Senya settles herself in the booth across from Riot and I. Her eyes are shadowed over again, a stony expression on her face. That's the second thing she shares with Riot: jaded black eyes.
She peers around at the humans taking their seats all around us, filling up the booths. With the mass variety of smells swirling through the room, it's beyond me how she looks so composed.
"You okay?" Riot asks, leaning over so that his mouth is right above my ear.
I shake my head.
My eyes won't stop watering. My nose won't stop scrunching up from trying to keep the foreign smells out. And the gaping bite out of my side is on fire once again. 'Okay' isn't the word I would use to describe it.
"Here." An arm snakes around my shoulders and pulls me against a solid torso. My face presses against the side of his chest, his subliminal scent pushing away all others.
I inhale deeply, relieved to finally breathe again.
"You're tribal, aren't you?" Senya observes, studying me. Not even Riot's embrace can shield me from her sharp eyes. She watches me like a predator watching a predator.
I want to shrink further into Riot, but I stop myself. Her gaze is unnerving. Like she can see everything trapped inside me with one hard look. Finding all of my flaws and storing them away.
I nod. "Visari."
Her brow raises such a small amount that it's almost unnoticeable. Almost. She doesn't say anything else and I wonder if it was a mistake to tell her.
A soft yet piercing beep sounds out and the door we'd entered through slides closed. The machine roars to life and lurches forward. The next time I look out the window, the trees are nothing more than a blur.
Minutes later, a young boy approaches our booths. He's wearing over a black vest over a white button down shirt, carrying a classical aura about him.
"How's your ride going today? Does anyone need anything?" He asks politely. He flashes a wide, toothy smile that has 'mandatory' written all over it.
"We're fine," Senya replies frigidly. Her tone is anything but warm and the belligerent undertone is even colder. I'm thankful that I don't actually need anything, because the chances of him returning later seem slim.
As she looks over her shoulder to see the waiter off, my eyes fall on the side of her head. More specifically, her ear. It's the one without the metallic yellow pack ring, the one that should be untouched.
It's not.
A small portion of the cartilage is missing at the top. Cut out.
It wasn't taken out by some freak accident, either. It's shaped oddly, almost like a little key.
Any other time I might resist asking such a personal thing. She took an entire chunk out of my side in mere seconds with whatever deadly liquid she poured on me, and I'm not fond of the idea of testing her patience any further. But something about Riot's presence next to me makes me feel untouchable, fueling me with reckless confidence.
"What were you notched for?" The words are out before I can think about regretting them.
Every tribal pack has their own rules, but they all share the same punishment method. Whenever a wolf commits a crime, a small piece is taken from whichever ear doesn't have the ring. The procedure is done by a shard of metal being heated over an open flame until it's hot enough to melt the cartilage. Once it is, a metal pen is used to draw and retrace the shape until eventually the piece falls out. They call it Notching.
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The Exiled Alpha | ✓
Werewolf"It's like he's a different breed of werewolf. Something... beyond us." • • • Adrienne Gage has spent her entire life being shunned and punished for her mouthy attitude, and being loyal to a pack which doesn't deserve her loyalty. It's been a year...
