Claimed by the Wrong Alphas
Chapter 29: Unexpected mercy...

Chapter 29: Unexpected mercy...

Charis

I backed away.

"No—wait, don’t—!"

But the sentinels were faster and stronger. My struggles were futile as they removed my shirt and outer clothes, and soon, I stood in front of headmistress Vale in nothing but my bottoms and the bandage around my chest.

"Leave us," the headmistress instructed the sentinels, who exited without a word.

When we were finally alone again, she began to laugh—the sound echoing through her office. She stood from her desk and walked around to where I stood shivering from both the cold and terror.

"Oh, sweet girl," she said mockingly. "Do you know the penalty for Identity fraud?"

I said nothing. My throat had closed up, and my heart thudded painfully in my ears.

She circled me, a hint of amusement in her eyes as she leaned closer.

"Aside from being banned from ever returning to this Academy or Ebonvale, we would report you to the Alpha King’s court, and if they’re feeling generous, they’ll only strip your father from his title for one to five years—if he’s an Alpha" She straightened. "But if they’re not, considering the severity of the situation... They would take his pack away from him completely."

My knees buckled, but I didn’t fall.

"Oh, and your little boyfriend? Slater?" the headmistress continued. "would be expelled instantly for aiding your deception. He’s an adult now, so his future, his career, his family’s reputation—all destroyed because he chose to help you maintain your pathetic charade."

"No," I whispered.

"Yes," she replied, leaning into me again. "You stood in front of this entire academy and lied to everyone—students, faculty, and administration. You made a mockery of our institution and our trust. Do you think it’s something we would overlook?"

I shook my head, my lips trembling.

"Identity fraud carries a minimum sentence of five years in an Alpha Prison. You’ll be put in the system, and once you turn 18, you’ll be transferred to Alpha’s Prison. The High Council would review your father’s pack leadership."

With each word, I felt smaller, more trapped, more hopeless. The walls seemed to be closing in around me as the true magnitude of what I’d done—and what it would cost everyone I cared about—became clear."

"You risked the safety of the entire student body. Do you know what would have happened if you got caught during a shift run? Or worse, in heat season? Do you even understand the dangers?"

"I’m sorry," I choked out.

"Your presence here has contaminated our academy’s integrity. Parents would doubt us if they heard that we missed a fraudulent student. "Plus, every interaction you’ve had, every class you’ve attended, every meal you’ve shared—all of it was built on lies."

Unable to bear it any longer, my legs gave out beneath me. I fell to my knees on the cold office floor, and the tears I’d been holding back poured down in hot, ugly sobs.

"Please," I choked out between sobs. "Please don’t—I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean for it to go this far. I—I couldn’t go back. I couldn’t live like that anymore."

"Who are you?" She asked.

Through my tears, I looked up at the headmistress with raw desperation. "Isn’t it odd for someone to go to such lengths to disguise their identity just to attend an academy? I could have just gone to Ebonvale. My father is an Alpha, and I am eligible to join. But this? Doesn’t that tell you something about how desperate I was?"

She scoffed. "Your desperation is irrelevant to me. What matters is that you’ve violated every principle this institution stands for. What is your name? Tell me while I’m still being generous. If I call a sentinel in—"

"Charis—" I screamed, interrupting her. "My name is Charis Greye, and I’m from Crestborne Pack."

She stopped for a moment, her eyes widening with wonder before she loomed over my kneeling form. "You’re the daughter of Alpha Silas Greye?"

I lowered my head, nodding.

"You’re Charis Greye? The runaway bride who is causing so much ruckus in our world at the moment."

I froze.

"Wh—What do you mean?"

The headmistress laughed. "Your father has been raising hell at Ebonvale these past few days. Demanding to search their grounds, threatening legal action, and making accusations about kidnapping. He’s been turning our world upside down looking for his precious daughter."

"I’m not his precious daughter," I sniffed.

"You’re engaged to the Alpha King’s son, right?" she straightened and laughed. "No wonder the entire world is on a shutdown. The Alpha King declared a pack-wide curfew. Search parties are everywhere, looking for you. I heard they’ve gone as far as the human world. Doesn’t that show how valuable you are?"

