Alpha v. Luna

Bambi

We had only a week to prepare for the trial, but Alpha Leonardo was confident in our defense. He and Max had coached me for hours on end, but I still felt uneasy.

The nerves weren’t really for myself. I had already decided to accept whatever decision the court made. The anxious feelings were for Ekon.

This trial was going to change his life forever…

And today was the day.

I wished that I could let Ekon stay in the dark about his family, but I had to remember what Leonardo had said—convincing the Council of Matthias’ return was our only goal.

As I walked into the Council chambers, where court would be held, Alpha Leonardo ushered me past rows and rows of seats filled with spectators. Everyone had turned up to see the Alpha’s mate stand trial.

The entire Royal Council was in attendance, as well as the royal family.

We took our place at the front of the courtroom alongside the rest of our team. Ekon’s team was on the other side, but he hadn’t arrived yet.

Although I recognized several of the alphas sitting behind the tribunal bench, there were some I’d never seen before.

“The king appointed three alpha ambassadors in place of the Royal Council members who were involved in the case,” Leonardo whispered into my ear. “Two of the ambassadors are foreign dignitaries who have no biases, so their neutrality could work in our favor. The third is the king’s son, however. The royal family is quite close with the Jedreks.”

I glanced at Prince Apollo, the boy who I’d thought, for a moment, might be my mate. I wouldn’t have made that mistake today.

He was glaring at me with hatred. Apparently he had already made up his mind about my guilt.

I looked away, trying to focus on someone else, but my eyes landed on Ekon as he walked into the chamber.

Our gazes locked together, and all the pain that I’d been pushing down came rushing back up to the surface.

I hadn’t seen or spoken to him in a week, and now, here we were meeting again, but on opposite sides…adversaries.

It remained to be seen if the end of this trial would make things better or worse between us, but at least the truth would come out. That was a burden that had become too heavy to carry any longer.

Ekon took his place with his team, and I tried to compose myself. Crying here wasn’t going to make me look sympathetic, only weak.

Once everyone was in place, King Dmitri entered, and we all bowed or took a knee. The last time I’d seen the king, he had been playful and kind to me, but this time, he was far more imposing.

Especially seated on a dais ten feet off the ground…

“Everyone, at ease,” he said in his powerful, booming voice. “Court is now in session.”

We all resumed sitting, but the king immediately turned his gaze to me.

“The accused, Bambi Jedrek, Ela Shetty, Holly Stone, and Victoria Ryland face charges of stealing intelligence files, usage of restricted data, summoning prohibited supernatural elements, espionage, theft of sensitive data, and pack treason. Please send forth a representative and tell the court how you plead,” King Dmitri commanded.

Slowly, I walked toward the podium and spoke into the microphone.

“We plead not guilty, Your Majesty.”

“Very well, then we shall hear your case,” he said, sounding like he’d hoped for the opposite. “Does the Council swear to remain impartial during the proceedings, under the light of the Moon Goddess, providing a just and unbiased verdict?”

One by one, each of the Royal Council members swore their fidelity.

“I swear it,” replied both the foreign ambassadors.

“I swear it,” said Prince Apollo, though he looked far from impartial.

“I swear it,” growled Alpha Hades, a man who was even more fearsome in appearance and demeanor than Ekon. He was Ekon’s cousin, though I had no idea what their relationship was like.

“I swear it,” followed Alpha Vladimir, who wore an expression that was hard to read.

Hunter sat at the end, the last of the Council.

“I…” Hunter could get no words out. The infamous cunt sniffer with the silver tongue was rendered completely speechless by something.

His eyes had widened, and he looked pale, as if he’d seen a ghost.

“I...cannot,” he said, eliciting a wave of gasps from the crowd.

“Order!” shouted the King.

~What the hell is he doing?~

I followed his eye line to Ela, who looked just as shocked and bewildered as him.

