ERIC

I caught Lance’s hand mid-swing before it could reach me. A grin spread across my face as surprise flickered through his.

He hadn’t expected me to stop him that quickly.

I shoved him with everything I had, sending him stumbling backward until his back slammed into the rough bark of a large tree behind him.

Lance grunted, his body arching slightly from the impact. He clutched his side and glared at me.

I ignored the look.

"I spared you at the party," I said, walking toward him. "And again in the hearing hall."

When only a few feet remained between us, I let my voice drop lower, colder. "But out here, no one is going to save you from me."

Kol scoffed. I turned my glare on him. He pulled his hands from his pockets and folded his arms across his chest.

"You sure about that?" he asked, raising a brow.

"Stay the fuck out of this, Archer," I warned.

"Or don’t," Raze snarled inside my head. "I’m ready to take them both."

"I don’t want to," Kol replied.

He rolled his blazer sleeves up to his elbows, his expression calm in a way that only irritated me more.

Lance shrugged out of his blazer too and started toward me at the same time Kol did.

Of course. It was going to be both of them.

I had known this was inevitable the moment they appeared together. I wasn’t going to get the luxury of fighting them one at a time.

"You don’t need anyone when you have me," Raze growled, pressing hard against my chest.

Sure, I didn’t need anyone.

But having someone with strength as overwhelming as Kol’s on my side wouldn’t exactly hurt either.

Not that I would ever admit that aloud. I’d rather fight him to my last breath first.

"You bastard!"

Lance’s voice snapped through my thoughts. I saw him charging toward me and braced myself for the hit but I reacted a second too late.

Lance slammed into me, his fist crashing into my jaw hard enough to make my vision burst white.

Pain tore across the side of my face.

A sickening crunch rattled through my teeth as my head snapped sideways, blood flooding my mouth almost instantly with its metallic taste.

I stumbled backward, wide-eyed. For half a second, all I could hear was ringing.

Fuck.

I knew better than to underestimate Lance when he got serious. He could bury even strong opponents with those fists of his.

That was exactly why they called him the Iron Fist of House Garrick.

Sure, he wasn’t on the same level as Kol or me, however he had earned that title.

"Too slow," Raze snarled.

He was right. I had been too slow. But not anymore. I felt Raze’s fury surge violently through me. Pure. Blinding.

It flooded my veins and drowned every rational thought left in my head. All that remained was the urge to destroy him.

To prove that I wasn’t someone they could overpower. Not Lance. Not even him alongside the great Kol Archer.

"RIP, you fucking son of a prick!" Lance roared, dragging me out of my dazed state.

He lunged forward, aiming to slam his forehead into mine. I caught him with one hand against his skull before he could connect.

At the same time, I drove my fist into his cheekbone.

The punch landed hard enough to split the skin beneath my knuckles.

The impact jolted violently through my wrist. "Slow," I spat.

I shoved him away.

Lance stumbled backward toward Kol, but Kol simply sidestepped him without a word, letting him crash into the same tree again.

Lance groaned as he slid halfway down the trunk.

"What are you waiting for, Archer?" I taunted, turning my attention fully toward him. "Trying to study my strength first before deciding whether to fight me or run away?"

The corner of Kol’s mouth twitched faintly. But there wasn’t a trace of amusement on his face.

"Come on," I continued, eyes glinting with malice. "Or is Daddy’s little prince afraid to get his hands dirty?"

Still calm. Infuriatingly calm.

This was Kol. I had known him longer than most of the others.

This was what he always did.

Even though House Valerius was known for strategy, Kol somehow excelled at every house specialty like it belonged to him personally.

A better fighter than me, someone raised to dominate combat. A natural leader like an Aurelian.

An incredible tracker no Sylvan could outmaneuver no matter how well they masked their scent.

Kol carried himself with the same composed restraint typical of House Garrick.

Yet, when he finally snapped, not even House Draven could rival the brutality that followed.

Yes, Kol fit every damned role perfectly.

And that was exactly why I hated him. I hated that he didn’t have to fight to be noticed.

I hated that everything came naturally to him while I spent my entire life clawing for recognition I never received.

And my father...

The image of him looking at Kol with approval while rejecting me all over again sent another violent wave of rage crashing through my chest.

"Lord Callahan’s favorite son he never had..."

Suddenly, an arm locked around me from behind. I jerked violently, trying to break free.

"You’re dead," Kol hissed against my ear.

My eyes widened. Damn it. When the hell had he gotten behind me without me noticing?

He yanked hard, trying to drag me backward.

