To ruin an Omega Nov Chapter 201: Hold that hammer

Chapter 201: Hold that hamr

FIA

I stood slowly, the words leaving my mouth before I could second-guess them.

"I do not think so."

The room shifted. Every head turned toward . The elders. Father and stepmother. The strange woman and man. Even the sentinels by the door straightened, their attention pulled in my direction.

My father’s voice cut through the sudden quiet. "Fia."

It was a sharp warning. But the man didn’t have that kind of power ovee

anymore.

I didn’t look at him. My eyes stayed locked on the lead elder’s face. On the furrow between his brows. On the way his mouth had pressed into a thin line.

"Milo’s family would be here today," I said. My voice carried farther than I expected. Steadier. "But they feared for their lives."

The whispers started imdiately. Low murmurs that rippled through the room like wind through grass.

My father stood. I felt the movent more than saw it. The scrape of his chair. The rustle of fabric.

"Fia," he said again.

I kept my gaze forward.

"They believed sobody wanted to assassinate them." I let the words hang there. I let them settle into the minds of everyone listening. "I’m not pointing fingers when I say sobody."

My eyes drifted then. Just for a mont. Just long enough to find her.

Isobel.

She sat rigid in her seat. Her face had gone gaunt. Pale. The color had drained from her skin so completely she looked like a ghost. Her lips parted slightly but no sound ca out.

I turned back to the elders.

"But they sought asylum with ," I said. "And I got evidence. Milo’s words himself."

The lead elder leaned forward. His fingers steepled beneath his chin. The other elders exchanged glances. Quick. Uncertain.

"If you have evidence," the lead elder said slowly, "then play it."

My hand moved to my pocket. My fingers closed around my phone. The weight of it felt heavier than it should have. I pulled it up. Unlocked the screen. Opened the audio app.

The file was right there. Waiting.

I pressed play.

Static crackled first. Then breathing. Heavy and uneven. Like soone trying to steady themselves before speaking.

Then Milo’s voice filled the room.

"Man, I don’t even know where to start with this."

The words were thick. Tired. Like he’d been carrying sothing too heavy for too long.

"I was used. I know that now. I was used by a girl I thought loved . A girl who said she cared for

at the ti. And because of that love, because I believed it, I betrayed my mate. I put her in a position where she was seen as the traitor of the pack."

He paused. The silence stretched. I watched the elders lean in closer.

"But she doesn’t love ," Milo continued. His voice cracked slightly. "She just used . To hurt her sister. To sell her story even more. And I’m scared, man. I’m scared all that betrayal was for nothing. I don’t know how to make this shit right."

There was another pause on the voicemail. It was longer this ti.

"But I’m going to," he said. His voice fird up. "Because it’s what a man should do. It’s what I should have done from the start."

He exhaled. Long and shaky.

"I love you, Barry. I know you hate that nickna. But just... just... Take care of grandmother. Because I might not see her for a while."

The recording ended.

Silence crashed down like a wave. Nobody moved. Nobody spoke.

Then the whispers started again. Louder this ti. More urgent.

I looked at the elders. "That’s Milo saying he betrayed

because he thought my sister loved him. And when he realized he’d been used, he wanted to make things right. Confess. But he couldn’t."

I let my gaze drift to Hazel. She stared at

with wide eyes. Her face had gone pale too but in a different way than Isobel’s. Hers was the pallor of soone cornered. Trapped.

"Because all of a sudden," I said, "he was accused of rape. And put to death."

I paused. Let the implication sink in.

"Makes you wonder."

The laugh started small. A hollow sound that didn’t quite reach Hazel’s eyes. Then it grew. Louder. Sharper. Until it turned into sothing manic. Sothing unhinged.

"You psychotic evil bitch!" The words tore out of her. "Wow. I didn’t think you had it in you. But you want

dead."

She pushed herself up. Her movents were jerky. Uncontrolled.

"If I just die," she scread, "I’ll take you with !"

She lunged forward. Her body twisted as she tried to jump toward the semicircle of tables where the elders sat. Where I stood.

The front doors burst open. Sentinels poured through. Four of them. They grabbed Hazel before she made it two steps. Their hands locked around her arms. Her waist. She thrashed against them. Screaming. Clawing.

"Let

go! Let

go!"

I stood perfectly still. My expression didn’t change.

"If that isn’t a confession," I said quietly, "I don’t know what is."

The lead elder’s face had gone hard. His jaw set. He looked at Hazel struggling in the sentinels’ grip. Then back to .

"We all listened to the evidence," he said. His voice carried the weight of judgnt. "It makes sense why the Ashfords disappeared from the face of the earth when we looked for them."

Movent caught my eye. A woman stood. It was the strange lady from before who had called

Athena.

"This gathering feels biased," she said.

The lead elder’s head snapped toward her. "What?"

"I said it feels biased." Her voice was cool. Clinical and detached in a way that made you feel sick to the stomach. "That recording could have been doctored for all we know."

My fingers tightened around my phone.

"Why does she even have to speak?" the woman continued. "This matter concerns the Ashfords."

I t her gaze directly. "I was his ex-mate. I have as much standing here as anyone. The reason he was killed was because of ."

My voice didn’t waver. Neither did it shake.

"Who are you," I asked, "to even have a say at this table?"

She smiled. It didn’t reach her eyes.

"I am Isobel’s mother," she said. "Pauline Strati."

The na hit the room like a stone dropped in still water. Ripples spread outward. There were more whispers. More sidelong glances.

I looked at the elders. "The recording can be scanned. There’s ti." I gestured toward where Hazel still struggled against the sentinels. "Even if Hazel’s outburst is more than enough, there’s ti. And I have nothing to hide."

Pauline’s smile didn’t falter. But sothing flickered behind her eyes. Sothing cold and calculating.

The lead elder looked between us. Between

and Pauline. Between the phone in my hand and Hazel being restrained by four grown n.

"We will have the recording examined," he said finally. "But the accused’s reaction speaks volus on its own."

Hazel’s screaming had turned to sobs. The broken and desperate type. She sagged in the sentinels’ grip. Isobel on the other hand, still looked like death itself had touched her shoulder.

I slipped my phone back into my pocket. My heart hamred against my ribs but I kept my breathing even. And I kept my face calm.

Baruch stood behind

still. I felt his presence like a steady weight at my back. Grounding .

The lead elder stood. The other elders followed suit.

"This council will reconvene after the evidence has been properly examined," he said. "Until then, Hazel Hughes will remain in custody."

Hazel’s head snapped up. "No. No, you can’t do this!"

The sentinels dragged Hazel toward the side door. Her protests echoed off the walls until the door slamd shut behind them.

Then silence fell again.

I turned slowly. My eyes found my father. He looked at

with an expression I could read as clear as day.

Pure unadulterated disgust.

Then I looked back at the other woman. Pauline Strati.

It was odd to see a Strati here because everyone knew that stepmother’s parents practically disowned her the second she took my father’s hand.

Was this also the doing of Gabriel?