Chapter 3- A Man Who Did Nothing

Chapter 3- A Man Who Did Nothing

RONAN POV

The courtroom seemed to be spinning. Or maybe it was just my wolf screaming inside my head for standing there. For watching. For doing nothing.

I have faced war. I have shaken hands with the grim reaper himself. I have laughed in the face of fear and blood. And I have conquered. I always conquered.

But none of that felt like this.

This felt sharper. This felt deliberate. This felt unreal.

Yet you kept quiet when they tore her down.

My wolf reprimanded with a disapproving tone, and I winced at the truth in my beast’s voice.

I did. Heck. I probably fucked up. This had to be the biggest fuck ups of my life. But still, I did nothing.

Fuck.

But what was I to do? I was a mere commander. Yes, I held the ranks! Yes, I ruled the army of one of the biggest packs in South-East of the Southeast Pacific Ocean; I personally handpicked our guards, but I watched the men I trained and commanded drag her out of the courtroom like she was a criminal.

She wasn’t a criminal.

She was a work of art herself. Sometimes a little too chaotic. Too perfect. But she wasn’t a criminal.

“I can’t believe she would do something like this.” A soft voice yanked my mind to the present. I tipped my head to the side just in time as Selene placed a gentle, cautious hand on my arm.

The gesture was featherlight but still made my body stiffen painfully. My wolf recoiled violently inside of me that I nearly grimaced.

It wasn’t that I hated Selene. No. The problem was worse. The guilt that stared at me at night with black eyes and an unforgiving presence. Heavy, suffocating guilt.

Selene noticed the tension immediately. Her fingers twitched slightly against my sleeves before slipping away slowly.

Something painful flashed in her eyes.

“She is innocent until proven guilty.” I gritted my teeth, feeling the injustice far too close, as if it had all happened to me.

“But the evidence is staggering. Everyone saw her with Elder Vale and-,”

“That does not mean she poisoned him.” I cut her off, exasperation lacing my tone and making it snarky. I didn’t mean to be snarky.

I also didn’t mean to stand there and watch as everything she ever held dear came crashing down in front of her.

But you kept quiet.

My wolf barked again and I wished I could reach inside my mind and yank the beast by the snout before punching it in the face. He didn’t need to remind me. I was guilty enough.

“Well, then who did? Because last time I checked it was my dearest sister who handled everything. Every single detail from the tapestry down to the wines. She didn’t even allow Mother to step in, or Father to have an opinion. She took it all up herself. Like she always did.” Selene’s words dragged something heavier, something I couldn’t quite put a finger on.

Yet.

“And she is not stupid enough to poison an elder during the Alphas’ Council. She knows better than that.” Besides, Aurelia barely had enemies. Heck, that little wolf had every single living creature eating out of the palm of her hand. She was the literal definition of perfection. And everyone loved her.

I mean who wouldn’t love someone who threw a feast for literally anything? The woman threw celebration feasts for teenagers surviving their first shifts. She remembered birthdays, and she visited injured warriors personally. She once organized an entire festival because one orphaned pup said he’d never had a real birthday before.

That was Aurelia. Sunshine wrapped in stubbornness.

Always inspiring.

And yet not even one person stood up for her!

That knocked all the air from out of my lungs.

“Maybe it wasn’t stupidity..” Selene murmured. “Maybe it was arrogance. Maybe it was the fact that she had gotten too used to being perfect and in control that she thought she would get away with this. Maybe, she thought blowing things for father during the most important gathering in our world would finally make her what she had been pinning on her entire life.” Selene added with a shrug. Her hands were folded in front of her.

I looked at her. I really looked at her. She felt my gaze, cast a small smile before looking at the closed double doors where Aurelia’s scent lingered, serving as a painful reminder of my failure.

“She poisoned an elder, Ronan.” She stated as a matter of fact. “The motive is yet to be found, but she did. She had access. She had proximity. Everything else points right at her.”

