THE LAST DAY

Elaris's POV

Averics has minutes until the council escorts force him to leave

He does not waste the time arguing with them

He asks the healer for the latest numbers

I watch as she tells him that my essence had dropped during the smoke attack but has since stopped its decline, and the child is showing no signs of distress

Averics turns to the healer, asking her to repeat it

"Mother and child are presently fit for the examination?"

"Yes"

He turns to me

"Then you will be there tonight"

I nod, and he offers little comfort aside from that, and even less reassurance than the last time he snuck in

A council representative reminds him that his intrusion was unauthorized

Averics does not apologize to him

He leaves, telling the guards to continue tending to me as they would the instructions

The doors close behind him

I do not feel safer, but I feel as though his presence made the room somehow less empty

The political war, however, does not give me a moment's rest before noon

A council aide arrives to inform me personally that Averics unauthorized entry to my chamber has been formally logged as interference with council business

He tells me, in no uncertain terms, that he will not be able to enter my chambers again before the examination

No private meetings.

I accept his notice, still studying it before returning it to him

"You understand the order?"

"I understand it"

The aide waits for me to argue, but I offer nothing, and surprise colors his expression more than anything I might have said

When he leaves, I am staring at the closed doors my Averics left by

He broke one rule to see me

Now, the council has made sure that the next time he does it, it will be at the cost of several

The rest of the morning is spent following orders

The healers arrive twice, checking my lungs, blood, essence, and the child's responses

They repeat the process several hours later, and neither offer much in the way of comfort, aside from assurance that my essence, while low, was not as compromised as it had been

The child's movements were intermittent as well, and I have little appetite for the bland soup that the council sends

The guards test the water before bringing me the meal and inspecting what I eat

I let them, only eating enough to keep their suspicions at bay, for my own life

The healer marks my intake and reminds me that the trip to the shrine hall will be brief

I tell her that I am aware, but it is not nearly as important as reminding her that tonight, whatever happens, I must have what strength I can preserve for the examination

Neryss still refuses me entry

I ask once, and the response is the same as it has been

"Council restriction"

There is no note

No sign that they are watching me from the palace halls

Nothing to tip me off to what the council has chosen to hide, and as much as it terrifies me, it is perhaps more worrying than anything else

The attackers have failed to remove me before the final day

Now they have little time

The examination itself promises to be an ordeal, with healers, council representatives, witnesses, guards, and pregnancies filling the halls

It will serve as distraction, confusion, and perhaps something more if the right mix of voices demand it

If any opposition remains to my public "inspection", it will not need to take any more drastic measures

I place a hand on my stomach, feeling the small flutter against my palm before turning my attention there

Whatever happens later tonight, I cannot afford to be distracted first

I receive the written instructions for my transfer to the shrine hall in the afternoon

My arrival is to be exactly one hour before moonrise

Virelle's is to take a separate route, presumably, and neither of us is permitted to see the other before the examination begins

The council has deemed it safest that way, I imagine

I read over the instructions twice

They are thorough

The shrine hall is to be considered neutral ground for the duration of the transfer

No Alpha private guard is permitted to make any alterations to the council formation

No personal healer is permitted to replace a council-appointed one

No woman is permitted to leave the grounds of the examination before it begins

They are all careful not to forbid anything outright but have taken great pains to ensure that few things can happen without the council's permission

As much as it limits potential interference, it also limits my options for whatever might come after I am inside that hall

I set the parchment aside and smooth the wrinkles from the fabric beside my bed

The last day is measuring its time in permissions and prohibitions

My examination dress arrives just before sunset, simple and dark, and entirely devoid of adornments or embellishments that might draw unnecessary attention from the healers

The guards watch as I change, offering no help when I refuse it

I dress meticulously, braiding my hair before slipping the garment over my head

There is a strange comfort in doing these things for myself without anyone instructing me

When I am done, I look at my reflection in the small glass

I do not look powerful

I do not look like the woman that the council paraded before the council chambers

I look weak, and yet somehow, I have endured long enough to stand before this glass

I place both hands against my stomach

"Tonight"

The child stirs under my hands, and I do not move until it stills again

The final medical inspection arrives just before the last light fades

The healer is thorough, and her hands linger on my lungs, blood, essence, and the child's pulse and movements before she finally lays out the results

She says very little as she runs her fingers over the parchment.

"Fit for transport."

I read the words carefully

"Fit for examination?"

