Page 104 of Collared by the Vampire Prince

“Mm.” Becky becomes very interested in buttering her roll.

“Too right,” Harvey says. He attempts to toss a grape into his mouth, misses, and has to pick it from Clara’s lap—a gesture that manages to make both of them blush.

“Kira has no interest in joining a pack,” Susie says calmly. “And that is perfectly alright. We are not pressuring her.”

“The hell we aren’t.” Harvey points his fork at me, apparently determined to ignore the awkward moment with Clara. “You can’t lone-wolf it forever, Kira. I mean, you can. But it’s harder. Case study A…”

He nods towards where Hannah was sitting.

I follow his gaze and find it empty.

“She’s gone over to the Poplarins,” Becky murmurs.

“Oh no,” Clara says. “I hope she’s not begging them to accept her again.”

She is.

Hannah stands before a cluster of older wolves with her hands clasped tightly in front of her, while the Poplarins watch with open amusement.

“I know I asked yesterday,” Hannah says, her voice small enough that I only catch the words because the nearby circles of wolves have gone quiet. “But please. I’ll do anything. I just need—”

“Protection,” a female Poplarin cuts in. She is lean and athletic, with glossy black hair falling in a straight sheet down her back, thin brows that draw her face into a permanent scowl, and rich brown skin that sets off her amber eyes. “Yes, we understood that the first six times. The part you seem to keep missing is that you have nothing to offer us.”

A few wolves around her laugh.

Hannah flushes. “I can be useful.”

“Useful?” The Poplarin woman’s mouth curves. “You were caught by three third-years before the week was out. Desperate is one thing, Hannah. Pathetic is another. We are selective for a reason.”

My appetite dies as Hannah’s face crumples.

“That’s Chelsea,” Becky says under her breath, nodding at the female Poplarin. “Mark Poplarin’s sister. One of their betas, and the recruiter. No one gets in without her say-so.”

“Try another pack,” Chelsea says to Hannah. “Olarg. Or Theta-Nox. They take strays.”

“I…I’d be willing to do the initiation,” Hannah says, barely above a mumble. The pit has gone so quiet that everyone hears her.

Chelsea gives a shriek of laughter. “You may be willing to do the initiation, but you’re wasting your time here. You’re not nearly pretty enough to tempt an alpha.” She gives Hannah one last, disdainful once-over. “Not even worth fucking.”

I leap to my feet.

“Kira,” Susie says softly, the warning clear.

I pretend not to hear her as I march forwards.

I may not be able to stop what the vampires do here, but these are wolves. Rank and hierarchy be damned, the strong should not cripple the weak and call it leadership.

How are we supposed to survive vampires if we make sport of tearing each other apart?

By the time I reach them, Hannah is wiping at her cheeks, and Chelsea gives me a scornful look that could wither all of Victoria’s roses.

“Yes?” she asks impatiently. “Can I help you?”

“Probably not,” I say coolly.

Chelsea’s mouth tightens. “Well then, run along.”

I don’t move. “Are you supposed to be some grand, important pack, or are you just competing to be more horrible than vampires?”