Defy The Alpha(s)-Chapter 774: Too Late

When Micah called him to check on Roman’s room, Abel had no idea what to expect. Micah hadn’t given him any details, and that alone had left him confused.

No one had been inside Roman Draven’s quarters since the day he left, except the students assigned to housekeeping.

So naturally, Abel’s first thought was that Roman had returned.

The idea sent a rush of excitement through him. Delighted at the possibility of seeing his Alpha again, Abel had practically run the entire way.

Which was why the shock hit even harder when he pushed open the door. Instead of Roman Draven, two unfamiliar faces stood inside the room.

Abel froze.

Thieves.

That was his immediate conclusion.

This wasn’t the first time outsiders had tried to infiltrate Lunaris Academy. Humans were always curious about life inside the school, always testing boundaries. But they never got far. Patrol wolves caught them long before they reached the inner grounds at night.

To make it this deep into the academy—into Roman’s personal quarters—was both reckless and, in a twisted way, impressive.

Then the spell struck him like a bag of cement was hurled at him, knocking him back.

And that was when everything clicked.

Witches.

The realization woke the feral beast inside of him.

Abel dropped instantly into a crouch, a deep, terrifying growl ripping from his chest and echoing through the room. The sound vibrated with aggression and threat.

The shift came next. The sound of his bones cracking filling the room. His clothes shredded as fur burst through skin. Abel shifted into a gray wolf, power rolling off him.

Layla’s spell hadn’t weakened him, no, it had provoked him.

"Fuck," Layla breathed, staring at the damage she’d just caused.

Panic flashed across her face as the wolf fully emerged, massive and furious, eyes locked on them with lethal focus.

"Run, Laura!" she screamed.

Except there was no way out, not when Abel stood closest to the entrance. They were trapped at a crossroads, unable to escape, and yet unable to stay.

However, Abel didn’t bother with intimidation. He was too impatient for that.

With a snarl that rattled the room, he charged at them.

Layla and Laura split instinctively, breaking apart in opposite directions. Layla veered left, hurling spell after spell at Abel in his wolf form. But none caught him, not when Abel dodged with terrifying accuracy.

In his wolf form, Abel was frighteningly fast and he was locked onto Layla.

Laura’s heart slammed against her ribs when she saw what was going on. She could have made a run for it with the wolf focused on Layla but couldn’t leave her sister behind. They were as good as dead if any of them was caught.

So Laura raised her hands and cast, desperate to draw Abel’s attention away from Layla.

And that was where everything went wrong.

She panicked and the spell slammed into a metal fixture embedded in Roman’s room, and perhaps it was the nature of the magic, but it ricocheted right back at her.

The force hit her like a cannon and she was flung backward. Except Laura smashed through the wide window right behind her.

Glass shattered outward in a scream of sound and shards, the cold night air rushing in as Laura’s body went with it.

Four floors down.

Abel lunged, claws scraping against the floor as he tried to reach her but his jaws snapped shut on empty air, missing her by inches.

Layla saw it all happen in a heartbeat.

"No!" she screamed, her voice tearing raw from her throat.

Rage surged through Layla like wildfire, and she screamed a spell that ripped out of her with raw, unchecked force. It struck Abel squarely in the chest.

The wolf was flung backward like a rag doll, his body slamming into the farthest wall with a bone-rattling crack. The stone dented and dust rained down but Abel didn’t move this time.

Her heart hammering so violently it hurt, Layla ran to the shattered window. Glass crunched under her shoe as she leaned forward, gripping the frame, her breath hitching in her throat.

Please. Please. Please.

She prayed to the goddess. Wished—no, begged—that Laura had somehow saved herself. That she had somehow used a spell or something to break her fall.

Then she saw her.

Laura lay on the ground below, blood pooling beneath her, staining the stone.

She lay still.

"No... no—!"

The sound that tore from Layla’s chest was raw and broken. A sob that clawed its way out of her throat and left her gasping, dizzy with grief.

Her sister wasn’t moving. No, it couldn’t be. Laura can’t be dead.

A scream cut through the night.

Layla’s head snapped up just as a student stumbled into view below, frozen in horror at the sight. Another one followed, and then another. Before one knew it, Laura’s body had been surrounded. Whispers erupted while panic bloomed like fire.

"Oh my god—"

"What happened?"

"Someone fell—!"

More students poured in, drawn by the commotion, their voices overlapping in frightened confusion.

Fingers began to point upwards and Layla ducked back from the window, pressing herself into the shadows just as heads tilted upward, gazes climbing to the fourth floor.

Her chest tightened painfully, tears streaming down her face, hot and unstoppable, blurring her vision. How did things come to this point? The mission had been simple: get Roman’s things and go back.

Now everything had gone south.

Every part of Layla screamed to go back and get her sister. She could do something. Laura had to still be alive.

But she couldn’t. This mission was supposed to be discreet. And now, it was only a matter of time before they came for her too.

With shaking hands, Layla snatched her bag from the floor.

Then she turned and ran like a coward.

Meanwhile...

Micah and Adele rushed toward the scene, his steps faltering when his eyes landed on the girl lying in a pool of blood. What in the world had Abel done?

He didn’t need to say a word, Adele was already moving.

She dropped to her knees beside the girl, healing magic rushing to her hands. She could only hope she wasn’t too late.