Chapter 19 Brother's Betrayal
POV: Callum Brennan
Location: Supernatural Courtroom
Time: Trial Day Three, Continued
Court reconvenes after a brief recess. I've spent the last twenty minutes in holding trying to process Cormac's initial testimony. The tears. The heartbreak. The way he said he still doesn't want to believe I'm guilty.
It felt real. That's what's making me doubt myself. If Cormac's acting, he's better at it than anyone I've ever seen.
Judge Harborough calls the court to order. "Prosecution, do you have additional witnesses?"
Victoria Cross stands. "Your Honor, I'd like to recall Alpha Cormac Brennan to the stand. There are aspects of his relationship with the defendant we need to explore in more detail."
Murmurs through the courtroom. Recalling a witness is unusual. Thomas starts to object, then stops. He's got no grounds to block it.
Cormac returns to the witness stand. He's composed now, the crying from earlier mostly under control. He sits and waits.
Victoria approaches. "Alpha Brennan, thank you for returning. I want to discuss something you mentioned earlier. You said you and the defendant were very close growing up. Can you elaborate on that relationship?"
"We were inseparable. Twins, born seven minutes apart. Father always said we'd lead the pack together. That our bond was sacred, unbreakable." Cormac's voice is steady. "I believed that. Completely."
"When did that belief start to change?"
Cormac hesitates. It looks like he's struggling with whether to say something painful. "About six months ago. Maybe longer. I started noticing small things. Comments Callum would make. The way he looked at me during pack meetings. Little signs of resentment."
"What kind of comments?"
"Callum started questioning my decisions more. Not openly, but privately. He'd suggest I was handling things wrong. That he understood pack dynamics better than I did. That wolves would respond better to different leadership." Cormac looks down. "At first I thought he was just being helpful. Beta's job is to provide counsel. But the comments got more frequent. More critical."
I'm gripping the table edge so hard my knuckles are white. This is a lie. I never questioned Cormac's leadership. Never criticized his decisions except in normal Beta capacity. What Cormac's describing never happened.
"Did he ever express explicit resentment about his position?"
"Yes. Multiple times." Cormac meets Victoria's eyes. "Callum resented being born second. He said it constantly. How seven minutes shouldn't determine everything. How birth order was arbitrary. How the pack deserved to choose their Alpha based on merit, not biology."
"He said this directly to you?"
"Yes. Usually late at night when we were alone. He'd had a few drinks, guards were down. He'd talk about how unfair it was. How he was just as capable as me. How he might actually be better suited for leadership."
Every word is a knife. Every lie is cutting deeper. I want to stand up, to shout that this is false, but Thomas's hand on my arm stops me.
"Did the defendant ever say explicitly that he deserved to be Alpha more than you?"
Cormac is quiet for a moment. When he speaks, his voice is pained. "Yes. About three months ago. We'd had a pack meeting that didn't go well. Some wolves questioned my decision about territory boundaries. After everyone left, Callum said maybe they were right to question me. That he understood their concerns better than I did. That he might make a better Alpha." Cormac pauses. "Then he said, 'I deserve this position more than you do.'"
The courtroom reacts. Gasps. Murmurs. Judge Harborough bangs his gavel for order.
I'm shaking my head. That conversation never happened. Three months ago we had no pack meeting about territory boundaries. We had no argument. Cormac's inventing entire scenarios.
"What was your response?" Victoria asks.
"I told him he was my brother and I needed him as Beta, not as rival. That we were stronger together. That Father's vision was for us to lead jointly, not compete." Cormac's voice breaks slightly. "I thought I'd reassured him. Thought we'd gotten past it. But clearly I was wrong."
"When did you first suspect the defendant might be involved in criminal activity?"
"Not until after his arrest for murder. That's when I ordered the financial audit. Standard procedure when leadership is compromised." Cormac shifts in his seat. "When our accountants found the embezzlement, I was shocked. I didn't want to believe it. Kept thinking there had to be a mistake."
"But there was no mistake?"
