Chapter 66

Chapter 66: Chapter 66

Chapter 66

KAI’S POV

My entrance into the courtroom was met with disarray among my Council. The men were scattered across the floor, hushed whispers serving as the link between their shared distaste concerning something I believed I was about to learn. The sound died in pieces as they noticed me. Not all at once. Never all at once.

My gait carried me to my throne, the Jury ordering themselves into collective silence. Once I saw that the room was paying respect to my authority, I darted my eyes across the audience, and then they stopped on one particular man.

Count Barry.

I scoffed before raising a hand.

"Proceed, Count Aaron."

The man with dyed silver hair, now in his fifties, stepped forward, the wrinkles beneath his eyelids quite evident. His boots found the same mark on the floor they always found.

"The Court received a report that has placed us in a worrisome state, and we called for this meeting so you could clear the rumours, sire."

"It seems you and the rest of the Councilmen have already begun without me," I said, my lips curling to one side. Then I beckoned with my left hand. "Anyway, I’m listening. What is the report?"

It was according to ritual that the previous Alpha King remained in Court, a means to lecture, correct, and provide the new Alpha King with knowledge in the ways of ruling the Pack, and for that reason, Father sat to my left, his thornwood seat positioned four steps behind mine, subjecting him to the relief of retirement. I could feel him there without looking. He had a way of occupying air.

"The Luna was seen crossing into the borders of MoonBlade. This is a Pack that has threatened our Pack more times than I can count, even before the birth of many of us..."

"Count Aaron, please get to the point."

The poor man looked as though he had been pushed into this trap. I could almost swear I smelled the fear lingering within his pheromones.

But he steadied his voice and displayed a dauntless character. The fear stayed. The voice did not.

"Are you planning something with MoonBlade without our knowledge, sire? Or is this completely based on the Luna’s motives? And can we even trust whom you’ve crowned Luna?"

I sighed, a part of me wanting to release the laughter hidden behind my composure. Trust. They used the word like it belonged to them.

"I see most of you still don’t trust my decision, and concerning what my Luna is doing, I approved it."

"Why would you, sire?" Count Fenvire took a step forward, his eyes narrowed as though, if he focused hard enough, he’d be able to read me like an open book.

"Alex is your Luna and my fated mate. SilverFang has always believed in fated mates being the most superior union, purposefully blessed by the Moon Goddess herself."

"This Omega isn’t even part of the Pack," Count Fenvire said bluntly before catching himself and stepping back.

A frown settled across my forehead, my hands pressing into the wooden arms of my throne. The space around me grew hotter, the atmosphere in the room mirroring the fury brewing within me. Wood creaked under my grip. I let it.

"I believe Count Fenvire doesn’t mean to insult the Luna, but only wishes to clear the doubts many of us have."

I raised a hand when Count Barry chimed in. Of course he did. He always found the gap.

I had a feeling someone among them was poisoning the minds of the others, and it looked as though if things reached a point where I could no longer tolerate these old idiots, I’d relieve them of their positions and appoint new members to serve the Court.

Though that would cause turmoil throughout the Pack, it was surely a risk worth taking at this point. The thought sat ready. I did not speak it.

"I’m done with this meeting."

"That’s disrespectful to your Councilmen," Father finally spoke.

I wanted to groan and yell at him. When he was helping and when he wasn’t, I simply couldn’t tell. He was so twisted in his methods that I couldn’t even determine whether he was for or against me. Retirement had not made him quieter. It had only moved his seat.

"I’ll no longer listen to any of this nonsense. I approved the meeting between the Luna and Alpha Frederick of MoonBlade. It’s a decision necessary for the growth of the Pack. That’s all."

I gave a vague explanation, knowing I’d only be questioned further.

Yet as I rose from my chair, Count Barry’s voice reached me.

Goodness, if this man ever died from anything other than old age, I’d wish it were by my hand.

Still, I listened.

"Such obscure details don’t put any of our minds at ease. We want our people safe, and that’s why we’re scrutinizing your actions, sire."

"Speaking of safety, I must ask what you’re spending on."

"Pardon, your Highness?" Count Barry scoffed, his eyes wavering like a startled bat.

"Don’t fidget. I haven’t caught any treasonous activity yet, however it appears the Ministry of Military Affairs has been withdrawing funds from the Bank. These actions occurred without my knowledge. I’d like to hear from you," my eyes shifted from Count Barry to the grey-haired, faintly scoliotic man beside him, "and Count Fenvire."

The room changed temperature again. This time it was not my anger doing it.

"There’s no such activity going on, sire."

"Are you calling me a liar?"

I stopped once I reached the front. Now that I’d successfully shifted their attention from Alex to their own suspicious activities, I felt the need to make this hell for them. Their eyes followed. Good. Let them follow.

I continued.

"These funds were allocated to armories, yet when counted, none of them increased. Are you sure what I’m saying is false?"

"Yes, sire. You are mistaken." The man lied without batting an eye.

He’s good, but he’s rattled. That’s enough to torment him. A rattled liar still had a pulse I could press.

"Well, then."

I turned toward the exit, planning my departure when Father called me back.

A stifled groan escaped me, my fists balling at my sides. The hallway was already calling. He was not done giving it away.

"As I said earlier, this meeting is canceled. Go and rest, Father."

"Fuck you all," I whispered under my breath the moment I stepped into the hallway.

Father was a disciplinarian, no less, but sometimes he did too much. There were moments I wanted to send him on a lengthy vacation where he’d be far away from any Court duties.

It saddened me that his trust in these men had clouded his judgment toward the truth laid before him through my actions. He had taught me to look. He would not look himself.

Inside my chambers, the shadows vomited Clawface.

"It’s done, sire."

"You were slow. What delayed you?" I asked as I sipped from the wine I’d poured myself the moment I entered the room. The glass was already in my hand. I did not remember pouring it. I remembered needing it.

Without turning my head, I sensed Clawface standing to my left while I gazed out the window toward the frost-covered lands.

Outside, winter seemed to be settling in. White on the trees. White on the roofs. Cold enough to keep honest men indoors.

"His security has tightened. Your suspicion must be right," Clawface said, and I nodded.

"Well, are you sure you have everything covered?"

"Yes. The tracker picked up all of his movements. I have everything on the feed."

"Dismissed."

The first step to countering these men was certainly to be smarter than they believed themselves to be, and Count Barry had made himself enough of a target that he was bound to trip eventually.

Yet as I played with the rim of my cup, an old adage drifted through my thoughts.

Being the loudest barrel might simply mean he wasn’t the one playing the game.

He might be intentionally making himself a target so someone else’s plans could succeed, distracting me and keeping my focus fixed on him.

Either way, I’d get to the root of these missing funds and discover exactly what armories were being purchased with them. The wine tasted like nothing. The thought tasted like work.

Plopping into the leather chair behind my desk, I twirled it to the left where my phone rested at the edge of the timber.

My mind needed to go home, and it knew exactly who to call.

On the second ring, Alex picked up.