Chapter 209: The Serpent She Had Been Looking For

After that spectacular performance and insanely hot kiss courtesy of Aria and Maverick, it was safe to say the rest of them had become the unofficial source of answers to questions every beast suddenly wanted answered.

Unfortunately for everyone else, those answers weren’t theirs to give.

Everywhere they turned, someone was staring at them as if being Aria’s roommates meant they should explain what the hell was going on between the human and their Alpha Prince.

However, while most of the reactions ranged from shock to outright disbelief, there were also the furious ones, even within House Therion.

Take the tigress Felicity, for example.

"Bitch won’t stop staring at us," Trisha commented when her eyes connected with the tigress’s yet again.

"Or talking either," Brittney said.

It was obvious Felicity was trying to provoke them into reacting. So far, they’d heard her call Aria a rather colorful collection of names, including human slut and ghetto whore. And as if those weren’t enough, she’d spent the last several minutes loudly insisting to anyone willing to listen that Aria had worn the fur deliberately to seduce their Alpha.

Brittney’s mouth twitched. If only Felicity knew.

"Don’t bother with the tigress," Valerie told Trisha and Brittney. "Her pride is bruised, and with Maverick’s protection over all of you, there’s nothing she can actually do about it. Right now, she’s just trying to provoke you into reacting."

"Unfortunately for her, that’s where she’s failed woefully." Brittney scoffed. "If that bitch thinks she has a mouth on her, she’d better not provoke me. I’ll insult her so badly she’ll wish she’d crawled back into her mother’s womb."

Valerie lifted a brow, clearly unconvinced that Brittney wasn’t bluffing.

"She’s not kidding," Trisha assured her. "If name-calling were a sport, Brittney would win the world championship. I’d probably settle for state champion."

She considered it for a moment. "I think it runs in the family."

"In that case..." Variant cut in. "You both might want to watch that mouth around your classmates when lessons begin on Monday. We beasts have notoriously short tempers."

Brittney grinned. "Noted."

Variant stared at her. "You don’t look like someone who intends to take that advice."

"Oh, absolutely not."

Variant and Valerie sighed. They certainly had their work cut out for them.

Then a burst of laughter from nearby caught their attention.

It came from Dimitri and Alek, who were seated a short distance away. They had purposely given them some space tonight, allowing the new mates to explore their bond without four dateless women hovering around them like unwanted third wheels.

Whatever Dimitri had just said had Alek laughing so hard that she leaned into him. Dimitri watched her with obvious amusement, but then his gaze dropped to her mouth, and just like that, the laughter between them faded into something else.

Brittney immediately noticed.

"And here we go..." she said, already anticipating what was coming as she twirled the drink in her glass. "In three... two... one..."

Right on cue, Dimitri pulled Alek into a kiss.

And not a small one either.

Within seconds, the two were practically eating each other’s faces, completely oblivious to everyone around them. Much like Aria and Maverick earlier, however, their little display did not go unnoticed.

"Unbelievable..."

"I cannot believe this."

"What the hell is going on tonight?"

Shock rippled through the surrounding beasts as more heads turned toward the couple.

"First the Alpha, now the Beta," one of the Therion males said. "Is there something about these humans the rest of us haven’t been told?" His mouth curved into a grin. "Perhaps I should taste one and find out."

His attention shifted toward Brittney and Trisha. He barely had time to take a step in their direction when Valerie and Variant hissed.

The sound that came from both females at once was vicious enough to wipe the grin straight off his face. Valerie bared her teeth while Variant moved closer to the humans, and despite neither female ranking particularly high on the beast power scale, the warning was unmistakable.

Try it.

The male apparently decided neither woman was worth finding out what would happen next. He raised his hands and backed away.

Brittney watched him go.

"And here I was thinking squirrels and chipmunks were supposed to be cute."

"We are cute," Valerie replied sweetly.

Variant finished in a stern voice. "Until we’re not."

"Cool." Trisha was impressed.

Dimitri and Alek, meanwhile, were still kissing, and from the way things were going, neither seemed particularly concerned about oxygen deprivation.

Valerie’s amusement faded as she glanced around them.

"This isn’t going to end here."

Brittney noticed the direction of her stare and followed it. Not everyone watching Dimitri and Alek looked shocked or curious. Several beasts, especially House Ophidian and Aetheris were openly scowling now, their displeasure becoming harder to miss.

"They know how easily something like this can start to look like a pattern," Valerie continued. "First Maverick publicly kisses a human. Now his Beta is doing the same thing with another one. Humans and beasts getting this close to each other..." She shook her head. "There are beasts who aren’t going to like where they think this is heading."

"Dimitri will protect Alek," Trisha said, finally understanding her concern.

"And who will protect you?"

Variant’s question was directed at Trisha, but her eyes moved briefly to Brittney as well.

Neither girl answered immediately.

Alek had Dimitri. Aria had Maverick. Whether they needed protection or not, two of their friends now had some of the most powerful beasts in Therion standing between them and anyone who might wish them harm.

Brittney and Trisha had no one.

"We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it," Brittney answered at last.

Then, deciding she’d had enough of the sudden seriousness, she reached for Variant’s hand.

"Besides, isn’t this supposed to be a party? What’s with the depressing mood?" She tugged her toward the crowd. "Come on. Let’s dance."

Variant barely had time to protest before Brittney dragged her away.

Trisha and Valerie exchanged a look and shrugged before following after them.

On the dance floor, Brittney couldn’t care less about the beasts casting dirty looks her way as though she had no right to be there. She ignored every last one of them and danced with the girls instead, laughing and moving with the music until, for a little while, she almost forgot they were trapped in an academy that seemed determined to kill them.

Then, somewhere in the middle of the dancing, she saw him.

An all-too-familiar face in the crowd. One belonging to a certain serpent who had once snuck into her room.

Venus—God help that surname—Crotalus.The serpent she’d been looking for all night.