“She didn’t.” I retorted through clenched teeth.

“You don’t know that.”

“Yes, but I know her.” I snapped, words coming out too quickly and too fiercely. Selene froze, her eyes growing glossy. A strange silence stretched between us. Too long. Too cold.

And then she smiled. A small, sad, broken smile.

“You always do that.” She murmured, refusing to look at me.

“Do what?”

“Defend her.” The words weren’t bitter. And that right there was exactly my problem. They hurt far more worse because they sounded wounded.

She spun on her heel and faced me, taking one dangerous step towards me. She was too close. Too close that my wolf coiled inwardly. Not aggressive. Just uneasy.

“I know you care for her. I know you have, since the first time you arrived here and Father welcomed your pack into ours. I know you look at her like she has hung the moon herself. I know you dream of a future with her even though she is not your fated mate but you can’t deny this.” Her words were clear. Precise, and heavy as they settled in my chest.

“Selene…” A muscle ticked in my jaw. She raised her hand and shook her head. Silencing me.

“No, Ronan.” I swallowed. Hard. Unable to form words or bring myself to say anything. What else could I say?

I had created this monster. This hateful, thing standing in front of me wearing Selene’s face, it was my own doing.

“I didn’t mean to hurt you,” I said in a small voice. Another sad smile formed on her face.

“Well, you did. And look where we are.” My beast growled, a deep, hollow ache blooming in my chest.

“But it is clear she fooled us all. Maybe the perfect heiress, the perfect daughter, the kind alpha-to-be, isn’t so kind as we all thought.” She gave me a double tap on my arm before walking off. The sound of her heels clicking against the marble filled the space.

I hadn’t even realized that people had begun filing out of the courtroom until the heady presence forced me to bend my neck as Alpha Dominus Voss stepped closer to where I stood cemented to the floor.

“You doubt her guilt.” He stated in that domineering alpha voice that made no room for questions.

“I question the timing,” I stated softly. “The method. The boldness of doing it during the most important gathering we have ever hosted.” I shook my head at the absurdity of the situation.

“I am listening.” He folded his arms across his chest, causing the taut muscles of his arms and shoulders to grow bulkier, like they wanted out of the restraints of the suit he wore.

“She was at the entrance when the guests started arriving. She personally escorted each one to the ballroom before reclaiming her position by the door. She was precise. Controlled. Like always.” I paused, the image of her standing in the middle of the courtroom, alone, confused, flashed before my eyes.

“She couldn’t have possibly done it.” I shook my head. Refusing to believe for a second that she was capable of such a thing.

“I know what it looks like. And I know you refuse to believe that she could commit such a crime. I do too. As her father, it pains me that I have to deliver her punishment. But we cannot let this slide. This is bigger than us. You understand?” I nodded to his words.

“Don’t let whatever trivial feelings you have for her cloud your judgment. Remember, your duty is to me. Not Aurelia. Your duty is to this pack. And if Aurelia is the threat, then you are to snuff her out.”

The implication tasted bitter on my tongue.

If the investigation led to that, if she truly committed murder, then I was going to have to kill her. It was my hand that was going to put her down.

“Stormveil Pack wants answers. And Davon wants justice served. I owe that to him. I have to give him that before the gathering officially starts. We don’t want war with other packs. We don’t want favor shifting from us. We worked too hard to be where we are today. We cannot let anything destroy what we have built. Even if it is my own flesh and blood.” He paused for a second before pinning a hard glare on me. His eyes flashed with golden slits, his wolf coming just an inch from the surface.

“Remember your position in this pack.” He slapped a hand on my shoulder before spinning on his heel and strutting out of the courtroom. Leaving me there with a hollow ache in my chest, and a metallic taste in my blood.

Once again I was reminded of my position.

Of why I couldn’t stand up for her.

Of why I let the guards take her to the dungeons like she was some type of hooligan.

Once again I was reminded that I was nothing but a commander.