I planted my heel deep into the loose soil, forcing myself steady. I drove my elbow backward into his ribs with enough force to feel something shift beneath the impact.

Kol gasped sharply and released me immediately.

"Elyse is mine!" I declared, glaring at both of them. Then I turned toward Kol.

He was bent slightly forward now, one hand gripping his side. For a brief second, silence settled between the three of us.

Only heavy breathing. Low groans. The wind howling through the trees.

"Don’t fucking test me, Archer," I sneered. "You might have my father’s approval, but you’re still the weakling I beat up in fourth grade."

"You—!"

"I’m not done with either of you yet!"

Kol and Lance roared at the same time. Then both of them charged.

All three of us slammed together violently. A sickening crunch echoed through the air followed immediately by a sharp cry.

"Stop!"

No one listened.

Kol, Lance, and I crashed to the ground in a violent tangle of limbs, rolling across the dirt as we fought for control.

Fists flew everywhere. One slammed into my jaw. Another drove into my stomach.

Then my throat. My face. I barely felt any of it. Raze had taken over. I hit back harder.

"I said stop!" the voice shouted again.

"Verah?!" Lance choked out from beneath me. "Get out of here!"

Idiot. Even now, he still had the strength to worry about protecting her.

I tightened my grip around his throat, fury burning through every vein in my body.

"Now this," I snarled, squeezing harder, "is payback for what you did."

Lance’s eyes bulged slightly as he wheezed beneath me, his body convulsing while I crushed my hand tighter around his neck.

"You’re going to kill him, idiot!" Verah screamed.

"Fuck off, whore!" I barked back.

Lance clawed weakly at my arm, choking for air, but I didn’t release him.

Raze’s rage consumed me completely. The helpless look on Lance’s face, by the goddess...it satisfied something ugly inside me.

"Callahan!"

Kol’s voice cracked through the chaos. Pain exploded against the side of my skull. Once. Twice. Three times. Four. He kept hitting me.

My vision blurred briefly from the force. I could get a concussion later. I didn’t care. Not until Lance understood exactly who he was dealing with.

Not until he felt how powerless he really was beneath me.

"I said let him go!"

Something struck the back of my head with a dull thud.

I turned sharply.

Verah stood a few feet away, trembling violently with a wooden plank clutched in her hands.

My eyes narrowed dangerously at her.

"I’ll keep hitting you if you don’t let him go!"

"Get lost," I growled, pushing Alpha authority into my voice, letting the full weight of it slam into her.

Verah exhaled sharply. The plank slipped from her hands before she collapsed onto her knees.

"I. Said. Leave," Lance forced out through clenched teeth.

He still had the strength to move. Or maybe my grip had loosened without me realizing it.

Pain throbbed through every part of my body now—my hands, ribs, jaw—still my head suffered the worst of it after Kol’s repeated blows.

Kol stood a few feet away, panting heavily with his hands braced against his knees. He had stopped fighting a while ago.

I hadn’t.

I shoved the weakness crawling through my body aside and raised my fist again, ready to land one final hit, something snapped tightly around my wrist.

My hand froze midair.

At first, I felt nothing.

What hit me first was the overwhelming presence standing behind me. Slowly, I turned my head.

Black pants. Then upward...Silver-gray eyes. Finally, the silver cuff locked around my wrist.

Pain exploded through me instantly.

A sharp vicious burn tore across my skin, forcing me to release Lance immediately.

Lance wheezed violently, writhing on the ground as he dragged in air before coughing harshly.

I jerked against the restraint, but Headmaster Alaric yanked me upright effortlessly before throwing me hard into a nearby tree.

I bit back a curse, my teeth grinding painfully together. I tried pushing myself up. But weakness flooded my limbs too quickly. Each attempt failed before I could fully rise.

The silver cuff didn’t help either.

It remained tightly locked around my wrist, burning against my skin every time I pulled at it.

Eventually, I stayed where I was on the ground and glared at Headmaster Alaric instead.

His expression darkened as his gaze swept across the destruction around us.

Kol’s knuckles were split open and bleeding. His chest rose heavily as he stared back at me.

Lance looked worse.

Blood covered part of his face, and for one brief moment, I genuinely wondered if he was dead.

Honestly? I didn’t care if he was.

And then there was me. Bruised. Bleeding. Still thinking about finishing what I started.

It was sick. I knew that. I had grown up with these boys. Once upon a time, we had been inseparable.

Yet now, the only thing consuming me was the need to destroy them.bHeadmaster Alaric finally looked at me.

His face remained unreadable, but I understood that look perfectly well. Punishment was coming.

However, I was ready for it. My only regret was not finishing the job.