Held In Contempt (Of Magic and Contempt Book 2) Read online

  Only Asher had confessed to him that Melody was his mate. Justin wasn’t sure whether he believed that or not, but it was a moot point. To break another bond, even without the geasen, would hurt Melody, and no matter how much Justin and his dragon wanted to claim her for themselves, they wouldn’t hurt her to do it.

  It didn’t mean that it was easier for him.

  Quite the opposite. He was now forced to walk the fine line between his raging beast and his need to protect her even from himself. If only she’d do the right thing and bond them. To be this close to freedom, so tantalisingly near to a witch that he could finally respect, and to almost have the opportunity to formally join his brothers in a pack; was sheer torture.

  His dragon rumbled in agreement.

  He’d had enough. The sun was up, and no matter what else had happened, Melody should be too. Justin bounded from his room, showered and dressed and thundered down the stairs, not waiting for Nick or the others.

  In the common room, shifters sat silently, still in shock. Several students had been killed, and all of them bore some kind of mark or another.

  It was enough to make him pull his head out of his ass. Here he was, solely focussed on moving forward past the barrier that had blocked him for so long, and here were shifters who didn’t have witches, left to deal with the aftermath on their own. Justin was willing to bet that none of them had killed before.

  Nick? he sent through their link.

  Where are you? Nick asked.

  Ground floor, common room. Is the link open?

  It is now, what’s going on?

  We need to talk to Mrs H. I know she’s hurting, but so are the people here. These guys have no witch to console them, nobody to talk through the horror. They need counselling, or members from their own pack to come and visit. Until all that can happen, they need us. Strong, experienced shifters. We’re called the fucking Apex for a reason. Time to earn the brand.

  On my way, Nick replied.

  Us as well, Oz sent.

  Uh, we can’t come right now, Dean sent, an odd tone in his voice.

  His dragon growled that their beasts needed them, and to leave them alone with the new bond dynamics. Justin shrugged. Okay, they could work without the three of them. He’d never been bonded, so he had no idea what adding another shifter to the mix would do. Few witches had more than one familiar, and Melody already had three.

  There were four of them, he wasn’t sure what they were going to do about the female shifters, but at least the males here had the four of them. It was a start.

  When Nick joined him, Justin strode forward to stand in the middle of the room. He waited until everyone had noticed him and the scattered conversations had stilled.

  He didn’t bother to raise his voice, their superior hearing took care of the need, and a resounding call to action was not what he intended.

  “As shifters, we have certain instincts, certain abilities that the witches don’t. It enables us to do things that people wouldn’t normally be able to do. We fight harder, we love wilder and when necessary, we kill with precision.”

  The silence was deafening.

  “Yesterday, the academy was attacked. We come here to get a decent education, the best training and to find our witch. This is our haven, our home, our family. I’m willing to bet that most of you have never killed a sentient being before yesterday.”

  A young shifter in the corner leant forward and heaved the contents of his stomach noisily onto the floor. Justin didn’t move, didn’t yell, didn’t sigh or show any signs of impatience.

  “That reaction is perfectly normal and valid. I threw up for a week the first time I killed a man,” he told them.

  This time, there were harsh whispers as they absorbed that fact and its meaning.

  “We are from many packs, several species and our origins are all over the country. Yet here in this space, we are one. Look around you,” he ordered. Pausing to let them do so. “The men and women here are your pack. It doesn’t matter whether you share a link, or a name, or a physical attribute. You are stuck here with these people until you can leave, and they are your new family.”

  There were a few mutters of agreement, but nobody took it any further.

  “Yesterday, you defended your pack from those who would take everything from us. You know who I spend my time with, you know who he’s bonded, and you might think you know his witch.” Justin shook his head at them.

  Behind him, Nick growled warningly.

  Walk very carefully, brother, Nick cautioned him, no warmth in his tone.

