Chapter 5 Final Encounter
By midday, the college's loudspeaker announced the mandatory sports orientation.
Students poured into the corridors, heading toward the athletic complex. Bailey checked the instructions on her timetable and followed the signs until she reached a large wooden door marked Athletic Gear and Locker Room.
She hesitated before entering.
The room was busy, with students opening lockers, chatting, and preparing for the afternoon's activities. Bailey kept her eyes down and searched for the locker assigned to her.
She had no desire to attract more attention.
After the incident with Mara, she wanted nothing more than to change into her sports uniform and get through the rest of the day unnoticed.
She had just opened her locker when she heard a woman's breathless voice from behind a row of equipment dividers.
“Aaron, someone might come in.”
A man's low chuckle followed.
“Let them.”
Bailey froze.
She hadn't meant to listen, but the conversation was impossible to ignore. She glanced toward the doorway, considering whether to leave and return later.
Then she heard the man speak again.
“Besides, sweetheart, it's not as if anyone here would complain about being in your place.”
A soft laugh answered him.
Bailey rolled her eyes.
Seriously? In a communal locker room?
She wanted no part in whatever was happening, so she quietly moved toward the exit. Unfortunately, she needed to pass the end of the equipment divider to reach the door.
One brief glance was all it took.
A tall young man with messy dark-red hair had a girl pressed against the lockers. His athletic build and relaxed, arrogant posture made it clear that he was perfectly comfortable with the attention he was receiving.
Bailey recognized him from the descriptions she had heard.
Aaron Night.
The fourth Alpha brother.
He appeared entirely unconcerned about being discovered. One of Mara's glamorous friends clung to him, laughing as though the entire world existed to entertain them.
Bailey looked away at once.
“Disgusting,” she muttered under her breath.
She turned to leave.
But Aaron was a pure-blooded werewolf, and his senses were far sharper than those of an ordinary human.
The moment the word reached his ears, his expression changed.
He pulled away from the girl and turned toward the door.
“Who said that?”
The girl beside him blinked in surprise.
“What?”
Aaron barely heard her.
His attention had fixed on a flash of scarlet curls disappearing through the doorway.
He caught only a glimpse of Bailey's face, but it was enough to register the stubborn set of her jaw and the look of unmistakable disgust in her eyes.
She had insulted him.
And then she had walked away.
Aaron stared at the swinging door.
For a moment, he genuinely couldn't believe what had happened.
Every girl at Night Stone College seemed eager to get close to him. They laughed at his jokes, flirted shamelessly, and competed for even the smallest scrap of his attention.
Yet this human girl had taken one look at him and decided he was disgusting.
A slow grin spread across his face.
“Well, well,” he murmured.
The girl beside him touched his arm, trying to reclaim his attention.
“Aaron? Are you coming back?”
“Not now.”
He barely spared her a glance.
His mind was already following the girl with the scarlet curls.
Who was she?
And why did the thought of seeing her again suddenly seem so entertaining?
Aaron had never been fond of surprises.
But perhaps this one would make the semester more interesting.
---
The college stadium stretched beneath the blazing midday sun.
Fresh grass covered the field, and the air was thick with the sounds of students talking, coaches calling instructions, and athletes preparing for the opening sports trial.
Bailey stood near the edge of the track, tugging at the hem of her oversized navy-blue athletic jersey.
Her body was tired from the day's events. Her heart still felt delicate, and the heat made every breath seem heavier than it should have been.
She took a moment to steady herself before joining the other first-year students.
She was determined to finish the day without another embarrassing incident.
High above the stadium, behind the tinted glass of the VIP observatory, General Alpha Mario Night watched the field in silence.
A glass of amber liquid rested in his hand.
His golden eyes moved across the gathering students until they settled on Bailey.
There she was.
The girl he had spent years searching for, now standing exactly where he wanted her.
His expression held no warmth.
Everything was proceeding according to plan.
For generations, a terrible curse had clung to the royal bloodline of the Night Pack. It threatened the power of his family and cast a shadow over the future of his sons.
The seers had spoken of a rare human vessel—someone whose bloodline and fragile heart made her uniquely connected to the curse.
Mario believed Bailey was that vessel.
Bringing his sons to Atlantica had not been a simple political decision. The scholarship had not been an act of charity. Even the circumstances surrounding his visit to Iris's home had been carefully arranged.
He had placed Bailey on a path that led directly to his sons.
And he had ensured that the brothers would begin noticing her.
The influence he had planted in their minds was subtle, designed to stir curiosity and attraction without revealing its source. Each brother would believe his interest was his own.
Mario needed to know whether the connection was real.
If Bailey was truly the girl the seers had described, then the four brothers' reactions would give him the answer he needed.
Below, the stadium began to quiet.
Students stopped talking as a sudden sense of authority swept across the field. Even the coach lowered his clipboard and turned toward the entrances.
The four Alpha brothers were arriving.
Brian appeared from the eastern entrance, his dark hair shifting in the breeze. His powerful presence commanded attention, and the students instinctively made room for him.
From the north came Ray, his grey eyes cold and watchful. His expression suggested that he found the entire gathering beneath his patience.
Lysander entered from the west, his brown hair tied back neatly. Unlike his brothers, he carried a quieter presence, but his observant gaze missed very little.
Finally, Aaron strode onto the field from the southern entrance, his dark-red hair catching the sunlight. His easy confidence followed him like a shadow.
The four brothers converged near the center of the stadium.
Bailey watched them from the crowd.
She had already met three of them, and none of those encounters had gone as she would have wished.
Lysander had caught her when she collapsed. Brian had rescued her from Mara, only to receive her sharp reply. Aaron had probably heard her insult him in the locker room.
And now all four brothers stood together before the entire college.
Bailey lowered her gaze, hoping they wouldn't notice her.
But from the VIP observatory, Mario Night was watching closely.
The pieces were moving into place.
And Bailey, unaware of the trap closing around her, had no idea that her ordinary life was already slipping beyond her control.
