Defy The Alpha(s)

Chapter 40: Desire

"You staring at Alaric wasn’t baseless gossip," Dion said with a knowing smirk.

Violet, the way you looked at him was so captivating, I swear the sparks in your eyes could have rivaled Alaric’s own thunderbolts."

At once, a blush crept up Violet’s face, and she couldn’t exactly deny it, not when there was picture evidence. Yes, the Oracle had somehow captured her staring at Alaric while he slept during class.

But she had only looked because he was undeniably handsome at that moment. Unfortunately, her innocent admiration had been twisted into something more by the gossip column.

And to make matters worse, how dare that coward, hiding behind her pen and paper, suggest she had any kind of interest in Griffin? She would sooner cut her own throat than have anything to do with that bastard.

"Moreover," Dion said, the amusement fading from his face, "no one knows who the Oracle is, and neither do we search for her—"

"Why assume the Oracle is a ’her’? It could be a ’he’ for all you know," Violet interrupted.

"From the tone of the articles, it sounds feminine—like gossip between girls—so we assume it’s a she," Dion replied.

"It could also be a disguise, a trick to throw people off his trail in case anyone tries to find him," Violet reasoned.

"Whether the Oracle is a he or a she, the point is that no one searches for the Oracle. If anything, the Oracle finds you instead. She’s a collector of information, which means she probably has secrets on everyone here, making her either a dangerous enemy or a powerful ally. It all depends on which side you want her to be," Dion explained.

But Violet snorted. "She doesn’t scare me. I don’t have secrets."

Dion frowned. "Don’t push your luck. The Oracle has sources everywhere, making information retrieval look like a piece of cake. And look at what happened today, she doesn’t need an ugly secret to turn your life upside down."

While Dion’s warning sank in, Violet’s gears began to turn. "So, she might be able to find my parents then?" she asked.

said in

secret," Violet replied. "I’m sure the moment Asher pulled my records, he

don’t

incriminating secret like the rest of you. It’s the ones who have the most to lose who have too many

his palm down his face. "You do

think of myself

she was enjoying

"The Cardinal Alphas all had females satisfying their needs before you arrived." The comment was so sudden that Violet, still caught up in the euphoria of their joke, felt the smile vanish from her

his tone ominous, "What do you think these women will do when some purple-haired girl comes out of nowhere

throat suddenly felt dry, and she swallowed before saying, "I have no interest

gaze boring into hers, as if he could see through the deepest parts of her soul. "And besides... desires

inexplicable reason, Violet’s heart began to pound, and she felt vulnerable beneath Dion’s unnerving stare. No matter how much she tried to deny

breaking down her defenses. She still hated Griffin, but she was undeniably curious about his beast side. And then there was Alaric whom she

This was

intensity of the moment, Violet’s eyes fell on Lila. It was strange for Lila, the usual chatterbox, to have remained so silent, and from the looks of it, she was furiously typing away

phone from Lila’s hands. At that

go to the comments section!" she

exactly what Violet

been using a

If Lila had been using botted accounts—gods knew how many—to write positive remarks about her, then the situation must be worse than she

deep breath and clicked on the comment

to play in the big leagues. Stay in your lane, Violet. ?

Okay, but honestly, who wouldn’t? The

day one? That’s wild. ?? She must have