Chapter 4

I was burning in rage as I got closer to them. Damien was already seated with the girl and wbones noticed me coming close to him, his smile faded.

I was certain from the look on his face that he had a lot going on in his mind.

He must be pondering on what I would do. I thought.

The girl looked confused too. I stood in front of them, my hands folded. Everyone was staring at me, waiting for my next line of action, but I could only stare at Damien and the girl in front of me.

I had nothing in mind to do or say to them; my inability to control my anger brought me here.

"Is there a problem?" The girl asked.

"I..."

"Karen Smith?" Someone called and I turned to see who had called my name.

"You must be Karen Smith?" The student asked, walking closer to me.

"Yes, I am. Is there a problem?"

"The Principal asked you to see him in his office."

At the mention of the Principal's name, the students began to murmur. I could hear a few of their murmurings; most of them accusing me of doing something bad to be summoned by him.

I had nothing to worry about, so I ignored them and turned to face Damien, who looked a bit relaxed; a sign he was now certain that I wouldn't be doing anything funny.

"He is waiting," the student added and I sighed.

"Fine. I will go see him in his office."

I gave a last look at Damien before heading to the door.

"Karen?" Emma called, running after me.

I stopped. "Is there a problem?"

"Not really. Would you be fine going to the Principal's office alone?"

"Of course. I have nothing to worry about, Emma. I have done nothing wrong."

"I can go with you if you..."

"No, thanks. You don't have to. Where is Luella?" I asked looking around for her.

Emma pointed at Luella who was still seated. She seemed less concerned about what was happening and was focused on eating her food.

I sighed. Luella has always been my friend, but most of the time, she showed less concern about me, unlike Emma, who was always showing how much she cared about me.

Emma held my hand. "I think I should go with you. Luella doesn't..."

"You don't have to worry about me. I will find my way."

I left Emma at the cafeteria and headed straight to the Principal's office. After a few knocks, I was ushered in. Seated opposite the Principal was our Pack's Beta, Mr. Derek Williams.

It was strange to see him in our school; that made me wonder if something had happened. The unusual summoning of the Principal added to my curiosity.

My mind drifted immediately to my father and my heart skipped a bit. I feared my father could be the reason why I was summoned.

Something bad hasn't happened to him. Has it?

The look on the Principal's face wasn't helping matters either; I could not see the face of the Beta.

I stood close to the door, not sure what to do next.

"Karen?" The Principal called. "You should take a seat."

I moved closer and pulled a chair to sit on. The Beta stared at me slightly and went on to press his phone; silence invaded the room.

"It has been settled," he muttered after a few minutes.

The Principal gave me a sad look and that made me shiver.

Something bad must have happened to my father. I thought. Is he dead?

"Karen," the Beta began. "Did you notice any strange things about your father?"

I furrowed my brows. "What do you mean by that?"

"Have you noticed any straight attitude?"

I shook my head quickly. "None, I can remember."

He sighed but said nothing. Silence invaded the room once with the Principal and the Beta lost in their severe thought.

"Karen," the Beta called out again. "I do not know how to tell you this."

"Did something happen to my dad?" I asked, prepared for the worst.

"Your father betrayed our Pack, Karen."

"M-my dad?"

He nodded. "He sold out some vital information about our Pack to our enemies, and because of that, we lost so many of our treasures, and our Pack is under attack."

I felt a wave of confusion wash over me as if I was trying to understand what was just said. I could not believe that my father would betray a Pack he had worked so hard for.

"Y-you are joking, right?" I mumbled slowly.

The thought of my father being a traitor gave me goosebumps; I had to suck in some air.

My father had always been loyal to our Pack, giving it his all. He has been one of the most dedicated people our Pack ever had; everyone could testify to that. Not only has he kept a lot of confidential documents that belong to our Pack safe, but he has also kept all their secrets away from his family.

Why would he suddenly betray our Pack?

An awkward silence had invaded the room; I could only stare from the Principal's face to the Beta's.

"M-my father can't betray our Pack," I finally mumbled; tears already welling up in my eyes. "W-why would my father do that?"

"I know how difficult it is for you to accept what your father has done. Everyone in the Pack is in shock too," the Principal said. "Karen, because of what your father did, you have been expelled from this school."

I let out the tears that had gathered up in my eyes. The Principal and Beta said nothing; they gave me time to pour out the pain that had lingered in my heart. I brought out the handkerchief in my pocket and wiped my face.

"Karen," the Beta said.

I knew being expelled wasn't the only news they had for me.

Maybe another bad news. I thought.

"You are not only expelled. You have to be a token of submission to the Pack that attacked us."

My eyes widened. "Token of submission?"

"What... what does that even mean?"

At the thought of what those words could mean, fear, cold and clammy, began to seep into my boness.