THREE MONSTERS AND A DEVIL
1104 Words
Adinna’s POV
“The what?” I blurt out, my voice cracking.
The lady beside me smiles gently and sets the clipboard aside. “I’m Riley,” she says, leaning closer to check my pulse, then my eyes, like an actual nurse would. “You’re at Lunareth Academy. It’s where young wolves are trained for their future roles in the packs.”
Her words hit me like a slap. I jerk upright, clutching at the blanket. “Wolves?” My laugh comes out sharp, disbelieving. “No. No, you’ve got the wrong person. I’m not a wolf, I’m human.”
Riley’s expression softens, but there’s pity in her eyes that makes my stomach turn. Just as she opens her mouth to give a response to my outburst, the door opens and a woman steps inside, tall and composed, her dark suit perfectly pressed.
Riley straightens and steps away from the bedside as the woman picks up the clipboard that Riley was holding when I woke up.
Riley turns to the woman who just walked in and speaks to her in a respectful tone.
“I’ve already done all the necessary checks. She’s fully okay now.”
I’m still staring, wide-eyed, my mind struggling to catch up.
The woman faces me and says, “Please get up and come with me.”
She gestures toward an incubator-like structure at the side of the room. My body moves on its own, legs shaky as I follow her obediently, still too stunned.
My thoughts are spinning. The last thing I remember is blacking out after finding out that my boyfriend and best friend had betrayed me and being filled with an intense rage.
The woman outside the strange incubator mutters to herself, “Hmm… she clearly has powers, but I can’t see much of her ability yet.”
My feet hit the ground as I step out, my patience finally snapping.
“Can someone please tell me what’s going on here?” I yell, my voice sharper than I mean it to be.
The other lady finally looks at me, a calm smile curving her lips.
“Welcome to the Luna Academy. It might all look new now, but you’ll love it.”
Before I can process that, she turns to Riley. “It’s your turn now.” Then she walks out, leaving me standing there horrified.
“Turn for what?” I demand, whipping toward Riley.
Riley just giggles, slipping off her lab coat. “Relax. Come on, I’m going to escort you to your room and explain everything on the way.”
Her words sink in as we walk. She starts talking like this is completely normal.
“The Luna Academy is where wolves, werewolves, to be precise, are trained.”
I stop dead in my tracks. “You’re mistaken. I’m not a wolf. I’m human.”
Riley tilts her head at me, her expression almost pitying. “Then tell me… what’s the last thing you remember with your friends?”
My stomach twists. Theo. Mia. The betrayal. The rage.
“That was your first shift,” Riley says gently, but her words slice through me. “If we hadn’t gotten there on time, you could have killed them.”
The sting of betrayal flares fresh in my chest, the memory dragging me back whether I want it to or not.
Riley keeps talking beside me, her voice a steady stream of words about the academy, but my mind isn’t there. I’m still stuck on the thought of how everything fell apart.
We take a sharp turn, and because I’m not paying attention, I slam right into someone.
My breath catches as I look up. And just like that every thought of Theo disappears as my gaze locks onto the most beautiful eyes I have ever seen. They’re sharp, intense, pulling me in like gravity itself. My throat goes dry, and I gulp, stunned, my heart tripping over itself.
But before I can even think, his voice cuts through, smooth but cold.
“Watch where you’re going.”
No apology. No pause. He just turns to leave.
I scoff under my breath. “Excuse me? What a dickhead.”
He stops and turns back slowly. His eyes narrowed.
“What did you just say?”
My chin lifts. “I said you’re a dickhead. You bumped into me and didn’t even bother to apologize. That’s what dickheads do.”
Riley’s elbow digs into my side, her voice a frantic whisper. “Adinna, let it go. Please, let’s just leave.”
But I’m too annoyed to care. Who the hell does he think he is?
The boy scoffs, his gaze raking over me.
“You must be new.”
“So what?” I shoot back, refusing to back down. “Is that an excuse for you to be shitty?
In a blur of motion, he closes the distance between us, so fast it steals my breath. His hand clamps around my chin, tilting my face up until I’m staring straight into those impossible eyes. They burn with something I can’t name, pulling me in deeper even as anger flares in my chest.
“Well?” My voice is steady, daring. “What are you going to do now. Fling me away? Kill me?”
Beside me, Riley gasps, her voice trembling. “Hunter, please let her go. It’s all a mistake.”
We don’t move as our eyes remain locked in a battle of wills. I refuse to flinch or let him see an ounce of fear.
Finally, he releases me with a sharp flick of his hand, like dropping something unworthy of his time.
“Thank your friend,” he says flatly, his voice edged with warning. “And it’d be best for you not to call my attention again.”
My lips curve into a mocking smile. “Or what? You’ll sulk at me harder?”
A dangerous smirk flashes across his face. He dips his head in a mocking bow.
“Alright then. You’ve got my attention.”
And with that, he turns and strides away.
“Coward,” I mutter under my breath.
Before I can say more, Riley whirls me around, eyes wide and panicked.
“There are three boys you don’t ever want to piss off in this academy. Three. And there’s one you don’t even look in the eye if you value your life.” She leans closer, whispering like the name itself is dangerous.
“And that one… the one you just called a coward… is the worst and most dangerous of them all. Hunter Grayhorn.”
- Writer
