Laws
“Have a seat, Father. We don't have all day.” Trent said. There was smugness in his voice. Mockery. He was gloating over the fact that I ran down here like he predicted.
I looked at Elena again and realized she was wearing a turtle-neck outfit. Concealing the bite. If Trent sees it, she's as good as gone. With the elders here and the bite being sheer proof of her infidelity, he'd officially ruin her.
Without any real proof, he has nothing on her.
She needs to get the hell out of here.
“Yes, Alpha Vince. Please have a seat.” Elder Harry seconded him. “Good to see you though. Been a while.”
“If you wanted to see me so badly, then you should have invited me personally. Why the hell did you have to play such a dirty trick?” I gritted out.
“Because you wouldn't come if we sent you an interrogation letter. Someone as mighty as you are would feel insulted by a letter. And we're not strong enough to go tie you up and drag you down here. Your son predicted you'd come if we invited Luna Elena and it turns out he was right. Now tell us, Alpha Vince, why is that? Why would you come rushing down here for her?”
With a royal interrogation letter in front of me, admitting that I have something with Elena would be me, putting cuffs on my hands.
It would mean I have just admitted my crimes, which would officially give them the right to lock me up or do whatever shit Trent had in his swampy head. I knew these laws well enough; I wrote most of them. I implemented them. I'd be stupid to tie myself down with them.
“I’m the one you wanna interrogate, right? So that means Elena has no reason to be here.”
“Elena is staying,” Trent said cockily.
“The hell she is.” I went to Elena and grabbed her hand, pulling her out of her seat. She gasped at the force but didn't protest.
“Father!” Trent barked.
“If you wanted to interrogate her so badly, then you should have sent her a valid letter.” I backfired. “As long as her letter isn't real, she has no official reason to be here.”
“What about personal reasons?!”
“Those are settled in the bedroom. Not in an interrogation room. And I refuse to be interrogated in her presence.”
He was silent but furious. I headed for the door, pulling Elena along. We left the hall and I let go of her hand.
“Leave.” I turned to head back inside but she held my shirt softly.
“I'm sorry…” her voice broke. “I'm sorry…I didn't know…”
My teeth clenched at the angst I was feeling. Her apology was making me feel worse.
“I'm really sorry…”
“Leave,” I repeated firmly, stepping back into the room, and shutting the door.
Trent was seated now, glaring at me. I took my seat, feeling an insane emotional baggage dropping on me. Who'd ever thought I'd be summoned to a four-man interrogation?
“You don't wanna go through your letter and see what you're being interrogated for?” Elder Harry began.
I eyed the letter. “I’ll pass.”
“Alpha Vince…” The unfamiliar elder amongst the four hissed. He had to be one of the youngsters Trent appointed. “Don’t you think you're being a little too nonchalant right now? You're being officially interrogated and the Alpha is here with us. As a former Alpha, shouldn't you show a bit of grace and respect? Instead of being impudent?!”
My jaw knotted.”You’re a new elder and I'm the former Alpha. Ain't you being a little too audacious right now? According to the laws, I could still punish you for your impudence.”
He adjusted nervously in his seat. “I'm not being impudent. I'm only suggesting that you show a bit more respect to the current Alpha. You can start by reading the letter…”
“Read it for me. Out loud.” I retorted coldly. The venom in my voice and gaze was glaring.
He glanced at the other elders and when none of them said a word in his defense, he grudgingly picked up the letter.
“You're being interrogated for instructing your men to manhandle Alpha Trent, keeping him hostage in his house, and also…your infidelity to the Alpha's mother, Grand Luna Vanessa.”
Typical of Trent to try to get revenge for his mother. Very typical. Also smart that he's using that route to get me to admit my involvement with Elena.
Is he trying to punish just me or both of us?
“Are these allegations true?” Elder Yurin asked, fixing me an assessing gaze.
I bet Trent was waiting to hear a bold ‘yes’ from me. That way, he gets to easily put a damn rope around my neck. Everyone in the room already knew about my affair with Elena. They knew…half the Pack was already gossiping about it.
The gossip had spread like a whirlwind all through the three Packs. Even though no one has boldly said a word to me about it, and neither have they said anything to Elena, I know they know. They're just waiting to hear from me.
They'll wilt from waiting because I'm never gonna say a word about it. Not because I don't wanna make what Elena and I have public. But because she doesn't want to. It'd put her in a hard spot. It'd make her an easier prey for Trent.
