Chapter 224: Thanks For The Wine

This party had to be a big deal because there were so many beasts gathered that Charlotte didn’t even know where to begin looking for her roommates.

Just as she was about to pull out her phone and call one of them, someone tapped her on the shoulder. She turned and found Zainab standing behind her.

"Hey..." Zainab greeted with a nervous smile.

"Hey." Charlotte didn’t think much of her strange mood. "Where are the others?"

"They’re over there." Zainab pointed toward the edge of the party, where Indigo and Meredith stood apart from everyone else like they were trying their best not to be noticed.

"Come on, then. We have a competition to win."

Charlotte headed in their direction with Zainab beside her, spotting the others exactly where she’d pointed. But they weren’t alone. Another dragoness stood with them.

"And there comes the lucky human," Evelina said as soon as Charlotte came into view. "Your roommates have been quite worried about you."

At the mention of her roommates, Charlotte looked from Indigo to Meredith. Both of them looked nervous as hell, and Charlotte wasn’t stupid. Whatever this dragoness had been doing before she arrived, neither girl appeared to be enjoying her company. This was exactly why Charlotte had sought protection in Thamas in the first place.

Charlotte turned her attention back to the dragoness. "You look familiar, so I’m guessing I’ve seen you around before. What I don’t understand is why you’re hovering around the humans. I thought dragons had better things to do than intimidate people half their size."

The dragoness’s lips thinned. "I’m Evelina. And I was merely looking out for your roommates while you were off enjoying yourself." Her gaze swept dismissively over Charlotte. "Although it seems my good intentions aren’t appreciated."

"Well, we don’t need them," Charlotte retorted. "Nobody is allowed to harm us at this party."

What she didn’t see was the guilty look that passed between Zainab, Indigo, and Meredith.

Evelina’s expression hardened. She strode toward Charlotte, but Charlotte didn’t move a muscle.

The dragoness stopped directly in front of her. Most humans would have backed away from a pissed-off dragon, even if only by instinct. Charlotte stared her dead in the face.

Evelina scoffed. "You must think you’re special now that Thamas has shown you a little favor."

Charlotte didn’t blink. She refused to give her even the satisfaction of a reaction, and that only seemed to irritate Evelina more.

"This..." Evelina caught the chain attached to the collar around Charlotte’s neck and gave it a small tug, forcing Charlotte a fraction closer. "This doesn’t make you important. A collar is still a collar, sweetheart. Don’t mistake the bondage for devotion."

Charlotte’s jaw clenched and Evelina smiled.

"But by all means, enjoy yourself tonight. Parade around with your dragon. Wear his colors. Pretend you’ve suddenly become untouchable."

She leaned closer until her mouth was beside Charlotte’s ear.

"Just remember that the party eventually ends."

Then she drew back with the sweetest smile Charlotte had ever wanted to slap off someone’s face.

"Enjoy it while you can, Charlotte."

Evelina released the chain and walked away, looking entirely pleased with herself. As soon as she was gone, Charlotte’s roommates hurried toward her.

"Are you okay?"

"I’m fine," Charlotte answered, although her voice came out taut. She would be lying if she said the encounter hadn’t rattled her. But she was Charlotte Greenwood, and if Evelina thought one threat was enough to make her tuck her tail between her legs and run, then the bitch clearly didn’t know her.

"Who the hell is that?" she demanded, already adding another name to her growing list of enemies.

"She’s one of Tamara’s friends," Indigo answered.

Charlotte’s attention snapped back to them.

"And since when did the three of you become friendly with a dragoness?"

"We are not friends!" Meredith snapped.

The force of the response made Charlotte’s brows rise.

Meredith seemed to realize it too because she quickly reined herself in. "What about you? Since when did you start dating a dragon? Is that where you’ve been all this time?"

Of course, that was exactly the story Charlotte and Thamas wanted everyone to believe.

The truth was far less exciting. Charlotte had been terrified Quest might come back for her, so she’d hidden in Thamas’s room for the rest of the night. Thamas himself had left and hadn’t returned to the dorm until earlier today, which was when they’d come up with their plan for tonight’s party.

Charlotte was using him, and that was the part she desperately hoped the dragon hadn’t figured out yet. She needed Tamara here, and if by some stroke of luck the dragoness really did have feelings for Thamas, then flaunting herself on his arm all night should eventually produce some kind of reaction. Otherwise, she was taking one hell of a risk for nothing. Worse, if Thamas ever realized she’d been using him for her own purposes, Tamara might become the least of her problems.

