Chapter 25 025

Chapter 25 025
The building was massive—far bigger than I had imagined. Chilly gray stone all around, reverberating ceilings, a setting crafted to intimidate you before you even sit. We showed up immediately after nine: me, Darius, Rhen, plus two men from the territory. I was dressed in black pants and a basic shirt, wearing my hair down, and earlier that day I had looked at myself in the mirror pondering, “You seem like someone who has nothing to conceal.” That was exactly what I was looking for.

In the interior, the compartment was completely full. A dozen council members were arranged behind a long, raised table toward the front, witnesses seated tightly in rows on either side, and, all the way at the far end, my father.

He noticed me the moment I entered.

I looked at his entire faceface shift. He was deep in thought—figuring things out, reviewing, whatever one does when the foundation unexpectedly moves beneath him. He had submitted that complaint looking for a formal response, legal counsel, many months of contention—possibly he wanted to gain time, develop his argument piece by piece.

He never imagined I would walk through that doorway on my own.

Fine.

I took a seat next to Darius, focused my eyes directly in front.

The lead council member, Sera—a woman with a sharp face and sharp eyes—restored order among us. She wore the sort of expression that pierces straight through you, as though she’s aware of every plan, every angle, while she waits to observe which story she’ll be told next.

The woman went through the complaint. Every one of the twelve pages. Each line holding Darius responsible of forcibly taking me, keeping me captive, taking advantage of me. I paid attention to my dad’s allegations escape into the open. I maintained a calm expression, hands at ease laid across my lap.

Once she was done, she glanced at Darius. “Vael—. Your own reply.”

Darius rose, calm and unshakable. In some way, the more intense the storm, the more silent he became. The sound of his voice at no time shook. He explained everything clearly—the ceremony itself, the way I departed independently, the fact that I entered his domain voluntarily, there was no secrecy or haste. Straightforward facts, no issues for the council to analyze.

After that he put down the pile of papers belonging to Croft on top of the table.

I observed the committee members while they reviewed them. Caught sight of the looks on their faces when they began to thoroughly read. the full look on Sera’s face shifted. She turned unexpectedly keen as a razor.

My dad rose to his feet. “The documents in question are forged—”

“Take a seat, Nicholas, please,” Sera interrupted him, in a blunt tone.

He took a seat.

After that Sera turned toward me.

“Meira,” she uttered. “You're at this place by yourself?”

I got up. The chamber became very silent. Countenances were directed at me—with my father’s as well. I stared directly at Sera.

“I departed from Silver Fang simply because I wanted to,” I stated. “I moved away from an event where my father attempted to hand me overtried to offer me to anyoneto whoever might take me. I entered Darius’s car because I chose to—no one pressured me, no one scared me, nobody took advantage of me.” I came to a halt. “I would like to be in the Vael region. The children I have are going to be born there itself—due to the fact that I am deciding on that. Not a single aspect of my father’s complaint is accurate, plus he is aware of it.”

I took a seat.

The whole situation became uncomfortably quiet.

Sera faced my father. “Nicholas. The papers Vael submitted outline a sequence of actions dating back fifteen years. Counting the baseless claims directed at the Ironwood Pack.” She raised a sheet from Croft’s stack. “Presented here is official declaration by your personal advisor, explaining his role in his capacity as your informant within Ironwood. Are you contesting the claim?”

My dad’s expression had turned ashen—the gaze of a man seeing something fall apart he assumed was unbreakable.

“I challenge the framing—” he began.

“Are you going to challenge the evidence?” Sera interrupted sharply, piercing like a blade.

Stillness.

He decided on his statements. “The facts as presented demand context—”

“We will determine the context,” Sera stated. She placed the paper on the table then conversed in hushed tones together with the others.

After that she looked back in the direction of the room.

“This meeting is concluded,” she stated, “while looking into the proceedings in the present documents. The allegation involving Darius Vael has been dismissed. Meira has been verified as someone residing voluntarily within the Vael region.” She glanced at my father. “Nicholas, you will receive official notification in the next two days. You should get an attorney.”

My dad rose to his feet. Gazed directly at me from across the room.

I looked intently in return.

He possessed that expression I recognized from when I was a child—the face that showed I was someone difficult to control. However, on this occasion, there happened to be a different presence lying beneath. A thing I had never noticed in his character until now.

He was frightened.

He went away without saying anything.

The room rapidly emptied—Darius got up, I stood up, Rhen gathered the documents, the council exited individually. All of a sudden it became merely another cold and deserted chamber packed with seats.

I stopped briefly for a moment, soaking it all up.

It has been completed. Not everything—the investigation by Ironwood would require time, and my father’s actual punishment would slowly move through council channels. However the allegation was dead. He entered thinking he was going to win the fight and walked away with a landslide headed his way.

Darius stood close to me.

I glanced at him. He kept an eye on the doorway my father had used to go out.

“The name of your father is entering the record in the official record,” I whispered. “Ironwood Clan. Edmund Vael himself. That's everything is entering.”

He stared in my direction—genuinely looked.

“He’s not overlooked anymore,” I replied. “Regardless of what happens next, everyone will not forget.”

For a short time, I noticed a certain expression in the expression on Darius’s face he made no effort to conceal. Something truthful, raw, fully exposed.

He acknowledged with a nod, a single time, slowly.

We went out together into the chilly, overcast morning. The expanse over the council building seemed vast, and I was finally able to breathe. At last, it appeared that things were moving the right way.

My dad was going to need to take responsibility for all things.

I would be present at the moment it occurred.