The Rejected True Heiress (Liora and Callum) novel Chapter 296

I looked around quickly. There was a stream nearby, maybe twenty feet away. I could hear the water running over the rocks. But the stream was outside the circle.

Dammit.

The wolf lunged again, and I barely managed to roll out of the way this time. Its claws caught my jacket, tearing through the fabric and grazing my shoulder. Fresh pain flared across my skin, followed by the sensation of hot blood spraying across my neck, but I grit my teeth and ignored it.

I needed to get the wolf to the stream. But if I left the circle, I’d fail.

I stared at the wolf, my mind racing. I would certainly fail, but was it worth it? If this wolf infected me, I could die. If the wolf didn’t find a cure soon, it could hurt not just me, but many others, and maybe even itself.

Could I really stand here and compare passing a test over letting people get hurt?

No. Of course not.

“Fuck it,” I whispered.

Thinking quickly, I grabbed a handful of mud from the ground and threw it at the wolf’s face. It landed with a plop directly between the world’s eyes, making it snarl and shake its head.

While the wolf was distracted, I took the opportunity to run toward the edge of the circle. The wolf recovered quickly and followed, snapping at my heels. But I wanted it to.

When I reached the rope, I didn’t stop. I dove under it, scrambled to my feet, and kept running.

Behind me, I could hear Alder shouting. “She’s left the circle! She’s disqualified!”

I didn’t care. I just kept running toward the stream. The sounds of the water babbling over the rocks became louder, and finally, I spotted the glittering surface under the light of the moon. It was shallow and frozen in spots, but it would work.

I stood, dripping wet and shivering. “You were drugged. With wolfsbane.”

“What?” He pressed his hand to his forehead. “I don’t… I don’t remember… Unless…”

Alder was storming toward us now with the cameraman in tow. His face was red with anger. “What do you think you’re doing? You left the circle! You’re disqualified!”

The moment Damien saw Mr. Alder, his eyes went wide. He shot to his feet, pointing. “I remember now! You gave me something before the test. You said it was a performance enhancer. You said it would help me fight better! You didn’t tell me it was wolfsbane!”

The camera was still rolling. I looked directly at it, at the student behind it who was now trembling and staring at the principal in shock.

“You made me take wolfsbane!” Damien shouted. “You drugged me and sent me to fight a wolfless girl!”