Chapter 5: Appraisal

Kline nearly rushes away after that, probably eager to stew in his rage or just in general. It’s hard to tell.

Either way, I can breathe a little easier.

I’m not exactly thrilled to be hanging out with Kline any time soon, but it can’t be helped. What my king wants, my king will get.

“Cayden!”

Looking over, I find my mother coming toward us. She bows to Alpha Horace before he takes his leave, then she envelopes me in a hug and takes a step back to look me in the eye. I’m not sure what she’s looking for as her eyes bounce between mine, but I see the moment when they shift to my shoulder.

She pulls my hoodie back, but I pull away from her. The hurt on her face is apparent, but I quickly explain, “It’s already healing, mom. Maverick would never hurt me.”

It’s not that I don’t trust my mother, but the idea of someone else looking at Maverick’s mark doesn’t sit well with me. It’s not for anyone else.

My wolf agrees.

Although this new feeling of possessiveness has sprung up because of the mark, I realize it’s the closest I’ve ever been to him and will probably ever be.

My mother’s hand moves just above her chest, where my father put his own mate mark on her. It may not be the same, but she should, at least, understand the significance of what it means to me.

“I can take a look just to be sure,” she says, her eyes flicking over to our king. Maverick wears a wide grin. His chest puffed out in a way that seems uncomfortable.

“Why are you standing like...you know what? I don’t want to know,” I say, turning away from Maverick, “Mom, trust me. It’s already healed up. If it makes you feel better, I can go wash up the blood.”

“It would, actually, and give me a moment to… congratulate our new king.”

I look between the two of them. There is something I’m missing here, but Maverick was always a little strange, and my mom is always protective. They always got along when we were little, though, so I choose to ignore it.

I have no real answer to the reason why I hear my mother say ‘he’s my son…’ before I walk off.

---

In the communal bathroom, I stare at my reflection. I’ve pulled off my hoodie to keep it from getting wet and it sits on the sink beside me. My hands drip with water as I slide them along my mark. The blood washes away and what’s left is a sort of sigil. I can’t quite make it out, but it looks sort of incomplete. Maybe it’s a crest?

Maverick’s family has a family crest, and to my knowledge, most Alpha’s have some sort of identifier.

I run my fingers over it, the phantom pleasure-pain of Maverick’s teeth along my skin. I had never felt anything so intimate in my life. It’s a shame that something so meaningful happened in a room full of our entire pack, but there is this weird sort of pride I feel that everyone saw it. Not a single person missed our king single me out and put his claim to me.

There is no denying that I am the Beta of the Ganymede Pack.

The door to the bathroom creaks open and I fix my collar. The water I splash on my face is cool and refreshing.

I look up to find Kline’s reflection in the mirror behind me.

“Cayden.”

“Kline.”

He comes to stand next to me, appraising me in a way that makes my skin crawl. His dark green eyes roam over my face, yet it feels like he’s seeing through me. It doesn’t get past me he didn’t call me by my title. I swallow a lump and back up, my back hitting the edge of the sink. The water runs down the drain as he studies me.

“What do you want?”

The words come out in a whisper, not the warning tone I had hoped. It’s like Kline soaked up all the air in the room. Never in all my time knowing him did I ever notice his presence being so large.

“I wanted to see…”

His hands are icy when they brush against my skin. The collar of my shirt is pulled away and before I can move, Kline has seen the mark and the hint of a sneer grows on his lips.

He recovers quickly. So quickly, I wonder if I imagined it.

“I’ve never seen such a public display. Shame it wasn’t me in your shoes.”

“W—what?”

“It’s no secret that I enjoy a good spectacle,” he says as he takes a step back, “I’m just curious what it is he sees in you.”

“I’m his best friend.”

It sounds weak, even to my own ears. Maverick didn’t pick me as his Beta because we’re friends…or maybe he did? Compared to Kline, with his heritage and training, I’m seriously underqualified.

“That you are. But maybe there is more to it than that,” he says.

Kline flicks his bangs out of his eyes, taking the moment to look in the mirror over my shoulder. I’m not sure what he sees, but he winks at himself. Really?

This whole situation is out there.

When he looks back at me, he’s looking toward my mark again. I cover it with my hand. He blinks slowly as he catches my eye.

“I hope to see you soon. We should start training as soon as possible.”

He leaves after that.

Once the door shuts behind him, I gulp in as much air as I can, feeling like I’ve suffocated. Kline was clearly trying to unsettle me, which unfortunately for me, he did. He is obviously jealous, but Kline isn’t a threat. He’s just a spoiled rich kid.

Either way, the entire moment has me frazzled. It’s not even evening yet, but I’m ready to crawl into my bed and end this day.

The hair on my head stands up from the static of sliding my hoodie back on so quickly, and I move just as fast out the door. Waiting for me is Maverick, concern on his face as he looks up.

“You good?” he asks and I just nod. Maverick could always tell when I was lying, but he doesn’t push. He just nods back.

“What did mom say?”

“Not much, just that she is so proud of you.”

I look away. He’s lying to me, but I don’t know how to point it out. Mom would be proud, but I’m not sure what he’s keeping to himself.

He catches me off guard, however, when he says, “I have a surprise for you.”