Chapter 195 ~Watch Your Mouth~

Chapter 195 ~Watch Your Mouth~
Aria's POV

My hands curled into fists in my lap as I listened to the elders go back and forth about Gregory, my nails pressing crescents into my palms with every passing accusation. Why were they treating this like Gregory had personally walked Camille out of her holding cell?
From everything I could see, he'd been doing more than any of these overdressed men sitting around this table ever could. The bags under his eyes were proof enough. He hadn't slept properly for too many nights in a row, and I knew that better than most, since I'd asked him for updates enough times to see the toll it was taking firsthand.
Darius spoke before anyone else could add more. “But I do agree with the man. A formal reprimand is excessive under these circumstances.”
Elder Cassius turned his head toward the head of the table. “Did you not hear a word we said, Your Highness? This failure happened while he was in charge and he has brought us nothing useful since the escape. He is sitting on the problem instead of solving it.”
"Elders tell me plainly, do you believe he had a hand in her escape?” Darius asked, his voice level but with something sharp running underneath it. “Because I fail to see why else he should be punished for something that happened due to an internal accomplice he had no way of predicting.”
"No one is saying that he's an accomplice." Cassius said smoothly. "We just need him to take accountability because it's quite clear he bears responsibility in a way. How many more mistakes do we allow before someone admits that this has been handled poorly from the start?"
I resisted the urge to scoff outright, though it took real effort to keep my expression neutral. These men had not left the pack grounds to search. They had not questioned the guards who had been on duty the night Camille disappeared. They had not lost sleep or skipped meals while trying to track her. They only sat here and voiced baseless complaints. The hypocrisy was becoming difficult to tolerate.
"There is no reason to punish Gregory," I said before I could stop myself, the words spilling out faster than I'd planned. Every head at the table turned toward me at once, but I pushed through it anyway. "He has far too much on his plate already, and it's not as though he was one of the guards standing watch over her cell personally. If you're looking for someone to punish, it should be the guards who had direct access to her. That's where the real accomplice is most likely hiding. Punishing Gregory accomplishes nothing except making all of you feel like you've done something."
The room went quiet in a way that felt heavier than before. Cassius turned his full attention on me, his expression cooling considerably. "And why exactly are you speaking?"
I paused, my gaze locking on the old man's face, something twisting uncomfortably in my chest at the tone he used, like I was a child who had interrupted adults mid conversation. "I was simply sharing my opinion, sir."
Cassius glanced toward Darius briefly before turning back to me, and something about the look he gave him made my stomach drop before he'd even said another word. "I believe you lost that privilege a long time ago, didn't you? Unless you've forgotten. You are divorced from the Alpha."
The statement was accurate. The divorce had been completed and hence I no longer held the title or the formal place I once had. Still, I was in this room because Darius had asked for me to be present and I had listened to every word uttered. That meant my voice counted for something even if they didn't find it convenient. I opened my mouth to say exactly that, but Cassius spoke again before I could get a single word out.
"It'd be best if you said no more," he said, cutting me off.. "You're not entirely blameless in this entire thing."
My hands tightened further as I felt the anger rise within me, however, I kept my emotions in check and refused to give him the satisfaction of seeing me rattled. I wanted to ask him exactly what part of this he thought I was responsible for. Whether it was for constantly being pushed over or being the object of Camille's hatred. But a loud growl rang through the room before I could.
"Watch your mouth." Darius's voice boomed across the room and I actually flinched in my seat. Every single eye at the table snapped toward him at once, and when I looked over I found his eyes glowing faintly, a vein visible along his temple, his whole posture rigid with barely restrained fury as he stared down the Elder. "Don't you dare speak to her like that again."
At that, Elder Cassius’s face went very stiff. He did not lower his eyes immediately, but he also did not speak. The rest of the elders sat frozen in their seats, clearly unprepared for the shift that had just taken over the room. I could see the calculation in some of their expressions, possibly looking for a way to diffuse the situation before it escalated further.
For some reason unknown to me, a part of me felt something flutter slightly at the sight of him standing up for me without a second of hesitation. I hated that it did and hated even more that for one brief second, I felt safe because of him.
I immediately pushed the feeling down because as usual this was probably the bond. It had to be.