Chapter 401: Wait Just A Minute

Guinevere gave a single nod to Commander Veyron.

"I recognize that I’ve been over-indexing on participation. I’ll shift into a more active-listening mode. If you’d like me to respond, I’m comfortable with a raised hand system or a verbal check-in at natural pause points. Please proceed at whatever pace feels right for you, Commander."

Veyron looked at Octavian. Octavian looked at the wall. The wall, as always, offered nothing.

Veyron straightened in his chair. "Let’s start over. You are here because you broke the law. Do you deny it?"

"Don’t answer that," Kael said immediately, his hand landing on her arm. "That’s a compound question designed to—"

"Kael, it’s okay." She gave his hand a squeeze. "I believe in accountability. It’s the foundation of any healthy relationship between an individual and the community they’ve wronged."

She sat up straighter.

"Yes, Commander. I did."

"No, she didn’t," Kael insisted. "She was with me the entire night."

Guinevere looked at Kael. She had already decided he was not going to serve time with her. This was not his battle. It was hers. She turned back to Veyron.

"I will take responsibility for my actions however your community sees fit. I entered your sacred land as an outsider with no understanding of your customs. I disrupted your water systems. I harmed your botanical community members. And I left without making it right. That is a debt I owe to your civilization and I intend to honor it through whatever restorative process your elders have established."

Kael’s hand was still on her arm. His grip tightened.

Veyron’s fist hit the table again. "I am not talking about the botanical shit."

The room flinched. Guinevere included.

"You know what I’m talking about," he said, voice low, eyes locked on hers.

Her brows knit. The confusion lasted two seconds. Then it cleared. A knowing nod followed.

"Right. You’re absolutely right, Commander. I evaded your officers. Twice. I ran from your people when they were performing their duties and I forced them to chase me through your city. That was disrespectful to your law enforcement community and I take full ownership of that too." She folded her cuffed hands on the table. "I want you to know that I did not run out of defiance. I ran because I was frightened by the weapons drawn on me. I hadn’t realized I was trespassing at the time and the weapons were glowing, which wasn’t something I had seen before. It’s not an excuse and I take responsibility for that as well. Where I come from, when armed men are yelling at you and draw their weapons, that means they are going to hurt you so my instinct there was to flee. That is a cultural gap I am committed to closing."

Kael turned his head slowly towards her. Then back to Commander Veyron. When he spoke, all humor was gone from his voice.

"Your officers drew weapons on an unarmed woman who was lost. That is a problem, Commander. A big one for you."

"Interrupt again, Dragon, and I will remove you from this room," Veyron said without looking at him.

"No. You won’t be. The largest wolf army in Nyros and the entire dragon army of Velkaris are mobilizing as we speak. You left two very pissed off kings in the Drakencrest throne room. You want me on your side. Trust me."

"Perhaps," Guinevere cut in softly. "If your community offers a program where offenders can ride along with your officers to better understand their practices, I would be the first to enroll. I think immersion is the fastest path to mutual respect."

Veyron stared at her. The stare lasted six full seconds.

"She thinks this is about running," Octavian offered.

"It’s not about running," Veyron snapped.

Guinevere’s brows knit again, deeper this time.

"If it’s not the fountains, the garden, or the fleeing," she said slowly, "then what is it about, Commander? Are you able to give me a hint or some context?"

"Landon Solveil was found in a coma. You were the last person with him. Tell me how that happened."

The room went still.

Guinevere blinked. Once. Twice. The confusion on her face wasn’t performed. It wasn’t strategic. It was the raw, unfiltered confusion of a woman hearing a sentence that didn’t make sense.

Kael’s chest went cold, feeling it. The matebond was delivering her emotions in high definition and what it was delivering was not guilt or deflection. It was genuine surprise by that statement.

"I think you’re mistaken, Commander. I’ve never met Landon Solveil." Her voice was steady. "But the other crimes we discussed are absolutely correct. The fountains, the flora, the fleeing. All of those are mine and I accept them fully."

"Here’s what I think," Veyron said slowly, leaning across the table. "You tried to murder Landon Solveil. You ran. And now you’re lying about it."

Guinevere’s spine straightened and warmth left her face. It wasn’t anger, but it was more firm. Something that looked like a woman who had been called a liar by a man she had been cooperating with for two hours and the accusation had landed somewhere personal.

"I have not lied to you once tonight, Commander. Not during the intake. Not when I told your guard his health mattered. Not when I said your jumpsuit was lovely. I meant every word I’ve spoken in this building. I do not lie."

She looked at Kael. The look lasted one second.

Kael saw it. All of it. The confusion. The hurt. The absolute, unshakeable certainty of a woman who had no idea what Veyron was talking about.

The cold in his chest turned to ice.

For the second time tonight, the thought surfaced: what if she didn’t know?

Maybe she hadn’t realized how bad she injured Solveil. Wolves heal quickly. So do dragons. Maybe she assumed he would heal faster than he did.

"You were unconscious when he brought you in," Octavian said. "The Head Healer confirmed he was carrying someone that fit your description."