THE BLOOD MOON DEMAND

Elaris's POV

The room falls silent after Sennik's announcement.

I fight the urge to brush my stomach.

So many eyes are watching.

Instead, I keep my hands at my gowns and focus on the steady rhythm of my breathing. The council members. The warriors. The servants along the walls watch in tense anticipation.

I don't look at Virelle.

If she wants to know if I feared the demand, she will have to wonder.

I focus on Averic.

He stands a few paces from the council, facing them.

For a moment, neither of us speaks.

Then he steps forward. The entire room seems to lean toward him.

Averic answers before Sennik can repeat the question.

'I accept.'

His words are strong enough to reach every corner of the chamber.

Sennik watches him closely.

'You accept on behalf of the child claimed by Elaris?'

Averic's gaze does not waver.

'The child Elaris carries is mine.'

The weight of his words are different from any promise he has ever whispered to me.

There is no uncertainty in them, no hesitation. He speaks plainly before the council, before the warriors, before Virelle and all the other eyes that have watched me for weeks, questioning my every gesture about this child.

Does Sennik ask if he will submit to the examination at the blood moon?

'Yes.'

Averic's answer is immediate.

'I will provide whatever essence the council's healers require.'

A murmur ripples through the chamber.

I don't move.

Something inside me shifts regardless, the way it always will when Averic stops pretending to be something other than what he is and claims what belongs to him.

He isn't asking me to bear this alone anymore.

Sennik turns to me.

'Elaris Veyne.'

I raise my chin.

'Do you consent to the examination?'

For the first time since entering the chamber, the council is asking me for an answer rather than debating what I might say if they let me speak.

I give them a simple response.

'I consent.'

Sennik watches me for a long moment.

I know he expects more.

I offer it in the next breath.

'If the examination protects the child I carry and reveals the truth, I have no reason to refuse it.'

A body shifts behind me.

I don't look back.

Sennik takes careful note of my answer.

'Do you understand that the examination may expose the child's parentage to the entire council?'

'I understand.'

“And you still consent?”

'Yes.'

My voice does not shake.

I won't give them any other weakness to exploit.

No accusations, no apologies, no defense of what this child is or how she came to be in my womb. The council asked for my answer, and I have given them exactly what they wanted.

Virelle rises when Sennik calls her name.

She takes her time coming forward. Her hand rests lightly on her stomach as if the simple act is an affirmation, a reminder to everyone in this chamber that she carries something just as valuable as what I claim to bear.

'I consent.'

Her voice is low enough that it might be mistaken for an appeal rather than an accusation.

Does Sennik ask if she understands the consequences?

'I do.'

She looks toward the council members rather than Averic when she speaks.

'I have nothing to conceal.'

A few approving murmurs fill the chamber.

Virelle continues, 'For weeks, people have questioned my place beneath this roof. They have questioned my pregnancy. They have questioned my intentions. I welcome the examination because the truth will settle what gossip cannot.'

She speaks carefully, choosing every word as if she knows precisely what to say in order to convince the council that she is the one woman beneath this roof who can stand before them and accept the consequences for lying.

She does not mention Elaris's name.

She doesn't have to.

It is obvious to everyone in this room that she means me.

Virelle has done what few women ever do - she has turned the council's weapon against them, and now she wears it like a badge of honor. When she sits down, several members of the council exchange knowing glances.

I understand what she has done.

She forced them to turn the test into a trial, and now she has the power to decide who is guilty and who is innocent by simply continuing to wear this mask of certainty.

I glance toward Averic.

His reaction is small, almost imperceptible.

His jaw tightens for a fraction of a second before he composes himself.

Virelle has turned this into a test of loyalty, and if Averic refuses to accept the examination, everyone will wonder what that means for him. If he questions Virelle too harshly, she can always claim he is afraid of the results. If he says nothing at all, Virelle gets to continue wearing this mask of righteousness and pretend that none of this matters to her.

I realize what Virelle wanted all along.

She didn't have to win the argument. She only had to accept the demand and put Averic in a position where refusing it would make him appear guilty by association.

The examination is still weeks away.

Until then, the council has to decide what happened in this palace, and I know the truth has left its mark on this chamber. Sennik returns the discussion to the palace attacks.

'Alpha Averic, you may present the evidence concerning the threats and substances discovered within your residence.'

Averic nods.

A guard brings forward the secured evidence case.

The first broken chain clasp is presented.

Then the rest.

The council examines each one as Averic explains their origins and how the repeated symbol ties them together.

He doesn't embellish.

He doesn't pretend to know more than he does. He speaks plainly of the wolfsbane, the altered medicines, the access violations, the threatening messages and the circumstances surrounding the missing attendant.

Does Sennik ask about the written confession?

Averic hesitates.

'I have a statement.'

'From the attendant?'

'Yes.'

'Is she capable of confirming it today?'

'No.'

Averic's answer changes the mood of the chamber.

He continues regardless.

'She is alive. Her condition remains under medical supervision.'

Sennik makes a notation.

The statement remains classified.

I understand why.

If Averic reveals everything at once, the council can spend the rest of this hearing picking apart the one piece of evidence that cannot be defended by the woman who wrote it.

Averic forces them to reconsider the pattern before they can accuse him of anything.

The broken chain clasps are passed from one council member to the next.

One elder examines one of them, flipping it over between his fingers.

'The symbol appears repeatedly.'

'It does,' Averic replies.

'Can you prove who placed it?'

'Not from the symbol alone.'

