Page 28 of The Drama King (The University Players Duet #1)

twenty

Dorian

Blood.

The coppery scent of it lingered on my fingertips, taunting me with its significance. I stared at the dried crimson streaks beneath my nails. Evidence of Vespera's desperate fight. My cheek still stung where she'd clawed me, the shallow scratches a physical testament to her defiance.

I hadn't expected her to fight back with such ferocity. To draw blood. To escape.

The rain continued to lash against the windows of the pack house, the storm that had started during our theater outing now reaching its peak.

Lightning flashed, illuminating the three empty crystal tumblers on my desk.

Evidence of the hours Corvus, Oakley, and I had spent dissecting tonight's failure.

Corvus had been the first to leave, his analytical mind already formulating new strategies, his parting words carefully measured: "We miscalculated. Next time, we'll need to be more... subtle."

Oakley had lingered longer, his cedar scent clouded with what smelled suspiciously like guilt. "Maybe we should reconsider our approach," he'd suggested, voice hesitant. "The tracker was... extreme."

I'd dismissed him with a wave, unwilling to entertain doubts. "Go to your room, Oakley. We'll regroup tomorrow."

Now, alone in the darkness, I found myself replaying the night's events with obsessive precision.

The theater, the carefully orchestrated seating arrangement, the isolation from her Beta protector, the car, the warehouse lot.

All meticulously planned. And yet, she'd escaped.

The scholarship Omega with no connections, no resources, no pack protection had somehow managed to slip through our fingers.

My phone vibrated on the desk, pulling me from my thoughts. Corvus, checking in.

"Any word from your contacts?" I answered without preamble.

"Nothing official yet," came his measured response. "But there's definitely movement. Campus security logged an incident report earlier today, and I heard whispers about Title IX involvement."

My grip tightened on the phone. "How serious?"

"Serious enough that my father's legal team is already on standby," Corvus replied. "They're confident they can contain this, but it'll require... strategic intervention."

"Meaning?"

"Meaning we let the adults handle the institutional side while we focus on damage control." His voice carried that calculating tone I knew well. "The key is ensuring Miss Levine understands that escalation serves no one's interests."

I nodded, even though he couldn't see me. "Keep me informed of any developments."

"Of course. Though Dorian?" A pause. "This was sloppy. We can't afford another miscalculation like tonight."

The line went dead before I could respond.

I sat motionless, phone still pressed to my ear, as his words sank in. For the first time since starting at Northwood, I'd been spoken to not as Dorian Ashworth, Alpha heir, but as a student facing disciplinary action. The novelty of it was almost fascinating.