"No. The evidence was clear. Fifty thousand pounds missing over six months. An offshore account in Callum's name. Transaction records showing systematic theft." Cormac looks at me. "I had to accept that my brother had been stealing from our pack while pretending to serve as Beta."
"How did that make you feel?"
"Betrayed. Devastated. Like everything I believed about my brother was a lie." Cormac's getting emotional again. "I kept asking myself how I missed it. How he hid this from me. We're twins. We shared everything. Or I thought we did."
"Do you believe the defendant's claim that he was framed?"
"I want to believe it. Desperately. Because if Callum's guilty, it means I failed to see who he really was. It means the brother I loved never existed." Cormac wipes his eyes. "But the evidence is overwhelming. And now, knowing about his resentment, his comments about deserving Alpha position, it all makes sense. He was building resources to challenge me. The embezzlement was preparation."
"Preparation for what?"
"For overthrowing me. For taking the pack by force if necessary." Cormac's voice is firm now. "The murder might have been part of that plan. Eliminating a witness. Covering tracks. I don't know the details. But the pattern is clear. Callum wanted power. He was willing to steal and kill to get it."
"Do you believe your brother is guilty of these crimes?"
Cormac looks directly at me. His eyes are wet but his voice is steady. "Yes. I believe he's guilty. I don't want to. It's destroying me to say it. But I can't ignore the evidence. I can't protect him from his own choices. My brother murdered David Chen. He embezzled pack funds. He's been planning this for months. And he's lying about all of it."
The courtroom's silent. Cormac's testimony isn't just damning. It's creating a complete narrative. Jealous brother, long-simmering resentment, systematic planning, violent execution. Everything tied together with a bow.
It's perfect. It's completely fabricated. And no one's going to believe me when I say so.
Victoria sits. "No further questions, Your Honor."
Judge Harborough looks at Thomas. "Cross-examination?"
Thomas stands. He looks like he wants to run. Challenging an Alpha's testimony is dangerous. But he has to try.
"Alpha Brennan, you said your brother made comments about deserving to be Alpha. Were these comments witnessed by anyone else?"
"No. They were private conversations. Just the two of us."
"So we only have your word that these conversations happened?"
"Yes. But why would I lie about my own brother? What do I gain from destroying him?" Cormac's voice is pained. "If anything, admitting this makes me look naive. Makes me look like I ignored warning signs. I'm not testifying to hurt Callum. I'm testifying because the court deserves the truth."
"The truth according to you. But there's no corroboration. No witnesses. No evidence these conversations ever occurred."
"There's the evidence of his actions. The embezzlement. The murder. Those support the narrative of a wolf who wanted power badly enough to commit crimes."
Thomas tries different angles. Asks about who else had access to Callum's personal items. Who else knew his routines. Who else could have planted evidence. Cormac has answers for everything. Calm, reasonable, sympathetic answers that make Thomas look desperate.
"No further questions," Thomas says finally.
"The witness may step down," Harborough announces.
Cormac stands. He walks from the witness stand toward the gallery. As he passes my table, he has to walk right by me.
For a moment, our eyes meet.
It's brief. Three seconds maybe. The rest of the courtroom can't see his face from this angle. Only I can.
And in that moment, the mask drops.
Cormac's not devastated. He's not heartbroken. The tears, the pain, the tortured brother performance, none of it is real.
What I see in his eyes is something else entirely. Relief. Satisfaction. Maybe even triumph. Like he's accomplished something difficult and is glad it worked.
The brother who just testified about how much he loves me, how destroyed he is by my crimes, how desperately he wishes I were innocent, that brother doesn't exist in those eyes. Never existed.
What exists is a wolf who planned this. Who framed me methodically. Who's been lying to everyone, including me, for weeks or months. Who feels nothing except satisfaction that his plan succeeded.
Then the moment passes. Cormac's face shifts back to grief. He returns to his seat in the gallery and pack members offer comfort. The devastated Alpha continues his performance.
But I saw the truth. For three seconds, I saw behind the mask.
My twin brother, the person I've trusted my entire life, the one who promised Father we'd lead together, just destroyed me with lies. And he feels absolutely nothing.
The brother I loved never existed.