Chapter 76

Thorne

Thorne had never seen a sparring match become so violent in his two and some years at Alpha Academy. Normally, whoever was monitoring sparring would step in and break the Alphas up before someone got injured. He was completely confused as to why the Headmaster wouldn’t, especially with a student as prized as a Princess.

Furthermore, he didn’t understand why he was stuck with his un-fated mate while his betrothed was off with Lunerly. Especially since Lunerly seemed to have some sort of hard-on for Zora. He huffed as he wrapped a bandage around the other woman’s leg, making sure it was tight.

“I believe proper blood flow is needed for healing,” Zora snapped from above him.

“It needs to be tight to stop the bleeding,” Thorne retorted, yanking the wrap again. Zora hissed above him then glared down at him.

“She’s fucking awful,” Zora complained. “Like truly, entirely awful. I didn’t expect rainbows and butterflies but – fucking hell is she terrible.”

“What do you mean ‘expect’?” Thorne asked as he went to wrap around Zora’s shredded thigh. Most of it was already healing but the blood made it look worse than it was.

“I mean as her servant she ignored me,” Zora said quickly. “I’d heard rumors but actually having to talk to her—” she shook her head.

Thorne yanked the bandage tighter and Zora hissed in pain again. Her hand came down to grab at his shoulder, urging him to stop. Thorne immediately looked up at her. Her face was grimacing but there were not tears in her eyes. He went back to wrapping her up, her hand still lingering on his shoulder.

“You really want to be stuck with that?” Zora asked, incredulously.

“I don’t have a choice,” Thorne grunted. “The Queen asked. I accepted. Nothing else to do. I live to serve. I owe Victoria everything.”

“So that’s why you broke it,” Zora said, softer.

Thorne blinked and sat back on his heels. “What?”

“The bond,” Zora continued. “You broke it because you feel you owe Victoria. You didn’t want to go against her wishes.”

Thorne narrowed his eyes at Zora. “Assuming I want to discuss this with you is bold,” he snapped as he sealed the wrap on Zora’s leg. “For all you know I could’ve broken it because I didn’t find you attractive.”

“Ouch,” Zora threw back with a bit of amusement in her tone. “But I get it. Why you did it.”

“Thanks, I guess,” Thorne grunted out before standing. He looked down and admired his handy work as Zora rolled her ankle tentatively. “Can you stand?”

“Did you know it was Amara?” Zora said, completely ignoring Thorne’s question.

“I had an inkling. She’s the only known Princess,” Thorne said beginning to grow annoyed. “Can you stand?”

Zora gave him a pointed look. “Had you met her?”

“For Gods’s sake, Zora,” he snapped. “Can you stand or not?”

“I can stand just – shit!”

As she rose to stand with both weight on her feet, she immediately grimaced and fell forwards. Thorne barely caught her before she fell face first into the grimy floor of the locker room. He held her by her arm and gingerly dropped her back down on the bench. She gave him a nasty look and he rolled his eyes.

“So you can’t,” he said, plainly. “You’ll probably need crutches for the next hour until your tendons heal. I think there’s some in the office—”

Zora grabbed his sleeve as he went to move away. He didn’t miss the jolt that exploded up his arm at her touch. He knew she didn’t either as they locked eyes. He could count every freckle on her face with how close he was to her.

Zora sucked in a deep breath before speaking. “You don’t have to owe someone your entire life,” she said, gently. “Being grateful sometimes is enough.”

“You don’t get it,” Thorne snapped. “My parents are gone. She did everything for me when they left. She—”

“I don’t get it,” Zora cut him off. “But I get enough of it to know that doing something just because someone of power says so is not a way to live your life.” She smiled softly. His heart skipped a beat as it made its way onto her face. “Plus, your fiancé is kind of a bitch.”

Thorne locked eyes with her for another beat. He really wanted to apologize and wrap her in his arms and never let her leave. He was so remorseful for something that he did and he wanted to make it right. But the little voice in the back of his head swayed him away from her. Swayed him to duty and honor.

He stood up straight and glanced down at her. “My duty is to my Queen,” he repeated, voice stony and even. “And her heir. My future wife. So I’d appreciate it if you watch your choice of words when speaking about her.”

Zora’s jaw clenched and unclenched. She pushed off the seat and held on to the wall as she hoisted herself to her feet. Her glare pierced him through his cold soul.

“Fuck you,” she hissed. “Stay away from me. I have no desire to hang out with Amara’s minons.”

He was about to retort when she stood completely on her feet and stormed off as if nothing had happened. Thorne blinked in surprise as he watched her leave. A normal Alpha would’ve been incapacitated for at least an hour after those injuries. Zora healed within minutes.

He kicked at the pile of medical supplies, half out of frustration and half out of confusion. He heaved a sigh before pulling at his hair and sending a curse to the Gods for putting him in such a position.

That evening, Thorne was returning from his late-night class when he spotted two figured, training next to the outdoor fields. One, he immediately clocked as Maximus based on his build. Thorne’s former friend had been scarce since his altercation with the girls in the cafeteria. He suspected Maximus was largely hanging out with Zora as he tried to avoid Thorne and Kairos in the process.

His suspicion was confirmed as he got closer to the field and saw a flurry of red hair trying to take Maximus to the ground.

She managed to get the upper hand on him and wrap herself around his neck. She clawed her way up his body and around to his back before yanking him down to the ground with her. They ended up rolling through the grass in a tangle of limbs.

He thought they were still fighting until he heard a chorus of laughter echo through the empty night. He watched as Zora rolled on top of Maximus, her legs straddling his hips. She laced her fingers through Maximus’s and playfully pinned him to the ground.

Thorne scowled at the two as anger licked through his blood. How fucking dare Maximus betray him like that? How dare he allow Thorne’s fated mate to touch him like that? Thorne’s wolf growled in the back of his mind, possessiveness rising to meet the anger in his blood.

Then, the rational part of Thorne kicked in. It was the same voice that spoke of honor and duty when it reminded him that Zora wasn’t his anymore. He had no claim over her.

He glanced back over at the two and saw that Maximus had rolled himself on top of Zora. The two looked like a happily in love couple. A pang of guilt hit Thorne again. He ignored it as he shrugged his backpack higher up on his shoulder and turned to walk home.

The tiny little voice of honor was hanging out in his brain as his wolf was screaming that it just wanted it’s fated mate.