Claimed And Marked By Her Stepbrother Mates novel Chapter 45

Chapter 45: 45-Witnessing A Sin

Helanie:

I stepped into the shelter, drenched and with my head down. However, sudden cheers erupted, and before I knew it, Lucy was jumping towards me.

"I’m so glad you made it!" She hugged me tightly, and as much as I wanted to share her happiness, I couldn’t.

"Congratulations," Gavin called out from across the room, offering me a smile. They had already changed. I guessed Sydney was the last one still in the bathroom.

Salem sat comfortably against the wall, wearing a purple dress, her attention focused on her phone.

"So, Helanie—twenty miles? Seriously?" Salem finally spoke, her voice dripping with sarcasm. She shot me a condescending look before scoffing at Lucy for acting as though I had won a medal.

She wasn’t wrong, though. There was no reason for us to be celebrating this. I was last and felt like I had died a thousand times just trying to cross the finish line.

"Don’t listen to her," Lucy whispered in my ear.

I hadn’t seen anyone argue with the twins, and I could easily guess why.

Nobody wanted to deal with a bully.

"The water was so refreshing," Sydney remarked as she walked out, drying her hair with a towel that she carelessly tossed onto my mattress before heading to hers.

"Oh, Helanie! Gosh, you actually made it. I was so worried about you! I was like—wow! I used to run twenty miles when I was just a kid. And here’s this grown woman struggling to finish!" Yep, that was Sydney’s way of mocking me. She was more subtle about it than her sister.

"Oh, by the way, do you know who won?" she giggled, doing a little shoulder shimmy. "Me!" She pointed a finger at her chest, and my faint smile quickly vanished.

Not only were they blessed with a good family, luxuries, a powerful pack, and beauty—but also strength?

"That’s because you two sisters were clawing at anyone who tried to pass you," Lamar said, taking off his hat to reveal his scratched-up face.

I nearly gasped, but Sydney merely straightened her posture, unfazed by her own actions.

"You came at me first. You were checking me out, mister," she accused, pointing her fake acrylic nails at him, the pink design glinting under the light.

"Huh? I wasn’t checking you out! I was trying to pass you, and you didn’t like it. Imagine if I had shown the same aggression," he retorted, almost lunging at her. Sydney narrowed her eyes at him, fists clenched tightly. Her nails must have been digging crescent marks into her palms.

But she was so confident in her strength, I wondered if her wolf was as powerful as she seemed to think.

And that’s when I began to recall Norman’s words.

These are what the candidates look like. How well-trained and strong will the students at the academy be?

Am I getting ahead of myself by even applying to this academy? But then, how else would I get my revenge?