Charlotte let out a heavy sigh.
She couldn’t possibly ask Aveline to break up with her Lycan boyfriend, especially when she didn’t even know who he was.
She had no idea whether he was truly kind or if Aveline was just too in love to see the danger.
"Just ... please, be careful," Charlotte said softly. "If anything bad ever happens, you can co to right away, and I think ... the Nocturnal Order might be able to protect you too, since you’re in a relationship with one of us."
Aveline chuckled quietly. "Oh, Charlotte ... you’ll understand why nothing bad will happen to once you et my man."
Then she added, "But that’s not the point right now. What matters is, you don’t need to worry about . I have soone who can protect ."
Charlotte stared at her for a mont, still feeling a little skeptical, but she decided to trust her.
As far as she knew, Lycans didn’t form packs like werewolves did, but they did have their own powerful communities, often led by the strongest among them.
Maybe Aveline really would be safe.
"Alright." Charlotte sighed again and forced her expression to relax. "I won’t worry."
Aveline smiled. "Okay, now, back to our original topic. I heard from my boyfriend that Ronan Warren has done a lot of horrible things to get to the position he’s in now."
"And after hearing your story," she added, "I realize he’s not just horrible, he’s rotten to the core."
Charlotte blinked, surprised that Aveline had access to such secretive information.
Even Damon had told her that Ronan’s dark secrets were deeply buried, hidden behind powerful circles.
He’d even needed the Elders’ help to start digging into them.
But if Aveline’s boyfriend also had access to this kind of information ... did that an he held a high position within the Nocturnal Order?
Or was he like Damon, a major contributor and protector of the organization?
"He is rotten," Charlotte agreed quietly. "Like father, like son."
Aveline nodded. "Unfortunately, he’s not easy to take down. Even though he’s disappeared, no one’s taken him out of his political seat."
Ronan had made a public statent claiming he was seriously ill and receiving treatnt abroad for an indefinite amount of ti.
But in truth, he was helping his son escape, and plotting sothing in the shadows.
Even worse, people believed him.
He had gone on television, swearing that he’d bring his son to justice himself. And sohow, people still admired him for that.
To the outside world, Ronan looked like a hero.
He had modernized the city’s infrastructure, turned old slum areas into beautiful green parks, and made everything seem like it was improving.
He even claid to provide free education and decent jobs for displaced families.
But what the people didn’t know was this: Ronan had been secretly removing the residents of those slum areas permanently.
His staff would visit those neighborhoods, offering hope, promising jobs or free schooling for their children if they agreed to relocate to high-rise apartnts in the city center.
But instead of receiving those promises, many were either sold into human trafficking or quietly killed if they were too old to be "useful."
Charlotte had learned all that information thanks to Damon, who had dug deeper into Ronan’s background.
There was still so much more, so many disgusting things Ronan had done, but Charlotte just couldn’t keep reading.
At one point, her hands had started to shake, and she had no choice but to close the docunt.
"Yeah ... it’s hard," she muttered, "especially when his public image is still clean, even though his son clearly abused his wife."
Charlotte clenched her fists. "It’s just so unfair."
Aveline gently placed her hand on top of Charlotte’s. "I know it is. That’s exactly why I want to help you," she said softly. "I heard his wife was admitted to a ntal hospital."
Charlotte’s brows furrowed. "How did you know that?"
That wasn’t the kind of information people could easily find.
Priscilla had been admitted to a hospital that specifically treated supernatural beings.
It was a place kept out of the public eye, which ant Aveline really shouldn’t have known about it.
"My boyfriend is a very reliable source," Aveline said with a small smile, but she quickly pulled it back when she saw the look on Charlotte’s face. "Wait ... did I cross a line?"
So, Charlotte was right.
If her boyfriend had access to sothing that private, then he must hold a high position within the Nocturnal Order or else, there was no way he could’ve gotten that kind of intel.
"That’s fine," Charlotte replied in a quiet voice. "I’m just ... surprised." She paused, then added, "Sooner or later, people will find out about Priscilla’s condition anyway."
Aveline nodded. "Exactly. And that’s why I wanted to suggest sothing, what if we use her current state as the key to bring Ronan down?
"He’s the man who publicly promised to punish his abusive son, only for it to be revealed that he is an abuser too."
It was a bold move.
But it was also smart.
That kind of story could truly shatter Ronan’s image and force people to demand his removal from office.
In truth, Charlotte and Damon had thought about this option before.
But there was one thing holding her back, Carn and Diana.
They were still reeling from what happened to Priscilla. If her case suddenly exploded in public, they might break down even more.
Still ... how long was Charlotte supposed to keep holding this card?
Wasn’t it okay to be selfish, just once?
Why did she always have to think about everyone else’s feelings before her own?
She had already shown Priscilla so much sympathy since the day she found out about her suffering.
Hadn’t that been enough?
She’d even recomnded Emilia to be her therapist, though that didn’t turn out the way anyone hoped.
Truly ... Charlotte had done more than enough.
"If I give you permission ..." she paused, her voice low. "Can you promise the public will see Priscilla as a victim and not one of the abusers?"
Aveline was montarily speechless by the question.
Charlotte had told her everything, including how her mother-in-law, though also a victim, had made her life a living hell for years.
"I can promise you that," Aveline finally said. "And I swear, if you let cover this story and share the right information, it’ll blow up within a day."
"Alright. You have my permission," she said. Then, after a mont, she added, "Should we start from the day I was kidnapped again?"
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