Thank the Goddess.

Holden didn't show for my class today. I waited for the entire hour for him to waltz in and interrupt me, glare at me from across the classroom like he knew all my secrets and spill the wolf secret to the humans around us.

I didn't expect anything less from a Council member. Everyone knew that once a human found out about wolves—even if he or she was mated to one—The Council required us to kill them before they shifted or told someone else.

And, fuck, if the entire class found out, that would be a lot of blood on my pack's hands. We would need to take care of them somehow, because one of them would be bound to spill our secrets to the entire world.

Bria was different, though. She always had been. Even my pack members recognized it.

After I dismissed class, Bria stayed behind, while Jasmine and Levi lingered by the door. I wasn't taking any more chances, not with Holden walking around this campus with that shit-eating grin on his face and those wicked eyes that seemed to look Bria up and down whenever she was around him.

"You're training after school today," I said to her. "I've directed Milo to teach you."

She stared up at me with wide eyes and brushed her fingers over the mark she left on my neck last night. "Will you be there?"

All I wanted to do was lean in closer and kiss her softly, but I noticed Chancellor Wilmar walk into the room. I quickly moved away from Bria before he could see her touch me and shuffled some papers. "Yes."

"Excuse me, Professor Lee," Chancellor Wilmar said, eyeing Bria. "We need to talk."

Bria sucked in a breath and stepped back, slinging her backpack over shoulders. "I'll take a look into the mythology book you were suggesting, Professor. See you tomorrow." She gave me a small smile and hurried up the aisle toward the exit.

When she left, I shoved my laptop and papers into my bag and walked with Wilmar to my office, my stomach tight. Something wasn't right. He never came down to my classroom and asked to talk.

"Listen, there is no way to beat around the bush with this, Callum," Chancellor Wilmar said, sitting in one of my office chairs and rubbing a hand over his face. "This morning, I had someone tell me some unsettling news."

My heart pounded in my chest, my wolf on the cusp of taking control.

Chancellor Wilmar never called me out like this. Sure, we had meetings but never unplanned. He had never showed up in my classroom with this look in his eye and that grimace on his face, like he was about to spill the worst news to me.

And all I could think was that he was about to fire me.

But I couldn't let him. I needed to be on school grounds. Bria wasn't safe here alone.

"What is it?" I asked.

"There is a rumor going around that you've been messing around with one of your students, Bria Benton."

Chancellor Wilmar refused to even look me in the eyes, and I was glad that he didn't because my wolf had nearly claimed control of my body. Someone fucking snitched, and I already knew exactly who is was.

"If these rumors are true, Callum, I'm going to have to let you go."

While I hated lying about my mate, this was the only way I could protect us.

I balled my hands into fists behind my back, plastered a confused look on my face, and said, "Bria Benton? She's just one of my students, Chancellor Wilmar. Sure, she stays after class some days and shows up to office hours, but that's because she's very passionate about mythology and classics class."

Chancellor Wilmar eyed me. "And you haven't touched her?"

Fake a fucking laugh, Callum. Lie. Protect her.

"You know I would never do something like that. I would never risk this job and teaching the subjects that I love by touching one of my students, nevermind having a relationship with one of them. I take my job very seriously, Chancellor."

After a couple moments, Chancellor Wilmar swallowed anxiously and nodded. "That's exactly what I thought, Callum. I just needed to confirm it. I can't have anything like that going on in my school. It would give us a bad reputation."

"If you don't mind me asking," I said, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible, "who told you that I was doing something like that? Spreading rumors like this should not go unpunished. This could've cost me my job."

Standing up, Chancellor Wilmar walked to my office door and clasped his hands in front of him as I followed him. "One of your students who transferred out of your class this morning reported that you have been paying special attention to Bria Benton. But"—he placed a hand on my shoulder and squeezed—"Don't worry about it. I'll get it handled."

My claws sank into my palms behind my back. That fucking asshole.

Holden had been on my shit list since I met him, but now I was going to kill him.

I would spend the rest of the day searching for him lurking in these school halls. I would not lose my job and Bria because of a scheming Council member. I would not fucking let him leave this university alive.