Chapter 49 Interrogations and Lies

Chapter 49 Interrogations and Lies
Arya's POV

The moment they dragged me into the council chamber, everything smelled like fear. Not mine, but theirs.

The twelve councilmen sat in a tight circle, stiff-backed and pale, their eyes darting to the door every time I moved, as if I might suddenly grow fangs and tear them apart.

King Noble sat at the head of the room, hands folded, expression carved from stone. Queen Celia sat beside him—chin high, eyes sharp, lips curled with something that wasn’t quite anger, but close.

Kyle stood behind me, jaw clenched so hard a muscle twitched near his ear. He refused to sit, and refused to leave my side. His presence kept the council from trembling more than they already were.

The silence stretched. Then Councilman Reeve cleared his throat, voice shaking.

“Lady Arya… is it true? That you shifted into a—a Luna Wolf?”

The words dropped like a stone.

I forced myself to breathe. “I don’t know what I am.”

“That,” Queen Celia snapped, “is not an answer.”

Kyle stepped forward. “She transformed because assassins were trying to kill me. That is the answer. Nothing else matters.”

“It matters if she is a threat to this kingdom,” the queen replied coldly.

A murmur ran through the council.

I lowered my eyes, speaking quietly, “I didn’t hurt anyone who didn’t try to kill us.”

“That isn’t the point,” Reeve said. “A Luna Wolf has not existed in over two hundred years. The last recorded one destroyed half a kingdom.”

Kyle growled under his breath. “And the assassins? They came for me. Not her.”

“Because of her!” another councilman shouted. “Everything began the moment she joined the palace. The sabotage at the performance, Crescent Fang’s ultimatum, the ambassador’s anger…”

“That wasn’t her doing!” Kyle barked.

“Then whose?” the queen demanded.

My heart twisted. Because I knew the answer. Ezra. But I couldn’t prove it—not yet. And if I said his name without evidence, he would twist everything against me. So I stayed silent.

Queen Celia turned her sharp gaze on me. “Where did you learn to transform like that?”

“I didn’t learn,” I whispered. “It just… happened.”

“You expect us to believe you didn’t know you carried such a creature inside you?”

“I swear—I didn’t.”

The queen leaned back slowly, her expression unreadable. “Convenient.”

Kyle moved in front of me. “Mother.”

“Don’t ‘mother’ me,” she said, voice like ice. “This girl shifted into something dangerous. Something powerful. Something you cannot control.”

“I am not trying to control her,” Kyle snapped. “I am trying to protect her.”

“And that,” Queen Celia said sharply, “is exactly the problem.”

The room fell silent.

My chest tightened.

Kyle defending me so fiercely… it warmed something in me. I tried so hard to keep cold. But it also made everything worse. Every noble in the room could see how far he would go for me.

They would use that against him. Against us.

Councilman Hale spoke next, fingers trembling as he pointed at me. “Lady Arya… what were you doing in the eastern corridor at that hour?”

Before I could answer, the doors opened. Ezra walked inside. Perfect timing. His clothes were rumpled, a cut across his brow, bandages on his arm—fake injuries, made to look like he’d fought the assassins too. I felt my wolf snarl inside me.

Ezra bowed. “Your Majesties. Councilmen.”

Kyle stiffened. “What is he doing here?”

Ezra offered a polite, innocent smile. “I came to give my statement.”

Lies. Lies. Lies.

The king gestured. “Speak.”

Ezra clasped his hands behind his back. “I was patrolling near the east corridor when I heard fighting. When I arrived, Lady Arya was already… transformed. Large. Silver-eyed. Violent.”

My fists clenched at my sides.

Kyle snarled. “She saved my life!”

Ezra nodded sympathetically. “Perhaps. Yes. But after the assassins were dead, she attacked again. I barely escaped.”

“That’s a lie!” I said, stepping forward.

The queen’s eyes sharpened. “You attacked him?”

“No! I didn’t even see him. He ran before the guards arrived!”

Ezra lowered his head, pretending to be wounded. “I understand she was frightened… confused… but we cannot ignore what she became.”

“Ezra,” Kyle said through clenched teeth, “you are one heartbeat away from losing your tongue.”

Ezra bowed again, still pretending to be calm. “I only speak the truth, your Highness.”

The council whispered among themselves—quiet, frightened, feeding off each other’s dread.

The king finally raised a hand. Silence fell instantly.

“Lady Arya.” His voice was calm, but heavy. “Do you know why Crescent Fang wants you?”

My throat tightened. “No, your Majesty.”

Ezra watched me too closely.

The king continued, “Ambassador Valen claimed you were involved in crimes against his people. That you escaped punishment. That your presence here insults Crescent Fang.”

“Those are lies,” Kyle said firmly.

But the king kept his eyes on me.

“Are they lies, Arya?”

I folded my hands together behind my back so he wouldn’t see them shake. “Yes.”

Another lie. Because if Crescent Fang found out I was a Luna Wolf, they would drag me back in chains.

The king exhaled heavily. “The palace is already preparing for the summit. Three foreign kingdoms are here. Tension is rising. And now you… become this.”

He motioned toward me with a tired, almost defeated gesture.

“A Luna Wolf.”

The word felt like a blade.

Queen Celia spoke next, voice firm. “We must control her.”

Kyle stepped between us again. “You touch her, I swear I will…”

“Kyle.” The king’s voice cracked like a whip. “Enough.”

Kyle dropped silent, breathing hard, throat working as if he wanted to argue more.

Councilman Hale adjusted his robes. “We recommend confinement. Not a cell. But isolation until the summit ends. For everyone’s safety.”

“It’s a cage,” I whispered.

Queen Celia met my gaze. “It’s necessary.”

“No,” Kyle said. “Over my dead body.”

A heavy pause.

Then the king said quietly, “If Arya loses control again… it may very well be your dead body, my son.”

The words struck like thunder. Kyle flinched. Just slightly. Just enough. Pain twisted inside me. He wasn’t scared of me. But they were making him doubt.

Ezra smiled faintly at the floor.

The king stood. “Until we confirm the truth behind the assassins and Crescent Fang’s demands, Arya will be monitored.”

Two guards stepped forward.

Kyle growled. “You are not taking her anywhere.”

“Kyle!” the king warned.

“She saved my life,” Kyle snapped. “Not one of you was there! Not one of you saw how they held a blade to my throat!”

“Your feelings blind you,” Queen Celia said softly. “You do not see what she truly is.”

I lifted my chin. “I am not your enemy.”

The queen’s eyes hardened. “Not yet.”

The doors opened again. More guards. Advisors. Whispers. The palace was watching. The whole kingdom was watching.

And my secret, my curse—was already bleeding out into every corner of Whitestone. Kyle stepped in front of me again, voice low and deadly.

“If anyone touches her, they answer to me.”

But even as he said it, I felt the inevitable truth sink into my bones: I could feel the palace turning against me. And deep down… I knew this was only the beginning.