CHAPTER 290
CHAPTER 290
I hadn't expected them to do that. I came here to be judged, I had nothing in defense of our actions and I feared digging a deeper pit for us. Although I was in a state of mind where I didn't care what happened, Nic was the opposite.
His relationship with the darkness was… different. I couldn't accept us being locked up.
I cleared my throat and sat up, and then took in the entire room.
The humans looked at me with fear in their eyes, the supernaturals had a sense of respect that only came from being largely animalistic and my mate looked at me with… pity.
He probably believes he ruined my life, as if we had any actual chance at a normal life.
The Fates already decided we were to be their entertainment for the time being, thus it didn't matter what anyone else did. Just like the historic Black Death, we were doomed to drag people to the great beyond.
But I had to say something and I was quite good at impromptu speeches anyway.
“Hello everyone,” I began, “I know you all must hate having to look at us; the faces that marked the end of your loved ones. We have experienced loss in different ways but nothing will ever amount to the pain we caused you all and for that, we're sorry. But I have to counter what,” I pointed to him and looked closer to read his name tag, “Ambassador Cyrus accused us of. Is it our faces that are in those videos? Absolutely. Is it our powers that were used to subdue military efforts to keep us in check? In.. a way?”
“How can you try to lie in our faces like that?!” The man snapped, “That's you! You probably wore contact lenses and shifted your… body like that so you can defend your actions!”
I sighed, but continued. “If I let the darkness out, you'll be its first victim,” I looked into his eyes as I spoke, the fear shutting him up, “but I won't do that just because I want to prove you wrong. You already know you are. I've been alive for the past forty-five years and I've never been that girl in that video. And I'm not just talking about the skimpy wears and the coloured hair, I would have gone for green,” a few chuckles rang out, making me bolder, “but the power she displays is something I would have appreciated for the decades I tried running away from the castle walls I was confined in because my parents were trying to prevent this. They'd seen the vision and tried to prevent it, even making sure I never met my mate. Until human hunters kidnapped me, forced my mate and me to meet and… things basically got out of control. I'm just saying the power displayed there is not of this world. No one can fight an army of vampires singlehandedly like we did before defeating Vlad. No one can kill Vlad in five minutes or less. No one can do that except me, Nic here, the queen, and the now late Vladimir. But the difference between the three of us and that bastard is that he reveled in it, enjoyed it. For me, I didn't know anything about what I was doing until I woke up in that facility. Nic’s memory was wiped completely, I had to help him push it so far out so his memories could return.” I took a deep breath as the entire room quietly listened to me. “Although we can definitely promise that this will never happen again, not just because this wasn't simply as a result of the loss but a mountain of unresolved issues and not being aware of what was driving our actions, we're also committed to staying away from the public space. The wolves already have a Queen, they don't need me. The vampires have a heir as well, they don't me either. But please, it's better you kill us than locking us up. I don't want to sound scary but if this evil wins again, it'll do everything to ensure it never goes back inside. Punish us in any other way but isolation. Thank you for your consideration.”
The entire room took in an audible breath.
“We'll converge,” Dahlia announced, “the Jury will do the same and we'll come back with an answer in fifteen minutes.”
It was the longest fifteen minutes ever, and I must have chewed my fingers down to their last spot if it didn't keep regrowing.
In moments like this, I wanted my wolf and witch with me but they keep locking them away as though they're the problems.
After the fifteen minutes which stretched to twenty because the jury wasn't back for another five minutes, everyone finally settled in, ready to hear the judgment.
“Are you scared?” Nic asked me, his hands clutching the table he was behind with intensity.
“Naa,” I told him, “I've made peace with whatever the outcome is. Except for the whole locking us up thing. I'll show them the darkness so they can know exactly what we're up against.”
“Baby…”
“It's either they see it now, or they wait till we lose the battle with it and it's unleashed on their world. It can be ten years from now or another century. But one thing is sure, this joy in my voice and this positive attitude I'm forcing myself to keep in the face of this madness won't last longer than a week in prison. Do we deserve it? Hell yes but it's the only other option besides killing us and it's not gonna benefit anyone.”
He sighed, and I watched as he dragged himself back and forth into the self-loathing I'd been begging him to avoid getting overwhelmed by.
I kept a good eye on him though, if he ever slipped, I'll be right there to pull him back to the surface.
“It's time for the jury to give their judgment,” Mr. Cyrus announced, getting our attention.
I watched as a Faerie slid out of the box for the jury and walked till he was before us.
The result of their deliberation is in hand.