Chapter 66 66
Denzel’s POV
“Alpha Shaw,” King Fabian began, his voice sharp with authority, “I trust you understand why we are gathered here today?”
“Yes, Your Majesty,” I replied, dipping my head. His scowl deepened.
“When I entrusted my daughter to you,” he continued coldly, “it was with the expectation that you would love her, honor her, and remain bound to her until death. Instead, you discover your fated mate, mark her, impregnate my daughter, and then apply for divorce after handing over a portion of her land to the bears. Is that correct?”
I opened my mouth to respond.
He raised a hand sharply. “It is a simple question. Yes or no.”
I shook my head slowly. “It isn’t that simple, Your Majesty. And those claims are not accurate.”
His eyes flared. “Are you calling me a liar?”
“No,” I said calmly. “I am saying the facts have been misrepresented. And I highly doubt Princess Jalisa wishes to contest this divorce.”
His fury turned toward his daughter. “Is that so?”
Jalisa nodded, tears spilling freely down her face. “I… I accept the divorce.”
She stood in a place where no choice was merciful. Her father demanded obedience and sacrifice, and she had failed spectacularly especially where I was concerned.
“If she accepts it,” Alpha Kemar interjected, “then let the divorce proceed.”
Fabian’s jaw tightened. “Very well. She is entitled to half of everything Alpha Shaw owns.”
I smiled faintly.
“With all due respect, Alpha Shaw,” Alpha Garfield said, eyeing me closely, “you should not appear so pleased. The king is correct. She is legally entitled.”
I inclined my head. “She will not take anything that belongs to me. However, she may leave with her lands.”
“What remains of them,” Fabian sneered. “Did you not settle a score using part of her territory?”
I shook my head. “You orchestrated that, Your Majesty. You had your wolves attack Alpha Keon and made it appear as though the order came from me all to provoke war between my Pack and the bears. Had I not acted with restraint, the consequences would have been catastrophic. To preserve peace, I compensated them with a portion of your late wife’s land.”
No one argued.
“But the law still dictates she leaves with half,” Alpha Garfield insisted.
I turned to Alpha Carlton Gordon. He was silent watchful. He disliked me, but he rivaled me in power. And I needed his judgment.
“I cannot comply with that,” I said evenly. “I have legitimate grounds for divorcing Princess Jalisa.”
Jalisa broke down completely.
“Please explain,” Alpha Kemar urged.
I exhaled slowly. “When my fated mate appeared, she rejected me publicly, and in Jalisa’s presence. I accepted her rejection. She believed she had arrived too late. We pursued nothing out of respect for my marriage. Still, I kept her within my Pack because the Lycans were hunting her. She is Danisha Gordon’s daughter.”
Gasps rippled through the hall.
Alpha Carlton stiffened, his eyes softening despite himself at the mention of his sister.
“The Lycans slaughtered her mother,” I continued. “She sought sanctuary. Because of my treaty with King Jamar, I granted her refuge. Jalisa demanded I send her away. I refused.”
Carlton leaned forward, listening intently.
“I continued to fulfill my duties as Jalisa’s husband,” I said quietly, “until one night, in a deserted wing of my service quarters, I overheard Princess Jalisa and my Beta Tyrell Henry together.”
The chamber erupted in shocked gasps.
“I had suspected the affair for over a year. I wanted proof and I found it. I did not confront them. I wanted her to come to me willingly, to admit her feelings. Had she done so, I would have ended the marriage discreetly and allowed them to be together.”
My voice hardened. “Instead, she chose deception.”
A heavy silence fell.
“I know the child she carries is not mine,” I added. “I took her for a scan last week. The dates do not align.”
Fabian slammed his hand down. “Lies!”
I met his glare unflinchingly. “You wanted my army, Your Majesty. That was always your goal. That is why you offered her to me. But you will not have it. Instead of plotting to seize the Lycan King’s throne a position you are unfit to hold you should focus on the Silver Forest Clan. They grow stronger by the day and endanger our outlands.”
Carlton laughed openly. Several Alphas joined him; others smiled in quiet agreement.
“I never wanted conflict,” I said. “I am releasing Jalisa so she may be with the man she loves.”
Understanding flickered across the room.
“I will decide that,” Fabian snapped.
Before he could continue, Alpha Carlton Gordon rose to his feet.
“With respect, Your Majesty, this matter no longer falls under your authority. You are personally involved and therefore compromised. The judgment falls to me.”
Fabian bristled. “Your niece is his fated your judgment is”
“Enough,” Alpha Kemar cut in sharply. “Alpha Shaw’s fated has no bearing on this case. The issue before us is Princess Jalisa’s infidelity with her husband’s Beta. Under those grounds, Alpha Gordon is fully qualified to rule.”
Silence swallowed the hall.
“Princess Jalisa,” Carlton said at last, his voice measured, “do you have anything to say in your defense or any request to make?”
She wiped her face, her voice trembling. “I have no defense. It’s true. Beta Tyrell Henry is my fated mate.”
The chamber erupted.
Even I stood frozen.
I searched her face and knew she spoke the truth.
Everything fell into place.
Tyrell’s betrayal. His desperation. His attempt to remove me. His lack of interest in anyone else. Even Rayon’s subtle remarks about Tyrell behaving like a mated wolf.
Why hadn’t anyone told me?
“Then it is decided,” Carlton said slowly, still reeling. “The divorce is granted. Any grievance may be appealed only to King Jamar. No other authority supersedes this ruling.”
Fabian’s expression as he stared at his daughter told me everything he would never accept Tyrell.
As for me, disappointment settled heavily in my chest.
Tyrell should have told me. They had known long before Jalisa and I ever wed.
I had been played.