Chapter 245

Chapter 245
Augustin's POV

I ended the call with Jonathan, my mind already racing ahead. "Update me as soon as you have more information," I ordered, my voice tight with tension.

"Yes, Your Majesty. I'll report back immediately."

The silver prison cell cast harsh shadows across Charles Richards' face as I pocketed my phone. Despite being our prisoner, wearing silver restraints that weakened his wolf, the man looked unnervingly confident. The smirk playing at the corners of his mouth made Fenris growl with irritation inside my head.

He's too calm for a man facing execution, Fenris warned.

I turned my attention back to the conversation that Jonathan's call had interrupted. Matthew stood rigid beside me, his expression barely contained his fury.

"You were explaining about your daughter," I prompted Charles, keeping my voice steady despite the rising anger in my chest.

Charles leaned back against the wall, the silver chains at his wrists clinking softly. "Ah yes, my ambitious little girl. Isabelle reported to the you about her progress with Matthew, but it wasn't what you think."

"What was it then?" Matthew demanded, his hands clenching into fists.

"She wasn't just following my orders," Charles explained with unsettling pride. "She was using the mate bond for her own purposes, and for their cause."

"Their cause?" I repeated, catching the subtle shift in wording.

Charles nodded. "She was afraid he'd reject her, but that boy came up with the idea of using the mate bond to serve himself and their agenda."

Matthew stepped forward, barely containing himself. "What boy? What are you talking about?"

"Her boyfriend, of course," Charles replied casually. "The one she really loves. The one who's not you, Matthew."

I watched Matthew's face pale, his jaw tightening until I thought his teeth might crack.

"She didn't manage to win your heart completely," Charles continued, speaking directly to Matthew now. "But she helped her boyfriend cause plenty of damage anyway, didn't she?"

"You're lying," Matthew growled.

"Am I?" Charles challenged. "Think about it. How did she always know what you were planning? How did information about Forestvale's defenses find its way to enemies?"

I stepped between them before Matthew could lunge at the prisoner. "Why she frame you?" I demanded. "And why doesn't Nia know the truth? She seems genuinely devoted to Isabelle."

Charles' expression darkened. "Isabelle hates me."

"Why?" I confused.

Charles said. "I killed her mother because she caused me trouble with Nathanael Levenston. Isabelle know that part."

"And Nia?" Matthew asked, his voice hollow.

"Nia worships Isabelle," Charles said dismissively. "She'd do anything for her, believe anything she says."

Matthew paced the small space in front of the cell. "The threats against the Alphas, the assassination attempts, was that all you?"

Charles shook his head, chuckling softly. "Information control is a powerful thing. Once you hear the same story from two or three different people, you start to believe it's true. Isabelle made sure the right stories reached the right ears."

"Would you have killed your own daughter?" I asked bluntly.

His eyes narrowed. "Of course not. What kind of monster do you think I am?"

"The kind who'd start a war that could kill thousands," Matthew shot back.

Charles turned to him with a condescending smile. "I sat with you at the competition, didn't I? Right beside you. If I wanted you dead, don't you think I'd have made my move then?"

Matthew hesitated. "When Isabelle visited your house..." he began.

"She wasn't coming to see me," Charles interrupted. "She was meeting him."

"Him who?" Matthew demanded.

"Her boyfriend. The father of her child." Charles let the words hang in the air, watching Matthew's reaction with cruel satisfaction.

"That's impossible," Matthew whispered, though doubt had already crept into his voice.

"That pregnancy isn't yours, Matthew," Charles said flatly. "They marked each other, so you couldn't sense it."

The revelation struck Matthew like a physical blow. He staggered back a step, his face ashen. I placed a steadying hand on his shoulder, feeling the tremors running through his body.

"Think about it," Charles continued. "If you and Juno had died during the attack on Clifflands, who would control Forestvale? Isabelle would, as your Luna. And through her..."

"Her boyfriend would," I finished, the pieces falling into place.

A wave of self-recrimination washed over me. We had let Isabelle leave, bound by Elder Council law that prohibited holding a pregnant Luna without direct evidence of treason. Now I realized the magnitude of our mistake.

We should have kept her here, Fenris snarled.

At least Berry had the foresight to have her followed, I thought back.

"Thank the Moon Goddess your mate sent people to watch her," Charles remarked, noticing my expression.

"What do you mean?" I asked sharply.

He shrugged. "Isabelle didn't anticipate that Juno would surrender rather than fight. She expected Matthew to die in the battle."

I studied Charles carefully. Despite his apparent cooperation, something felt off. "You're just a pawn in this game, aren't you, Charles?"

A flicker of genuine emotion crossed his face. "We all are, Alpha King. Even you."

"Who is her boyfriend?" I demanded. "Give me a name."

"A Levenston," he answered simply. "One of your family members."

The revelation sent ice through my veins.

"Some of your Elder Council members are aligned with him," Charles continued. "He promised to make them Lords when he takes power."

My phone rang again, Jonathan's name flashing on the screen. I answered immediately.

"Your Majesty," Jonathan's voice was urgent. "I've reached Nia's cell. She's unconscious, swallowed something. We found a small capsule in her hand, contained silver powder."

The pieces clicked together in my mind. I recalled what Berry had mentioned about overhearing a strange conversation between Nia and Isabelle before she left.

"Get a healer to her immediately," I ordered. "Keep her alive at all costs."

I ended the call and slammed my fist against the metal table with such force that it dented under the impact. "Issue an arrest warrant for Isabelle Richards," I commanded, my voice echoing off the prison walls. "Maximum priority."

Matthew stood motionless, still processing everything he'd heard. "How could I not sense it?" he finally asked, his voice barely audible. "How could I not know she was with someone else?"

Charles looked at him with something almost like pity. "She's an Alpha's daughter. She didn't reject you, Matthew. She did to you exactly what you did to your wife."

Matthew's head snapped up. "What?"

"She marked another man while connected to you," Charles explained. "She has two marks on her neck, almost in the same spot. One is yours. The other belongs to her true mate."

"That's not possible," Matthew whispered.

"It is if you know how to manipulate the mate bond," Charles replied. "The secondary mark creates a diversion. The connection between you remains, but it's weakened, redirected. She could feel your emotions, but you couldn't fully sense hers."

I placed a hand on his shoulder, steadying him. "Berry will be devastated," I murmured, thinking of how my mate had shown compassion to Isabelle, believing her to be another victim.

"Isabelle deliberately destroyed Juno's family," Charles confirmed with a slight nod. "It was part of their plan to weaken Forestvale's leadership."

"Where would she go?" I asked Charles directly.

He shrugged. "You won't find her. She's too valuable to them."

The door opened, and Kieran entered, his expression grim. I quickly explained what we'd learned.

"So the USB drive was planted," Kieran mused, eyes narrowing. "I thought it was suspicious that Isabelle happened to have it. Why would Charles keep something so incriminating where she could find it? She played the victim, used Charles's history to gain the sympathy she needed."