Chapter 100 CHAPTER 100
The council chamber felt colder than usual.
Ethan stood at the center of the circular hall, hands clasped behind his back, his posture straight but his shoulders heavy. The long stone table curved around him like a silent tribunal. One by one, the elders sat in their carved seats, their expressions guarded, expectant, already weary before the discussion had truly begun.
There was no Lisa here.
No Liam.
This burden belonged to the crown alone.
Ethan drew in a slow breath before he spoke. He did not waste time on ceremony.
“You already know the kingdom is facing a threat,” he began, his voice steady but stripped of flourish. “What you may not know is how deeply it reaches into my family.”
The elders listened, eyes sharp.
“My sister’s bonded mate is dying,” Ethan continued. “His wolf has been separated from him and is fading in the wolf realm. If the wolf dies, the bond will not simply dissolve. It will rupture. And when it does, the damage will not be contained to one life.”
A faint murmur moved through the chamber.
Ethan lifted his gaze, meeting each elder in turn. “This is not only about one wolf. It is about the stability of a bond forged by the Goddess herself. About what happens when we allow such a bond to collapse untreated.”
Elder Kellan leaned forward slightly, fingers steepled. “And your proposed solution?”
Ethan hesitated only a fraction of a second. “A ritual. One overseen by the Fae. Carefully controlled. Limited in scope.”
That was when the air shifted.
Elder Vaughn’s chair scraped loudly against the stone floor as he leaned back, his face darkening. “Absolutely not.”
The word echoed.
“The wolf realm is sacred,” Vaughn continued sharply. “We do not open it to outsiders. Not to the Fae. Not for sentiment. Not for a wolf who brought this fate upon himself.”
Ethan’s jaw tightened. “This is not sentiment. This is consequence. If the bond collapses…”
“…. then it collapses,” Von cut in. “We do not gamble the realm for one life.”
Ethan turned, frustration flickering in his eyes. “This will affect my sister. Emotionally. Psychologically. Her wolf…”
“And that,” Elder Lora interjected calmly, “is precisely why this cannot be allowed.”
All heads turned.
Lora’s voice was measured, diplomatic as ever, but there was no softness in her stance. “Allowing the Fae into the wolf realm creates imbalance. They are powerful, yes - but their magic does not obey our laws. Once a door is opened, it cannot always be closed.”
Ethan stared at her. “You’re saying we do nothing?”
“I’m saying we protect the realm,” Laura replied evenly. “The Fae are clever. Give them access once, and you risk giving them a pathway forever. Today it is a ritual. Tomorrow it is influence.”
Kellan exhaled slowly. Elder Rufus shifted uncomfortably but did not object. Elder Thorne’s silence was heavy, his eyes lowered - not in disagreement, but in resignation.
Ethan’s chest tightened.
“So your answer,” he said quietly, “is to let the wolf die.”
Ethan’s words settled heavily in the chamber, and for a long moment, no one spoke.
It was Elder Kellan who finally broke the silence.
“We are not blind to the suffering of the wolf,” he said slowly. “Nor are we indifferent to the burden the princess carries because of this bond.”
Ethan lifted his head slightly, hope flickering despite himself.
“But,” Kellan continued, “the solution presented by the priestess places the kingdom at unacceptable risk.”
Elder Von nodded sharply. “A ritual that binds the king’s mind - even indirectly - to a bewitched alpha is not something this council will ever approve. That is not caution; that is recklessness.”
Lora’s voice followed, calm but resolute. “Allowing the Fae to cross fully into the wolf realm under these conditions threatens the balance we have guarded for generations. Even with safeguards, even with intentions we trust, the cost is too high.”
Ethan clenched his fists as Lora continued.
“We will not abandon the wolf.”
The words caused a small stir around the table.
Elder Rufus leaned forward, his tone grave. “We will return to the old texts. To the archives sealed after the last war. There are remedies lost to time, bindings forgotten, healing methods that do not require opening the realm to outsiders.”
Thorne finally spoke, his voice quiet but firm. “We will explore every lawful path available to us. But not this one.”
Kellan met Ethan’s gaze. “We reject the priestess’s solution. Not because we lack compassion - but because we must protect the kingdom as a whole. If there is another way, we will find it.”
Ethan searched their faces. He saw no malice there. Only fear. Duty. And limits drawn in stone.
“So this is your final word,” he said quietly.
Von answered without hesitation. “It is.”
Ethan nodded once, stiffly. “Then I expect results. Not promises.”
Laura inclined her head. “You shall have them.”
Without another word, Ethan turned and left the chamber.
Lisa and Liam were waiting just outside.
They stood side by side in the stone corridor, tension etched into every line of their bodies. Lisa’s hands were clasped tightly in front of her, Celia restless beneath her skin. Liam’s jaw was set, his eyes fixed on the doors as if he could will them open.
When Ethan emerged, neither of them needed words.
Lisa knew the moment she saw his face.
Still, Liam asked, his voice low. “What did they say?”
Ethan stopped in front of them. For a moment, he could not look at his sister.
“I’m sorry,” he said at last. “They refused.”
The silence that followed was devastating.
Lisa felt it first in her chest, a sharp, hollow ache that stole her breath. Celia stirred, a low, broken sound echoing through her mind.
Refused.
Liam’s hand closed around Lisa’s instinctively, grounding her as the truth settled in.
Ethan finally met her eyes. “I tried.”
In that moment, a truth Ethan did not dare speak settled heavily in his chest. He had fought the council, yes - but a part of him understood their decision. He had seen what risking the kingdom once had cost them all. He could not gamble the lives of thousands for one wolf, not when that wolf belonged to the very pack that had broken his sister. If Kael ended up not surviving, Lisa would grieve, Celia would grieve - but they would heal. Time would soften the pain. And maybe, without that bond anchoring her to Silverpine, Lisa would finally be free to build a future untouched by that past with Liam.
The thought brought him no pride, only a quiet, guilty acceptance.