Chapter 143
[Amelia's POV]
The conference room felt different now. The oppressive tension that had gripped everyone during Chloe's press conference was finally starting to lift, replaced by something lighter—relief, maybe even cautious celebration.
But I couldn't shake the weight in my chest. Sure, we'd won. Gray Ear Pack had publicly admitted to stealing our work. But that didn't change the fact that I was the reason any of this happened in the first place.
Alex stood at the head of the table, his Alpha presence commanding even in this moment of victory. "Before we celebrate," he said, his amber eyes finding mine, "Amelia has something she wants to say to all of you."
Every head turned toward me. I felt heat creep up my neck, but I forced myself to stand. These people had fought for me, believed in me when I didn't even believe in myself. They deserved the truth.
"I want everyone to know," I began, my voice steadier than I expected, "that I was the leak. The script materials that Gray Ear Pack used—they got them through me." I paused, seeing the surprise on some faces, the understanding on others. "I need to be clear: I didn't intentionally share anything. But I was careless, and that carelessness put our project, our Pack, and all of your hard work at risk."
The silence stretched for a moment before I continued. "I take full responsibility for the damage this caused. I'm sorry—to the project, to this team, and to Silver Moon Pack."
Alex's voice cut through the quiet. "This afternoon, Amelia will be facing the tribunal."
That got everyone's attention. A tribunal wasn't just Pack justice—it was serious business.
Avery was the first to speak, his tone sharp with lingering frustration. "Well, I hope next time you'll be more careful with sensitive materials."
"Avery," Harper warned, but I shook my head.
"No, he's right," I said. "I should have been more careful."
Carter, ever the optimist, leaned back in his chair with a grin. "Hey, we won in the end, right? That's what matters."
The room murmured agreement, but I could see the mixed emotions on everyone's faces. Victory tinged with the knowledge that it could have all been avoided.
A few hours later, I stood outside the tribunal conference room, my hands clenched at my sides. The hallway felt longer than it should have, stretching endlessly toward the heavy wooden door that would determine my fate within the Pack.
I took a deep breath, tasting the lingering scents of authority and judgment that seemed to seep from under the door. This was it. Time to face the consequences of my mistakes.
I pushed the door open.
The tribunal room was more intimidating than I'd imagined. A semicircle of chairs faced a single seat in the center—my seat, obviously. About a dozen Pack members sat in the arranged seating, their expressions serious and unreadable.
"Welcome, Amelia," said a woman in her fifties, her Beta scent calm but authoritative. "Please, take a seat."
I walked to the lone chair, feeling like I was walking to my own execution. As I settled into the seat, I scanned the faces of the tribunal members—and my heart nearly stopped.
Alex sat among them, his expression neutral but his eyes giving me an encouraging smile.
I shouldn't have been surprised. As Alpha, of course he'd be part of any major tribunal. But seeing him there, in his official capacity rather than as... whatever we were to each other, made this feel even more surreal.
My mind drifted back to our conversation earlier, when Alex had pulled me aside to prepare me for this moment.
"You need to be completely honest with them," he'd said, his hands on my shoulders. "But Amelia, listen to me—honest doesn't mean you have to tell them everything."
I'd frowned. "What do you mean?"
"If you tell them the whole story—about Lucas coming to your apartment, about your... relationship with him—you'll be facing two violations instead of one."
The realization had hit me like a truck.
"Exactly. If I were you, I'd leave out the part about him being in your apartment. Better yet, you could leave out Lucas's involvement entirely."
The memory of that conversation warred with my need to be completely truthful. But as I sat there, facing the tribunal's expectant gazes, I realized Alex had been trying to protect me from making things worse for myself.
"Amelia," the Beta woman continued, "we're here to discuss the recent security breach involving Pack materials. In your own words, can you explain what happened?"
I straightened in my chair, meeting her eyes directly. "Everything that happened was due to my carelessness in protecting Silver Moon Pack's confidential information. I failed to secure script materials properly, which led to Gray Ear Pack obtaining our Thin Ice Beneath screenplay."
"And how exactly did this information reach Gray Ear Pack?" another tribunal member asked.
I swallowed hard. This was the moment of truth. "The materials were taken from my apartment while I was... distracted. I didn't realize anything was missing until it was too late."
It wasn't the whole truth, but it wasn't a lie either. I had been distracted—by Lucas himself—but I kept that detail to myself.
"The result," I continued, "was that Silver Moon Pack had to pursue litigation to protect our intellectual property and creative work."
The Beta woman leaned forward slightly. "Do you acknowledge that your actions constituted a breach of Pack security protocols?"
"Yes," I said without hesitation. "I have no excuses. I accept full responsibility and I'm prepared to accept whatever punishment you deem appropriate. I sincerely apologize for the trouble I've caused my colleagues, this project, and Silver Moon Pack."
The words hung in the air, and I felt a strange sense of relief. Whatever happened next, at least I'd been honest about my responsibility in this mess.