  Justin’s dragon rumbled back. As if he’d hurt her. No, Justin knew exactly what he was going to say.

  “What you dealt with yesterday, was nothing compared to what she had to deal with. She was never in a position to stand up to them as you did. You saw her in that dome, saw the effects of what they did to her as the spells binding her tighter than any leash, were released.”

  His gaze panned around the room, noting who looked at him, who scowled, smiled or looked away. Most of all, he noted those who looked at the floor.

  “Yesterday, you had a glimpse of her true colours. You saw just a fraction of the courage that she has, the strength she has and the hope that she represents to us all. She was willing to give up her life to save Nick and me. And the others.”

  There were gasps around the room. Witches were notorious for pitching their familiars in front of them as a shield. Why risk yourself when your shifter will defend you? Witches did not risk themselves for shifters. Ever.

  “She nearly died, several times. All to save us from ending up bound to that coven. Think of that. The next time you see her in the halls, having a hard time, remember that she is the witch who put our wellbeing before her own.”

  Where are you going with this? Nick asked him.

  Justin ignored him. “What you all did yesterday, the shifters you killed, the witches you attacked, the wounds you accrued—was all in defence of this academy. It was in defence of those weaker or unable to fight. It was to uphold our right to stay here in safety, although you may not feel safe right now, we struck a mighty blow to Bestia. You should all be proud of yourselves.”

  Some of the shifters began to stir. Good.

  “You’re untrained, untried, and yet you won. You beat shifters with years of battle experience behind them, because from what Melody has told us, we know that Bestia was hell for shifters. Did you hear her screaming at the end? Begging us not to kill them because they were compelled by their witches? Even as they attacked her, she begged for their lives.” He paused again and shook his head at her folly. “She knew we had to kill them, she knew the threat they posed, but still she held out hope for their redemption.”

  Now the shifters began to murmur in support.

  “Melody is the strongest witch of her generation, and she’s on our side.”

  Be careful, Nick cautioned him again. Don’t promise anything on her behalf. She’s just as confined to their fucking system as we are.

  “She may be the hope of our future, or maybe she’s the first drop of water in the ocean. Whatever she is, we need to remember who we are. We’re shifters, we’re creatures of magic, and we will not be enslaved.”

  “Fuck yeah,” growled a shifter in the corner, one or two more joining in.

  “Yesterday, Bestia came for us, and they underestimated us. Yesterday, our witches didn’t hide behind us, they fought alongside us. Yesterday,” he said, his voice rising. “We showed them what we are made of. That we are not cowards, that we will not submit, and when threatened we are a force to be feared.”

  “Yeah!” came a chorus of shouts.

  “So, don’t be ashamed of what you did. That was a battle, they were on the other side. We defended our own, we held our ground and now we hold our heads high.”

  The shouts drowned him out then, the spirits of the shifters lifted, even the guy who’d puked in the corner. Others had drifted in while he spoke, crowding the room, but Justin c
ould see the difference in them all. The air of defeat was gone. If they had been in their birth packs, their alphas would have done something similar.

  But they weren’t, and the closest thing they had to a leader was the Apex.

  It was something to remember. If Melody agreed to bond them, then that leadership would be left vacant when she graduated. They needed to set up something for the future, because it shouldn’t be fellow students who led them. All of the shifters needed proper representation at the collegiate level. They needed their own provost, their own lecturers and their own fucking curriculum. These were needs that had gone unaddressed for far too long.

  That was a battle for the future, however. Right now, what they needed was someone to boost their morale, to give them pride in their actions, and to help them back onto their feet. Justin had lived long enough to know. This wasn’t over. It was only the first battle in a war.

  He did not intend for them to lose it.

  24. Ryan

  It was hard. He knew what had happened as soon as they walked through the door of the cottage. The overwhelming scent of sex was everywhere. Ryan’s wolf alternatively whimpered and growled. His witch was here, she’d been a part of it, and Ryan had not.