"No-No," I shook my head. "It’s all a pretence. I am not loved that much."

"Interesting," she leaned down, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "Do you know what he would give to have you back? And believe me, I could name a price."

At those words, I burst into fresh tears and grabbed desperately at the headmistress’s leg. "Please, don’t hand me over to him," I begged. "I’ll do anything. I’d rather die than go back to him. I’m begging you."

There was a long pause as the headmistress stared at me. Then, slowly squatted to my level. She grabbed my chin, forcing me to look up, then surprisingly, gently wiped away some of the tears on my face.

"A lot of girls would give anything to become the Luna Queen, Charis Greye. Darian Blackmoor is a handsome man. The Alpha Kingdom is wealthy and affluent; your pack and your father are well-off. Why did you run away?"

She took my hands and helped me to my feet.

"Will you tell me the truth now? All of it?"

I nodded frantically,

"I left home because my father wanted to force me into marriage with Darian Blackmoor," I began, my words tumbling over each other in my haste to explain. "Darian is cruel and abusive. He tried to—" My voice broke. "He tried to force himself on me, and when I fought back, my father blamed me for ’provoking’ him. I realised that it would only get worse after I got married to him, and no one was going to protect me, so I had to save myself."

I continued. "I couldn’t live that life. I couldn’t be trapped in a marriage where I’d be beaten and violated and treated like property. So, I cut my hair, bought the form for Ravenshore, took the entrance test and came here with those forged documents. I know it was wrong and I am wrong, but I didn’t know what else to do. My father doesn’t love me either."

The headmistress was silent for a while before she asked.

"Aside from Slater, who else knows?"

"No one else. Just Slater."

"And what is your relationship with him?" she asked quietly.

I hesitated, fear flickering in my eyes.

"Don’t be afraid," she gave a small, weary sigh. "I won’t implicate him, not that you’re telling me the truth, but I need to understand what is at stake here before I make a decision."

I exhaled. "He was...he was my mate. After I got my wolf at 14, we dated until last year when everything fell apart and we—I rejected him. I thought he was dead until I came here and found him."

"Interesting," she murmured, nodding thoughtfully.

She let go of my hands and picked up my clothes from the floor, handing them to me. "Put these back on."

I obeyed quickly, fumbling with the fabric through trembling fingers. While I was doing that, she crossed to the room to a small kitchenette at the side of the office and prepared two cups of tea.

She returned with it and one cup gently into my hands.

At first, I hesitated, remembering the incident at the pool, but if I refused, she would know I remembered, and I didn’t want that to happen. More than anything, I needed to be on her good side.

I took a sip of the tea. It was warm and soothing, with no strange aftertaste or effect.

The headmistress returned to her desk and settled into her chair, cradling her cup of tea.

"You know," she said. "Your father was once a student here. Then I was the Admission Specialist. He was quite popular in his time."

I blinked. "He was?"

She nodded, chuckling. "He was the Alpha Prime back then, and yes, he was ruthless and arrogant even then. The students feared him, and I know Silas—whatever he sets his mind on, he never gives up. That’s what made him such an effective leader. I remember thinking back then—he’s going to cause a lot of trouble one day with that temper of his. And guess what? I was right."

I managed a weak smile.

She took a slow sip of her tea, studying me over the rim of her cup. "You made the right decision coming here to hide. Silas would never have guessed his daughter would be bold enough to disguise herself as a boy and infiltrate an academy. If you hadn’t used that alias, I doubt anyone would’ve made the connection."

I waited, hardly daring to breathe for her final verdict.

She set her cup down and fixed me a gaze.

"I’m going to let you stay."

I nearly dropped my cup, staring at the headmistress in disbelief.

"So...does that mean...?"

She nodded. "However," she continued. "There’ll be conditions. Strict ones. And if you violate any of them, I will personally drag you to your father’s doorstep."

"I can do that," I nodded eagerly. "What are the conditions?"

She gave me a faint smile. "It’s simple: Always do as you’re told."