THE OPEN HALL

Elaris’ POV

I remain at the inner chamber while the palace life goes on around my door.

The guards have been ordered not to allow entry to anyone without Averic’s permission.

Not even Neryss is permitted.

So now I am without sight and I can only hear.

Boots passing on the other side of the main corridor.

A door opening.

Several voices elsewhere, but then one loud voice rises above the others before trailing away.

I move closer to the door.

One of the guards shifts position.

“You can’t go back.”

“I want to hear.”

“Neither can we.”

I am regarding him.

“What are they discussing?”

“Our orders are to not speak of the council’s affairs.”

So his answer is what I would have expected.

I return to the window.

Beyond these walls, in that open hall, are people making decisions that will affect my future without asking for my opinion.

I place a hand against my stomach.

The child stirs.

I whisper, “We’re still here.”

Outside, voices rise again before fading into silence.

Whatever took place in the hall, Averic stands at its center.

A long time passes before Averic arrives.

At the sight of him, I understand that the council did not make it easy for him.

His body is taut with control, but the tension in his face has escaped since the night before.

I ask, “What did Sennik want?”

“The attendant.”

I straighten.

“He demanded she be brought before the council.”

“And you refused.”

I nod.

“I refused to expose an injured witness to a hall full of people waiting to accuse her.”

I understand his decision, though I know the cost of it.

“What did you give them instead?”

Averic tells me of the gate records.

He revealed that someone within the palace had opened the east gate.

He also spoke of finding wolfsbane near my chamber.

I ask, “Did you tell them about the altered medicine?”

“Yes.”

My stomach tightens.

“And the broken clasps?”

“Not yet.”

He explains that Sennik wanted confirmation that the palace itself had not been compromised.

Averic provided that confirmation.

“Yes.”

I regard him.

“Then they know someone within the palace helped.”

“They know enough to be dangerous.”

His words confirm that the council did not merely express concern at the news.

They saw opportunity.

Averic tells me that Virelle was present throughout the meeting.

She wore pale clothing, and often rested a hand over her stomach.

“She expressed horror,” Averic informs me.

I almost smile.

“Horror at what?”

“Wolfsbane being brought into the palace.”

Of course.

Virelle felt the need to express concern for every woman who might suffer the effects of the poison, yet never once admitted that she had been involved in delivering it to my door.

“She offered to be examined,” Averic continues.

“By the council’s healers?”

“Yes.”

“And did they agree?”

“They will.”

I turn away from him.

Virelle knows exactly how to make offers of compliance without giving up anything of value.

Averic remarks that several warriors expressed sympathy for her.

“She cried?”

“Not once.”

This is surprising.

Averic explains that she did not need to.

She spoke in a hushed tone of the suspicion that she had suffered while carrying ‘the Alpha’s child’.

I close my eyes.

Her performance does not require dramatic declarations.

It only requires those around her to fill in the details for her.

Averic adds, “Several began asking why the attacks kept returning to her wing.”

“And no one questioned why they kept finding her wing at the center of it?”

His expression answers that question.

“Not in the hall.”

I inquire as to the note.

Averic reveals that he kept it secret.

“The third clasp as well?”

“Everything.”

I study him.

“Why?”

“Because the moment I expose a frightened servant’s half-written confession, Sennik will demand to know if she was coerced into giving it.”

“And then?”

“They will wear her down until she contradicts herself.”

I understand the implications of his decision.

The evidence is there.

But the people who possess it may destroy the value of it by refusing to acknowledge the source.

“So you protected the confession by hiding it.”

“I protected the possibility of obtaining the entire confession.”

I exhale slowly.

“And if she never gives it?”

Averic hesitates.

“That is a risk.”

I regard the door.

“The council that demanded she be produced now has a reason to discredit her.”

“Yes.”

“And Virelle knows that.”

“Yes.”

His answer is immediate.

This tells me more than I can say.

Averic has finally begun to anticipate Virelle.

Yet I hear the hesitation in his voice.

The evidence is not enough.

It is close, but it is not certain.

Averic informs me that the council has set the formal hearing for the evening following.

Both Virelle and I will be required to attend.

I ask what will become of the child.

His response is measured.

“The council will recognize the pregnancy for the duration of the proceedings.”

“Recognize it?”

“Enough to keep you from being separated from the protection of the Alpha’s household.”

I stare at him.

“And after?”

“That depends on what the council accepts.”

The words cut deeper than I anticipated.

I had hoped the situation would have forced a decision sooner.

Averic reveals that the child will be protected regardless of the outcome of the proceedings.

I ask, “And me?”

He hesitates.

“You remain under my protection.”

I give him a measured look.

“Protection isn’t the same thing as belief.”

