as much as the idea of leaving the Academy for an extended period of time appealed to her.
The day’s lesson was a particularly dry one, which she assumed was at least part of the reason for Axel skipping class. She despised the lingering part of her that worried about him whenever he didn’t show up somewhere he was expected. As if he’d ever been reliable, or in need of saving.
It was laughable how irrational her heart could be when it came to him. Even now, as much as she hated him, there was still a part of her that longed for him. Part of her that wished his interest in her was anything more than practical or political.
It was all the more reason to refuse him.
The bell rang after what felt like forever, and Ella gathered her things to leave. It was no surprise when the students by the door purposely jammed the exit to make it inconvenient for her. She normally would have stepped back and waited for them to get bored of toying with her, but she wasn’t in the mood. When she shouldered through, forcing her way out into the hall, she caught the stunned glimpses of the students still in the doorway.
Axel wasn’t the only one it felt good to stand up to. Ella figured it was about time she showed Marissa she wasn’t the fragile kitten she’d once been. And if that meant using the fact that she’d been the object of attempted murder to extort her civility, so be it. She just didn’t want Axel taking the matter into his hands on her behalf.
“Ella?”
The smooth, familiar voice stopped her in her tracks. No matter how much confidence she’d mustered, Ella would never be able to look Sterling in the eye without feeling woefully inadequate.
Or thinking about the humiliation she’d suffered during their last tutoring session.
The incident had confirmed that Sterling was every bit the gentleman he was trying to mold his students into, but that only made Ella more nervous around him.
“Yes, Mr. Bryant?” she asked, wandering over to the door.
“You missed your session this morning,” he said, looking over her with more concern than the irritation she might have expected.
She had warred with herself over whether she should go or not, but the idea of him looking at her in horror over the presumption that he would want to continue their lessons had been enough to deter her. “I didn’t think you’d want to continue,” she stammered. “Not after…”
She trailed off, unable to bring herself to say anything more.
He frowned. “I see. Well, that’s not the case. Unless, of course, you’ve changedyourmind.”
