Eve
Montegue’s cane cracked once against the marble, drawing every eye. His voice carried steady, rich with disdain.
"They are not loyal to treasonous fools who bicker like children while enemies claim our borders." His eyes swept the room, contempt sharp enough to flay. "They are loyal to what you abandoned long ago—order. Unity. Strength."
The chamber fell silent again. Only the sound of labored breathing filled the air. Those still pinned to the marble twitched in futile resistance.
"If you have more insightful words to share, you may speak. But after that, I will speak." I did not hide my disdain.
I had no ti for this.
Silverpine was scrambling. On edge. It was clear as day with every word in that accursed letter from Kael. Sothing had gone wrong—far more wrong than they were willing to admit.
Even now, the words flickered before my eyes. And with them, the cracks.
Jas had always remained smug—even when brought to his knees, even with a claw to his throat. Self-assured. Prideful to a fault.
But he was slipping.
Jas, who never admitted defeat—who wrapped cruelty in polished arrogance—was now listing his losses like a desperate gambler. The ink told more than his words. The gouged lines where his calm cracked, the pet nas turned sour. He thought this letter would break . But all it showed was that I’d already broken him.
I didn’t even need to lift a finger.
My eyes swept across the room, asuring the tension in the air. A tough crowd. Hackles raised. Chests heaving. Ready to strike—but none spoke.
I shifted in my seat, glancing at Elliot on my lap. He was watching too. Alert, as always. Shoulders bunched, ready to defend or protect.
I raised my gaze, now sharpened. "Sit," I ordered, my voice cracking like a whip.
They glanced at one another before hesitantly obeying. One by one, they sat—Silas and Gallinti at the front. Neither had spoken a word since I entered. They were more stoic than most, their gazes watchful, only flicking to when they believed I wasn’t looking.
I cleared my throat.
"I’m sure you’ve all received the mo. The letter from Silverpine."
I could feel Montegue’s eyes on . He didn’t understand why I would expose sothing like this—especially when it so clearly alluded to the history between Jas and .
But I bore not an ounce of sha. Not a speck.
There was no space for such a feeble emotion in the state of things.
There was gnawing helplessness. Raw fear. Crippling anxiety. Creeping dread that only continued to spread.
Sha for a relationship that no longer held any bearing over ? It didn’t even register.
"You must have read it a thousand tis," I continued, my voice flat but cutting. "Praying it was a prank. Hoping it was a mistake. But as you can see—" I gestured to Hades’ empty seat. "—it is neither of those things. The Alpha of Obsidian is absent and has been for four days. He left on a rescue mission... for his Beta, Kael Orlov."
Still, no one spoke.
But their haunted expressions spoke volus. To see so many powerful figures pale at once was telling. It was a testant to how heavily this council relied on Hades. An incompetent ruler would never trigger this level of fear.
I let my gaze linger on each of their faces.
"The letter alludes to his capture by Silverpine. It outlines a threat: and my sister... or him."
"He’s gone," one Alpha rose, glancing around at his colleagues. "She’ll never surrender. We need to begin dividing—"
My Gammas were already on the move, but surprisingly—
"Alpha Jason, you are out of turn," Gallinti said coolly. "You will be promptly removed."
Even I was surprised. The rest of the room straightened as the offending Alpha slowly sank back into his seat, face flushed with humiliation.
"We are listening," Silas said.
I nodded. "It is a cause for alarm," I continued. "And of course, we should scramble to et their demands."
I paused.
"That is what I would do..."
Relief flooded the room like a tide. Shoulders relaxed. Air returned to lungs.
"But I will never do that."
The air vanished again—sucked from the chamber like an unseen force had torn it free.
Just then, Montegue pressed the button that activated the monitor, and a Gamma stepped forward, handing a laser pointer. The monitor flickered to life.
Onscreen was a scanned copy of the letter I’d received. Not retyped. Not transcribed. Scanned—intentionally. Because if I was going to keep these fools united until Hades returned, they needed to see what I saw.
They needed assurance.
Forcing submission would only cause infighting. And we already had enough enemies across the border. By the ti these chamber doors opened again, we needed to be on the sa page. A unified front with no weak links.
I rose, bracing myself.
"We were lovers, the Beta of Silverpine and I. I’m sure so of you see it as a nick. A tear. A scrap on my armor. Perhaps it is. But in the case of this letter—" I turned on the laser and gestured to the screen "—it is the key to a code."
"What code might that be, Luna?" Silas asked, leaning in. "Sothing tells you’ve already cracked it."
"You’re not wrong, Governor," I replied, gesturing to the first line. "The Beta has always prided himself on the art of charisma. Disarming with little effort. In this case, he used a jaded pet na of mine." I pointed to the word crimson.
The chill down my spine ca not from longing—but from disgust.
I read aloud the lines that followed.
> "I know it must co as a surprise, especially after our little spat—five or, I don’t know, six years ago? We never really got to talk about it. I know it’s late, but is it ever really too late to get so much-deserved closure?"
I turned back to the room.
"He makes light of the day everything changed. He dangles sothing in front of —" I gestured to the word closure "—as if what we had still holds sway. He tries to lull into nostalgia."
So of the Alphas leaned in. Montegue smirked, already catching on.
> "I know my decision still weighs heavily on that beautiful mind of yours. Yet it still hurts that you decided our enemy would be the one to replace in your heart. Your father was none too pleased by that."
I explained, "Here cos the guilt. The second phase of his strategy. He opens the wound, revisits a choice I made under duress, during war—when love itself was weaponized."
I stepped closer to the screen.
"Then he offers a balm. Closure. As if this letter is so long-overdue olive branch."
A beat of silence.
"And then he twists it." My voice dropped. "He doesn’t let the illusion settle. He yanks it away. Reminds I chose the enemy. That I’m the betrayer. That this—" I pointed again at heart "—was treachery. That I brought sha."
"All this for what?" Gallinti asked, voice edged with curiosity.
"To destabilize ," I answered. "So I would walk willingly into their hands. So I’d make the rash choice... and surrender."
There was a collective shift. So eyes widened. Others began murmuring, quietly but urgently.
Gallinti nodded, and I turned back to the screen.
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