Chapter 96

"You're talking nonsense. What do you even mean by that?"

I asked him, clearly shocked at his words.

Rowan shrugged. 

"You want to destroy me and this entire kingdom don't you? Well it's a good thing your plans are already underway. You might get it done before any stupid thing my brother is planning." 

He wasn't making any sense to me, I simply didn't understand what he was saying. 

"What exactly don't you understand? I found you in the alley discussing plans of how to end me and my kingdom. Or have you abandoned those plans already?!"

I didn't respond. I didn't know what to say. Was he teasing me? Was he thing to confuse me? I couldn't tell. 

Rowan stepped further, I moved a bit back but then I quickly realised that I was backed up against a corner. He had me cornered.

"You're so hellbent on punishing me for my so called crimes. Punish me then. Make it swift before everything else falls apart."

"At least if it's all going to go to shit, let it be by your hand. That's the perfect revenge isn't it?"

"Rowan-"

"It's still surreal to see you. To know that it's you...."

His voice was softer now, he raised his fingers to touch my cheeks. His hands felt warm against my cold clammy skin. 

"I searched for you all those months. I know you don't believe me, but I did. There wasn't a day I didn't spare in searching for you, sending men out. If I had known, known what was done to you, I would have had them beheaded."

My eyes shot to him, surprised by the harshness of his words. 

"I would have. I wished you didn't have to suffer so much. And I'm deeply sorry for all that was done to you."

I nodded slowly, his words brought tears to my eyes, but I refused to let them fall. No, I wouldn't. 

"Is it really too late to change things?"

Rowan asked.

I didn't know how to answer that. In that moment, I was questioning everything. Did I really want revenge? 

Was I really going to go that far for it? 

"I.. I don't know."

"Would you really stand here and tell me that you feel nothing for me?! Would you Ariadne?!"

"Rowan please..."

"You've not given me an answer." He persisted, desperation written all over his face.

"I don't know what you want me to say. I can't tell you anything...."

"Yes. You can. You can start by telling me how you truly feel. About why you are so hell bent on destroying me."

"I'm not hell bent on destroying you!"

I snapped.

"Then what about your conversations with that Woman from Braam? Isn't that what you've been planning while you were away."

"I had no choice. She saved me, Braam protected me and in exchange I would bring Zaire down for what they did to me and my kind. And yes I wanted to destroy you. I wanted revenge for you casting me away. I thought that it would somehow make everything better, but every moment I spend with you clouds my judgement...."

Rowan looked desperate as he held my hands.

"Your feelings for me, have they changed? Do you still see me as your enemy?!"

I snatched my hands away quickly. What was I doing? Why was I letting him sway me like this.

"That is yet to be determined."

"I must leave before someone notices that I'm gone." 

"Goodbye." I said quickly as I walked away as fast as I could, before he could say something else.

............

The castle buzzed with tension as I made my way to the grand hall. Servants whispered in hushed tones, their faces pale with worry. Everyone knew what was about to happen—Isabelle's deposition was no longer just just words but a reality.

I didn't want to go. I wanted to stay locked away in my chambers, far from the chaos, but something in me—curiosity, perhaps, or a need to know how far this power struggle would go—pushed me forward.

When I entered the hall, it was already packed. The wolf clans stood on one side, their presence formidable, while the council members occupied their usual seats, their expressions grim. At the center of it all stood Rowan, his face unreadable, and Isabelle, her posture defiant despite the odds stacked against her.

The room quieted as one of the wolf clans, Chief Drevan, stepped forward. His voice echoed through the hall.

"Today marks a pivotal moment in the history of this court," he began, his tone solemn. "Queen Isabelle has failed to fulfill the duties expected of her position, and by the decree of the Alpha King and with the support of the wolf

Clans, we hereby strip her of her title as queen."

A murmur spread through the crowd. Isabelle's jaw tightened, but she held her ground.

"This is outrageous," she said sharply, her voice cutting through the noise. "You're deposing me because I haven't produced an heir? Do you not see how absurd that is? How can you all stand for something so ridiculous!" 

Chief Dreven's expression didn't waver. "It is not merely about the lack of an heir, Your Majesty. It is about the lack of unity, the lack of trust. The wolf clans have lost faith in your ability to lead alongside King Rowan."

Isabelle let out a bitter laugh, shaking her head. "Lost faith? Or were they told to lose faith by someone pulling the strings from the shadows?" She turned her gaze toward the Royal Concubine Elana, then to the wolf clans. "You're all fools if you think this is about me. You're all being used. Do you think whoever put you up for this cares if the Alpha King has a heir?! This is about power—power that someone else is hungry for. You will regret this! All of you!" 

"Enough," Rowan said, his voice low but firm. He stepped forward, his piercing gaze fixed on Isabelle. "You knew this was coming, Isabelle. Don't make it harder than it needs to be."

Her eyes burned with fury as she turned to face him fully. "Oh, I see. You're more than happy to get rid of me now that I'm no longer useful to you. But let me tell you something, Rowan—you're not as untouchable as you think. They're coming for you too!" 

The room fell deathly silent as Isabelle squared her shoulders and took a step closer to him.

"You all want to know why I never produced an heir?" she asked, her voice loud and clear. "Why there's no royal pup to secure Rowan's legacy? It's not because of me. It's because he can't give me one!"

Gasps erupted from the crowd, followed by a flurry of whispers. My heart stopped in my chest as her words echoed in the cavernous hall.

"Isabelle," Rowan said warningly, his voice dangerously low.

"No!" she snapped, her voice rising with emotion. "You don't get to silence me anymore. They deserve to know the truth. You've all been deceived. The great King Rowan, the mighty alpha, is impotent! And yet you're still so loyal to him, so blind to the fact that if he remains on the throne, there will be no heir—ever!"

The hall erupted into chaos. Members of the council looked at one another in shock, while the wolf clans muttered amongst themselves. Rowan's face was a mask of fury, his hands clenched into fists at his sides.

"Enough!" he roared, his voice reverberating off the walls. The crowd quieted, but the tension was palpable.

Isabelle smirked, clearly satisfied that her words had landed their blow. "You think deposing me will solve all your problems? Go ahead, strip me of my title, humiliate me, exile me—but don't think for a second that this court will survive without an heir. Mark my words, Rowan: you've just signed your own downfall."

With that, she turned on her heel, her gown billowing behind her as she strode toward the exit. The guards moved to follow her, but she paused at the door, casting one last glance over her shoulder.

"Good luck, Your Majesty," she said mockingly. "You're going to need it."

The doors slammed shut behind her, leaving a heavy silence in her wake.

I stood frozen, my mind racing. Isabelle's words had thrown everything into disarray. The court was in shock, the wolf clans visibly unsettled. Even Rowan, for all his usual composure, looked shaken.

Chief Dreven cleared his throat, attempting to regain order. "This... revelationc while grave, does not change the matter at hand. Queen Isabelle is no longer—"

"Silence," Rowan interrupted, his voice cold and sharp. "The proceedings are over. Everyone is dismissed."