She-Alpha

Chapter Four

Sasha’s POV

We had set out very early the next morning, accompanied by several guards on horseback. The carriage was supposed to drop Ryan off at the academy before taking me to the Oracle's mountains, but the long journey meant we were heading to an inn first, to spend the night.

"Hey, Sis," he had said, "how do you feel about attending Alpha Academy?"

And that had been the plan. Once we got to the inn, Ryan and I were going to disguise ourselves as each other. The thought made me fidget a bit.

"Sis," he said, staring out the window, "can I ask you something?"

"Of course," I replied.

"How did our elder brother die? You remember, don't you?"

I froze, instantly regretting saying 'of course'. Images from the past filled my mind. Fire and blood. Our brother lying motionless, his eyes empty and black veins lining his skin.

Ethan Vance, the one-time heir of the Nightshade pack.

"I don't remember," I lied.

"But you were with him when he—"

"I said I don't freaking remember!" I snapped.

Ryan blinked at my outburst.

"Okay," he replied. "I'm sorry for asking."

Instantly, I felt like a terrible person. What was I shouting at Ryan for?

"I'm the one who should be sorry," I said. "I shouldn't have shouted at you."

"It's okay," he replied. "It's just that nobody ever tells me anything."

Well, that was true. Ever since our mother and Ethan died, Father and I had become determined to protect sickly Ryan.

But I wondered if he was getting too old for that protection.

"You haven't asked about Iris," he said, changing the subject.

A sharp sting shot through my heart when I thought of that betrayer.

"I don't care about that lying b***h," I said.

"Well, I thought you might want to know that Alpha Rider has offered to make her his Luna as thanks for healing him."

That b***h. Was that her plan all along?

"She should pray I never get my hands on her," I fumed.

…

Our night at the inn was uneventful, and the next morning was when Ryan and I started to put our plan in motion. I stood before a mirror and cut my long hair until it looked exactly like Ryan's. Then I bound my chest and dressed into his clothes before staring at myself for a moment.

I looked just like Ryan, only more feminine. He had always been a pretty guy.

It had been quite a challenge to find a dress of mine that would fit Ryan, and as I watched him clad in the flowing silk with fabric pushed into the bras on his chest, I couldn't help bursting into laughter.

"You would have made such a lovely bride," I gasped between chortles.

Ryan simply rolled his eyes at me. I helped him add finishing touches to the outfit, then draped a large cloak over him to hide that his shoulders were broader than mine. I used makeup to soften his features, and then we were ready to deceive.

Not a single guard could tell the difference when we headed out to the carriage, and the journey continued like everything was normal. If I had been sure it wouldn't blow my cover, I would have laughed the whole way. Finally, we got to the academy.

"Lord Ryan," the head of the guards said, "Alpha Vance has high hopes for you."

'Of course he does,' I thought.

I nearly rolled my eyes, but then I remembered that I was Ryan. Ryan was the good one.

"I will do my best not to let him or the pack down," I replied in a perfect imitation of Ryan's voice. Then, because I just couldn't resist being a troublemaker, I added, "make sure you take care of my sister."

"We will, Lord Ryan," the man replied.

Grinning like the cat that got the cream, I turned to Ryan. Just because I could, I added,

"Can I count on you to behave yourself, Sis?"

Ryan rolled his eyes and flipped me off. I turned, still grinning, and walked into the academy premises. I was going to become the first woman to be made Alpha, and this was the first step.

I headed immediately to the dormitories to drop off my suitcase, noting that there were two people in each room. I was going to have to be extra careful, then.

The students were supposed to head to the Grand Hall right away for orientation, so I did just that, following the direction of the map in my hands. I had walked for quite a while in a lush forest before I realized that I was lost.

I tried to retrace my steps, squinting at the map, but there were no words on it. There were only images, and every forest drawn on it looked the same.

What the heck?

'Who the hell wrote this map?!' I screeched in my head.

"You just got here, and you're already lost," I muttered to myself, walking out of the forest. "You're off to a great start, Sasha Vance."

I took a winding path, walked quickly past fields of knee-length grass, rounded a bend… and came face to face with another forest.

Lovely. Just lovely.

This time, I decided to walk through the forest. Maybe I'd wind up at the Grand Hall somehow. As I moved deeper in, I started to hear the sound of water. Which was nice, I guessed? Didn't they say that water bodies could help you find your way or something?

When I got to the water, it turned out to be a brook. A clear, sparkling brook. And sitting on a tree stump right beside it was a young man about two years older than me.

He was sitting with his back to me, looking at the brook, and I couldn't help admiring his broad shoulders. His sleeves were rolled up, exposing lean forearms—the kind of muscular that never failed to make my mouth water.

Then he turned to look at me, and I forgot how to breathe. Because damn, this man was beautiful. He looked like an offspring of the moon goddess, with his flawless porcelain skin and curling midnight hair.

I was so busy staring that I didn’t realize it when he moved—his movements too fast for my eyes to track—and slammed me against the tree behind me. I grunted in pain, just as his arm pressed solidly against my throat, ready to strangle me if I so much as breathed in a way he didn’t like.

"Who are you?" he hissed, and I really shouldn’t have been thinking about how sexy his husky baritone was. "What do you want?"