Falsely Accused

ANGILA'S POV 

"You have no prove of that, honey," our Mother reminds her favoured daughter. 

Of course it's not me she is worried about, but Irina's good repute. I bet she wouldn't mind if I got burned alive for something I am not. The Alpha Kings are not nearly as reasonable as I thought.

"Yes I have prove! How else do you think she acquired my scent to fool my mates?" Irina roars.

I stole her rare perfume, not her real scent. Why would she even claim it's her scent? If she has a mate bond with the Angel kings, she wouldn't need to wear a perfume to smell enchanting to them. Her real scent wouldn't be inside a bottle unless she were a witch herself. The witch that stole my mate bond with them.

But I am the one that the glares are turning towards. Those that have always loathed me seeing the opportunity to destroy me. I will be given a chance to defend myself, right?

"You must be the most courageous and stupidest witch to ever walk through the gates of our palace. How long did you think he you could wear the mask?" King Reid questions in disgust. 

"It ruined our great ceremony and poisoned our mate. We should have it burned in the city square," King Alcott says. 

He hasn't even heard my side of the story. He calls me 'it' like a witch and wants me burned alive without a fair trial.

"I am not a witch. My sister is lying. Why don't you ask our parents if I have ever practiced dark spells?" I defend. 

Irina pushes our mother forward, like she expects her to support her lie. 

"Is the accusation true or not? Is your evil daughter a witch as well?" King Reid questions. 

Our mother's lips shake as she hesitates to answer. 

"Anyone that hides a witch suffers the same punishment ad it does. I would avoid lying if I were you," King Alcott warns. 

Still, our mother only shivers in fear but doesn't answer. Her gaze shifts back and forth between me and her favourite daughter.

Our Father finally steps forward with the confidence of an Alpha. Only his words would be truly trusted above Irina's. I wait for him to state the truth, but only the harshest of lies leaves his mouth. 

"Your Majesties, I confirm that the thief is also a witch. I have suspected it for a long time, but had no prove until today. Like our noble, beautiful daughter has said, she used dark spells to steal her entrancing scent," he lies. 

My own father has condemned me to death, just to support Irina's lie. I do not deny putting sleeping powder in their tea so I could have the chance to make my way here and claim the mark of the Alpha Kings. I do not refuse the punishment for that. There was no need for them to brand me a witch when they know well I have never been one. Unless they have wanted me gone for a long time and I didn't notice. 

"You call a perfume your daughter's scent? Because that is the only smell of Irina's I stole. You're the evil ones," I say.

Our mother shoots me a glare. "No perfume has my daughter's bewitching odour. What would it be made of?" 

I cannot think of anything that smells so good. But I know that I only stole a perfume. How can a person's scent even be stolen? If the seers were right about her being the mate of the Alpha Kings, why does she need a perfume to fake a scent?

King Parish strides closer to Irina and pulls her into his arms. Fake tears immediately run down her cheeks. She cries with impeccable grace, resting her head on the King's broad chest. He hugs her tighter while gently rubbing her back. 

"We are sorry for putting you through this. We should have tried knowing you before now," he comforts. 

I will be burned alive if I do not defend myself from her cruel lie. My word stands little chance of being believed over our father's, but I can show prove.

"Your Majesties . . . if you let me I can take your most trusted men to see the perfume for themselves and -" I start to say but King Alcott cuts me short.

"Take the witch and burn it! Don't let it die fast before enough people witness it's agonizing death. And give a commoner the dress and shoes before burning it in a dirty sack. That will send a message to her kind. That we will end them in the most humiliating and painful way possible," he orders in a cold tone.

The crowd's cheers are loudest this time. 

The three guards and the Alpha Kings' beta march forward to grab me. I try stepping back, there must be a back door I can run out through. But Alpha Alcott's strong fingers grasp my neck before I can take a second step. He hurls me forward with ruthless force that sends me flying for seconds before landing on the hard floor right in front of the approaching guards. 

My vision blurs for a moment after the back of my head hits the floor, then the pain comes in excruciating waves. The beta doesn't wait a second for me to recover before jerking me up by the hair. 

"Wait! Your Majesties, I worry that you cannot execute her now," an old seer interrupts. 

Frowning faces turn their attention towards the old man. His confident expression doesn't falter even under the glares of my sister and parents. 

"If she dies now your sacred mark will never be recovered. She must genuinely accept to give it up to your mate, then you can have her burned," he explains. 

The Alpha Kings sigh in disappointment. Irina's eyes widen in astonishment. "You mean that I cannot have the mark of my mates until the witch consents? You know she wouldn't. She will instead find ways to escape," she complains in a voice full of panic. 

She desperately wants me dead even after reclaiming her powerful mates. How can they not see that she is the evil one? 

"Without the mark you will never be able to conceive their child. Your evil sister will give up the mark in no time as long she isn't loved the way she had hoped," the seer answers in a calm tone.

"Torturing the consent out of her right now is a lot easier. Her burning just needs to start from her legs," King Alcott says. 

As expected, the crowd voices their agreement with a huge applause. The Alpha is the cruelest of all people I have met. 

"You didn't bother to understand the old man. He meant that we cannot take away her genuine liking for the mark in a day. A verbal consent means nothing if she isn't made to dislike the mark," King Reid corrects his brother.

He must be the wisest of the Alphas, but still cruel. His explanation elicit rants of anger and disappointment from Irina, our parents and the crowd. The beta tightens his grip on my hair just so it can hurt. Tears fall from my eyes, my legs shake from the pain, yet I cannot let myself fall because that would hurt worse.

"I would advise that you keep her as a Spellbound Outcast until she gives up the mark. She will rethink her liking for the mark in no time," the seer advises. 

Being a Spellbound Outcast in this palace is no better than death. Unlike other prisoners, those suspected of being witches are tortured by anyone who wishes to do so and none survives more than a few months. 

"That's a good thought. Ilan will have the pleasure to decide her punishments," Aloha Reid declares. 

By punishments, he means tortures. I already regret having their mark, but of course, it doesn't come off easily just like the seer pointed. Not that having it off my skin would save me anyway. 

"And she will appear in front of our mate at the end of each day and apologize profusely for every stupid transgression," Alpha Parish adds. 

Everyone nods in agreement. And their beta drags me away by the hair. His guards follow, slapping my back.