Claimed by the Alpha and the Vampire Prince: Masquerading as a Man Chapter 39: Claimed

Clare POV

Early in the morning, I made damn sure I was going to school.

First, I wasn’t about to piss off Reed and risk a repeat of yesterday. Second, I had no intention of spending another second in the boarding house of horrors if I didn’t have to. Sothing was wrong with this place, and I wasn’t sticking around to find out what.

I couldn’t explain it, but the air felt too thick, too still. Even in broad daylight, shadows pooled in corners where they had no business being. I swear the walls creaked, like the house was breathing—like it knew I was here.

Hell no.

I had enough nightmares on my plate already; I didn’t need to add "haunted boarding house" to the list. It was probably a ghost this ti—for real—but I wasn’t about to go looking for proof. Nope. My horror quota was already overflowing, and I wasn’t about to poke around and invite more. My mind was open to anything at this point—werewolves, vampires, hell, even Frankenstein could show up at this school, and I wouldn’t bat an eye.

But I did not need to see it.

I made sure my manly disguise was in place.

My boobs still ached—sensitive, sore from Blaze’s rough hands, but I ignored it. I wrapped myself up as best as I could, forcing everything flat. Wig secure, hoodie up, posture slouched. Just another average guy heading to school. Nothing to see here.

I stepped outside onto the porch, inhaling the crisp morning air. It should’ve been refreshing, but sothing about the stillness of the boarding house made my skin crawl. The air was too cold, too heavy, like it was pressing against . Like the house itself was watching.

I shook off the thought.

Sara arrived a few minutes later, her eyebrows shooting up in surprise when she saw . "You’re actually going to class?" she said, crossing her arms. "Thought you were dead set on skipping yesterday."

I forced a shrug. "Changed my mind."

Sara frowned. "I stopped by after school, you know. You weren’t in your room."

My stomach twisted, but I kept my face blank. "Must’ve been out."

Her frown deepened. "Yeah? Out where?"

For a second, I swore the wind whispered behind —a breath, a whisper, sothing that wasn’t mine. I refused to turn around.

"Nowhere important," I muttered, tugging my hoodie lower. "Let’s just go."

Going to school felt like walking into a trap.

I tried to keep my face neutral, to pretend I wasn’t on the verge of panic. Blaze. Reed. I had no idea how either of them would react when they saw today. I only knew one thing—there was no way I was getting through the day without so kind of nightmare unfolding.

The second I stepped through the school gates, I felt it.

Eyes.

Not the usual curious glances, not the kind of looks students give when soone stands out. These were different.

So of them weren’t human. I could tell.

They stood too still. Their faces were too sharp, too angular, too unnatural. So had eyes that shimred strangely in the daylight, their stares digging into like they could see straight through my disguise.

But it wasn’t just them. The humans were staring too.

So looked confused, intrigued. Others looked at with sothing closer to hunger. A few didn’t even bother pretending to be subtle—they checked out, their gazes crawling over in a way that made my skin itch.

But the worst part?

None of them looked away when I caught them staring.

They just kept watching.

Like they were waiting for sothing.

Like they knew sothing I didn’t.

My stomach twisted, my feet hesitating for just a second. Sothing was wrong. More than just Blaze. More than just Reed. More than just being in over my head.

I swallowed hard and forced myself to keep walking.

Whatever was happening—whatever was coming for —I’d find out soon enough.

The hallway was no different.

The stares. Unrelenting. Unblinking.

It wasn’t just curiosity anymore—it was like they knew sothing I didn’t.

My skin crawled. I forced myself to keep walking, but my shoulders tensed under the weight of their gazes. They weren’t just watching. They were waiting.

For what?

I turned to Sara, lowering my voice. "What? Do I have sothing on my face?"

She shook her head, then held up her phone on the school website notice pinned top of the online noticeboard.

Exclusive Claim: Clause Asher – Blood Bag of Blaze

No vampire is permitted to drink from him.

My blood went cold.

The words blurred, my pulse pounding in my ears. I didn’t even realize how silent the hallway had beco, how the air around had turned frigid.

I didn’t notice the way everything had stopped.

Not until I slamd into sothing solid.

The second my skin made contact, my entire body locked up.

Goosebumps raced down my arms, the hair on my neck standing on end before I even had to look up.

I already knew.

The tension in the air, the raw anger rolling off the body in front of , the suffocating heat clashing against the cold stillness of the hallway—

Yeah.

The drama had just begun.

And the thing standing in front of , glaring down with golden, burning eyes and murder in his scent?

None other than Reed.

And he looked absolutely, utterly livid.

Reed didn’t say a word.

He just growled.

Low, guttural—not human.

A sound that curdled my blood, vibrating deep in my bones like a warning before a kill.

Then his hand clamped onto my arm.

Hard. Unyielding.

I barely had ti to breathe before he yanked forward, dragging through the hall like I was nothing more than a ragdoll caught in the jaws of a predator.

Eyes followed us, but no one moved. No one spoke.

No one would help .

Where the hell is he taking ?

Panic clawed up my throat, but I didn’t dare fight against his grip.

The heat radiating off him was unnatural. Overwhelming. Like a furnace barely contained beneath fragile skin, a firestorm seconds from erupting and burning alive.

What the fuck did I do?

If he had a problem, he should go to Blaze, not . I wasn’t the one who started this twisted, fucked-up ga.

Yet here I was—being dragged away by a wolf whose rage humd in the air like an electric current, crackling, unstable, lethal.

And this ti...

I was sure.

He was going to kill .