Chapter 17

Chapter 17
The Trial of the Luna

Blake's POV

The Council Circle had never felt this quiet—this loud. Not with how every whisper sliced through me like a blade.

Wolves from every corner of Mirage-Ember had gathered, their faces a twisted mix of suspicion and silent thrill. They smelled blood, and they wanted it served hot.

I wish there was something I could do to abate this situation but clearly the situation was of my hand.

Claire stood in the center of it all, her arms folded tight against her chest like she could keep herself from falling apart. Her chin was lifted, barely, but I saw the tremble in her lip. The one she tried so hard to hide.

I sat at the head of the circle, on the Alpha’s throne, but I’d never felt more powerless in my life.

“She must answer for the fire,” Mirabel’s voice rang out, loud and clear. Her perfect golden braid shimmered in the sunlight like a crown, a lie dressed in beauty. “The storeroom is gone. The herbs reduced to ash. And we found this—” She raised the scorched pouch with gloved fingers, her nose wrinkling as if it reeked.

Every eye turned to the object. Even mine.

Claire’s satchel. Or what was left of it.

Gasps scattered like dry leaves. My beta leaned close. “That’s one of her pouches, Alpha. I checked. Her initials are still visible, burnt into the corner.”

“I see it,” I muttered.

My fingers twitched under the table. I shoved them into fists.

“I didn’t do it,” Claire said, voice steady despite everything. “That pouch was stolen from my room two days ago.”

Mirabel tilted her head, faux concern blooming on her face. “Why didn’t you report it?”

“I did. To Marlo,” Claire snapped. “Ask him.”

All heads turned. Marlo, the pack enforcer, stood awkwardly near the outer edge. He cleared his throat. “She did mention it. But I… I didn’t think it was urgent.”

My jaw clenched. Damn it, Marlo.

How could he have thought that? She is the Luna.

Mirabel smiled. A viper’s smile. “Convenient, isn't it?”

Claire’s eyes flared. “You think I poisoned your herbs and burned down the storage room—for what? To destroy the one thing that makes me useful?”

“Maybe you were hiding a mistake. Maybe your cures are the poison,” someone muttered from the back. I recognized the voice. Mara. Another healer. Always quiet—until now.

Claire flinched and I felt anger bloom in my chest. Yes I wanted to stay away from her as best as possible, but I can't watch them bash her.

Enough is enough.

I stood, the wooden chair groaning beneath me as I rose. Silence fell.

“The council is here to listen, not judge,” I said, though the words felt like sand in my mouth. “We don’t leap to conclusions without trial. That is not the way of Mirage-Ember.”

I didn’t look at Claire.

Couldn’t.

Not yet.

Mirabel bowed her head slightly. “Of course, Alpha. But we must consider what this means. Our pack members are dying. We’ve had four deaths. Two in comas. And now this.”

Claire took a step forward, eyes locked on mine.

“Do you believe them?”

I froze.

Time crawled.

Her voice was so damn soft. Not begging. Not angry. Just… tired.

My throat burned. I wanted to say no. I wanted to say I trust you. But the words caught like barbed wire.

I was still the alpha of my pack. And I had to protect their interests and welfare. I wasn't sure what me siding with her could cause.

Didn't want to risk it either.

“I believe… we’re all under attack,” I said finally. “We need facts, not feelings.”

Claire blinked. Her expression twisted, subtle but sharp. “That’s not what I asked.”

“I’m not here to answer that,” I replied, quieter. “I’m here to lead.”

She laughed. Once. Bitter. “Of course you are.”

I saw her now—really saw her. Her clothes still smelled of smoke. Her eyes rimmed red, not from guilt but from every time someone turned their back on her.

And yet she stood there, spine like steel.

“Enough posturing,” Mirabel said sweetly. “If Claire is innocent, she’ll survive the Trial.”

My stomach dropped.

No.

She couldn't mean—

“Let the Council vote,” Mirabel continued. “We invoke Wolf’s Mercy.”

Gasps exploded across the Circle. I stepped forward. “That trial is meant for traitors, not suspicion.”

“She is suspected of murder by poison,” Mirabel snapped. “And now arson. Alpha, with respect, if you shield her, it will look like favoritism.”

I glared at her. “You forget yourself.”

But the seed was planted. The crowd was murmuring again. This time, louder.

A hand lifted. Then another.

And another.

One by one, the Council members stood, casting their votes like stones thrown from rooftops.

I counted them in my head.

Eight in favor. Two against.

The ninth raised his hand reluctantly. “Let her prove her innocence before the Moon.”

Claire didn’t flinch. But I saw the way her fingers clutched her skirt like it was the only thing tethering her to this earth.

“The vote is cast,” Elder Mora announced. “In two days’ time, Claire of Crystal Falls will face the Wolf’s Mercy.”

A hush fell.

No one moved.

No one breathed.

Claire’s eyes met mine. This time, she didn’t speak.

But I did.

I stepped off the dais. Slowly. Deliberately. The air thickened with every step I took until I was standing directly in front of her.

I looked down at her—and I couldn’t help myself.

I reached for her hand.

She yanked it back before I could touch her.

Good. She should hate me.

Because I hated myself more.

“You’ll need a second for the trial,” I murmured.

She smirked, though her eyes were wet. “Don’t worry. I’ll find someone who still believes in me.”

She turned her back before I could answer.

And walked away from me again.

But not before dropping something into my hand when she brushed past.

A charred petal. From an herb I hadn’t smelled in over ten years.

The same herb that nearly killed me once.

No one else could’ve known that.

Except my uncle.

And Mirabel.