A Princess Behind Enemy Lines at an all Boys Academy

BLAKELY Ice cold water slammed into my face, making me gasp awake, my back arching from the shock. "Get up, b***h!" A rough voice thundered. I blinked through the darkness, shivering as I clambered across the room away from the towering guard who held the empty iron bucket. It was dawn and still dark, but I could feel the cruel smirk on his face. This was my least favourite time of the day because It always meant one thing- pain. "Time for the fields," he growled before kicking the wooden leg of the bench where I slept. I didn't speak, as it would only earn me a slap. Or worse. I stood up slowly, my body protesting. My back throbbed. The bruise on my cheek was fresh- courtesy of last night's lesson from my uncle. My uncle. That bastard. "Mommy and Daddy are dead, you're mine now." He'd sneered, smiling as he stood over their corpses. Since the day of the coup, I'd been locked away. Hidden, punished and broken down like a dog. He had plans to marry me off. Sell me to another Alpha like cattle, but first he wanted me weak. Submissive. Silent. He beat me for speaking. For breathing wrong. For glaring too hard. "You think you will withstand what I have planned for you?" He'd hissed at me last night, grabbing my hair and slamming me into the wall. "You're just a weak little slut. You're not a princess. You're nothing. I'll sell you to the sickest Alpha I can find. Maybe he'll like his girls with fire in them. Maybe he'll beat it out of you too." Then he spat on my face. Hope was the only thing that kept me strong. And today, hopefully, was the day I would be free again. "Move it." The guard shoved me toward the door of my small stone cell. I walked out, shivering from the cold as the sharp rocks underneath bit into my flesh. But we were interrupted. "Oi!" A voice called, followed by hurried footsteps. We both turned towards the servant hurrying towards us, holding a tray. Leo had once been my father's guard, but after the death of my parents and the escape of my siblings, he was stripped of rank and forced to serve in silence. But he never forgot me. He slipped rolled up letters under the plates, letters from my brothers- Chase and Jacob who'd escaped on the night our parents died. The brute beside me narrowed his eyes. "What the hell are you doing here this early?" Leo stopped a few feet away, flashing an uneasy smile. "Breakfast for the girl." The guard scoffed. "She doesn't eat till midday." "New administrative orders. The Alpha wants her to look... healthy. She's to be sold soon. Can’t sell her if she looks like a starved rat." The guard chuckled. "Starved rat..." Then he grabbed the tray from Leo and sneered. "Let me feed her." Then, without warning, he shoved the tray into me, spilling the scorching hot soup down my arm. A scream tore out of my throat. The pain was instant, like fire. I dropped to my knees, clutching my burning arm. "Eat when you're done working, w***e!" The guard snapped, laughing. "Let's get mov-" Before he was done, Leo moved like lightning. His hand flew under his garb. A dagger flashed before he buried it into the guard’s back. The wounded brute let out a monstrous, angry roar, spinning around before kicking Leo in the stomach, sending him across the room. Leo slammed into the wall, and crumpled. NO! The guard turned towards Leo. If I didn't do something, we both would be dead. I didn't think. I just moved. I pulled the dagger with my burned hand, ignoring the pain. My heart was pounding so loud I could barely hear. And I stabbed him. Right in the neck. His eyes widened and before he got a chance to make a move, I stabbed him again. And again. And again. The spray of blood was followed by the jerk of his body and then he fell, gurgling on his blood. Not long after, he went still. Leo got up with a grunt, reaching into his cloak before pulling out a fairly large glass bottle. He poured the liquid across the room and lit a match. We were burning the cell to make them think I'd died in the fire. As soon as flames roared to life, we ran through the secret passage built into the prison warden's office. We ran until we reached the boundary but we hid behind a dense vegetation to wait out the guards who were done with their shifts and heading back home. Once most had left, we got out and crept past, staying low. Not far away, a few guards were staying by a fire, laughing. I held my breath as we sneaked past them, but somehow, one