Nobody saw it, and the crack under the walls of the prison disappeared.
And the old magic healed itself.
But the damage had been wrought.
Not to the rock.
To the balance that holds it all together.
Kael remained in the council hall long after the others had gone.
The evidence stayed on the table.
The poisoned vessel.
The servant said.
The report of the healer.
Fragments of a story that sounded plausible.
But it was wrong, something was wrong.”
His gut told him that Seraphina was being set up.
His reason told him he could not deny the evidence.
And for the first time in his life……
Kael was torn between what he knew and what he felt.
“The Pack is restless.
The Council Elder’s voice broke the silence.
Kael glanced up.
The elder was near the door.
““You know what this means.”
Kael’s face went hard.
“So what happens?
The Pack had seen their loyalty change before.
The old man came nearer.
After the howl.
Silence .Many warriors think Lady Seraphina has more power than a regular Luna.
Kael said nothing.
He knew it.
He had sensed it as well.
“If you have her walking around free and accusations unsolved, it will cause division.”
Kael turned back to the evidence.
“And keeping her inside won’t?”
The elder’s face was still placid.
“It will bring some order.
Order
The word had been used numerous times before.
Every time someone wanted power.
Hours later…
Kael entered the subterranean prison.
The guards stepped aside right away.
The cell door flew open.
Seraphina sat leaning against the wall.
Peace.
Too silent.
She looked at him.
Then averted his eyes.
No rage.
Not surprising.
This worried him more .”You here to question me?”
Kael stood outside the cell .“No.” “Then why are you here?”
He had practiced a couple of answers.
He saw her, and none lived the moment.
I need some time.”
Her eyes slowly went back to him.
“Time for what?” To examine.’
A small pause followed.
Then she got it.
“And you think maybe I did it.
Kael’s jaw clenched.
I think there are some questions to be answered.
That’s not what I asked.
He said no word.
He didn’t have to.
The silence did it to him.
There was a change in Seraphina’s expression.
No suffering.
Acknowledgments.
She looked at him as if she had waited for this moment.
“How many times?”
Kael scowled.
“”What?” How many times are you going to choose everybody else before me?
The question hit home harder than he had thought .”I am trying to save the Pack.” “No,” she said, her voice low.
You’re trying to protect yourself against making the wrong choice.”
Kael stepped closer.
‘That’s not fair.’ Is it?
She narrowed her eyes.
““The first time you were standing there when they murdered me.”
The air grew thick.
Kael stilled.
She’d never spoken so plainly before.
“The second time…
She looked at the cell around her.
“you put me back in chains.”
His chest tightened.
“Seraphina—” “Don’t.
One word.
One caveat.
He paused.
“For the first time …
Kael could see the difference.
She’d been hurt before.
Now…
She was disconsolate.
And somehow that was worse.
Because disappointment meant she had expected something of him.
She had hoped he would be different.
You think this is a poison thing.
Her voice dropped.
It’s not.” ”
Kael looked at her.
It’s about faith.”
A pause.
And you have answered me.
Kael glanced away.
Because he knew she was correct.
He wanted to lie.
He wanted to say he was being sensible.
Accountable.
An Alpha.
But way down deep…
His wolf was on edge.
Refused the decision.
Nope.
His instinctive answer surprised him.
His wolf thought he’d made a mistake.
Outside the cubicle…
A guard came over.
““Alpha.”
Kael turned.
“The Council asks for your attendance.”
He didn’t move immediately.
Seraphina’s eyes were on him.
For a while…
He thought of opening the door.
Killing this.
I believe her.
But then he thought of the Pack.
The charges.
The mess.
The duty. New chapters come out on g.com first.
His hand came down.
““Hold her here until the investigation is done.”
The words fell out of his mouth.
And the instant they did…
Something in him snapped.
Not the jail.
Not the walls.
Something else.
Seraphina watched him go.
She didn’t say his name.
She didn’t want him back.
She didn’t ask.
At last she comprehended.
The man who had stood in silence at her execution…
Still making the same selection.
Not with a knife.
Not with an order.
But tentatively.
And hesitation came at a price.
… as the echo of his footsteps died away
Seraphina shut her eyes.
The memories came back.
The chains.
The people.
The treachery.
But this time …
There was something wrong.
The pain didn’t break her.
It fed on something.
The ancient mark beneath her skin started to burn.
The same seal that had been dormant ever since she had returned.
Even she did not quite understand the first.
Her wolf raised its head.
That’s enough.
Seraphina cracked open an eye.
They were full of a silver light.
The chains trembled on her wrists.
The runes in the prison flashed violently.
Enough.
The words were hardly a whisper.
But the old magic eavesdropped.
The seal of her soul…
…the seal on her power…
The seal that had for centuries dictated the laws governing Lunas…
Started to break.
There was the sound of shattering glass in the cell.
Seraphina cast her eyes downward.
A thin silver crack of light spread over her skin.
Then another one.
And another.
The seal was not breaking.
It was cracking.
Absolutely .
The prison trembled.
The guards outside toppled over.
And far down in the earth…
Something old woke up.