All Chapters of No Longer Your Luna: Chapter 61 - Chapter 70

 "If you wish to refuse, no one in this room will judge you."Bobby's voice was gentle. It was the kind of tone reserved for someone who had already carried more than their share of burdens.Rowena looked up from the simple wooden chair where she sat, fastening the final clasp on the dark gray cloak provided for the Assembly."Refuse?" she repeated softly.Bobby nodded."The Council has been summoned.""But standing before it..."He hesitated."...after everything they've done to you...""You have that choice."A quiet silence settled between them. Then Rowena smiled. Not so bright, not bitterly. Just enough to soften the exhaustion around her eyes, "They took my choices a long time ago."She stood."But this one..."She straightened the folds of her cloak."...is mine."Outside Blackwolf Moonkeep. Moonhaven had awakened long before sunrise. The roads leading toward the Grand Assembly Hall

“Where were you when Amara Winchester was murdered?”The question came without warning.Rowena lifted her eyes. The iron bars surrounding her seemed to disappear for one brief moment. There was only Elder Gideon Vale, the Council and the memory she had spent three years being punished for.“I was at the Blackwater River.”A murmur swept through the Grand Assembly Hall. Gideon's gaze sharpened, “You are certain?”“Yes.”“How certain?”Rowena looked directly at him, “Certain enough to have spent three years wishing someone had cared to prove it.”The silence that followed was immediate. Dean's eyes shifted toward her, he knew that tone. It wasn't anger. Rowena had learned long ago that anger could be used against a prisoner. This was something colder, something harder.The simple exhaustion of a woman who had answered the same accusation for so long that the truth no longer sounded dramatic when she spoke it. Elder Gideon opened the original trial record, “Then let us begin again.”Row

“You expect us to believe that after three years, you can look at a few pieces of paper and tell this Council they are false?”Rowena looked across the chamber at Elder Corvin.“No.”The answer caught him off guard.“No?”“I expect you to look at them yourself.”The Council fell silent.Rowena stepped closer to the iron bars.“The letters may be real.”Corvin frowned.“Then why are you challenging them?”“Because something can be real without being genuine.”A few Elders exchanged glances. Dean remained silent beneath the Blackwolf crest. Bobby stood several paces away, watching Rowena carefully.The Chief Archivist placed the three disputed letters on the evidence table.Their old parchment had yellowed with age. The ink remained dark. These were the letters that had once helped condemn Rowena. Letters supposedly proving that she had communicated with rogue wolves. Letters that had been presented as evidence of conspiracy. And now they sat beneath the same lamps that had illuminated

“The Blackriver crossing was never supposed to stay closed for twenty-seven minutes.”Sam's voice carried across the Grand Council chamber. Every head turned toward him. He stood beside the evidence table in Blackwolf military uniform, a leather patrol folder resting beneath one arm. Dean watched him from beneath the Blackwolf crest. Bobby's expression tightened. Rowena remained inside the iron witness cage, her attention fixed on Sam.Elder Gideon Vale broke the silence.“Explain.”Sam placed the folder on the table.“I will.”He opened it.“The Blackwater River crossing was restricted on the night Amara Winchester died. Rowena has testified that she was held there for twenty-seven minutes while waiting for an official signal delivered by messenger bird.”He looked around the chamber.“Until yesterday, that sounded like the testimony of a prisoner whose word had already been questioned.” His fingers pressed against the first document.“Today, the patrol logs confirm she was there.”A

 “I thought I was looking for Amara's killer. I never stopped to ask whether I was looking for the truth.”Bobby's voice was quiet. Yet somehow, it carried farther than a shout. The Grand Council chamber fell silent. Dean looked at him from the high seat. Castiel stood beside the evidence table. Sam remained near the military records. Rowena watched from inside the iron witness cage, her expression unreadable.Bobby rested both hands on his cane. For several seconds, he said nothing. Then he looked at the Council.“I need to testify.”Elder Miriam frowned.“You've already given evidence.”“I know.”“Then what has changed?”Bobby looked toward the gold ledger lying on the table. “Me.” No one spoke.The Chief Archivist approached. “Where would you like to begin?” Bobby gave a tired smile. “From the beginning.” He turned toward