Five

Sophia's POV

      There was a ringing in my ears as I winced in pain. I slowly opened my eyes which seemed too heavy to be normal. The ground was cold and there was only one source of light where I was. Ah, that's right, I was arrested on Levi's orders due to Lucy's false accusations.

      “Hey! Wake up!” One of the soldiers watching over my cell banged hard against the bars as he yelled. “You better not be dead,” he spat.

     I couldn't blame the soldiers given how they were one of the lowest ranking soldiers so they'd surely derive pleasure by preying on the weak.

      “Ugh, h-how many days has it been?” I mustered the strength to speak, raising my head slightly.

      “Pfft, like we're obligated to tell you that,” the same soldier who had been cussing at me scoffed.

     “It's enough. There's no harm in telling her,” another soldier intervened.

   

  “Tch. You've been in prison for a week now and you've been asleep for three days straight. We thought you had died since you've been starved all along. Are you satisfied with my answers now?” He was definitely cranky.

     I had really not eaten for a week now and neither have I drank water. I was at my limit, I knew. I didn't think I'd be able to hold out this long.

     “Anyway, get up. His Majesty has sent for you,” the soldier that had intervened previously informed me.

    I pushed my upper body off the ground slowly with my wobbly hands. I don't think I had enough strength in my legs to stand up. I held on to the prison bars for support in an attempt to pull myself off the ground but everything seemed to spin around.

  

   “We don't have all day. Get a move on!” The cranky soldier yelled. I felt a throb at the back of my head before seeing a faint flash of white light. I crashed to the cold, hard ground with my consciousness gradually fading. The guards yelled orders at each other before my eyes finally went shut.

     I woke up to a splash of water against my face, making me gasp for breath. My mouth was moist and so was my throat - they must have given me water to drink. My eyes flickered and opened slowly, where was I ?

   

    The moment my eyes opened, the blinding rays of light blurred my vision for a few seconds. Something wasn't right, I was locked up in the darkest dungeon so how was so much daylight seeping in?

  

   All my questions were answered when my ears picked up the sounds of murmurs. Accessing my surroundings, I was in the midst of disdainful eyes. Fear had gripped me as my heart began to throb just thinking of all the possible scenarios that could have made me end up here.

     I was tied tightly with silver chains with two guards behind me to ensure I couldn't move. I knelt on a tiled floor - wait, now that I think of it, was I in the…

     Raising my head further, my eyes met that of Alpha Levi and Lucy who quietly laughed beside him. I began to recognize some of the ministers and only then did I remember what the soldiers had told me before I passed out. I was being summoned by Alpha Levi so today must be my trial day.

    What bothered me most was dying and dying for something I was innocent of. I wanted to plead for mercy and scream out my innocence but knowing how strict and serious Alpha Levi was, I knew it would be a total waste of time. Lucy had effectively framed me and plotted to root me out for a long time now, I can't believe I let her have her way.

     I knew with her watching, there was no redemption for me, she'd do everything to slander me even further. She was my number one hater.

     Looking  at the  faces of the judgemental and ne’er-do-well ministers who were present, I knew a lot of them were definitely in support of whatever cruel judgment was in store for me.

     “Let Lady Sophia’s trial begin!” One of the attending officers announced. The throne room went oddly still for a few seconds, everyone's eyes fixed on me.

      “You have been accused of stealing important files and documents from the Royal palace, is that true?” Alpha Levi asked for formality sake, his eyes icy cold as he looked into mine. I panicked.

     “I would never do such a thing, Your Majesty. Of what benefit would stealing documents be for me?” I did my best to respond as calmly as possible.

    “If what you said is as it is, then explain to the council why the documents were found in your room,” he answered.

     “I do not know how it got there and I believe I have been framed by someone,” I answered as precisely as possible.

     “So are you insinuating that you have no business with this issue and that someone in the palace took it upon himself or herself to accuse you?” One of the ministers questioned.

     “Yes,” I answered.

     “Do you have proof that someone framed you?” He countered.

     “No but that doesn't mean it isn't true,” I advocated. “Besides, shouldn't you be interrogating other workers if you truly want answers to these questions?” I mumbled.

     “No mumbling in His Majesty's presence!” One of the soldiers who stood besides me yelled into my ears as he hit me on the head.

     “Silence! I didn't order you to lay a hand on her,” Alpha Levi intervened. His fierce and stern gaze wavering for a moment.

     “Apologies, Your Highness,” he bowed his head.

     “Ride on with the questioning,” Alpha Levi left the interrogation in the hands of his ministers.

     “Of course, Your Majesty. What were your intentions when you got a hold of His Majesty's seal and the important documents?” The first Minister who had thrown a question at me asked.

    “Excuse me? I never took anything - what's your problem?” I started, trying to suppress my anger. 

     “How can you prove that you weren't the one who stole it?”  He smirked.

    “Aren't you just saying what you want to believe? How can I prove that everything was a plot? How can you prove that I plotted this to begin with?!” I yelled back. “ I'm not even allowed to go near the main palace not to talk of the Treasury so how in the world could I have stolen it without being able to get close?” Their questions were infuriating and it was as if they were hellbent on making me out into a traitor.

    As much as I yelled back and tried to defend myself, my tension had been building up ever since I realized I was brought here for my trial. Maybe it was from the fear of losing Alpha Levi's trust to seeing the very same person that's ruining me standing right here, enjoying the show.

    “Outrageous! To think a lowly maid like you can talk back at us!” The ministers gasped and cussed out.

    “Silence!” Alpha Levi yelled and as quickly as the murmurs started, they died. 

     “If I may, is it alright if I speak?” Lucy said to Alpha Levi in a soft voice.

  

  “Yes, you may,” he permitted.

    “You claim that you weren't the one who stole them but all the evidence points at you. And about your claims about not being able to get into the main palace, couldn't you have just sneaked in? At night, it would be rather hard to tell each person apart and as long as you have a registered identity card, you'd be given access so why are you acting ignorant of such procedures and measures that could be taken?” She said to me, her eyes firm and accusatory. I knew she was behind all this.

    “I didn't do it,” I said through gritted teeth.

     “Of course you didn't. You actually have a perfect reason to steal what you stole,” she smirked. “You got rejected by Alpha Levi and it's only natural for you to hate him so stealing important information and selling to the enemy as payback is quite plausible.”

   

  Murmurs erupted among the ministers. They seemed more convinced now than before.

    “Your Majesty, please believe me. I would never do anything to hurt you or the pack,”  I cried. The tables had really turned and I was at the verge of getting executed.

   “But the evidence says otherwise,” he responded, concisely and coldly. My hands froze and I felt cold shivers down my spine.

   

  The ministers who seemed to be rather eager to bury me at this point, presented the evidence and more points to further implicate me.

     “Are you still going to deny this when everything points to you?” One of the ministers taunted me.

   

   “I swear, it wasn't me!” I cried and pleaded.

   

   “Ah, so it's futile to even defend myself? Everything was planned perfectly and no matter what I say, I'd be guilty,” I mumbled to myself as I reflected on everything that has happened so far. Lucy was always a step ahead.

    “With no further need to drag on another obvious case, Lady Sophia, you are hereby banished from Gray Moon pack,” Alpha Levi announced.

  

  For a second my heart ceased and then once my mind fully processed the information, I found myself on the floor sitting in shock and hurt. The ministers and Lucy grumbled at the light sentence he had given me.

     “Consider this a form of consideration since you're supposed to be my fated mate,” he said, not sparing another glance at him.

    

   Was I supposed to be grateful for his supposed ‘ mercy ’? I never thought I'd come to hate the very person I should love.