So I'm keeping my silence, to protect her.
“Which of them do you badly wanna know if it's true?” I asked with a snort.
They all exchanged glances and Elder Harry spoke up. “Did you cheat on Grand Luna Vanessa?”
“Yes.” They were taken aback by my blunt reply. Wasn't that what they wanted to hear?
“With who?” The young elder asked. He seemed rather too desperate to crucify me. Just like Trent.
“There's been countless girls. At bars. At nightclubs. When I left the Pack for two years. I can't give you a fucking list.”
The conflicted look on their faces was a chef’s kiss. As for Trent, he looked like he was gonna explode very soon.
“Alpha Vince…” Elder Yurin began.
“Why is it even a problem about the girls I slept with? I'm an Alpha. I'm entitled to having as many female companions as I wish. That's not against the law.”
“Then permit me to ask this.” The young elder chipped in. “What's your relationship like with Luna Elena? Why did Alpha Trent predict that you'd come here to rescue her and why did you do just that?”
“It's not rocket science that I would come here to defend her. She's my best friend's daughter. We're practically family.”
They all hummed and exchanged looks. Not the answer they were expecting.
I could feel Trent's anger from where I was sitting.
“Is that all?” Elder Harry pushed.
“Is there supposed to be something else?” I retorted.
I could hear Trent's gritting his teeth. Then he leaned closer. “What about the fact that you kept me hostage in my own home? Me and my mother. What about the fact that you asked your men to manhandle us? How are you gonna justify that?”
“I can't,” I said, looking him dead in the eye. “Go ahead and crucify me for it.”
“Why did you do it?” Elder Harry asked.
I leaned back on the seat, exhausted. They're never gonna stop with these twisted questions until I say something that'll give them the confirmation that Elena is involved in this.
“I fought with my son. It got intense. I got my men involved. The reason behind our fight is personal…”
“Is it?” Trent was scowling at me.
“It should be.” I seethed. Or do I tell them that he hit his Luna, which goes against the law? Because I might be crazy, but I don't hit women. And I wrote a law that severely punishes motherfuckers who do that. Trent is number one on that list.
Or do I tell them that he got Tracy pregnant? That's gonna change the pace of this meeting completely. Because he might be entitled to having more than one woman, but when that woman is Luna's sister, then it becomes a different and more complicated story.
He can't be that reckless in this fight. One wrong move and he goes down with us. He should know better.
I could easily choose to drag us all to hell. Except, I don't want Elena going down with us. If there's a way I could keep her away from this mess, I would.
I'm more than willing to hit rock bottom with Trent as long as Elena stays safe.
Trent backed off with a muffled grunt. Just as I thought. He's trying not to be reckless. This also means he can't boldly pin me down, and neither can he pin Elena down either. This meeting just became a huge flop.
“What are those personal reasons?” The youngster elder asked.
“Seriously?” I chuckled humorlessly.
“What do you wanna hear, elders? What is it that y'all so badly wanna hear? I'll say it and get this shitty meeting over and done with.”
Again, they fell silent and exchanged glances.
“The truth,” Elder Yurin finally replied. “You've done unforgivable things to your son lately and we wanna know why. Or we'll be forced to pass our verdict on you according to the law.”
“Then go ahead. Crucify me already. But spare me the questions, for fuck's sake.”
I'd rather be six feet down than give them something they could use against Elena.
Trent's jaw tightened. “Sure. From here on, Father, you're not allowed into this pack house anymore. And you're not allowed to set foot into this Pack anymore, except I permit it. You're not allowed to speak to me or my Luna. If you violate any of these, there will be consequences. This is a royal decree.”
A hard lump grew in my throat instantly. He's trying to keep me away from Elena.
He's putting a wedge between us. And I can't do anything about it right now because I don't have the official power.
So I nodded, accepting my temporary defeat. “Alright.”
His face relaxed a bit but the dissatisfaction was there. He wanted to do more damage to me. Probably have me locked up. Or dead. Letting me off with just a few restrictions wasn't what he bargained and he was reeling in anger.
I stood and left the room, not sparing them a glance.
Reaching the door, I heard his voice behind me. “If you ever get closer to Elena again, it won't end with just these restrictions.”
I stopped but I didn't turn around. “If you ever hurt her again, I'll have your head. I don't care what
He didn't answer that and I didn't stick around for an answer. I left.