of them spotted us. "Hey!" Shit. "Run!" Leo yelled through the mindlink before we shot up from our crawling stances and bounded behind the boundary line. At that point, I could barely feel my feet and my head throbbed painfully. But stopping meant death, or a life of slavery. We were finally able to outrun them, and when we stopped in front of the small cabin deep in the woods, I couldn't believe it. Couldn't believe we made it out without getting caught. The familiar figures standing outside the cabin made me gasp, my hand flying to my mouth. "Blake!" Chase shouted. I threw myself into his arms, already sobbing. He held me like he'd never let go. Jacob joined us, and the three of us stood there, holding each other crying, shaking. "I missed you," I sobbed. "We missed you more," Jacob said. Chase, who'd not yet found his voice, was silent as he held me close. "I thought I'd die there." I whispered. "H-he beat me. He s-starved me. He said he was going to sell me." Chase let out a heavy sigh before pulling me in for another hug. "Not anymore sis. You're safe now." I looked at them, glancing back. "I think we might have been followed. We have to get out of here. Once they find out we are missing, they'll send more guards after us. They might find us." Leo nodded in support, but my brothers exchanged a meaningful look. Then Jacob dropped the bomb. "We can't come with you?" It took a moment before the words settled. "What?" I stared at him, unable to believe my ears. "What do you mean?" Chase stepped forward. "There's a bounty on our heads. Our uncle has posters everywhere. If you’re seen with you, you'll be caught too." I waited a moment, because it sounded like they were joking. But the grim looks on their faces suggested otherwise. "No." I snapped, galled by the rising dread. "We stick together!" "You'll die," Chase said. "This is the only way." I opened my mouth to argue but he pulled out a card from his pocket. "This is mine. I was supposed to enter the Alpha Academy this year." I looked at it. His face. His name. Chase Mallory. And when I realised where this was going, I shook my head. "No. No, this has to be a cruel piece of joke-" He grabbed me by the shoulder and looked me dead in the eye. "What part of this looks like a joke to you?!" I thundered back. "Asking me to pretend to be you. There has to be another way. We set the dungeon on fire. They are all going to think I'm dead." He nodded. "And if they find out it was staged? This is the only way you can survive. You'll cut your hair. Dress like a boy. No one will recognize you. No one will expect a dead or escaped Alpha Princess to hide in an all-boys school." "I don't-" "Listen to me. It's the only way, Blakely," Jacob said. "It's the only place you can be safe. Hidden. Just keep your head low. And avoid getting into trouble." "You have to," Chase said. I looked at Leo, hoping he'd stop this crazy idea, but he gave a nod. "I'll take her." Suddenly, there was a noise in the bushes. We all ran inside the cabin immediately while Chase, who shut the door, peeked out. A moment later, he turned to us, visibly disturbed."Boundary guards. They followed you." He turned back to Leo and me. "The both of you need to get out of here. Leo, please-" I panicked. "I'm not going anywhere. They'll kill you both. There could be so many of them. We'll fight them." “Nobody's fighting nobody. You both will leave first. I need you to trust me, sister, I promise I'll come find you someday,l." Chase said before he strode across the room and hugged me. Jacob followed, "Go with Leo. Be safe. Live for us." That's when a banging sounded on the door. The tears were already pouring down my eyes. I couldn't believe that any of this was happening. Leo grabbed my arm. "We need to go now." "I love you," I choked out as Leo pushed me towards the back. Another pounding sounded on the door. Leo lifted me over his shoulder, slipping through the back and into the dark woods again. By sunrise, we reached the Redbourne Pack, and Leo, who was well connected, knew someone who'd help us. She cut my hair short, after which we bought boy's clothes- dark slacks, boots, a stiff jacket among many other necessities. On the D-day, we took a bus to the Crescent Moon Alpha Academy. My stomach twisted the entire ride. I missed my brothers. I missed my parents. I couldn't believe I was doing this just to get away from that evil tyrant who took everything from me. One day, I'll make him pay.