Chapter 65 065
Chapter 65
Thalia's POV
We walked for three hours before stopping.
Derek led us to a clearing where more wolves waited. At least twenty of them. All from Varian's pack. All watching us like we were criminals being delivered to prison.
Varian stood in the center.
He looked the same as I remembered. Tall, commanding, with that cold expression that never revealed what he was actually thinking. Shelly stood beside him looking smug.
"Thalia," Varian greeted me. His voice was neutral. Not angry, not pleased. Just stating a fact. "You've caused quite a bit of trouble."
"I left your pack like you ordered. Everything after that was your choice, not mine."
"You left without proper release. You defied pack law. And then you convinced your mother to abandon her responsibilities as well."
"I didn't convince her of anything. She made her own choice."
Varian's eyes shifted to my mother. "Elena. I'm disappointed. You were a loyal pack member for thirty years. I didn't expect you to throw that away for your daughter's rebellion."
"My daughter isn't a rebel. She's a wolf who refused to apologize for something that wasn't her fault."
"She put her hands on my mate. That requires consequence."
"Your mate provoked her repeatedly. That requires acknowledgment."
Varian's jaw tightened slightly. The only sign my mother's words affected him.
"Regardless of fault, you both left my pack without permission. That cannot stand."
"We're here now," I pointed out. "You got what you wanted. We surrendered voluntarily. What happens next?"
"Next you face proper punishment for your defiance. Then you're reintegrated into the pack under strict supervision."
"What kind of punishment?"
"That depends on your attitude going forward. Cooperation will be rewarded. Further defiance will make things much harder for you."
I hated how vague he was being. Hated not knowing what I was facing.
Shelly stepped forward. "I think they should both be collared. Mark them as wolves who can't be trusted."
"Collared?" my mother repeated. "Like animals?"
"Like wolves who've proven they'll run if given the chance," Shelly corrected. "It's traditional punishment for pack members who abandon their duties."
"We didn't abandon duties. Thalia was exiled and I left voluntarily."
"The distinction doesn't matter much now, does it?" Shelly smiled. "You're both back where you belong. Under Alpha Varian's authority."
I wanted to hit her. Wanted to wipe that smug look off her face. But I stayed still and quiet because fighting now would only make things worse.
Varian held up his hand. "We'll discuss appropriate consequences when we return to pack lands. For now, you'll both be held under guard."
Two wolves stepped forward and took our arms. Not roughly, but firmly. Making it clear we weren't free to leave.
"Where are you taking us?" I asked.
"Back to the pack house. You'll be kept in the holding cells until I decide what to do with you."
The same cells where I'd been kept before my exile. I remembered them vividly. Cold stone walls. Bars that felt like they were closing in. The crushing weight of being completely powerless.
We started walking again. The wolves surrounded us on all sides. My mother stayed close to me but we couldn't talk privately.
Hours passed. We walked through the night. My feet hurt and I was exhausted but no one offered to stop.
By dawn we reached familiar territory. Varian's pack lands. The place I'd thought I'd never see again.
People came out to watch as we were led through. Some looked curious. Others looked satisfied. A few looked sympathetic but wouldn't meet my eyes.
Marcus was there. Varian's beta. The same one who'd testified at the hearing.
"Alpha," he greeted Varian. "Successful retrieval I see."
"As expected. Prepare the holding cells. Both of them."
"Both? Elena as well?"
"She left the pack voluntarily to support her daughter's defiance. She faces consequences too."
Marcus nodded and walked ahead to make arrangements.
We were led to the pack house. The building loomed larger than I remembered. More oppressive.
Down the stairs. Through the corridors. To the cells in the basement.
They separated us. Put my mother in one cell and me in another three doors down.
"Wait," I protested. "Let us stay together at least."
"No," Varian responded simply. "You'll have time to reflect on your choices separately."
The cell door closed. Locked. The sound echoed in the stone chamber.
I was alone.
I sat down on the hard bench and tried not to panic. Tried not to think about how I'd walked right back into this nightmare voluntarily.
My mother called out from her cell. "Thalia? Are you alright?"
"I'm fine. Are you?"
"As fine as I can be locked in a basement cell."
The guard told us to be quiet. We stopped talking.
Hours passed. No one came. No food, no water, nothing. Just silence and cold stone walls.
I dozed off eventually from pure exhaustion. When I woke up, I didn't know how much time had passed.
Finally, footsteps approached. Varian appeared outside my cell with Marcus.
"We've decided on your punishment," Varian announced.
"That was fast."
"The pack council convened this morning. Your case was straightforward."
"What did they decide?"
"You'll remain in the pack under probationary status for one year. During that time, you'll wear a tracking collar that prevents you from leaving pack territory. You'll be assigned to work details supervised by senior pack members. And you'll submit to regular check-ins with the pack council to assess your reintegration progress."
"And my mother?"
"Same terms. One year probation. Tracking collars. Supervised work. Her previous thirty years of service earned her slightly more lenient treatment, but she still faces consequences for her choices."
"What if we refuse?"
Varian's expression didn't change. "Refusal means permanent exile. Not the kind I gave you before where you just leave. The kind where you're marked as rogue wolves and declared enemies of the pack. Any pack member who encounters you would be authorized to use force."
"So our choices are submit to your punishment or be hunted forever."
"Yes."
I wanted to refuse. Wanted to tell him to do his worst and walk out with my head high.
But I thought about my mother. About how she'd given up everything to stand with me. About how permanent exile would mean spending the rest of our lives running.
"Fine. We accept your terms."
"Good. The collaring ceremony happens tomorrow morning. Get some rest."
He left. Marcus stayed behind.
"I'm sorry," Marcus said quietly. "For what it's worth, I argued for lighter punishment. But the council wanted to make an example."
"An example of what? That wolves who stand up for themselves get crushed?"
"An example that pack law matters. That you can't just walk away when things get difficult."
"I didn't walk away. Varian exiled me."
"The exile was rescinded when you refused proper release procedures. Legally, you've been considered absent without leave this whole time."
"That's convenient revisionist history."
Marcus shrugged. "Convenient or not, it's the official position. You're lucky Varian didn't push for harsher punishment."
"This is harsh enough."
After Marcus left, I sat in the cell trying to process everything. One year of probation. Tracking collars. Supervised work. Constant monitoring.
A year of my life spent proving I'd learned my lesson. Proving I could be a good obedient pack member who didn't cause trouble.
The cell door felt like it was closing in. The walls pressing closer. The air getting thinner.
I'd traded Haven's uncertain freedom for Varian's certain control.
And I had a year to figure out if I could survive it without losing myself completely.
My mother called out again. "Thalia? Did you hear what he said?"
"I heard."
"We'll get through this. One year. We can do one year."
"Can we? Because I'm not sure I can spend a year wearing a collar and being treated like a criminal."
"You don't have a choice now. Neither of us do."
She was right. We'd made our choice when we walked into that clearing. Everything after that was just consequence.
I lay down on the hard bench and stared at the ceiling.
One year.
Three hundred sixty-five days of being watched and controlled and judged.
And after that? Who knew if Varian would actually let us go or if he'd find some reason to extend our punishment indefinitely.
But I had to believe we'd survive this somehow. Had to believe that one year of submission was better than a lifetime of being hunted.
Even if right now, locked in this cell, it didn't feel better at all.