The elder looks dissatisfied.

Sennik examines Averic.

'You accept that this is circumstantial?'

'I accept that one object is circumstantial.'

Averic gestures toward the collection.

'Four objects recovered during separate incidents are a pattern. The council can decide how much weight that pattern carries.'

Nobody responds immediately.

Sennik asks where the clasps were discovered.

Averic gives them each in turn.

The answers are precise.

No dramatic flourishes. No accusations. Only the simple facts, and I realize he has learned something from every mistake in the past weeks.

Averic no longer tries to win people over with emotion.

Now he forces them to confront the evidence. The report concerning the wolfsbane is read aloud.

The substance was dangerous.

It was discovered outside my chamber.

It was prepared deliberately.

The reaction in the chamber is different this time. Several warriors exchange wary glances.

Sennik raises his hand.

'Was the substance recovered directly from Virelle?'

'No.'

Averic's answer is immediate.

'Was it recovered from her private rooms?'

'No.'

'Was she witnessed carrying it?'

'No.'

The questions come faster now.

Each answer removes another convenient excuse.

Sennik turns toward the evidence table.

'Then the council cannot treat the substance itself as proof against her.'

Averic doesn't argue.

'No. But it remains proof that someone inside the palace was preparing to harm someone.'

Sennik watches him for several seconds before moving on.

The room now contains a threat, evidence of that threat and a pattern linking them together.

The council still needs a name.

Sennik invites Virelle to respond.

She rises with practiced elegance.

'I am horrified.'

Her hand returns to her stomach.

'I came here believing this was a place where I could safely carry the Alpha's child. Instead, I have been surrounded by accusations, guards and suspicion.'

Her voice trembles at exactly the right moment, not quite angry, not quite afraid.

She looks toward the evidence rather than me when she speaks.

'I have never handled wolfsbane.'

Sennik asks if she knows anything about the altered medicine.

'Nothing.'

Then she adds, almost reluctantly, 'I have felt unsafe since Elaris entered this palace.'

A few heads turn toward me.

Virelle lowers her gaze immediately.

'I don't want another woman punished because of me. I only want my child protected.'

The performance is nearly perfect.

She transforms herself from the accused into the accuser.

She embodies the mother who should have been protected rather than investigated, and she uses the one opportunity she has to show that she truly believes Elaris should have been the one to protect her.

This is what she wanted all along - to prove that she deserved better than what she received.

And now that she has accepted the blood moon examination, her performance has additional value for those who want a simple answer.

I remain silent, watching her reactivate the emotions that will do so much damage later.

Virelle hasn't accused Elaris outright, but she has reminded the chamber that she can wear this mask of righteousness and never have to lower it.

Sennik turns toward me.

'Elaris. Do you wish to respond?'

I could speak.

I could tell them about the tea, the medicine, the threats, the attendant, Virelle's private words.

Averic's strategy has been nearly perfect, but I understand that throwing every accusation into the chamber at once could allow the council to dismiss it all as mere rivalry between lovers.

I shake my head.

'No.'

Sennik watches me closely.

'You have nothing to add?'

'Not at this stage.'

He records the response.

I hear a faint whisper somewhere in the household staff.

Perhaps they expected me to say something else. Perhaps they expected me to defend myself.

Instead, I give them nothing they can use against me.

The questions remain where they belong, and if Virelle is innocent, the evidence will eventually prove it.

If she is not, she will eventually make another mistake. I don't need to make one for her.

Sennik announces that Maevra's testimony will determine whether the council can continue with the remaining questions.

'If Luna Maevra Thorne is medically capable of appearing, she will be heard.'

A messenger is sent to her chamber.

The hearing is paused.

Averic remains standing.

He does not come to me.

Neither do I come to him.

We both know how much time remains.

I place one hand against the side of my gown.

The child moves beneath it.

A small shift.

A reminder that everything that has happened has a consequence. I take a steady breath.

Then another. The messenger has not returned.

Across the chamber, Virelle sits quietly.

For the first time, she looks toward the doors rather than me.

I wonder if she is waiting for Maevra to arrive.

Then hurried footsteps sound just beyond the threshold.

A healer enters the great hall before the messenger can announce anything at all.

His expression is strained as he moves toward Sennik and bends to speak into the councilor's ear.

I watch Sennik's face change as he listens.

He asks the healer to repeat himself.

The healer complies.

Louder this time.

'Luna Maevra has suffered a sudden decline.'

A murmur ripples through the chamber.

Averic's posture changes.

'How bad?'

The healer looks toward him.

'She is conscious, but her strength has dropped sharply. Her breathing is laboured. We cannot move her safely.'

Averic takes one step toward the doors.

Sennik raises a hand.

'Alpha, the hearing--'

'My mother is not an exhibit.'

The healer quickly adds that Maevra is still capable of understanding what is happening, but whether she can speak for long is uncertain.

Sennik looks toward the other council members.

'Very well. We must determine if her testimony can be postponed.'

Averic's hands curl at his sides.

I stare at the doorway.

It was only hours ago that Maevra was strong enough to tell me to stand tall.

Now she may not even be capable of reaching this chamber.

The timing is suspicious.

The council has barely begun examining the evidence, and the one witness who remembers the altered medicines firsthand has suddenly become too ill to appear.

Virelle remains seated.

Too still.

Too composed.

Then beneath the edge of her sleeve, I see her fingers slowly close around something small and familiar.

A broken chain clasp.

My breath catches.

She looks up.

And smiles.