Chapter 96 Truth Dragged Into The Light.
Chapter 96
Lyra's POV
"I promise to confess everything!"
The words shot down the hallway like a rifle.
I froze a little, my fingers gripped on the mop.
It was a she-wolf's voice. It sounded like she was drowning. Like a wolf had held a knife to her throat. As if revealing every secret in her heart was the only way she could survive.
"Please, it wasn't me ooo!"
The wail echoed from the walls of the palace. The air itself trembled around me. The force of it made my chest tremble.
I straightened my back. My eyes darted left, then right. Was I the only one hearing this? Were my ears playing tricks on me?
"I didn't want to be part of this!" she screamed.
This time, her voice came louder. Clearer. More desperate than before.
"It was my bonded mate that forced me to do it!"
Footsteps erupted in the hallway.
Shoes hit the floor with high intensity. A few maids hurried past me. Curiosity hung on their faces.
I observed how some of them gripped mop and passed me. Not because the roaster had posted them to work in the palace hall, they just wanted to go there to have solid information.
I held myself back. My feet wanted to run forward, but I planted them firmly on the ground. I didn't want to seem too eager. Too nosy.
More footsteps approached.
Like that was not enough, then another group zoomed past me, some more less like tiptoeing, others carried their shoes with care, so as not to scrape the floor to turn attention to them.
I watched their backs as they walked along the hallway and bent round the corner.
"No..." the voice wailed from inside the palace hall. "I didn't want to be part of this! It was my bonded mate that forced me to do it!"
Something about that voice tickled my memory. It felt familiar. Like a face I'd seen before but couldn't quite place.
I stopped scrubbing the floor.
My hands loosened on the mop. I needed to see. I needed to know.
I picked up my bucket of soapy water. The liquid sloshed gently inside. I held my mop in my other hand.
At least I could pretend I had work to do near the palace hall.
"My bonded mate said we needed the money to pay off our debt!"
My feet started moving before my mind could stop them.
I couldn't resist anymore. The revelation pulled me like a rope tied around my waist.
I drifted closer to the palace hall entrance.
Then I saw her.
My heart squeezed tight.
The image hit me like a fist to the stomach.
I paused for a moment. To recall where we have met before.
Yes!
That was the wolf who destroyed me. That was the wolf who destroyed Mila.
That was the wolf who stood at the palace grounds on the day of Jax's coronation. The wolf who pointed her finger at Mila with hatred burning in her eyes. The wolf who raised accusations like throwing stones at a helpless person.
Her utterance, ‘death to Mila!’ It was like an ache in my heart.
My heart stopped beating for one long moment.
I stared at her face. I remembered that day so clearly. Her expression had been carved from pure wickedness. No mercy. No empathy. No kindness. She had been determined to crush Mila completely.
And she did it without any remorse.
Now she sat on the cold palace floor.
She crawled like a pup playing in the sand. But this wasn't play. This was a pain. This was agony wrapping around her like chains.
Her hair hung wild and messy. Wet strands stuck to her cheeks and forehead. Sweat dripped down her face. Marks covered her body, red welts, purple bruises, scratches that looked like someone had caught her stealing from a market stall.
Her clothes hung in tatters. No shoes covered her feet. Her gown had slipped off one shoulder, exposing skin marked with more bruises. I knew she had been thoroughly afflicted by the gods. But, I am less concerned.
My jaw clenched tight.
Anger bubbled up inside my chest like boiling water. It heated my blood. It made my fingers squeeze the mop handle until my knuckles turned white.
Around me, pack members whispered. Their voices overlapped, creating a low buzz that filled the hall like angry bees.
"Speak!"
Alpha Jax's voice cut through the noise like a blade through cloth.
His arm extended forward. His royal scepter pointed at the she-wolf like a sword ready to strike.
The room fell silent.
Every mouth closed. Every whisper died. Even the sound of breathing seemed to disappear.
I could see Alpha Jax from where I stood. His face looked carved from stone. Hard. Unyielding. His eyes blazed with authority.
"I swear to the Moon Goddess..."
The she-wolf's voice shook. It trembled like a leaf in a storm. Like water rippling when rocks fall into it.
"I didn't want to be part of this. It was my husband who told me that we had to take the money to clear our debt."
Her words tumbled out fast, tripping over each other.
Tears streamed down her face, mixing with the sweat.
"I really don't want to be part of this! He said he had collected the money, and those he collected the money from warned him not to return it. They said he should go and carry out the job, or else he and everyone in his household would be killed."
She sobbed. Her shoulders shook. Her whole body trembled like she might fall apart.
The hall erupted again.
Voices rose. Pack members leaned toward each other, mouths moving rapidly.
"Quiet!"
One of the king's guards stepped forward. His voice boomed across the hall. His hand chopped through the air in a commanding gesture.
Silence returned, but it felt thinner this time. More fragile.
Alpha Jax cleared his throat.
The sound echoed in the quiet space.
"Who are the pack members that approached you?"
His voice stayed level, but I could hear the edge underneath. They barely controlled anger.
"And where is your fated mate? Because he should be the one bearing the punishment from the gods. Just the way everyone is suffering in Stormfang Pack for what we didn't even know about."
Several heads nodded in agreement.
Others crossed their arms over their chests, faces grim.
Some pack members leaned forward, eyes wide with interest. Whispers started up again, softer this time.
The she-wolf's crying grew louder. She rocked back and forth on the floor.
"My fated mate didn't tell me anything about them."
Her voice climbed higher, more desperate.
"He told me that they warned him not to disclose their identity, else there would be terrible repercussions."
She buried her face in her hands. Her whole body shook with sobs that sounded like they were from somewhere deep inside her bones.
"But I knew they were high-profile pack members!"
Shock painted on the face of everyone.
You could hear a pin drop. Everyone leaned forward slightly, as if pulled by invisible strings.
"Like which of the high profile?"
Alpha Jax cut in fast. Sharp. His patience was wearing thin like cloth rubbed too many times.
His face showed anger now, clear and undisguised. His jaw muscles twitched. His knuckles turned white where he gripped his scepter. The royal staff trembled slightly in his hand.
It was obvious he wasn't satisfied with her vague answers. He wanted names. Real names. Real identities.
The she-wolf lifted her head slowly.
Her eyes were red and swollen. Tears continued to pour down her cheeks in rivers. Her lips quivered. Her mouth opened and closed twice before the sound came out.
"Like... Alpha Thomas..."
The name dropped into the room like a boulder falling into still water.
Ripples of shock spread through the crowd.
Gasps erupted from different corners. Hands flew to mouths. Eyes widened to impossible sizes.
"Alpha Thomas of the elders' forum?"
Jax's voice came out louder now. Sharper. He stepped forward, his body rigid with tension.
His scepter pointed directly at the she-wolf like an accusing finger.
The she-wolf's head bobbed up and down rapidly. Yes. Yes. Yes.
Fresh tears spilled from her eyes. She wrapped her arms around herself, hugging her own body as if trying to hold herself together.
The pack members exploded into chaos.
Voices rose in waves. Some shouted. Some whispered urgently to neighbors. Others simply stood with mouths hanging open, too shocked to make any sound at all.
"Alpha Thomas?"
"No, it can't be!"
"I always knew something was wrong with him!"
She is lying! I can't believe it!”
"This is impossible!"
"Order! ORDER!"
The king's guard bellowed.
Alpha Thomas?” I muttered. The one that was questioning me with the rest of the elders.
How many secrets are still yet to be revealed?