Ch 5: The King's Summon

Alle's POV

Norman's hand remained on Lowell's arm.

For several seconds, neither of them moved. Lowell's fingers were still around my neck, though the pressure had eased enough for me to breathe again.

I kept my eyes on him, afraid that the moment I looked away, his grip would tighten.

“Let her go,” Norman said.

Lowell's gaze shifted to his brother. “She crossed the border with you.”

“I know.”

“She knows things she shouldn't.”

“I know that too.”

Something passed between them that I couldn't understand. Norman didn't raise his voice. He simply held Lowell's stare until, after a long moment, Lowell released me.

I immediately stepped back and rubbed my neck.

Lowell didn't move.

Neither did I.

We stared at each other for several seconds, and I hated how familiar his face had become in such a short time.

I had written those eyes, the sharp line of his jaw. I had decided how he looked, how he spoke, how others feared him.

Yet standing in front of him now, I couldn't shake the feeling that I had never truly known him.

Lowell finally looked away and walked past us.

He had barely taken two steps when someone appeared at the end of the corridor.

Rybeena… Still can't believe she isn't Chloe.

She stopped when she saw us, her eyes moving from me to Lowell before settling on Norman.

“The King wants an audience with Alpha Lowell, Alpha Norman, and Lady Margaret,” she said. “Immediately.”

I almost laughed.

The words had barely left her mouth before I remembered how quickly news could travel in a territory ruled by Alphas.

Still, this felt absurd. We had only just returned, and already the King knew we had crossed the northern border.

“Of course he does,” Lowell muttered.

Rybeena looked at him. “You are expected at the palace.”

“I have somewhere to be.”

My head turned sharply toward him. “You have somewhere to be?”

Lowell looked at me. “I do. You have any problem with that?”

I stared at him.

I had written this man to be many things, but apparently I had forgotten to give him a healthy fear of consequences.

Norman stepped between us before I could say anything.

“Go to the palace,” Norman said.

Lowell glanced toward the palace gates, then back at his brother. “You go.”

Norman's brows drew together. “The King summoned us all.”

“Then you can explain for both of us.”

“You're not walking away from a royal summons.”

Lowell's gaze hardened. “Watch me.”

He turned.

Norman caught his arm. “Lowell.”

Lowell looked down at his brother's hand before slowly raising his eyes to his face. “Let go.”

Norman held on for another moment, then released him. Lowell straightened his coat and walked past them without another word.

Alle watched him disappear down the corridor. She had written him as ruthless, feared, and impossible to control.

Apparently, she had underestimated him. “I'll attend to him later.” Lowell said as he walked off without another word.

I watched Lowell walk away across the open ground, putting distance between himself and the rest of us. He didn't look back, and I kept staring after him until he disappeared among the trees.

“How did I write him like this?” I muttered.

Norman turned toward me. “What did you say?”

I looked at him and shook my head. “Nothing.”

We followed Rybeena toward the palace.

The King's residence stood above the rest of the territory, surrounded by guards and high stone walls. I remembered describing it years ago, though I had never imagined walking through its gates myself.

Everything was exactly where I had placed it, from the black banners hanging above the entrance to the wide staircase leading into the main hall.

That familiarity made every step uncomfortable.

Inside, the King was already waiting. His gaze moved over Norman and Margaret before stopping on the empty space behind them.

“Where is Lowell?”

Norman stepped forward. “He refused to come, Your Majesty.”

The King reached for the arm of his chair and settled back. “He refused?”

“He said he had somewhere else to be.”

The King's fingers rested against the carved wood. “And you allowed him to leave?”

Norman lowered his head. “I could not force him without causing a greater disturbance, Your Majesty.”

The King said nothing for a moment before turning his attention to Margaret. “Then tell me why the two of you crossed the northern border.”

Norman stepped forward again. “The decision was mine, Your Majesty. Margaret followed because I ordered her to come. Whatever punishment is due should fall on me.”

“You knew the law.”

“Yes.”

“And yet you ignored it.”

Norman didn't defend himself.

I stood beside him with my hands clasped together, trying not to look at the King for too long.

I remembered writing him with a temper that made even senior Alphas choose their words carefully. He never needed to shout to make a room fall silent.

“Why did you leave the territory?” he asked once again.

Before I could think about what to say. “Allow her to leave. I will answer your question.” Norman requested.

The King studied him for several moments before finally nodding.

“Very well.”

Norman tilted his head towards the door while staring at me. I took the cue, bowed and turned toward the door. The moment I stepped outside, I stopped.

Now I remember, in the original story, Margaret returned to the waiting area and remained there until Norman finished speaking with the King.

I was supposed to do the same.

Instead, I looked toward the opposite side of the palace grounds.

Lowell's family residence stood beyond the eastern courtyard.

I had never written Margaret visiting it at this point in the story.

That alone should have been enough to make me turn around.

But, I didn't.

I started walking.

I kept to the quieter paths, avoiding the guards whenever I saw them. The closer I got to the residence, the more uneasy I became.

I reached the side of the residence and heard voices from inside.

I immediately stopped.

Lowell.

I moved closer to the wall and stayed behind a row of tall shrubs.

“You told me to deal with them,” Lowell said.

His voice was controlled, but there was something strained underneath it.

A woman's voice came next. “I told you to frighten them.”

Lowell went silent.

“I told you to make them understand what would happen if they continued spreading the prophecy,” she continued. “I never told you to kill them.”

My fingers curled around the edge of the stone wall.

“They refused to listen.”

“That does not give you the right to slaughter them.”

“They would have exposed everything.”

“You were supposed to threaten them.”

“I did!”

“And then you killed them.”

“I did what I had to do to make you happy!” Lowell yelled and immediately silence filled the room.

“I thought you wanted them gone,” Lowell killed the silence with almost a whimpered voice.

His mother let out a dry laugh. “Do you ever listen?”

“I was trying to protect you.”

“Protect me?” She gave a bitter laugh. “You call this protecting me? You think killing twelve helpless seers protects me?”

Lowell didn't answer. Another man's voice came from inside, and the single word made me pause.

“Mother.”

I held my breath. Lowell's older brother was there. Travis.

I knew that voice from the book, though I had never imagined hearing it in person.

His mother turned on Lowell again.

“You have spent your entire life bringing shame into this family.”

I saw Lowell's hand tighten through the window.

“You should be grateful I gave you a place here at all.”

I stared through the window.

Lowell was silent for a moment before answering, his voice quieter than before. “I never asked for anything from you.”

“You didn't have to.” She moved closer. “Every time I look at you, I remember what I did.”

I frowned.

Travis remained silent, and Lowell didn't move.

Then his mother's next words made me forget what I had been about to think.

“I hate you.”

I stared at her through the window. She didn't shout it or turn away after saying it. She simply stood there, looking at Lowell as if the words had been waiting on her tongue for years.

“You were born from the worst mistake of my life,” she continued. “Every time I see you, I remember that vampire. I remember the shame. I remember what I did with our enemy, and then I have to look at you.”

Lowell's head turned toward the window.

To avoid getting caught, I dropped lower behind the shrubs, but my elbow caught a branch. It scraped against the stone wall before snapping beneath my weight.

The room went silent.

I pressed myself against the wall and covered my mouth, but it was too late.

Travis turned toward the window, his eyes moving across the darkness until they stopped exactly where I was hiding.

“Who is there?”