Chapter 4 The Sentence of Death

The guards didn't walk me into the King’s Court. They dragged me.

My feet scraped against the cold marble floor. My knees were bruised from the garden, and my breath came in short, jagged gasps. I looked up and saw the massive oak doors swing open.

The room was full. Every noble, every council member, and every high-ranking warrior was there. They didn't look at me with pity. They looked at me like I was a monster.

Valerius sat on his high throne. He looked like a king made of stone. Next to him, Seraphina was draped in a silk robe, shaking and sobbing into a lace cloth.

The guards threw me onto the floor in the center of the room. I hit the ground hard.

"Elena," Valerius’s voice boomed. It wasn't the voice of a mate. It was the voice of a judge. "Lady Seraphina has made a grave accusation against you."

I tried to sit up. "Valerius, she tried to poison me. She—"

"Silence!" a council member yelled.

Valerius leaned forward. His eyes were dark. "Three witnesses saw you use dark magic. They saw a gold light erupt from your skin. They saw you throw a high-born Alpha across the garden and into a fountain. Look at her."

He pointed at Seraphina. She let out a loud, pathetic wail. She pulled back her robe to show red marks on her skin. "She tried to kill me, Valerius! She used witch-power! An Omega cannot do that. She is possessed by a demon!"

The crowd started to murmur. "Witch," I heard them whisper. "Demon. Kill her."

"I am not a witch," I said, my voice shaking. I looked at the Council. "I was protecting myself. She had silver-lace! She was trying to—"

"Enough lies!"

The voice came from the front row. I turned my head. My heart stopped.

It was my father. The Pack Beta.

He stood there in his formal uniform, his arms crossed. He wouldn't even look me in the eye. He looked at the floor by my feet.

"Lord Beta," Valerius said. "What is your vote? Your daughter stands accused of using dark magic against the future Queen."

My father didn't hesitate. He didn't even blink.

"I have no daughter," he said. His voice was cold. It was harder than the stone floor. "This thing in front of us is a disgrace to my blood. She is a Nameless slave who has turned to the dark arts. My vote is for her execution. Kill her now and be done with it."

The words felt like a physical blade through my chest. Worse than the brand. Worse than the rejection. My own father wanted me dead to save his own reputation.

"Execution!" the Council shouted. "Blood for the Queen!"

Valerius stood up. He held up his hand, and the room went silent. He looked down at me. For a split second, I thought I saw a flash of something in his eyes. Was it regret? Or was it just the light?

"The law says she should die," Valerius said. "But the Moonlight Pack is not a pack of butchers. We will let the Goddess decide her fate."

He looked at the Council.

"I sentence the Nameless Elena to the Trial of the Dead Lands. She will be taken to the border and cast out. If she is innocent, the Goddess will protect her. If she is a witch, the mists will take her soul."

A gasp went through the room. The Dead Lands. It was a place where the sun never shone. It was full of monsters, rogues, and a thick, grey mist that drove wolves insane. No one ever came back. It was an execution, just a slow one.

"No!" I cried out. "Valerius, please! You can't!"

"Take her away," Valerius barked.

The guards grabbed my arms again. They hauled me up, but as they passed the throne, Valerius stepped down. He grabbed my arm, leaning in close. The scent of cedar and smoke hit me. For a second, it felt like the old days.

"Stay quiet," he whispered into my ear. His breath was hot. "I’m only exiling you to save you from the Council. They would have cut your head off right here. Go to the border. I’ll send people to find you once the pack calms down."

I looked at him. My heart gave a tiny, stupid throb of hope. Was he trying to save me? Did he still care?

He let go of my arm and signaled the guards to move.

As they dragged me toward the exit, I looked back over my shoulder. Valerius was talking to his lead General, a man with a scarred face and cold, killer eyes.

Valerius wasn't looking at me anymore. He was pointing to a map. I saw his lips move.

I’m an Omega, but my hearing has always been sharp. Especially now.

"Follow her," Valerius whispered to the General. "Once she crosses the border and is out of sight of the pack, kill her. Bring me her head. I want this problem gone forever."

The hope in my chest didn't just die. It turned into ice.

He wasn't saving me. He was just making sure my blood didn't stain his palace floor. He wanted me to die in the dark where no one could hear me scream.

He wanted to kill his mate. He wanted to kill his own child.

The guards threw me into the back of a black iron cage. The iron door slammed shut.

As the cage lurched forward, I looked back one last time. Valerius stood on the balcony, arms crossed, watching me disappear.

He'd already sent his killers ahead. I'd heard every word.

I touched my stomach and felt the faint pulse beneath my skin.

Let them come. Let him send his best.

They're not hunting a broken Omega anymore.