The Pack's Criminal is the Alpha King's Mate

 [Ciara’s pov]

I am being released from prison today after being locked up for five years.

I waited and waited, yet no joy ever reached me.

Before this, I was the most beautiful she-wolf in the kingdom. The heiress of the Laurent family and the pack. 

But now…

My fingertips trembled as I peeled away the old, stained bandage from my cheek. 

Cold air brushed my raw skin beneath, making me flinch with the sting. 

I stared at the woman in the mirror, trying to find a trace of the girl I used to be, but only a woman with a big scar on the cheek stared back.

Two weeks ago, I was beaten after the warden received another call. The whip slashed across my face, the silverbane lining made it impossible for the scar to heal. 

It was yet another punishment for killing my fiancé’s sister… my best friend.

A crime I never committed.

The warden bangs his wooden stick on the bars. 

“This is what you asked for.” The prison doctor, the only one I can call a friend in this hell,  handed me the fresh skin graft in the silence of the morning. 

“Did your wounds heal with the ointment I gave you?” His pitiful gaze reminded me of every scream I yelled in his lab. 

I nodded.

They went away before I could tell him my release. Well, he will forget about this ugly woman very soon.

I looked at the patch of my skin to cover another wound. 

I pressed the graft against my cheek, smoothing every edge until it settled into place…

Five years ago, my parents’ biological daughter Alicent came back. Only then did I realize that was just a stray they took pity on, to fill the void of their lost daughter.

I coped with her rage for a long time because I lived her life.

But my life ended the day my own brother, Alpha Luther, wanted me to take the blame for what Alicent did: She had killed my best friend, the Alpha princess. 

My parents, the Laurents, begged me to save their daughter.

So I was beaten, thrashed with silver whips, slashed with knives in jail, all these five years to repay their kindness when they took me in when I was an orphan omega girl.

My indifferent gaze drifted downward to my forearm. A pale line stretched across my skin like an ugly reminder of every sacrifice I'd been forced to make. That was where the doctors had taken the graft.

One scar to hide another.

The heavy iron door behind me creaked open. "Prisoner 417. You've been granted an early release. Alpha Luther Laurent has filed a bail for you personally and it was granted.”

The inmate title no longer hurt me. It wasn't my name but became my identity. Now my name is Ciara, just Ciara. I was no longer a Laurent. 

A guard stood waiting with a ring of keys hanging from his belt. "You should hurry up 417 before the Alpha changes his mind."

The corridor stretched endlessly before me. How many times had I walked these halls in chains? How many nights had I been dragged through them bleeding?

I had stopped counting after the first winter.

To them, I was simply another prisoner leaving. To me… I was walking away from the old naive Ciara Laurent. Dropping the pack title and the Alpha’s daughter’s identity that’s no longer mine. 

"Your family is waiting." The word almost made me laugh. 

Instead, I remained expressionless. "It's your older brother," he continued. "Alpha Luther Laurent has come to pick you up."

A black car waited outside the prison. Luther stepped down first as he stared straight at me. 

For a moment, I almost didn't recognize him. His shoulders had grown broader. His face looked older and he had grown a beard. 

Five years ago I would have run into his arms happily after seeing him after so many years. Now I simply walked forward with heavy steps as I sighed. 

When our eyes met, emotion flooded his face. "Ciara..." My name sounded unfamiliar coming from him. There was warmth in it but also something which I could not grasp fully. 

My heartbeat remained steady. Yet somewhere deep down I hope Luther really did feel guilty for sending me to prison. 

He crossed the distance taking hurried bigger steps. "I've missed you so much, sis.” Luther pulled me into a hug while I stood there completely fazed at his reaction. 

Missed me?

Had he missed me when winter froze the prison cells while he slept in his blankets?

Had he missed me while lashes tore open my back while he feigned ignorance?

Or had he missed me while I screamed for help that never came?

Five years and not once had anyone from the Laurent family had come to meet me. I gently pushed him away wondering if the family actually ever loved me. 

Luther smiled softly, almost nervously. "I know this place has been difficult for you, Ciara. But now it’s over." 

I nearly smiled hearing his hypocrisy. He could end this unfair punishment if he wanted to years ago. But Luther let me suffer and rot here all alone for Alicent’s crimes. 

“Yes, it is all in the past.” I spoke meaningfully. 

All his embraces and reassuring words in sleepless thunderous nights, all his worried shouts when I was lost running around in the town, are all in the past as well.

He was my first protector, the coolest boy in the world for me, not anymore.

He cleared his throat while opening the carriage door. "Mother has asked the cooks to prepare your favorite meals. And Father..." he continued hesitantly. "Father has been looking forward to seeing you."

I waited for him to speak further, knowing how confidently he was lying to my face. 

"Alicent wants to apologize. I hope you’ve it in your heart to forgive her mistake."

That finally made me look at him.

“Mistake? If killing someone was just a mistake, Luther, then why was I being punished for five years?” Venting my rage subtly I climbed into the car without waiting for his answer.

Alpha Luther didn’t say anything and sat beside me. The drive was filled with awkward silence till he suddenly leaned closer.

“I am sorry for what happened, Ciara.” His voice was subtly laced with mild guilt. “But... if I'd kept you in the palace..." His voice cracked. "The entire pack would have turned against me. They demanded justice for the royal princess's death. They wanted the culprit punished, and as Alpha, I couldn't ignore them." 

“I had to do something, Ciara. The royal family was relentless, they pressured me for an answer, for a sentence, for someone to pay." He let out a weary breath and looked toward the window, avoiding my eyes completely. "I... I had to make a choice." 

I sat there silent. 

Alpha Luther sacrificed me, he put Alicent above me. 

"When Alicent finally came back to us after all those years..." His shoulders sagged. “None of us could bear the thought of losing her the second time." His voice softened into something almost pleading.

"I know what we asked of you was cruel. But at the time... it felt like there was no other way. I don't expect you to forgive me but I want you to know Ciara, you were and still are my sister. And choosing between the two of you was the hardest decision I've ever made.”

I didn’t bother to ask him anything or complain about anything. In the past I would’ve gotten upset thinking he was feeling guilty because of me. 

But now? 

I didn’t care at all, instead I wanted him to live with this shame. 

Five years was too late for excuses and reasoning.  

My heart almost stopped when he lifted his hand towards my face. When we were little and I was frightened by thunderstorms, Luther would brush my hair away exactly like that.

Reflexively I skid back before his hand could reach me. I couldn't bear him touching my face. 

Not with all the scars I had been hiding underneath those grafts.