So she intentionally allowed a blush to creep across her cheeks. Let them think whatever they wanted. In fact, the more people who believed something had happened between her and Thamas, the better. Rumors traveled faster when there were witnesses willing to repeat them, and her roommates were as good a place to start as any.

"Enough of the chit-chat. Which of you is good with animals? I need two people to join me for this race."

"Race?" all three girls asked, confused.

"There’s no time to explain. I need two of you. Are you in or out?"

The three girls exchanged glances, but before Meredith could answer, Zainab and Indigo spoke almost simultaneously.

"I am."

"Me too."

"Good." Charlotte smiled in satisfaction. "Now all that’s left is to beat that bitch Karen."

She beckoned to Zainab and Indigo. "Let’s go, then."

"Wait!"

Meredith’s sudden shout stopped all three of them. Charlotte turned and noticed the glass of wine in her hand.

"You should have this," Meredith said, holding it out to her. "It’ll steady your nerves for the competition, and it’s quite good wine."

Indigo and Zainab went pale, recognizing the wine immediately. Charlotte noticed none of it. Instead, her eyes lit up at the sight of the glass.

"God, I haven’t had a decent wine since I got to this party."

She took it from Meredith and downed the entire thing.

Indigo and Zainab pressed their lips together, while tears threatened to gather in Meredith’s eyes. Her hands had begun to shake, so she quickly clasped them behind her back before Charlotte could notice.

She had no choice. It was Charlotte or them, and she had chosen them.

"Thank you." Charlotte handed the empty glass back to her before looking at the others. "Let’s go."

Nobody moved. Zainab and Indigo stared at her. Meredith stared hardest of all. For several seconds, all three waited for something to happen.

Charlotte frowned. "Why are you guys staring at me like that? Let’s go."

She turned and walked off, snapping them out of their shock.

Zainab and Indigo hurried after her, but both glanced back at Meredith with the same bewilderment written across their faces.

Wasn’t Charlotte supposed to be dead already?

Meredith looked just as confused.

Tamara hadn’t told them how quickly the poison would work. She hadn’t told them much of anything beyond what they needed to do. Perhaps it wasn’t supposed to kill Charlotte immediately and would take several minutes. An hour. Maybe even until after the party.

They could only hope.

Because if the poison hadn’t worked at all, sooner or later Tamara was going to find out. And that possibility frightened them almost as much as what they’d just done.

By the time Charlotte returned to the party, they were unsurprisingly the last group to arrive.But that wasn’t what caught her attention. Someone else had finally shown up.

Tamara Ironwing.

Never would Charlotte have thought she’d be so happy to see that dragoness. Her plan had worked. Whatever news she’d hoped would reach Tamara clearly had, because there she was.

And she was standing with Thamas.

Both of them noticed Charlotte the moment she returned. Thamas tried his best to give her the kind of smile expected from a man happy to see his lover, and Charlotte almost would have believed it herself if she hadn’t known better.

Tamara saw it too and Charlotte waited for the reaction. But Instead, Tamara smirked and gave her a little wave with her fingers.

Charlotte’s steps faltered. That was... strange.

She’d expected anger. A glare and even some territorial display or an attempt to pull Thamas’s attention back to herself. Anything that suggested seeing Charlotte with him bothered her.

But Tamara looked amused. What the hell was that supposed to mean?

"You sure know how to waste everyone’s time."

Karen Donovan’s voice pulled Charlotte from her thoughts.

"Shut up, Karen," Charlotte snapped.

Then she noticed that only Olivia and Fatima were standing beside her.

"Where’s your mouthpiece, Liv? I was expecting her."

Karen’s expression soured. "Mind your business, Charlotte."

Charlotte chuckled. "That’s rich coming from you."

Before Karen could retort, one of the serpents approached and handed her a Chibun, effectively cutting their argument short.

Charlotte rolled her eyes and stepped forward when it was her turn. The moment the Chibun was placed in her hands, however, something felt wrong.

A strange weakness ran through her fingers.

Charlotte frowned and tried to adjust her grip, but her hands suddenly trembled. Before she could tighten them around the little creature, it slipped straight through her fingers and dropped onto the stone.

Her breath caught. What the hell?