**3rd Person POV**
“Your Highness, with all due respect, you cannot keep my son in jail,” court became so quiet that if a pin dropped, it would have been heard. Everyone turned to senior Lord Lowell who had walked in right in the middle of a session. It was the first real face-off between the royal family and perhaps the most powerful family in the pack.
“Lord Lowell, it has been a while since you have graced this court with your presence,” said Alison. There was no smile on her face lest she be mistaken for being condoning of his flagrant rude disposition.
“I want my son released this very instant or I will march to the jail with my guards where you have him locked up and take him out by myself,” apparently senior Lord Lowell could not see anything wrong with his actions. When Lowell had threatened her earlier, she had believed that his actions were not backed by his father. However, Alison had to admit that this was an interesting development. She was also glad that the royal family had vast resources at its disposal and that it would do more than fine without money from the Lowell's.
For the first time, it occurred to Alison to question the nature of their wealth. They could afford to throw exorbitant parties every night and build a mansion that some argued made the palace look ordinary beside it. They had done this while the rest of the pack were still struggling from the aftermath of George. Even now, she the lack was burdened by the vampire raids, they did not seem to be affected at all.
“Be my guest, Lord Lowell. I am pleased to know that my soldiers are a lot stronger than your personal guards,” replied Alison. Lowell had forgotten one thing. He could have all the money in the world but all that money could not buy him the loyalty of the army which thanks to Harlin supported her fully. She was making her own threats as well by mentioning the army. Should he think that a civil war should come out of this then he would have to buy his soldiers from elsewhere because Alison was convinced that there was no single soldier who would not throw their weight behind Lowell.
“I brought this pack from the brink of destruction and poverty and this is the thanks I get?” Lord Lowell was losing it. The Noble ministers were watching as he continued to rant. Many of them could not say a word because they were in Lord Lowell's pocket and they were afraid of angering the man. They were also guilty of attending many of Lowell's late-night
parties and were guilty also of hosting some.
“Lowell is in jail because he flaunted Royal order. If you have a problem with that you may take it up with the officer that made the arrest but you will not get away with the stunt you have just pulled in my court in the presence of my ministers,” no one had ever seen such an outburst from Alison. Harlin was especially proud of his aunt at this moment. He had no doubt that she had it in her to fight. It was refreshing to see her take a stance against the Lowells.
“You… you will pay for this!” the older Lord Lowell shouted.
“Guards!” Alison shouted and at her words, the man was escorted from the room.
The atmosphere in court was sombre afterwards. It was the first time Alison had really stood her ground in court. She had always been careful about exerting her will afraid that she would be called a heartless dictator like George. However, it had only made her ministers think that she was spineless or a mere puppet for the Council of Elders.
When court was over, Alison was told that she had a visitor. She was surprised to see the older Lord Lowell back in her throne room. This time he had a sober expression on his face and he had come begging. His disposition had changed altogether. Harlin scoffed as he watched the man beg her to release his son. He could see through the man's facade. All this while, he wanted to know to what extent he could intimidate Alison and when he'd discovered that his theatrics had not worked he had resorted to begging. The unfortunate thing was that it seemed to be having an effect on Aunt Alison who promised the man she would see to it that Lowell was released without delay.
“How could you let him go? After the stunt, he pulled in court today?” Harlin demanded the moment Lord Lowell had left them.
“I will lead the pack to a civil war if I do not make peace with them. I hate to admit it but they are the economic backbone of this pack,” said Alison with a sigh.
“Aunt Alison! You cannot give in to them. It's exactly what they want and the pack can survive without their money.”
“The other ministers would support him; it is best to bury the hatchet. Perhaps, when you take the throne you can exert your influence on them,” returned Alison. Right now, she at least wanted to be able to give Harlin a chance on the throne. He would not get that chance if she was ousted from power.
“I will not go to Dome with Lowell's money,” said Harlin.
“I will not collect his money even if he begged me to,” returned Alison. She had decided to bury the hatchet but that did not mean that she was going to forget the way he had insulted the crown. She would never forget how he had implied that it was his money that financed the pack's affairs.
“You will allow Lowell to go scot-free? If you allow him to get away with insulting you, the other ministers would be encouraged to do the same,” said Harlin. He could already notice signs of dissent among the others.