05

Sonya~

I didn't ask the guard any more questions after he told me to come with him. There was no point because his expression already told me that whatever had happened was serious, and I could feel my wolf becoming more alert as we left the palace.

The ride to Doris's residence was quiet, and I spent most of it staring through the window while trying to prepare myself for whatever awaited me. I still couldn't understand why Seth had accused me at the hospital, but I refused to let my mind create something worse than what I could handle.

When the vehicle stopped, I stepped out and immediately noticed the number of guards surrounding the residence. More people stood around the entrance than I had ever seen there, and none of them looked relaxed. Their faces were serious, while some avoided looking directly at me.

I followed the guard inside, and the moment I entered the hallway, the smell of blood hit my nose so strongly that my stomach turned. My wolf became restless, and I slowed down as the scent grew stronger with every step toward Doris's bedroom.

The door was wide open, and several people stood around the room. I noticed Alpha Deacon first, standing beside the bed with his shoulders stiff and his face swollen from what looked like hours of crying. Then my eyes moved to the bed.

Doris laid lifeless there.

I stopped at the doorway, unable to move as I stared at her lifeless body. Blood had stained the sheets beneath her, and there was a deep wound on her body that made my breath catch. The same woman I had seen connected to life support hours ago was now lying in front of me without any sign of life.

For a few seconds, I couldn't hear anything around me. My eyes remained fixed on her, and a strange coldness spread through my body as I tried to understand how everything had changed so quickly.

“She is dead,” I whispered, although everyone in that room already knew.

Alpha Deacon suddenly turned toward me, and the grief on his face was replaced by pure rage. His eyes were red, his fists were tightly clenched, and the sight of him made me take a step back.

“You,” he said, his voice shaking with anger. “How could you do this to my Luna?”

My heart jumped, and I stared at him in disbelief. “What are you talking about?”

He moved toward me, but one of the guards stepped between us before he could get any closer. I didn't understand why he was looking at me like I had personally taken Doris's life, especially when I had not even known she was going to die.

Then I saw Seth.

He stood on the other side of the bed, his eyes fixed on me with a coldness that made my chest tighten. There was no confusion in his expression this time, only anger and disappointment, as though he had already decided that I was guilty.

I looked from him to Doris's body, then back at him, waiting for him to say something that would make this madness understandable.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” I asked, my voice trembling despite how hard I tried to control it. “I didn't do anything to her.”

Seth's jaw tightened, but before he could answer, a council member stepped forward and spoke instead.

“The evidence has already been gathered,” he said. “You were identified as the person who entered this room and attacked the Head Luna.”

My brows pulled together. “Identified by who?”

The man turned toward a woman standing near the wall.

I looked at her properly for the first time and recognized her as Doris's closest maid. She was trembling, her eyes swollen from crying, but the moment our eyes met, she immediately looked away.

“She was here when it happened,” the council member continued. “She witnessed the attack.”

I stared at the maid, unable to believe what I was hearing. “You saw me?”

She swallowed hard and slowly nodded.

My stomach dropped.

“When?” I asked, moving one step toward her. “When did you see me here?”

The maid's hands shook as she held them together in front of her. “Earlier today. You came into the room and argued with Luna Doris.”

My mouth fell open.

“I did what?”

She looked at me with fear. “You argued with her, then you attacked her.”

“That is a lie!” I shouted before I could stop myself.

My wolf pushed against my chest, furious at the accusation, and I had to force myself to breathe normally. There was no way this woman had seen me because I had never been inside this house, and I had never spoken to Doris after she left the palace.

“I haven't been here,” I said, looking directly at the maid. “You didn't see me.”

“I know what I saw,” she replied, her voice shaking.

“No, you don't.” I shook my head, my heart pounding harder. 

The room fell silent.

Seth's eyes narrowed as he stared at me, and I could see the doubt he refused to admit. He walked around the bed slowly, stopping several feet from me.

“Then explain why my father's Luna was attacked by someone who looked exactly like you,” he said.

I stared at him because I didn't have an answer. I didn't know who had come here pretending to be me, and I couldn't understand how anyone had managed to make this maid believe it was actually me.

“I don't know,” I admitted, my voice becoming smaller. “But I know I wasn't here.”

One of the elders bent toward the table beside the bed and picked up a piece of cloth sealed inside a transparent evidence bag. My eyes immediately went to it when he held it up.

“This was found in the room,” he said. “It carries your scent.”

I shook my head before he could say anything else. “That isn't mine.”

He placed it back on the table, but another council member pointed toward the floor near the bed where a personal item lay among the scattered things. I recognized it immediately.

It looked like something that belonged to me.

My heart stopped for a second.

I couldn't remember losing it, and I couldn't explain how it had ended up in Doris's bedroom. I stared at it with a growing sense of fear because whoever had done this hadn't simply pretended to be me. They had gone far enough to make sure everything pointed toward me.

“This is a setup,” I whispered.

Alpha Deacon let out a bitter laugh, his face twisted with grief. “My Luna is dead, and you have the courage to stand here and call it a setup? You expect me to believe that?” he demanded, stepping forward again. “My wife was attacked in her own bedroom, your face was seen here, your scent was found here, and something belonging to you was found beside her body.”

His words pressed against me from every direction. I had no explanation that could make the evidence disappear, and the only thing I had was the truth.

I hadn't killed Doris.

“I don't know how those things got here,” I said, looking at Seth. “But you have to believe me. I haven't spoken to your stepmother since she left the palace. I had nothing to do with this.”

Seth stared at me for a long moment, and something inside me broke when he finally looked away.

He didn't believe me.

“Sonya,” he said, his voice low and cold, “why would the maid have a reason to lie about you?”

I looked at the maid again, and my heart twisted when I saw the fear on her face. She genuinely believed she had seen me, or at least she was acting well enough to make everyone else believe her.

“But I wasn't here. Someone is impersonating me.” I said, struggling to keep my voice steady. 

The moment those words left my mouth, several people exchanged looks.

Seth's expression hardened.

“Enough,” he growled.

I shook my head desperately. “No, I'm telling you the truth.”

“You have a witness standing here, physical evidence in this room, and my father's Luna lying dead in front of you,” Seth said, his voice rising as his anger took control. “Yet you still expect me to believe that you are innocent?”

I looked at Doris's body, and tears finally gathered in my eyes. I didn't care that she had disliked me or that we had never been close. She was dead, and somehow, someone had used her death to destroy me.

“I don't expect you to believe me,” I whispered, wiping the tears before they could fall. “But I honestly didn't do it.”

Seth's face remained cold.

He walked toward me until his alpha aura pressed against my body, forcing my wolf to shrink back even though I wanted to stand my ground. Then he stopped in front of me and looked down at me with an expression that made me realize he had already reached his decision.

“Sonya,” he said, his voice carrying through the silent room. “You will answer for your crime.”

My heart sank.

Before I could say another word, his hand pointed toward the bloodstained floor beside Doris's bed.

“Kneel.”