“I know.”

The admission is bitter, but I would rather hear it than a dozen empty reassurances when the council arrives.

Averic says, “Tomorrow, they will examine everything.”

“Then let them.”

His expression tightens.

“They may examine you as well.”

“I have nothing to hide.”

“I know.”

This time, he does not hesitate.

I ask whether the attendant will be allowed to speak.

Averic’s response twists in my gut.

“Sennik has requested a medical examination first.”

“What kind?”

“He calls it an assessment of her condition.”

I understand what this means.

“Signs of coercion?”

“Yes.”

“And hysteria?”

He nods.

I look to the ceiling.

A frightened servant, bruises, days of concealment and a broken sentence – if the council wishes to use these as justification for doubting her reliability, they will not need to.

They will only need to question her until she convinces them that she is lying.

“They’re going to turn her fear into evidence against her.”

“That is what Sennik is attempting.”

“Can you stop him?”

“Not if the council orders it.”

The response is quiet.

Averic explains that he can prevent her from being displayed in public, but cannot stop a formal examination from taking place.

I ask, “And Virelle?”

“She will be examined as well.”

I almost laugh.

“Will they believe anything she says?”

“They already believe some of it.”

This is a wound that refuses to heal.

Averic realizes this.

“She has learned how to survive in places like that.”

I reply, “Then tomorrow she will finally encounter someone who has nothing left to lose.”

He considers me.

“Elaris—”

“I won’t lie for her.”

“I never asked you to.”

“Good.”

Night falls over the palace.

Averic does not stay.

I hear his boots retreat down the corridor after he has inspected the guards himself.

The room feels larger without him.

I sit near the window, restless.

Tomorrow, I will stand before council elders who know Virelle as the woman carrying the Alpha’s child.

I will be the woman who stood beside altered medicine.

The woman who was found near evidence.

The woman accused of attacking Virelle.

And the woman who now finds herself tangled with a witness the council may decide is too frightened to give a reliable account.

I cover my stomach with both hands.

The child shifts again.

I think of the blood moon, the altered doses, the wolfsbane, the threat outside my door.

Every event has been an attempt to make me appear unhinged, reckless or desperate.

Tomorrow, they will decide if these attempts were successful.

I whisper, “You don’t get to decide what I am.”

The child moves beneath my touch.

I take this as the closest thing to an answer I am likely to receive.

Sleep eludes me for a long while.

When it comes, it is light and fragmented.

Neryss is allowed to visit shortly before midnight.

She arrives with an escort and closes the door behind her.

“Everyone is talking.”

“About the attendant?”

“Amongst other things.”

She informs me that Virelle spent much of the evening in the main hall receiving sympathy.

She did not demand it.

She did not ask anyone to defend her.

She simply remained in view.

Whenever someone came near, her hand moved to her stomach.

Whenever someone mentioned the poisoning, her expression became sorrowful.

“She barely had to say anything,” Neryss remarks.

“People spoke for her.”

Neryss nods.

“She has divided the household.”

I ask, “Into supporters and enemies?”

“Into people who are afraid to choose sides.”

This is a dangerous position to be in.

I inquire if anyone spoke of the absent attendant.

“Several people.”

“What are they saying?”

“That she betrayed the palace.”

I stare at Neryss.

“Already?”

“They don’t know why she was hiding.”

“Neither do we.”

Neryss lowers her voice.

“Some servants believe she knows who has been giving the orders.”

I regard the door.

“Then someone else knows that as well.”

Neryss does not disagree.

Before she goes, she says, “The hearing will be crowded.”

I reply, “Then there will be no room for lies.”

Neryss gives me a doubtful look.

“Or no room for them to be overlooked.”

After Neryss has gone, I force myself to rest.

I do not sleep for long, but manage perhaps an hour before waking.

Then again, and again.

Each time, the same thought haunts me.

The attendant’s sentence.

Not the clasps, nor the bottle, nor the gate.

Her sentence.

The only living testimony that implicates someone in deliberately attacking me and the child.

I remember her voice from behind the screen, the fear, the pauses, the struggle to say what she knew.

Tomorrow, this same woman will be examined by the council’s chosen healers.

If they decide she is too frightened, every word she said to Averic will be tainted.

If they decide she was coerced, they will claim the evidence was planted.

If she refuses to speak, Virelle will accuse us of seeking answers where there are none.

I sit up.

The room is dimly lit by moonlight.

I whisper, “Finish the sentence.”

Not for revenge, but because someone must hear what she was trying to say before the pen was removed from her hand.

I close my eyes.

The next time I wake, the sky is lightening.

Averic arrives shortly before sunrise.

I know from his expression that something has occurred during the night.

