When Violet turned around, she had fully expected to see Elsie Lancaster standing there in her full, haughty splendor, ready to rain hell upon her. Instead, her brows furrowed when she was met with a much less threatening sight. Sharon.
The same Sharon whose face she had lovingly introduced to a plate of ruined food on their very first meeting.
Violet blinked. Some people really did love pain
As though she hadn’t heard a thing, Violet turned to Lila with a mocking light in her eyes. "Did you catch that? Mother Hen isn’t here to handle business, so her little chick thinks it can flap its wings and fly?"
Lila caught the vibe and ran with it immediately.
"A flying chick? That’s new. Have you ever seen a chick fly?"
Violet feigned deep thought. "No, I haven’t. Does that even exist? Perhaps it’s an entirely new species."
"What new specie? That’s delusion of the highest grandeur!" Lila howled with laughter.
Her laughter was the obnoxious, and exaggerated one, the kind that set confusion and drew incredulous stares.
It was so infectious that Violet joined right in, the both of them cackling like a pair of madwomen in the middle of the cafeteria. They didn’t even act as if they had just been stripped of all their status and branded as social outcasts.
The students didn’t know how to react to them. Some were dumbfounded while others exchanged confused glances. All except Sharon.
Sharon looked like she was about to explode. Her face had turned so red she could have passed for a ripe tomato.
Now they had been branded rogues, she had expected Violet and Lila to cower at her feet and shrink in humiliation, but instead, they were mocking her.
The audacity!
She glanced upstairs, hoping for some kind of reaction or signal from Elsie, but the Queen Bee was calmly eating her meal with cold disinterest, not even bothering to look down.
That was all Sharon needed to know she was failing at impressing Elsie. If Elsie had been watching, it meant she was executing her orders properly. But that didn’t seem to be the case here.
Sharon hardened her jaw, determined to show Elsie deserved a place under her banner.
Her gaze flicked to Violet and Lila, who had resumed packing an absurd amount of food into their containers. What were they even doing with all that food? But then, that was none of her business.
Her business was putting Violet in her place, here and now.
With confidence, she stepped forward and reached for Violet.
"Hey! I’m talking to—" Except Sharon never finished her sentence.
Because at that exact moment, Lila—who had been blissfully munching on her croissant—suddenly spat the half-chewed bite directly onto her face.
"Oops," Lila said, pressing her hand to her chest in feigned shock. "You startled me."
A hush fell over the cafeteria.
For a full three seconds, Sharon didn’t move, her brain failing to process what had just happened. Her entire face was coated with a mix of crumbs and buttery flakes.
Then, it dawned on her.
"AHHH!!"
Sharon shrieked as she lifted her hands, frantically wiping at her face as though she had been splattered with acid.
"No! Not the food again!" she wailed, horror-stricken.
Around them, the students—who weren’t supposed to be on Violet’s side—couldn’t help themselves. They roared with laughter, some yanking out their phones to start recording. Sharon was losing her shit in front of everyone and it was too good to miss.
"Tsk, tsk." Violet shook her head like a disappointed parent. "You really should learn some manners when you approach people mid-meal."
Sharon’s face burned hotter than the cafeteria ovens when she heard that. She didn’t care anymore. Her eyes flashed with pure murder. Violet was a rogue now. That meant she could be taught a lesson without repercussions.
"You stupid bitch!"
With a snarl, Sharon lunged at Violet, her long polished nails poised like claws, ready to rip her apart.
But before her hand could land a single scratch, a voice pierced the commotion.
"What’s going on here?!"
All eyes turned toward Roman Draven, who had finally deigned to address the chaos.
In that heartbeat of distraction, Violet whipped around and sprinted toward Roman, throwing her arms around him in an extravagant hug.
"My Alpha!" she cried, leaning her head against his chest in a show of dramatic reverence.
A collective gasp rippled through the cafeteria. Rogues weren’t even supposed to speak to an Alpha, let alone touch one. Surely this would earn her some kind of punishment.
Roman stiffened, completely blindsided. He stared down at Violet, brow furrowed, trying to figure out what the hell she was doing.
This was hardly the Violet he knew. What game was she playing?
"Don’t you dare touch the Alpha!" Sharon screeched, before she ripped Violet away from Roman, shoving her backward.
Violet could have stayed on her feet.
But where was the fun in that?
Instead, she dramatically fell to the ground with a pitiful yelp.
"Awwww!" she whined, clutching her shoulder as if she had just been mortally wounded.
That single exclamation set off a chain reaction.
Jeremiah, Asher’s Beta, came hurtling toward Sharon with a savage growl. "Don’t you touch her!" he thundered.
Startled, Sharon lost her balance and hit the ground. Roman moved in to restrain Jeremiah, but Jeremiah’s fist lashed out, catching Roman clean on the jaw.
And that was all it took for chaos to reign like a king.
Instantly, the members of Roman’s pack charged forward to defend their Alpha, while Asher’s pack closed ranks around Jeremiah.
Wolves shifted on both sides, snapping and growling, sending the human students scurrying out of harm’s way.
Shrieks of fear and the clatter of upturned chairs, tables and plates filled the air as fur and fists collided.
Whatever brotherhood Asher and Roman once shared was out the window. It was full-on pack war now.
"Princess!" Lila shouted, panic rising in her voice as she searched the mess of warring wolves for any sign of Violet. If something happened to her here, she would never forgive herself.
But Violet tapped her from behind, wearing a mischievous grin. But that smile quickly faded when she noticed Lila standing there empty-handed.
"Where’s the food?" she demanded.
Lila’s cheeks colored. "I had to drop it to go find you!"
"You what?"
Lila shifted guiltily. "Your safety comes first, Princess."
"Well, I’m here now," she said, lifting a set of keys with a wicked grin.
Roman Draven’s car keys.
Lila blinked. Then a fleeting spark of humor lit her face. "You are so wicked, princess."
"Thank you. " Violet accepted the compliment shamelessly.
She clapped Lila on the shoulder. "So. Let’s grab as much food as we can carry, because we’re getting the hell out of here."