My Alphas' Dark Desires

Chapter 269: Exposed

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Chapter 269

~Valerie’s POV~

Every student turned as the circle grew quiet. My throat tightened, and my muscles locked in place.

Astraea?

Of course. Why wasn’t I surprised?

Solstice warned me about her—said her ambition ran deeper than most—but I doubt even Solstice had predicted this... knew that Astraea knew of my identity.

The question now was... would I let her win?

Across the firelight, the heirs and princes all moved forward, faces shadowed with confusion, disbelief—and something else.

Even Xander and Riven had risen to their feet, both looking directly at me with unreadable expressions.

"Excuse me?" I asked calmly, forcing a blank look on my face. "What are you talking about?"

"Don’t play coy with me." Astraea’s voice was laced with venom.

"Valerie?" Isla’s voice broke through the tension as she halted in her steps. "Is... is what she’s saying true?"

"Why don’t you ask her since she is so keen on believing that lie. Sure, my name is Valerie, but I am not Valerie Snow."

"You lie!" Astraea snapped, her voice cracking like a whip, making me wonder just how long her hatred has run deep.

Students were gathering now, curious faces appearing through the trees. Murmurs passed from one mouth to another.

It shouldn’t have been something to cause this much of a crowd, but it did.

"Which explains the assessment scores, right?" Titania stepped closer, a smug smile curling her lips.

"Stop looking for drama where there’s none," I said, trying to stay calm.

"Oh, there’s plenty," Avery added with a cold laugh, arms folded across her chest. "More than enough."

My lips parted to speak but Astreaea beat me to it.

"You can’t lie out for this one, Valerie, not like Silver. You are the late Southern Alpha Kings’ Heiress."

A few audible gasps broke from the crowd.

"And how exactly do you plan to prove that?" I asked flatly.

Astraea stepped forward, then began to slowly circle me like a predator. "For one, your hair colour."

"My hair?" I repeated, disbelief curling around the words.

Astra, my wolf, growled deep inside me. "Give me the go-ahead to rip her throat out."

"No," I warned, pushing Astra back with effort. "She knows nothing. She’s baiting me. I won’t give her the satisfaction and let her use my reaction against me.

"Yes," Astraea said louder now. "I saw you after the game ended. You took off your wig and rinsed it in the river. I followed you."

My heart thudded, but I kept my face still.

I had made a mistake and didn’t think anyone had actually followed me or seen me after they lost the game.

"I saw you, Valerie, but I couldn’t attack since we lost the game. But I saw your true hair... Silver, with violet and blue tips."

"You were going to attack her?" Isla blurted from the side.

Emerald moved closer, pushing past people till she came upon the clearing. "What are you doing Astraea?"

"Exposing a liar," she said simply, cold and confident.

"She’s our friend," Isla snapped, her voice rising.

"Friends...? I believe she should be investigated thoroughly." Astraea stopped and glanced at Dristan, a tad too long for it to be called a glance, before looking at the others. "How sure are we that the mate bond wasn’t forged, just like her name and probably identity?"

Gasps rippled through the crowd. Some began whispering, others glanced at the alphas behind me.

Someone scoffed in the audience. "If she is the Southern King’s Heiress, that also means that Silver.... Solstice is her cousin?"

"Exactly!" someone else piped in. "They both forged their way in!"

"I knew she reacted too much back then," a student added. Heads nodded, and the ripple of doubt widened.

This was spiraling.

Several heads nodded in agreement as more ideology came out. Some supported it, while a few called it a coincidence.

I felt my stomach tighten at the thought.

On two occassions I had fucked up greatly. First, when Solstice left and the other was dying my hair outside.

Just when I thought it would end, someone in the crowd asked, "And what about the other two signs or proof?"

Astraea’s eyes gleamed with triumph. Of course—this wasn’t just about me. This had always been about Dristan.

Astraea had probably been in love with Dristan, but he never gave her a second glance.

"Two, the assessment, the powers, earth..."

"Then how do you explain the flames?" Emerald asked, crossing her arms.

"Maybe she played a trick to disguise it." Titania shrugged. "Tricked the results."

"I didn’t do anything," I defended, but she ignored me.

"And three..." She stopped walking, coming to stand before me as she lifted a paper and showed it to me. "This."

I froze.

I knew that paper.

The paper wasn’t the issue; it was what was written on it.

"I know who you are, Valerie Violet Sapphire Snow."

My pulse skipped. My lungs squeezed, but I forced my expression into bored indifference, as though none of it was affecting me.

"So?"

"So," she smiled, showing it to the crowd, letting it pass through hands. "I found this after you tried burning it. But after I saw what was written on it when you left for class."

"It was burnt?" Kai spoke up, the first of my mates to react. "Then how did you have it?"

"Fae magic." Everyone turned to look at Titania as she walked over to us. "Astraea used Fae magic to recover what was lost... and just before you go saying it wasn’t Valerie who wrote it, Emerald and Isla, fae magic can trace a fingerprint pattern. We checked. And we can check again."

Eyes turned to Isla and Emerald. Isla looked torn. Emerald’s jaw was clenched, but she said nothing.

I saw Dristan in the crowd now—his eyes holding too many emotions to name. Shock. Anger. Worry.

I shut my eyes for some time. I knew this day would come.

So yes. I burnt the paper," I said simply. noveldrama

The second I said that, gasps and murmurings ensued.

"But," I added, and the noise cut like a switch, "I only did that because I received threats. First, telling me to leave the school. Then they accused me of being someone I wasn’t. I’ve received four in total. And guess what? I took pictures of each. I have proof."

Murmurs spread again, this time more uncertain. The crowd turned between me, Astraea, and Titania.

"So tell me," I said, looking directly at Astraea now, "how am I supposed to believe you didn’t send them?"

Astraea looked shocked buts he stuttered, shaking her head. "You cannot believe her. I... I sent the other letters just to rattle her but I never sent this one about her being Valerie Snow. This was..."

Astraea faltered. Her expression wavered. "I... I sent some letters. To rattle you. But I didn’t create that one. That wasn’t me—"

"So you admit you framed her?" Dristan asked sharply, stepping forward.

Astraea’s lips trembled. "No. I just—"

"You insult our mate," Xade’s voice thundered, his aura pushing outward. "And now you admit to manipulation?"

"No, Xade—please," she turned, desperate. "Dristan, you have to believe me. The facts are all there. I’d never lie to you, I love—"

"The same way you lied and pretended to be her friend?" Ash cut in, voice like ice.

Astraea began backing away, her breathing ragged.

She hadn’t expected it to unravel so fast.

"Why?" Isla’s voice cracked, shaking her head.

Something broke in Astraea’s expression then. Astraea’s gaze darkened, and she stopped shaking her head altogether like she had recalled something.

"Fine then, if you wouldn’t believe me, I’ll prove it to you all."

In a sudden movement, she lunged forward—too fast, but before me or anyone could react, pain seared through my scalp as she grabbed a fistful of my hair and yanked.

"She’s wearing a wig!"