  Fuck, he could smell all three of them, what the hell had gone on in here?

  Unfortunately Asher was the first to emerge. There was no way in hell he was asking the surly wolf, although when Justin stormed in the front door, he had no hesitation.

  “You all fucked her?” he snarled in an odd voice.

  Obsidian scales spread up Justin’s arms and his eyes were burning silver, the pupils a vertical slit. His teeth elongated, as did his fingers, turning into massive claws, but the shift didn’t stop there.

  Fuck, Justin was going to lose his shit.

  “Dude, back up. You can’t shift in here, you’ll rip the building apart,” Ryan shouted.

  Dean came rushing out of his bedroom, his hair in wet curls. Asher’s was in wet spikes. What the hell was that about, were they showering together? Was she in there too?

  But then the door to Melody’s room opened, and Trent joined them.

  That’s when things went to shit.

  If Ryan had thought the scent of sex was strong before, it was nothing compared to the scent of Melody all over Trent. He realised that neither of the others had her scent on them, although he could smell their seed in the cottage.

  Pieces started to fall together. Whatever happened, it was between Melody and Trent, and the others hadn’t been able to help their reactions. Yeah, that made more sense.

  His wolf subsided a little, but he still pined for her.

  Justin’s reaction, however, was much louder.

  “She fucked the fox? The newest familiar? She fucked him?” he roared.

  “Jus,” Nick said firmly. “What she does and with whom is her call. You don’t get a say in it, and if you don’t like it, stiff shit. That speech you gave to the shifters, about protecting our family? Was that all hot air?”

  Nick stood in front of Justin, preventing him from attacking Trent, who stood his ground. Ryan had to give him kudos for that. Not only had he got there first, but he wasn’t afraid of the dragon.

  “She’s part of that very family we fought to protect. We fought to protect our freedom, our choices, and you can’t take them away from her because she didn’t choose what you wanted,” Nick said, pushing against Justin’s chest.

  Justin backed up a step, not because Nick was stronger, no, Justin actually was. Which meant that Justin’s dragon was listening and he was allowing them to be backed up. The scales had spread across Justin’s chest and up to his chin. They might be backing down a little, but he was still shifting.

  “Nick, he’s gonna blow,” Ryan warned him.

  “You think I don’t fucking know that?” Nick snapped.

  Ryan flinched. Nick never snapped at them. He was always the consummate leader, cool, calm, collected. They could be walking through an exploding minefield and he’d tell them to take a step to the left and forward four more, without batting an eye at the debris flying towards them. Nothing, but nothing made Nick snap.

  Except this, apparently.

  Ryan stepped forward and joined the dragon, the two of them pushing Justin outside, but before they could get him out the door, the very witch in question joined them, setting the spark to the fuse.

  Melody smelled like sex and Trent.

  “Puuush,” Ryan roared. Dean and Asher leapt forward to help them, and Oz pulled from outside.

  Together, they managed to get him out the door as he began to swell, the shift fully taking over him. Wisely, Trent did not try to help, nor did he touch Melody, even as she stood there trembling.

  “It should have been me,” growled Justin. “She’s fucking mine.”

  The last was said with a sibilant lisp as his mouth shifted, and then suddenly Justin exploded through the last few steps of his shift. Going from scary large man to fucking scary huge dragon.

  It was a sobering thought. Ryan had never been afraid of Justin’s dragon before.

  Then again, Ryan had never seen Justin’s dragon so pissed before.

  Melody Canticum, Justin roared through their network, making him flinch. I challenge you!

  Behind him, Ryan heard Trent tell her what had been said.

  Melody appeared in the doorway, the lovely flush gone from her cheeks, turning them ashen. Her pallor only emphasised by her hair, the curls darkened with water.

  “No,” she shouted firmly. “I have only just got my life back. For the first time I have the right to choose who I accept, and I will not have yet another bond forced on me.”

