THE ELDERS’ DEMAND

Elaris’s POV

The atmosphere in Maevra’s chamber immediately grew cold once the guards’ message was received; and Averic’s hold on my hands tightened protectively.

“Did Caedmon bring the elders here?”

“Yes. They want a hearing, sir.”

“What is their claim?” Averic’s eyes hardened.

“The elders claim that the council has jurisdiction over this affair.”

My insides turned ice-cold.

This was not just a conflict between two former mates.

They were using my history as an instrument to harm me.

Maevra gently let go of my hands.

“They want to test the Alpha then?”

Averic looked at her.

“And if that’s the case?”

Maevra’s face took a somber turn.

“You can never discount what desperate people can do once they think that they are losing power.”

“I’ll stay here with your mother,” he told me softly before moving toward the door with Alpha dominance emanating from his aura.

I nodded.

“Be careful.”

He halted.

His gaze met mine.

“I’m not the one they should be worried about.”

In spite of all that had happened, a small smile formed on my lips.

But then his expression gentled.

“If anything goes wrong, send for me immediately.”

“I will.”

And with that, he left.

The second he disappeared into his rooms, Maevra turned to me.

“You’ll go after him.”

I blinked.

“How did you…?”

“You share the same determined look with my son whenever he is about to do something stupid.”

I was about to laugh, but…

“I need to know what they’re discussing.”

Maevra shook her head.

“Then don’t let them rile you.”

Unable to stay hidden any longer, leaving Maevra in the hands of her maid, I moved silently behind Averic towards the reception hall.

The corridor to it was filled with soldiers.

There were whispers after me.

Servants averted their glances from me.

Some, just openly stared.

By the time I made it to the huge doors, my heart was pounding.

I hid myself behind one of the stone pillars.

Voices sounded around me.

Those of Caedmon.

The elders' voices.

Then the unmistakable voice of Averic.

"Speak."

I stayed hidden in the shadows.

I wanted to know precisely what accusation they were going to throw at me before I revealed myself.

Caedmon started talking then.

Caedmon stood in the middle of the hall with three pack elders standing around him, all dressed formally in their warrior tunics. He looked very confident, and no longer the broken mess of a man who once relied on me for every breath.

He looked powerful again.

Healthy.

Confident.

And utterly unrepentant.

My stomach rolled when I looked at him.

An elder had a sealed piece of parchment.

Another carried a book bound in leather.

They weren’t here just to complain.

They were prepared.

Caedmon caught sight of someone moving near the pillar.

His gaze locked with mine.

A wicked grin spread across his lips.

"Elaris."

I stepped a little more into the light.

His face lit up as though he had been waiting for exactly that moment.

"I’m glad you came."

I immediately knew what he was playing at.

He wanted me in there with him.

He wanted me angry.

He wanted me to make one mistake.

...

“Alpha Averic,” Elder Harkan started, stepping forward. “We are here to discuss a breach of pack custom concerning the mate of your former lieutenant.”

Averic thought before responding.

“She is not his possession.”

Harkan’s lips thinned out.

“This is not what I am saying.”

“Then watch what you say.”

The elder unfurled the scroll.

“Elaris was bonded to Caedmon by mating laws.”

“She was.”

“However, while she was unconscious, she left his domain.”

Averic’s eyes narrowed.

“She was banished.”

Caedmon cut him off instantly.

“She deserted me.”

Averic’s eyes narrowed towards him.

“You were dying.”

“No, I was recovering.”

“Then you were unconscious.”

Caedmon’s face tensed.

“But when I woke up, my mate was gone.”

Averic leant back.

“Because you ordered her expulsion.”

The room filled with tense silence.

Caedmon kept quiet.

Harkan coughed.

“All the same, the council needs a reason.”

Averic took his place at the top chair, leaning against it with his elbow as he glared at the elders through his dark dangerous eyes.

“Then tell me why three elders came into my territory to challenge my authority over a woman in my charge.”

Harkan stood tall.

“This isn’t a challenge.”

“Then what is it?”

“It’s a petition.”

Averic smiled dryly.

“Petitions aren’t typically delivered by guards.”

The elder frowned.

I noted a few guards stationed close to the entrance.

These weren’t palace guards.

They were Caedmon’s men.

Alarm filled me.

This wasn’t some random meeting.

Averic saw them too.

His gaze swept the entire hall.

“Arrest all those who aren’t part of the discussion.”

The men hesitated.

“Now.”

Metallic sounds rang against the hard stones.

A deadly silence filled the hall.

Averic looked back at the elders.

“Proceed.”

Harkan swallowed.

“We think that the conduct of Elaris has made her family of Caedmon shameful.”

My fists clenched.

Shameful?

After all I had given?

Caedmon stepped forward, lying to the council that I had abandoned my duties as his mate while he was unable.

“She left without permission.”

I stepped toward him.

“Are you listening to yourself?”

Caedmon ignored me.

“She disappeared into the territory of others.”

“I got myself exiled.”

“You think they would believe that?”

His voice rose.

"You picked another Alpha."

A whisper moved around the chamber.

Averic’s face fell even darker.

Caedmon capitalized on that.

"She joined this palace right after she left me."

"That’s enough," warned Averic.

Caedmon met his eyes.

"Why?"

"Because you’re distorting the truth."

