Chapter 43: The Girl In The Purple Dress

Malric

Vance shoved past Malric, grabbed Jax firmly by the collar of his shirt, and slammed him backward into the wall with a thunderous impact.

"Get your hands off her!" Vance growled, his jaw clenching as he began dragging Jax out into the hallway by his lapels, an uncharacteristic rage flashing in his eyes. Jax yelled out in surprise, and the students lingering in the hallway instantly gathered around, eager to watch the two third-years tear each other apart over a sudden dispute.

Taking immediate advantage of the chaotic brawl unfolding in the doorway, the girl stepped quietly around the scuffling boys. She walked past Malric, her head lowered, her full purple skirt rustling softly against the floorboards.

As she brushed past his right side, her jasmine scent washed over him in a concentrated, intoxicating wave. Malric’s breath hitched again. Every fiber of his being screamed at him to reach out, to wrap his arms around her waist, to pull her into his chest and never let her go. He wanted to claim her right then and there.

Yet, he remained frozen, completely trapped in a trance, watching helplessly as she slipped past the threshold and into the crowded corridor.

It was only when her scent began to fade, when the distance between them grew too wide, that the invisible chains holding him snapped. Realization hit Malric like a bucket of ice water.

I just let my fated mate walk away.

Forgetting Travis Whitelock, forgetting the hunt, forgetting the party, and completely ignoring his brother wrestling Jax on the floor, Malric shoved his way through the cluster of cheering students, breaking into a brisk walk down the hallway. He saw her at the far end of the corridor, her dark, curled hair bouncing against her back as she hurried toward the grand staircase.

"Hey!" Malric called out, his deep voice cutting over the noise.

He couldn’t use her name, he didn’t even know it.

The girl paused near the bottom of the stairs, turning her head back over her shoulder. Her purple eyes met his through the dimly lit hallway, and in that split second, an electric current surged straight down Malric’s spine. It felt as though two cosmic stars were colliding within his chest, shattering his reality into a brilliant, blinding flame.

He opened his mouth to speak, taking a fast step toward her—

"Malric! Oh, there you are, my love!"

Savannah suddenly materialized out of nowhere, stepping directly into his line of sight and throwing her arms securely around his neck. "Get off me, Savannah!" Malric growled, trying to push past her, but Savannah held tight, giggling as she pressed her cheek to his chest.

"I just wanted to thank you so much for the diamond necklace you sent to my room!" Savannah gushed, leaning back slightly to show off the sparkling, heavy diamond collar resting against her collarbone. "Look at it! It matches my dress so perfectly! You are honestly the sweetest—"

"Savannah, move!" Malric snapped, violently wrenching his arm free and shoving past her. He looked back toward the staircase.

She was gone. "Wait!" Malric shouted toward the empty landing, but his desperate call dissolved into the thumping bass of the music.

Kaeli

Down on the main floor, Kaeli leaned heavily against a massive stone pillar, a glass of amber liquor held loosely in his hand.

A tight cluster of giggling, heavily perfumed girls and boys surrounded him, leaning in close and throwing endless, shallow questions at his head. Kaeli didn’t hear a single word they were saying. His head was thumping with a dull hangover, and every instinct in his body was screaming at him to flee. He hated being surrounded by crowds, especially women. Ever since the traumatic night he went feral at the academy and tore off the head of the only girl he had ever loved, being around female attention felt like breathing in poison.

Zoning out, Kaeli scanned the vast, open living room, which had been cleared of all furniture to make room for the dance floor. Across the room, standing near the grand staircase, was his brother Theo. Theo looked completely out of breath, his face flushed and his wide eyes fixed on the base of the stairs in a bizarre, stunned trance.

What is Theo looking at? Kaeli wondered, shifting his gaze to follow his brother’s line of sight. A girl emerged from the stairwell, picking up her heavy purple skirts as she navigated through the milling crowd, heading straight for the front exit.

Kaeli’s breath caught in his throat. The glass in his hand slipped through his fingers, shattering against the wooden floorboards and spilling alcohol over his boots.

He would recognize that dress anywhere. It was a one-of-a-kind Renaissance gown of deep purple velvet, lined with golden brocade and delicate pearls. It was the exact dress he had bought years ago for his late girlfriend, Daphne. It was the dress she had died in.

She was in the room, Kaeli’s mind raced, adrenaline instantly replacing the foggy haze of his hangover. The memorial room. She was in Daphne’s room!

Someone had dared to break into the private sanctuary dedicated to his dead lover, steal her dress, and even put on the dark, curled wig that belonged to the obsidian statue. Pure, unadulterated fury surged through Kaeli’s blood. Pushing forcefully past the squealing girls surrounding him, Kaeli set off across the dance floor like a heat-seeking missile.

The girl moved quickly, weaving through the crowded hall and pushing open the heavy double front doors, stepping out into the cool, dark forest air. Kaeli burst through the doors a second later, ignoring the students lingering on the porch. He sprinted down the wooden steps and reached the edge of the dark treeline, his eyes locking onto the solitary purple figure moving toward the path.

"You there! In the purple dress! Stop!" Kaeli roared. The girl halted instantly. Slowly, hesitation in every line of her posture, she turned around to face him.

The moonlight caught her face, illuminating striking purple eyes that glowed in the darkness. Kaeli opened his mouth to tear her apart, to demand to know why she was wearing Daphne’s clothes, but the words died instantly in his throat.

The wind shifted. A strong breeze blew out from the dark forest, carrying her scent directly into his face. The smell of wild, sweet jasmine flooded his nostrils.

Kaeli froze. His throat went bone-dry, his lungs locking up as the world around him seemed to tilt on its axis. The blurry memory from his hangover flashed violently in his mind, the soft scent of jasmine, the bare silhouette stepping out of the shower, the haunting presence in his room.

It wasn’t a hallucination. It wasn’t the Moon’s Crust making him see things. She was real. He stood there, completely paralyzed, unable to speak, unable to move a single muscle as the girl stared back at him with wide, frightened purple eyes. He finally understood why Theo had been standing at the stairs looking like a brain-dead ghost.

This girl... is our mate.

Before Kaeli could process the absolute impossibility of it, the girl turned on her heel and bolted into the dark woods, her purple velvet skirts disappearing into the shadowy trees. Kaeli stared at the empty forest line, his chest heaving, his mind completely shattered.

I really, really have to be high right now.