Rejected by the Beta, Claimed by the Alpha

Chapter 156: Monsters are Real

CLARK POV

"I said now," he snapped, and the music seemed to dip for just a second—like even the bass itself feared him.

I wanted to run. God knows I did. But...

"I... I don’t know the way," I mumbled, barely audible under the pulse of music, laughter, and murmured sins around me.

But he heard me.

Of course he did.

He closed his eyes and let out the kind of sigh that said I’m-this-close-to-snapping-your-neck. His fingers pressed to his temple, like just existing near me was giving him a migraine.

"Okay... let’s go," he muttered finally, rubbing his head like I was some slow, lost child who’d wet himself at a shopping mall.

"But—my friend—Sara," I tried again, voice shaking. I wasn’t trying to be brave. I was just trying to survive. Trying not to let her disappear into this twisted, glossy hell like a breath in the cold.

That’s when he stopped walking and turned.

And if looks could kill, I’d be a chalk outline on the tiled floor right now.

"Listen here, little lamb," he said, voice low, dangerous, like something ancient had stirred behind his eyes. "I am not your friend. Not your hero. You’re just lucky my demons find your scent interesting, or you’d already be drained, buried, and forgotten."

And just like that—

He threw me over his shoulder.

Like a sack of potatoes.

I didn’t even have time to yelp.

He strode through the party, past the strobe lights and perfume haze, as if none of this madness touched him. No one batted an eye. Not even when he walked straight toward the exit with a whole ass human flailing on his shoulder.

Then, somewhere between the hallway and the front door, another voice piped up.

"Ohhh, Prince Blaze, I see you’ve already found yourself a new blood bag."

Prince?

Did he say prince?

Wait—BLAZE?!

His name was Blaze?!

Since when was Ziprey ruled by a monarchy? Was that on the brochures? Because I swear when I applied here, no one mentioned vampire nobility, blood cults, or psycho speed demons.

Blaze didn’t reply.

Didn’t flinch.

Didn’t even slow down.

He just carried me like I weighed nothing—which, by the way, rude—and marched through the exit like he had somewhere much more important to be than babysitting a twitchy, half-hysterical freshman.

Then I heard it.

"Fuck it," he muttered under his breath.

And suddenly—

We moved.

Fast.

Like... not normal fast.

in my ears, and I swear my lungs were still trying to catch up to my body. It wasn’t running. It was freaking teleportation with style. Walls zoomed by, and the world twisted and folded like reality was just a thin sheet of paper he could tear

And just like that—

the front of

feet like a dropped rag doll counts as gentle. My knees buckled, and I had to lean

looked up

Really looked.

depth. Like there was something swimming behind them. Something old and very, very tired

I stepped back.

are you?" I asked, my voice

He didn’t answer.

He didn’t even blink.

way a lion might look at an

And then—

He vanished.

VANISHED.

Like the shadows swallowed him whole. Like he had never been there to

I screamed.

Like... really screamed.

ran. I bolted to my room like the floor was lava and the shadows were hands reaching out to grab me. I scrambled at my door

Safe.

Maybe.

the door shut and slid down onto the floor, my chest heaving,

disappear

don’t carry others

fly down hallways at

just some weird school with an old castle aesthetic and moody hot

very, very

smack in

Lucas lying on his bed, scrolling through his phone like he wasn’t a roommate in a freaking horror movie. His eyes flicked up, and the moment

hollow. "I told you. Now you believe

My throat was dry, my heart thundering

suck your blood?" he asked quietly. "Did you feel the life leaving you when their

back to life. "Wait. They—what? You were

it was a joke. Next

me. She wasn’t just being flirtatious or high on whatever drug they spiked

else. I just crossed the room, nearly tripping over my own feet, and grabbed my laptop from

and werewolves

Nope. All fiction.

Mythology blogs. Reddit threads full of wannabe

as I

and legends of Ziprey

were wacky stories. Superstitions. Tales told by old women sitting by the fire. Creatures of the night. Spirits that walk beneath a full

solid. Nothing credible. All marked "folklore," "urban legend," or worse: "tourism

No mention of vampires.

record

I tried

death

The first result?

Anemia.

of deaths in people aged 17–24. Labeled as "sudden severe anemia" or "unexplained blood

in their sleep. One particular blog post from a former teacher mentioned a "pattern" no one wanted to talk about. Young students going pale, getting sick, complaining of strange dreams and fatigue—before just

illness." "Transferred