Chapter 89 Mutually Reject
Sebastian's POV
I stepped back into the private room and immediately felt the oppressive weight of the silence that had settled over the space. Edwin sat slumped on the leather sofa with both hands pressed firmly against his face, his entire body trembling with suppressed emotion yet not making a single sound.
Moira knelt in the corner with her clothes disheveled and torn in places, a vivid handprint still marking her left cheek in angry red welts, staring at her husband with naked terror swimming in her eyes that darted between Edwin and me.
I swept my gaze coldly across the wreckage of the scene before me, taking in every detail of the chaos with clinical detachment while disgust churned in my gut so intensely that I had to actively suppress the urge to simply turn around and walk away from this entire sordid mess without looking back.
I walked directly to Edwin without bothering to acknowledge Moira's presence and stood before him. My voice carried no warmth whatsoever. "You have two choices now. First, sever the mate bond with Moira completely and mutually reject it. Second, you split off from the family entirely and live separately with her, cutting all ties with us from this day forward."
Edwin's body went rigid at my words. He struggled to lift his head with visible effort, and I could see the panic written clearly across his features in the way his eyes widened and his mouth worked soundlessly as he forced out a hoarse "Brother" from his throat.
Moira immediately seized the opportunity, her voice trembling as she said quickly, "We cannot split from the family! Edwin, we cannot afford to—"
I cut her off without hesitation, my tone brooking absolutely no argument. "You have no right to speak here."
My gaze fixed on my brother. "If you decide to split off and live separately with her, then you do not need to call me brother anymore. This is not a threat or an ultimatum designed to force your hand. What she has done to me has already crossed the most fundamental ethical boundaries of the Silverstone Pack—the loyalty and respect that must exist between wolf mates, the trust that holds our society together. This decision is mine to make as Alpha, and even Father would support it without question if he knew what had transpired here today."
Moira crawled toward Edwin on her hands and knees when she realized her words were having no effect on me, grasping desperately at his pant leg with trembling fingers as she choked out through sobs that wracked her entire frame, "I admit I had inappropriate thoughts about your brother when I was young and foolish, but after we married, after we completed the bond and I became your wife in every sense, I never did anything improper or crossed any lines! What happened today was a setup, someone manipulated me into this situation! Sebastian arrived at the private room before I did, so why is he completely unaffected by whatever drug was used?"
The implication in her words was clear and poisonous, dripping with suggestion that I had somehow orchestrated this entire situation to trap her and destroy her marriage.
The atmosphere in the room instantly became razor-sharp with tension that crackled like electricity in the air between us. Edwin's eyes flashed golden with his wolf surging forward to the surface, anger and suspicion warring in their depths.
The next second, Edwin violently shoved Moira away from him with enough force to send her sprawling and delivered a slap across her face with the full strength of his arm behind it, enough force to send her crashing sideways into the coffee table with a dull thud that echoed through the room and made me wince despite my anger. "You dare try to implicate my brother? Do you think I am such a fool that I would believe your lies?"
His voice cracked with desperation and fury that seemed to pour out of him like water from a broken dam. "This started at the charity gala all those years ago, did it not? You calculated everything from the very beginning! You bonded with me just to get close to him, used me as nothing more than a convenient tool! Eighteen years! You have been lying to me for eighteen goddamn years while I trusted you completely!"
Edwin turned back to me with his chest heaving as he struggled to control his breathing, and I saw no trace of doubt in his eyes when they met mine, only pain and guilt that cut deeper than any physical wound could have. "Brother, I am so sorry. I did not see her clearly for what she truly was. I failed to recognize the snake I had brought into our family."
Then his voice hardened with absolute finality that left no room for reconsideration. "Sever the bond! We will mutually reject it as soon as we return home tonight!"
I had been prepared to use my Alpha command to force compliance if necessary, fury building in my chest at Moira's attempt to cast suspicion on me and poison my relationship with my brother. But Edwin's immediate and unwavering response gave me pause, making me reconsider the harsh judgment I had been ready to pass.
If Edwin had shown even a moment of doubt toward me just now, even the slightest hesitation or suspicion in his eyes, then this brother would truly be beyond saving and I would have had to cut him off completely. But now, seeing his absolute trust despite everything Moira had tried to suggest, I realized he could still be salvaged.
I gave a slight nod of approval, my tone softening just a fraction from the ice-cold authority it had carried moments before. "Good. That is the judgment you should have made."
At that precise moment, Beta Albert knocked sharply on the door and entered the room without waiting for permission, his expression grave. "Alpha, I just received word from the training camp—Miss Elara left fifteen minutes ago claiming there was an urgent family matter that required her immediate attention."
My face went cold as ice water flooded my veins and my stomach dropped. I immediately understood with crystalline clarity that my daughter must have sensed danger through the protective talisman she had given me and was now determined to confirm my safety with her own eyes regardless of what I had told her on the phone.
I turned back to Edwin with my jaw set, my voice dropping into the low register that carried the full weight of my Alpha authority pressing down. "Clean this entire mess up within ten minutes. Elara cannot hear a single word of what actually happened here today. The official story is that you and Moira are separating due to personality incompatibility and your wolves being unable to coexist harmoniously in the same bond. Is that absolutely understood?"
Edwin nodded rapidly, words tumbling out in a rush. "I understand completely! I will handle it properly and make sure she knows nothing!"
Moira opened her mouth as if to argue or plead her case once more, but a single glacial look from me froze her completely in place. Whatever words she had been preparing to speak died in her throat, trapped there by the sheer force of my displeasure radiating outward.
I left the restaurant immediately and returned to my hotel suite, acutely aware of the sickeningly sweet floral scent that still clung to my clothes like an oily residue that would not wash away.
Disgust rolled through me in waves as I stripped off my jacket with jerky movements, preparing to change into a clean one. As I emptied the pockets mechanically, my fingers brushed against something small and papery, and I pulled out the white protective talisman that Elara had given me just yesterday.
After changing into fresh clothes that felt clean against my skin, I headed downstairs to the hotel lobby. The moment I stepped out of the elevator, I saw Elara pushing through the main entrance with purpose in every line of her body. Her long silver hair was slightly disheveled from the wind, her face still showing traces of sweat from training and obvious anxiety that tightened her features.
Our eyes met, and I felt an unwelcome surge of guilt as I raised my hand in what I hoped was a casual gesture that would not reveal how shaken I truly was. "Why did you come here?"
I was terrified that she might somehow sense through her keen perception that this entire sordid mess involved Moira, that she might piece together the truth of what her aunt by marriage had attempted.
Elara's gaze was complicated but steady as she answered simply, her voice carrying across the distance between us, "I was worried about you."
Those four words struck something deep in my chest, warming a place that had been cold for far too long. My daughter was genuinely beginning to accept me, to care about my wellbeing.
I cleared my throat lightly to cover the unexpected surge of emotion that threatened to show on my face, allowing a rare genuine smile to soften my features. "I am fine. Truly, nothing happened to me. Thanks to the talisman you gave me."