Caedmon smirked.

"Then let her speak for herself."

He directed his attention back to the elders.

"I only wish to have my mate returned."

My stomach churned.

He didn’t want me.

He wanted power.

I moved from behind the pillar into the hall, and my voice rang clear.

"I didn’t leave you, Caedmon. You ejected me after I sacrificed our child for your life."

Whispers rose in the hall.

Caedmon’s expression shifted.

For the first time, he seemed unsure.

"You killed our child."

I stared at him.

"I saved you."

"You killed my heir."

"I sacrificed the child we both wanted because the healer said your life was at risk."

Caedmon clenched his jaw.

"You’re lying."

"Then you ask the healers."

Elder Harkan raised a hand.

"That’s enough."

"No."

I trembled with rage but didn’t back down.

"You’ve brought me here to pass judgment on me."

I met the eyes of each elder.

"Then hear all of it."

I glanced at Caedmon.

“She stayed alive because of my sacrifice.”

Deadly silence reigned for some time.

Then, one elder murmured:

“What are the proofs?”

Caedmon instantly reacted.

“She was disturbed by her loss.”

My heart froze.

He had anticipated my reaction and ready with an excuse.

Some discussions started among the elders, but Caedmon instantly refuted their assumptions by stating that I was crazy because of the loss and possessed a certain fascination with the Alpha.

“She attached to Averic after being rejected by me.”

My face blushed.

“That’s a lie.”

Caedmon argued:

“She used him to protect her.”

Slowly rising from his throne, Averic said:

“Be careful.”

His eyes were still fixed on me.

“She managed to manipulate Alpha with her feelings of vulnerability.”

I didn’t believe my ears.

“You claim I seduced him?”

“No, I say that you abused your pain to enter into this castle.”

Averic’s power burst.

The flames in the torches along the walls flickered.

“Stop insulting her.”

Caedmon smirked.

"Why do you feel that the truth is so unpleasant for you?"

Averic stepped towards him.

"Because I know the truth."

Caedmon's smile was gone.

In an unexpected twist of events, Virelle stepped into the hall from the side door and slid gracefully next to Caedmon, testifying on his side about my madness.

“I saw her myself.”

I looked at her.

“You weren’t there.”

“I heard enough.”

She put a sympathetic hand on Caedmon’s arm.

“She became fixated on Averic after her break up with Caedmon.”

My stomach clenched.

“You visited me last night.”

Her eyes widened as if she was innocent.

“What are you talking about?”

“You threatened me.”

The elders exchanged knowing looks.

Virelle instantly bowed her head.

“I would never threaten a pregnant woman.”

Silence filled the hall.

Averic’s head swiveled towards her.

“Pregnant?”

She touched her abdomen.

“Our child.”

Caedmon’s face transformed.

He looked at Virelle.

Then at Averic.

And then at me.

Panic filled his eyes.

For a brief second, I understood something that made me scared.

Caedmon hadn’t known.

Virelle hadn’t said a thing.

Now, she accidentally exposed herself.

Averic smacked his hand on the arm of his throne, making the heavy wood crack under the sheer power of his blow as he commanded everyone to shut up.

“Enough!”

Silence reigned in the chamber.

He shifted his attention from Caedmon to Virelle.

Then he looked at the elders.

“No one shall make this hall into a market of accusations.”

Harkan came forward.

“Alpha, the council has legitimate reasons.”

“Then I have legitimate power.”

Averic’s tone grew icier.

“Elaris stays within my protection.”

Caedmon parted his lips.

But a stern glance from Averic cut him off.

“Your complaint has been heard.”

Then his gaze moved onto Virelle.

“And yours will be thoroughly investigated.”

Virelle lost her composure.

Averic faced the elders.

“If you require evidence, you shall receive evidence.”

For a brief second, he looked straight at me.

“And when the truth is revealed, the liars before this council shall pay for their lies.”

A ripple went through the hall.

But Harkan still had something else to say.

“Then there is one last thing.”

“Elaris shall remain under my own protection,” Averic declared loud and clear. “And in order to solve this problem once and for all, Maevra has officially applied for Elaris’ promotion to the title of Royal Caretaker—a position personally approved by my mother!”

The hall burst into an uproar.

Caedmon’s face twisted in shock.

Virelle’s smile disappeared.

Even the elders appeared surprised.

I gazed at Averic.

Royal Caretaker?

Me?

Harkan instantly contradicted.

“That role holds quite a lot of power.”

“I am aware of that.”

“She is an outsider.”

“She gained Maevra’s trust.”

Caedmon approached.

“You cannot reward her for leaving her mate behind.”

Averic’s look could be lethal.

“She is not under your control anymore.”

Then, Maevra’s own maid entered the corridor.

She looked pale.

“Alpha!”

Averic turned around.

“What’s the matter?”

Her voice was trembling.

“Lady Maevra collapsed.”

My whole body froze.

“She was just fine,” I whispered.

The maid shook her head.

“She has taken her morning medicine.”

My fingers went numb.

The medicine.

The tampered bottle.

The wolfsbane.

I glanced at Virelle.

She was looking at me.

And she was smiling.

The elders came to accuse me.

Caedmon came to get me back.

But then, I knew.

The hearing had never been the real attack.

It had only been the distraction.