  The sound Justin’s dragon made at the rejection was one that would haunt Ryan’s dreams for the rest of his life.

  At once angry and pained, it sounded like she had literally kicked him in the balls. In a manner of speaking, she had.

  Ryan had experienced it once, while they were playing their game of hunt the first years through the corridors a few years back. He’d challenged her and she’d sneered at him, refusing him outright. It kind of did feel like getting punched in the nuts.

  Instead of curling up in a ball, however, the ink-black dragon shot into the air with powerful sweeps of his wings. The roar that erupted from his throat was accompanied by flames, and he swept away towards the south horizon of the academy bounds.

  “Shouldn’t you follow him?” Ryan asked Nick, who stood there, scowling.

  Nick shook his head. “His thoughts are too chaotic, right now he’d flame me. I have no intention of fighting him. I’ll monitor him for now until he calms. Nobody can help him right now.”

  Melody gave an inarticulate cry of pain, and sank to her knees, Trent beside her, holding onto her and whispering soothing words. Dean and Asher watched on silently, jealously. She had chosen to be intimate with Trent and not them, which meant that Trent was now higher ranked than them both, instead of being the lowest rank as the newest bonded shifter. It was now Trent’s role to console her and be her guide and defender. He wondered if she knew that.

  Trent picked her up and carried her inside, Dean and Asher following like shadows. Before Nick, Oz and Ryan could join them, however, Mrs Hardinger arrived, out of breath.

  “Who pissed off the black one?” she asked abruptly, looking between them all. Spotting Nick, she nodded. “Yes, I thought it was Justin. He was always the more temperamental of the two of you. I can’t remember the last time I saw one of you shifted.”

  Nick shrugged. “We do it pretty regularly, just at night. Our dragons need to get out and move around too, you know.”

  The woman nodded, flapping her hands in assent. “Yes, yes, but what happened to set him off this time?”

  They all looked at each other, none of them willing to say anything. They should have known better.

  Mrs Hardinger’s gaze swept across them all again, and then she nodded. “Fucked one of them, did she?” she said bluntly, making the
m all flinch. Fuck, she spoke like his own pack luna.

  “Smells like it,” Nick said, hesitantly.

  The counsellor rolled her eyes at him. “So, you can smell it. Big deal. Does it give you the right to comment on it? To demand knowledge or make her feel ashamed of herself? Nevermind thinking about where she grew up, what she would have been taught was normal and how she was treated. She has three bonded familiars. What she does is her business, and none of you have the right to intervene. You all seem to forget that none of you are guaranteed a bond with her.”

  “She smells of Trent, and Trent smells of her, and they both smell of sex. The living space smells of Dean and Asher’s … release. But not of her,” Ryan said.

  The others looked at him in surprise.

  “I hadn’t picked up on that,” Nick said, thoughtfully.

  “I just assumed they’d all been in on it, it’s what I would have done,” Oz replied.

  She rolled her eyes at him. “Yes, fucking shifters. That’s exactly what most would have done. I bet it’s what he did before he went off in a tantrum.”

  Ryan shook his head. “No, he very clearly was upset that she’d ‘fucked the fox’. That was bad enough, but then he challenged her and she refused him.”

  “Oh, well yes, that probably would have done it too,” she said. “Stupid ass.”

  Ryan blinked. While she was the counsellor for all shifters, the five of them had pretty much dealt with everything themselves for a long time. They had each other for support, and he’d had very little to do with Mrs Hardinger. Although her reputation for plainspokenness was legendary.

  “All he sees is what he wants, and when he doesn’t get it, he storms off. He’s not looking at it from her perspective. Even if she didn’t have three shifters already and had a lot to contend with on that front, she’s only just regained the right to say no. Her right to accept or reject has been withheld from her for her entire life. Of course she’s not ready to leap forward and accept you all, no matter what she feels for you.”

  “That’s pretty much what she said to him when she rejected him,” Nick replied.