Chapter 7 Seven
Harper’s POV
Pain exploded before I even realized what was happening.
His hand clamped around my neck, fingers digging in hard enough that I heard a sickening crack—not bone, but lockers denting as he slammed me back against them. The impact knocked the breath straight out of me.
I choked.
My feet scraped uselessly against the floor as he lifted me, just enough that my toes barely brushed the tiles. Panic flooded every vein in my body.
“Who do you think you are,” he snarled, tightening his grip, “to interfere?”
His thumb pressed directly into my throat.
Hard.
White-hot pain shot through my neck, stealing my voice completely. My mouth opened, but no sound came out—only a broken wheeze as my lungs screamed for air.
I clawed at his wrist, nails digging into skin, but it was like trying to move stone.
He leaned closer, his glowing yellow eyes burning into mine.
“You wolfless trash always think you can play hero,” he said calmly—too calmly. “Let me teach you your place.”
He shoved me harder against the lockers.
Metal groaned.
Something inside my shoulder screamed as pain tore through it. My vision blurred, spots bursting behind my eyes. My heartbeat thundered so loud I could barely hear anything else.
He loosened his grip—just for a second.
I sucked in a desperate breath—
Then he slammed me down.
My back hit the floor hard, the impact rattling my skull. Before I could move, his boot came down on my thigh.
I screamed.
The sound ripped out of me raw and broken as pain shot up my leg, sharp and blinding. He pressed down harder, grinding his heel into my muscle until tears spilled from my eyes despite my effort to hold them back.
“Pathetic,” he muttered. “This is what happens when omegas forget themselves.”
He crouched, grabbing a fistful of my hair and yanking my head back so violently my neck burned.
“Look at me,” he demanded.
I shook, gasping, my hands weakly pushing against his chest. My throat felt swollen, my lungs still burning from before.
He smiled.
And that smile was wrong.
“Beg,” he said softly. “Maybe I’ll stop.”
My lips trembled.
I hated him.
I hated this school.
I hated that my body was failing me.
I shook my head.
His smile vanished.
“Wrong answer.”
He slammed my head back against the floor.
The sound echoed.
My ears rang violently, the world tilting, spinning. I tasted blood.
Laughter echoed faintly around us. Students were watching. No one moved.
I’m going to die here.
His hand closed around my throat again, lifting me halfway off the ground as my fingers scrabbled uselessly at his arm.
My vision darkened.
My heartbeat slowed.
Then—
“Touch her again.”
The voice was low.
Deadly.
The pressure didn’t stop—but the boy froze.
“I wasn’t talking to you,” the voice continued, calm and sharp like a blade being drawn. “Let her go.”
My vision swam as two figures came into focus.
Koda stood a few feet away, his jaw tight, eyes dark—not glowing, but worse. Controlled fury.
Kai was beside him, hands in his pockets, head tilted slightly like he was watching something mildly interesting.
The boy hesitated.
Koda moved.
The next sound was flesh hitting flesh.
Hard.
The grip on my throat vanished as I collapsed, coughing violently, dragging air into my lungs like I’d been drowning. My body shook uncontrollably as pain crashed into me all at once—neck, back, leg, head.
I curled inward, sobbing without sound.
Above me, Kai’s voice was lazy—but lethal.
“You really picked the wrong girl.”
Another thud.
Then Koda’s voice—quiet, furious, final.
“She’s under our roof. Under our name.”
A pause.
“Which makes her ours.”
My blood ran cold.
Hands grabbed my arms—not rough, but firm—lifting me gently.
Kai crouched in front of me, his eyes scanning every bruise, every tremor.
“You’re shaking,” he observed.
I could barely focus on him through the tears.
Koda’s shadow fell over us.
“And he’s still breathing,” Koda said flatly. “Lucky bastard.”
I swallowed painfully.
Nothing about this felt like rescue.
It felt like I’d just been claimed by something far worse.
Koda and Kai took me to the nurse’s office, but when we arrived, it was empty. Not even a soul in sight.
Koda dropped me unceremoniously onto the bed. The mattress sagged under my weight, and I barely had time to catch my breath before he spoke.
“Ah, look what we have here,” Koda said, his gray eyes glinting. “Nurse Chidera isn’t here when you need her.” He let a small smirk curl on his lips.
Kai leaned casually against the doorframe, arms crossed, laughter soft but sharp. “Ever heard of Nigerian time?” he teased, and for a moment, I froze. They were joking—but the amusement in their voices made it worse.
I was shocked. These were the same ruthless twins from school—the same ones who had humiliated me in front of everyone. And yet… they could make humor. Their smiles were impossible, almost beautiful, even though I knew there was danger lurking behind them.
“What are you looking at, Miss Whack?” Kai shot at me suddenly, his tone cutting through my thoughts. I quickly looked away, cheeks burning, trying not to give them the satisfaction of seeing me flustered.
Koda crouched beside me, inspecting the cut on my arm and the faint trickle of blood from my nose. “Well,” he said slowly, “you are bleeding. And since you’re… wolfless, I guess it needs to be treated immediately.”
My chest tightened. How did everyone know I was wolfless?
“Excuse me?” I asked, voice trembling despite my best attempt to sound steady.
Koda’s eyes flicked to mine, sharp as knives. “You don’t heal. You don’t smell like a wolf. That’s all anyone needs to know.”
I swallowed hard. My throat felt dry. I’m so exposed.
Kai chuckled, tilting his head, watching me like I was some puzzle he’d just solved. “Dead giveaway.”
I bit my lip, trying to hold back tears. They didn’t have to see how terrified I felt.
Koda grabbed a roll of gauze and some antiseptic from the counter. “Hold still,” he said, his voice calm but firm.
“I—don’t need your help,” I whispered. My pride screamed at me not to show weakness.
Koda’s lips twitched into that unnerving smirk of his. “You didn’t ask. Doesn’t matter. You’re getting it anyway.”
Kai snorted from the doorframe. “Consider it a mercy. Most people don’t walk away after touching our temper.”
I flinched as Koda dabbed the antiseptic against my arm. The sting made me hiss, but I didn’t dare pull away.
“Stop being dramatic,” Kai said lazily. “It’s just a scratch.”
I wanted to snap at them, to tell them off—but the bruises on my neck, the lingering fear in my chest, and the sheer size of them froze my words.
Koda’s hand stilled. He looked at me, really looked, scanning the faint tremor in my fingers, the sharp rise and fall of my chest.
“For a wolfless omega,” he said quietly, “you’ve got a loud mouth.”
I swallowed hard, my pride bristling. “For an alpha’s sons,” I spat, “you’re cruel.”
Kai whistled low. “Damn. She’s got teeth.”
Koda’s lips twitched again. “Careful, Miss Whack. You’re bleeding and brave. Dangerous combination.”
He finished wrapping my arm, his touch precise—neither careless nor gentle, but calculating.
“Why are you helping me?” I asked, before my brain could stop me.
Kai shrugged. “Because if someone’s going to break you, it won’t be some random idiot.”
Koda’s gray eyes locked on mine. “And because you’re under our father’s roof now. That makes you… our responsibility.”
I felt the word settle like a stone in my chest. Responsibility. Not protection. Not kindness. Something sharper.
I looked down at my trembling hands. “I don’t need you,” I whispered.
Kai’s laughter was soft, dangerous. “You don’t get to decide that.”
The sound of the nurse’s office door creaking open made all three of us snap our heads toward it. The moment shattered—but the warning stayed.
Because I knew, with chilling certainty, that Koda and Kai weren’t done with me yet.