Chapter 5 Cracks in the Ice

RYDER'S POV

"Knight!" Coach barked from the center of the rink, blowing his whistle so sharply that every player froze where they stood.

He folded his arms across his chest and stared directly at me while the rest of the team followed his gaze. "Are you planning on joining us today, or should I let someone else wear that captain's jersey? Because whatever game you're playing, it isn't hockey."

A few of the guys laughed under their breath, but I couldn't even be annoyed by it because Coach wasn't wrong. I skated toward the puck I'd just failed to control, dragging a hand through my damp hair before meeting his disappointed stare. "My bad, Coach," I said, forcing a confident smile that even I didn't believe. "It won't happen again."

Coach studied me for another second before shaking his head. "You've said that three times already," he replied, lowering his whistle as frustration crept into his voice. "You're missing passes you'd normally make with your eyes closed. Clear your head, Ryder, because your team needs their captain."

"I know," I muttered under my breath as I pushed away from the boards, but the truth was I had no idea how to clear my head when it refused to cooperate.

Hockey had always been my escape.

No matter how much pressure came from my family, the Alpha Council or the expectations of becoming the next Alpha King, everything disappeared the second I stepped onto the ice. The rink was the only place where my mind stayed quiet.

Until Lena Ashwood arrived.

Ever since meeting her, my wolf had been impossible to control. It paced constantly beneath my skin, restless and agitated for reasons I couldn't understand. Every time I convinced myself to ignore it, the feeling only grew stronger.

By the time practice finally ended, I was exhausted, and not because of the drills.

As I walked toward the locker room with my hockey bag hanging over one shoulder, Damien easily caught up beside me. He bumped my shoulder with his own before flashing the irritating grin I'd known since we were kids.

"You know," he began, letting out a laugh as he studied my face, "I've spent years trying to beat you on the ice, and today you practically handed me the win. That's either generosity... or you've finally met a girl capable of distracting Ryder Knight."

I rolled my eyes and kept walking, refusing to look at him.

"You're getting desperate if that's your best theory," I replied, adjusting my bag higher onto my shoulder. "Maybe you should spend less time worrying about me and more time fixing your slap shot."

Damien clutched his chest dramatically as though I'd wounded him.

"Ouch," he said with a grin that only grew wider. "Changing the subject usually means I'm right."

I let out a quiet laugh despite myself.

"Believe whatever helps you sleep at night."

Damien's smile slowly faded as he looked at me more carefully.

"Actually..." he said, lowering his voice until only I could hear him, "I'm not talking about your game anymore. I'm talking about your wolf. I could feel it during practice, Ryder. It kept pushing against its Alpha aura like it was trying to get out."

The amusement disappeared from my face.

I slowed my pace before glancing at him.

"You noticed that?" I asked quietly, surprised someone else had sensed it.

Damien nodded without hesitation.

"I've known you almost my entire life," he answered seriously. "Your wolf has never behaved like that before. Something's changed, and whatever it is... it's messing with you."

Before I could answer, shouting erupted somewhere ahead of us.

Students rushed across the courtyard, some nearly running into us as they pushed toward the growing crowd.

One excited first-year hurried past, waving for his friends to follow.

"Come on!" he shouted over his shoulder. "Violeta's confronting that new girl again!"

Damien sighed heavily before looking at me.

"Please tell me we're not about to spend our afternoon watching another fight."

I was already walking toward the crowd.

"Looks like we don't have much of a choice," I replied.

By the time we reached the center of the courtyard, hundreds of students had formed a circle.

Violeta stood in the middle with the same elegance she'd carried ever since we were children. As my betrothed, she'd spent years standing beside me at official ceremonies, smiling for photographs and playing the role everyone expected of the future Luna. It had never been a love story. It was an arrangement between two powerful families, one neither of us had been allowed to question.

Standing opposite her was Lena.

She looked tired, but she didn't look intimidated.

Violeta slowly folded her arms across her chest before taking one measured step forward.

"I gave you time to think," she said calmly, though the irritation behind her smile was impossible to miss. "Now I'm giving you one last opportunity to apologize for humiliating me."

Lena adjusted the strap of her backpack before lifting her chin to meet Violeta's gaze.

"I'm not apologizing," she answered, her voice steady despite the crowd surrounding us. "Defending myself isn't something I'll ever be sorry for."

The students immediately began whispering.

Violeta's smile disappeared.

She took another slow step.

"You're making a mistake," she warned, keeping her voice low enough that only the closest students could hear. "People like you don't survive very long at this academy."

Lena didn't move.

Instead, she slipped both hands into her jacket pockets and looked at Violeta with surprising calm.

"Then maybe people like you should stop deciding who belongs here," she replied evenly. "You keep acting like having an awakened wolf makes you better than everyone else, but all I've seen is someone who enjoys picking fights with people she thinks can't fight back."

I saw Violeta's jaw tighten meaning she'd lost her temper and without another word, she lunged.

Lena reacted instantly, blocking the first shove before stumbling backward as the two of them crashed into each other. The crowd scattered to avoid them while professors shouted for everyone to move aside, but neither girl paid attention.

"Stop this right now!" Headmaster Magnus roared as he forced his way through the students, his voice echoing across the courtyard. "Both of you, stand down!"

They tried but it was already too late.

Lena's foot caught against the uneven stone pathway.

She lost her balance and her forearm scraped against the jagged edge of the pavement.

Blood streamed down her skin and the scent reached me instantly.

Immediately everything else vanished and it was like I couldn't control myself anymore.

My wolf exploded with a force that stole every rational thought from my mind. It slammed against the walls I'd spent years building, roaring louder than I'd ever heard before. I fought it with everything I had, painfully aware that my betrothed was standing only a few feet away and that the entire academy was watching.

It didn't matter because my wolf only recognized one person.

Before I realized what I was doing, I shoved past everyone standing in my way and dropped to my knees beside Lena. She stared at the blood on her arm before slowly lifting her silver eyes to mine, confusion replacing the determination she'd worn only seconds earlier.

I reached toward her without thinking.

My wolf surged forward.

The word escaped before I could stop it.

"Mate," I breathed, my voice barely above a whisper as shock flooded through every part of me. I couldn't pull the word back even if I wanted to because the moment it left my lips, I knew my life had just changed forever.

Lena stared at me in stunned silence before her brows slowly knitted together.

"What did you just call me?" she asked, her voice trembling ever so slightly as she searched my face for an explanation I wasn't capable of giving.