“What is it?”

“The attendant was threatened.”

I stand.

“By whom?”

“We don’t know.”

He tells me that someone passed near her secure room during the night.

No one entered, and no guard saw a face.

However, a voice was heard through the door.

“Loyal servants who talk do not live to see the next moon.”

My stomach tightens.

“Did she recognize the voice?”

“No.”

“Then how do you know she was threatened?”

“She stopped speaking afterwards.”

Averic explains that when the healer returned to question her, she refused to answer.

Not one name, not one remark, not one confirmation of what she had told Averic.

I ask, “Did she deny the confession?”

“No.”

“Then she still believes it?”

“She is simply too frightened to repeat it.”

I sink slowly onto the bed.

The timing is too convenient.

Someone knew the attendant had spoken.

Someone knew enough to threaten her into silence.

Averic says, “The council healers are coming.”

“How soon?”

“Within the hour.”

I look at him.

“They’ve already won half the battle.”

He shakes his head.

“Not yet.”

I ask, “Then why do you look like that?”

He does not respond.

He does not need to.

Averic sits across from me.

“The witness is breaking.”

He is being brutally honest.

He tells me that without her testimony being repeated in front of the council, the physical evidence becomes suspect again.

The clasps can be dismissed as planted objects.

The wolfsbane can be blamed on another servant.

The gate records can prove an opening took place, but not who ordered it.

The altered medicine proves interference, but not who gave the orders.

“And the unfinished sentence?”

“Still unfinished.”

I look away.

“So everything we have points to the same person, but nothing forces the council to admit where it leads.”

“That is the problem.”

I ask him if he can postpone the hearing.

“No.”

“Can you keep the healers from her?”

“No.”

“Can you make them listen?”

“I can make them hear.”

I meet his gaze.

“That isn’t the same thing.”

Averic’s expression hardens.

“No.”

He reveals that the council wants the witness examined before the hearing begins because they intend to determine if she was coerced into giving the statement.

I say, “They want to know if she can still be used.”

Averic does not disagree.

He reaches into his coat and produces the sealed evidence pouch containing the third clasp.

He places it on the table.

“I will not let them take it from her.”

I study the pouch.

“Then don’t let them frighten her into doing so.”

His gaze meets mine.

“I won’t.”

For once, I believe him.

Then the guard outside announces the arrival of the council healers.

Averic stands.

A warrior enters before the healer can gain entry to the inner chamber.

“Alpha.”

Averic turns.

“What now?”

“The attendant has requested to see you.”

His expression changes.

“Is she willing to speak?”

The warrior nods.

“She has one condition.”

Averic waits.

“She will not speak to the council healers first.”

“Then what?”

“She wishes for the second mate to be present.”

My breath catches in my throat.

Averic looks to me.

The warrior continues.

“She says she will only finish what she started if Elaris is there to hear it.”

Averic’s eyes remain on mine.

“She won’t name the woman unless you are there,” he says.

I rise.

“What did she say exactly?”

The warrior hesitates.

“She said the second mate needs to hear the price.”

Averic stiffens.

The comment hits too close to the note she left behind.

Not the name.

Not yet.

The price.

Averic moves closer.

“The council healers will be here within the hour.”

I look at the sealed pouch on the table.

Then at the door.

Tomorrow’s hearing is far too soon.

If the attendant is to finish what she began, she may only have one opportunity – and someone else knows it.

Averic says, “Prepare yourself.”

I turn away from him.

The second mate will not be easy to convince that the council should not examine the first.

However, I will not hide what needs to be seen.

Not from her, or anyone else.

Suddenly, the guard outside announces new activity in the secure corridor.

Averic rises.

The council healers have arrived.

A warrior enters before the healer can reach the inner chamber.

“Alpha.”

Averic turns.

“What now?”

“The attendant has asked to see you.”

His expression changes.

“Is she willing to speak?”

The warrior nods.

“She has one condition.”

Averic waits.

“She will not speak to the council healers first.”

“Then what?”

“She wishes for the second mate to be present.”

My breath catches in my throat.

Averic looks to me.

The warrior continues.

“She says she will only finish what she started if Elaris is there to hear it.”

Averic’s eyes remain on mine.

“She won’t name the woman unless you are there,” he says.

I rise.

“What did she say exactly?”

The warrior hesitates.

“She said the second mate needs to hear the price.”

Averic stiffens.

The comment hits too close to the note she left behind.

Not the name.

Not yet.

The price.

Averic moves closer.

“The council healers will be here within the hour.”

I look at the sealed pouch on the table.

Then at the door.

Tomorrow’s hearing is far too soon.

If the attendant is to finish what she began, she may only have one opportunity – and someone else knows it.