She pauses for the briefest of moments before answering

"Yes"

The healer marks the parchment and seals it, watching me closely as she does.

I watch the council's seal touch the paper for the first time, for the first time, the examination feels less like an approaching death, a series of threats whispered in council chambers, and more like something real

A date certain, a time promised to arrive, and one that I will be subjected to with a sealed medical document asserting that I am permitted to live through it

The healer takes it from me.

I stand from the bed, there is nothing more to be done

My escort arrives soon after, four council guards and two palace warriors, neither of whom seems particularly interested in looking at me

I do not question it, and perhaps they had orders not to, or perhaps it is the look of people who do not want to be personally responsible for defending one of the Alpha's pets

Either way, I do not wait for anyone to help me as we exit the chamber

The hall is quieter outside the palace, and the East Wing feels somehow alien as we pass the doorway where I had spent the last night

I do not stop as my child's small hand brushes my ribs at the first turn

"I felt you"

I keep walking

The escort surrounds me, and for once, I am not keen to find the exit, but rather the reason I have been brought this far

The route to the shrine hall takes us past the outer courtyards, and the evening air is cooling despite the summer warmth

Above the treeline, the sky is already changing, and the blood moon is soon to appear, but the night has already descended before the trees

Torches have been lit along the route, and council banners stretch between posts, marking the territory as claimed

Various banners mark the gates and intersections, each bearing a different sigil, and warriors standing by them observe the few people that traverse the estates

No one pays me particular attention

Perhaps because no one was expecting me, or because the entire evening has little meaning to them aside from marking one of the most important nights of my life

I walk beneath the dark sky and think little of distance or travel, only of the child and my own stomach

Caedmon does not occupy the space between us.

Neither does Virelle

Neither does the council

Only the child

The shrine hall is just at the tree line,

One examination

One set of answers

One opportunity to confirm whose blood my child carries before it is too late

Then the sound of hurried footsteps reaches my ears, and several pairs of torches shift to watch the new arrival

A courier reaches the lead council guard, murmuring something too low for me to hear

The entire formation slows, and I catch a few words as the guard speaks to the courier

"Medical..."

"Private wing..."

"...the Alpha's mother.."

The lead guard's hand rises instantly, and the formation stands still

I watch the palace doors, where Maevra is sure to be waiting

The courier's face is entirely impassive, revealing nothing of what has just occurred

I wait, and when the lead guard turns the rest of the formation, I ask

"What happened?"

The pause is enough to confirm that whatever it was, it was not good

It was not so bad that the entire council would erupt in open accusations, but it was bad enough to interfere with my transport before its final hour had passed

"The Alpha's mother has a medical emergency."

My stomach turns cold

"You mean she received treatment."

"That is not an answer."

I step forward, demanding, "Has the Alpha been notified?"

"Yes."

"Then why are we stopped?"

"Because the examination is still scheduled for tonight"

The words are spoken firmly, as though the young guard had received some silent warning not to argue

I look back towards the palace, where Averics has been recalled to his private wing just as I reach the shrine gates

If Maevra has suffered some complication, he will have to decide quickly which woman is more important to him

And if the examination proceeds, then Virelle will enter the shrine hall amidst the eyes of the entire council, her claims already heard before a single test has been taken

I refuse to allow either of them to dictate the night's end

"Do you know what happened?"

"No"

The guard turns to face me again, and I follow his gaze as he watches the others

"He is waiting at the shrine gates"

"Who is?"

"Lord Sennik

He barked the order, and the whole formation stopped before the gates as he walked up to the front

"The council has new information regarding the Alpha's mother

No examinations shall begin until the matter is brought before the council

"

The guards exchanged glances, and the lead escort turned to face me.

No one moved or spoke.

I followed his gaze to the trees, where the shrine hall waited

My examination, the final trial, was only moments away.

The distance had shrunk until I could see the doors as the formation hesitated just before they

And behind those trees, the first light of the blood moon was beginning to rise

I placed both hands on my stomach

Whatever new information the council had regarding Maevra, it had changed everything

As much as I wanted to believe that the council was merely taking advantage of the circumstance, I had to accept that someone had taken advantage of the council

Now, the examination of my child would not be a challenge to either of my suitors but an official declaration of their intent before the entire council.

The formation stood in silence beneath the gathering darkness

And I realized that tonight's conflict may well begin in the shrine hall after all