Chapter 7: Broken Bonds
Present (After the Assembly)
Slater
I stood at the entrance of the assembly hall, watching her.
It was Charis, alright. This was the first time I was seeing her, a year after our painful breakup.
Painful was a milder word compared to the emotional trauma I had to go through after our three-year relationship ended.
When I had seen her at that hall, near despair, I had to help, even though I wished I could have made a different choice. Now, I’ve embroiled myself in whatever drama she’d come with.
Even disguised as a boy, even with her hair shorn close to her scalp and her ridiculous clothes, I would recognise her anywhere.
What on earth was she doing here? What could have brought her to this nightmare of a place?
I wanted to walk away. I had every reason to. She had hurt me, rejected me cruelly on the day of our engagement, and had disgraced my pack in front of powerful allies. The memory of that humiliation was still fresh in my mind.
I should turn around, pretend I’d never seen her, let whatever fate awaited her play out without my interference. I could make an excuse for thinking she’s my stepbrother and get away with it.
But how could I when she looked like that?