Chapter 41

The witches gave muffled cries of pain as the chains shifted, rubbing their already raw skin uncomfortably. They shuffled uneasily, trying to put a bit of space between themselves and the crying guardsman. His behavior was not caused by them though.

All heads had turned to look at the kneeling wolf in surprise as he cried. “It’s my fault!”

Kiara stood, her face contorting as she failed to properly convey something. A show of sympathy, perhaps? But it looked like she wanted to rip out his throat.

“What is your fault?” Kiara’s father was the one to ask in a deep, gruff voice. He looked weary and agitated by now. His family’s business was entirely on display and it was becoming clear that he did not have proper reins over his daughters.

The guard wailed pathetically, words becoming stuck in his throat. “I-it’s all my f-fault. M-mine.”

Annika took a step toward him, reaching out her delicate hand in a kindly gesture. “Calm down, now. Speak. Tell us how this is your fault.”

She said it in such a sweet way. Almost motherly. Surely, there was no doubt about it, she was to be a great future alpha. Her voice had no hint of the order within it like Kiara’s alpha tone, but it was somehow more persuasive.

The guard gulped at the air like he was struggling, but as he looked toward the slight girl, he did calm. He didn’t take his eyes off of her as he answered. “I knew there was something wrong with the sugar, but I put it in the cup anyway. I killed the elder with my own hands.”

A tremor rocked the crowd and the other guards went a little slack. It would have been the perfect time for an escape attempt. Mila felt herself starting to move automatically. She might not get a better chance than this.

Rori’s attention was riveted and though he felt his mother attempting to pull him to safety, he didn’t move. His body became entirely immobile.

Mila’s attempts to pick him back up were fruitless, as though he’d grown roots into the ground. Any effort to pull was meant with stony resistance. It was as though she were trying to move a tree or a boulder.

Even those, she might have had a chance. Been able to budge a boulder with her inhuman strength or bend a tree. Rori was stronger than her. He forced her stay, waiting for the guard to continue.

“How did you know there was something wrong?” Annika asked coolly.

The guard’s mouth opened and closed like a great, ugly fish while he tried to answer. “S-she wore gloves while she handed it to me. I’d only touched it a moment to pour it in, but it tingled. My fingertips went n-numb.”

The alphas at the table looked scandalized. They’d all risen to their feet, leaning over the table to hear. All except Kiara who’d instinctively taken a shaky step back.

“Why did you do it if you knew it was wrong?” Annika demanded.

The chiding tone brought another wrack of sobs to his throat. He bawled into the grass. No one moved to help him. No one was trying to protect him or ease his grief.

“Why?” An alpha boomed in his loudest alpha voice.

It caused all of the wolves in the crowd to bow slightly, immediately swayed by the power. The guard gave a hiccup before the answer came tumbling from him.

“She’s an alpha and the alpha’s words are law. I poured the sugar and made sure the elder drank.”

He looked even more ashen than Dillon had while suffering blood loss. He rolled onto the ground, even on top of the chain that would burn his skin. He bore his stomach and throat toward the alphas like a dog, his face going blank with terror.

“And you’re saying Kiara knew that it was poison?” Another alpha asked urgently, her voice pitching slightly.

“She knew.” He gasped like a death rattle.

Mila saw Kiara move from her peripherals. The girl was fleeing the table, throwing her chair aside.

Kody was on the move not a second later, reaching toward the girl, but she was fast. She was already sprinting toward the tree line as fast as her legs could carry her. Her body even began to lean forward, ready to transform into a wolf to escape faster.

She was about to change, when arms caught her.

Not the arms of the wolves that were a second too late to catch her, but the arms of Jed.

Jed had arrived in time for the trial. Now he wrestled the she wolf, turning her so that she dropped to her still human knees, facing the alphas. He held her arms twisted at her back in a painful angle, a hand to her throat, ready to deliver a killing blow.

“Stop!” Kiara’s father bellowed.

Winnie’s hand tightened on Mila’s shoulder for a minute. She took a small, shaking step forward, looking to Annika who now looked even smaller. “We should unbind the witches.”

Annika nodded, waving toward the other guards. They didn’t move immediately, but Kody’s father growled fiercely. “Unbind them.”

As soon as they were free, most of the witches retreated, disappearing to tend to their wounds. Only Kimber stayed. She waited, ready to give proper testimony as the new trial started.

Most of the crowd was forced to disperse. Many parents left to tend to their child. The guards were ordered to disassemble the pyres. Only key witnesses and the counsel of alphas remained to sort through this disaster.

Winnie was still so haggard from birth, but she held herself tall when she looked to her husband. “Take Rori to check on the pups. He didn’t have a chance to meet them yet.”

Dillon attempted to argue, saying that Winnie should also return to their children, but she was not ready to leave. She made no suggestion to send off Mila either. Winnie’s hand slipped into Mila’s as they moved to stand by Kimber and Annika, awaiting the verdict on Kiara.