Total pages in book: 182
Estimated words: 171176 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 856(@200wpm)___ 685(@250wpm)___ 571(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 171176 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 856(@200wpm)___ 685(@250wpm)___ 571(@300wpm)
Nyfain held up his hand. “Is she dangerous?”
“Not at all. After she saw what her product had become—how Granny altered it—she requested to stand in judgment. She is not prone to random fits of violence unless attacked.”
“Makes sense if she’s your true mate,” Finley murmured. “You’re usually as calm as they come.”
“She did just meet her animal, though,” I continued, “and that animal is an alpha. I have no idea how that is going to work out.”
Nyfain nodded. “It’s been a long journey with some . . . surprising revelations. Why don’t we end here for today, and we can pick this up tomorrow morning in our private chambers. We can go over the details more thoroughly and talk to some of the other pack before we need to question her directly. I do have to warn you, Weston, that her questioning needs to be formal. That can’t be helped. But we’ll get as much information as we can before that time. In the meantime, get some sleep. You need it.”
“Just bring Hadriel in tomorrow,” Finley said, sagging back in her throne. “He can yay or nay whatever Weston says. He won’t lie to me, and he won’t leave out any details. He doesn’t know how.”
Nyfain nodded and excused me. My mind whirled as I replayed how that had gone. Badly, if I looked at it from a surface level.
When talking them through it, I’d worried it seemed like I was coming up with excuses why Aurelia was ultimately innocent—excuses to get my true mate out of trouble. That they had not seen that village in person, and had not seen Aurelia break down with each realization regarding Granny’s treatment of her, lessened the story’s impact. My inability to properly articulate Aurelia’s situation made it easier for Finley to look at it in black and white: Aurelia made the drugs, and so she was guilty. What should the why matter?
At least the fact she was my true mate would make them more careful. At least Nyfain sympathized with me. If he hadn’t, telling him I’d rip apart his kingdom’s pack would’ve definitely incited violence.
This was all so fucked up. Worse, I couldn’t go to Aurelia. I couldn’t hold her and feel the comfort only she could provide. I missed her already and craved her in my bed. I was adrift in a way I’d never been before, terrified for what tomorrow would bring—terrified they’d sentence her to death, and me with her. Because one thing was for certain—I would not stand by if they tried to hurt her. I would make good on my threat and tear this kingdom apart.
Chapter 11
Aurelia
The early morning light filtered through the windows, the sun just cresting the surrounding mountains. Time to get up and get going.
I was halfway out of bed before I remembered my situation. This wasn’t my village and I didn’t have a job to get to. Granny no longer dictated my time.
Then again, I did have a duty, and I wasn’t in the habit of lazing around.
The lock on the door was a standard, double-way affair that wouldn’t take much effort to crack—if I had the right tools. I’d had a similar one on the work shed and on my house before Raz went through a spell of stealing my keys and locking me inside.
Luckily, the tower had a plethora of items that could work: a bunch of hairpins, a screwdriver set, cotton swabs with easily removable ends—the options were endless. Why did they bother even locking the thing? Did it actually keep anyone in?
I chose the hairpins, spent a few scant minutes fashioning them into the shapes I needed and picking the lock, then stashed my makeshift tools at the bottom of one of the trunks full of clothes.
Since the room didn’t afford me any better options, I’d dressed in my clothes from yesterday. I slipped out the door and headed down the stairs like I was supposed to be there. Sometimes, being left alone required only confidence. At the bottom of the staircase, I waffled for a moment about which direction to turn but then headed down a hall with paintings I thought I remembered passing on the way to the tower. A few servants walked past, most going the same direction as me and all of them giving me double takes. No one commented, though, nor spent too long looking me over.
Near the end of the hall, a very tall, dark-skinned man sauntered in my direction. His face was strikingly handsome, his frame enormous, and his demeanor loose and easy, like he hadn’t a care in the world. A sparkly jacket adorned his torso, not unlike something Hadriel would wear, and matching yellow trousers led down to black velvet shoes, the fabric the same as the jacket’s lapels.
He noticed me immediately, and I felt like a mouse trapped in a serpent’s gaze. Nothing changed about his bearing or his easy stride, but I could tell he was suddenly on point, ready to handle a potential problem. With his size, he’d handle it in no time flat. I stood no chance.