The dropped charges

Calistas pov

I leaned slightly closer to his desk, making sure my voice was low enough for him to hear.

"I have spent years writing detailed journals on shiftless wolves," I told him, keeping my eyes locked on his. "I have always been fascinated by the idea that amongst all my peers in this pack, I am the only one who can't turn into a wolf. It drove me crazy, so I started looking into it. And during my research, I heard stories of so many people in our pack and other packs who couldn't turn into a wolf either. I tracked their histories. I found patterns."

Magnus listened attentively, his fingers tapping slowly against his chin. He nodded, his deep voice rumbling softly. "Okay. That is fine. If there are others like us, I would like to meet these other people. I want to know how they live, and if they feel the same power we felt today."

I let out a sharp breath and shook my head. "That’s the problem, your Majesty."

Magnus frowned, his massive brows knitting together. "What do you mean by that?"

Before I could open my mouth to explain, the heavy wooden doors of the hall swung open again. Beta Paul marched back into the room, his face twisted into a dark scowl. He walked over to the desk, holding out a small electronic device.

"Here is your phone," Paul said, tossing it onto the wooden surface with a loud clatter.

I reached out and picked it up. The moment I turned it over, my heart dropped. The glass screen was completely shattered, spiderweb cracks spreading across the entire display.

"What happened to it?" I demanded, glaring at him. "It wasn't broken when your guards took it from me!"

Paul scoffed, looking at me from head to toe with absolute disgust. "You're lucky to even have your phone back, criminal. Be grateful we didn't smash it into pieces." He immediately turned toward the desk, bowing deeply. "Alpha King."

Without another word, Paul walked over to the far corner of the room, sitting down in a wooden chair, still keeping his sharp eyes on us.

Magnus didn't even acknowledge Paul. He simply stretched out his massive, tattooed hand across the desk toward me. "Give it to me."

I sighed, pressing the power button. Thankfully, the screen lit up despite the damage. I slid the lock open and handed the cracked phone over to the Alpha King. His large fingers completely covered the device as he brought it closer to his face.

The moment his eyes scanned the screen, his expression shifted. The first things that popped up on my display were my active document files.

Magnus looked at the text, then turned the screen around, pointing it directly at me. "What are all these files?"

I rubbed the back of my neck, feeling a bit self-conscious under his intense gaze. "Those are the journals I was just talking to you about. My research journals on shiftless wolves. I keep digital copies stored right there."

Magnus turned the phone back to himself, his thumbs scrolling through the pages. "I am absolutely fascinated by this. I want to go through all of this properly." He looked up, his dark eyes burning with sudden interest. "Where are more of these files? Surely this isn't all of them."

"I only have a few saved directly on my phone," I explained, pointing to the device. "The main files, the physical books, and the deeper research are all kept back at my house."

Magnus continued to scroll through the documents. He read through a few paragraphs, and a genuine, rare smile broke across his handsome face. He looked like a man who had just found a hidden treasure map.

"I want to go through more of this," Magnus said, suddenly pushing his heavy chair back and standing up to his full, towering height of seven feet. " Lead me to your workplace. Let me see where you do this research."

I blinked, completely stunned. I glanced over at the corner of the room, where Beta Paul was sitting stiffly, clearly straining his ears to eavesdrop on our conversation. I turned back to the King, my voice full of confusion.

"I don't understand what is going on here," I whispered. "Am I not supposed to be going back to the dungeons? I am literally under arrest for attempted murder."

Magnus let out a low, deep chuckle that vibrated through the room. He dismissed my words with a casual wave of his hand.

"Just because you are attached to your pathetic ex-boyfriend does not mean you have to rot in a dungeon," Magnus said loudly, making sure his voice was heard across the hall. "It is completely beneath me to waste my time trying to handle a case that is not even supposed to be a case in the first place. This entire thing is nothing but a simple lover's quarrel. It is nothing much."

From the corner of the room, Paul stood up so fast his chair scraped loudly against the floor. "Your Majesty! You cannot be serious! She stabbed the Alpha of this pack!"

Magnus whipped his head around, his eyes flashing a dangerous, icy blue. He let out a dark, guttural growl that shook the window panes. The sheer alpha pressure in the room doubled in a second, forcing Paul to drop his gaze instantly.

"Cancel all crimes against her, Beta Paul," Magnus commanded, his voice dripping with pure authority. "She is innocent. You will drop the charges immediately."

Paul's jaw clenched. He clearly wanted to complain, to argue, to demand my execution, but under the terrifying gaze of the Alpha King, he couldn't do anything. He swallowed his anger, bowed tightly, and stepped back into the shadows. "The elders won’t be happy about this, but whatever you say shall be done."

Magnus turned back to me, the terrifying aura vanishing as quickly as it had appeared. He walked around the desk, stopping right in front of me. He was towering over me, his massive frame completely blocking out the light from the window.

"Show me your workplace, Calista," he said softly.

I swallowed hard, my heart racing for a completely different reason now. "Okay. Follow me."

I nodded and walked ahead of him, heading toward the massive double doors of the hall.