~Oh my Goddess.~

“I have…I’ve just realized that one of the accused, Ela Shetty, is my mate,” Hunter stammered.

The crowd erupted into an obnoxious drone of conversation that not even the king could quiet.

“Order, order!” he yelled again.

“I regret that I must remove myself from this seat, as I may find my judgment clouded by this recent development,” Hunter said in a daze, standing up and leaving the Council podium.

He seated himself in the back of the court, eyes glazed over, looking as though he’d just been shot with a tranquilizer dart.

He was of no use to us now…

“Shit, this is bad for us,” Leonardo growled under his breath. “Hunter was our only ally.”

Ela was trembling, tears falling down her face. I knew exactly how she felt…

It was how I felt when I first found out I was mated to the terrifying war general, Ekon.

I looked over at him, but Ekon didn’t seem pleased by this development.

He looked just as worried as Leonardo…

Ekon

That damn bastard really had to go and get mated now? Right in the middle of a trial where my mate could be charged with treason?

This was fucking bad.

He was the only one on that Council who would’ve had her back.

Even though we sit on opposite sides of this matter, it’s Bambi’s side that I hoped would win.

Yes, I was furious at my mate for what she’d done…

She’d lied to my face for months about her so-called book club.

She’d researched my past against my wishes.

She’d placed herself and others in danger more times than I could count.

But she had a good heart, and she held mine in the palm of her hand.

I knew she’d never intentionally hurt me.

This was just a misguided quest for answers about her parents’ deaths, or at least that’s what I was telling myself.

I just wanted to put this all behind us and pick up where we’d left off after she told me she loved me.

I’d never expected to hear those words from her, but when I did, I felt a renewed sense of purpose that I hadn’t felt since the Great War.

Now, a new war was raging on, one in this very courtroom.

It was the first battle I hoped I’d lose.

~WHACK.~

~WHACK.~

~WHACK.~

King Dmitri banged the gavel against his podium, signaling that the short recess was over.

I was told his wife, Queen Grace, was seated in Hunter’s place, though I couldn’t predict what that would mean for Bambi.

“Let the proceedings commence,” Dmitri boomed.

“Let’s fucking get on with it,” I muttered to myself.

The council-appointed attorney for the prosecution approached the bench and addressed the Council.

“The prosecution has the floor,” Dmitri announced.

The prosecutor spoke with a disarming smugness. “Your Majesty and distinguished Council members, this is a historic case. It’s fraught with difficult choices and will doubtless test our scruples, but the prosecution trusts that the Council will come to the right conclusion after we examine the evidence.”

This guy was a slimy prick. He was already kissing the asses of the Council members.

“The plaintiff, Alpha Supreme Ekon Helmer Jedrek, has filed this case against his own mate for the larger good of his pack. It was a difficult decision on his part, but being a fair Alpha is of the utmost importance to him,” the prosecutor said.

I had no fucking choice in this at all. When Bambi and her friends decided to request a trial involving a Royal Council member, the decision was out of my hands.

“I’d like to begin with the charges of theft. Restricted files were taken from the pack house by Ela Shetty, at the request of Bambi Jedrek, but the proper authorization was not used. Alpha Ekon had no knowledge of this request, nor did he give his permission.”

It was true, and there was nothing I could say to dispute that fact.

“I object to that claim, Your Majesty,” Leonardo countered. He walked onto the floor to challenge the prosecution. “Ms. Shetty had the required permission to check out the documents.”

I heard a rustling of paper, and then a page was slapped down onto a table.

“I present to the court the authorization form signed by Luna Bambi,” Leonardo stated. “Though an alpha normally approves restricted materials, pack law states that a Luna has that authority as well. Nothing illegal was done in this situation, and the defense requests that this particular charge be dropped.”

“Yes, you are correct in this matter, Alpha Leonardo,” the prosecutor said in his smug tone. “A Luna can indeed grant authorization for such materials.”

~Why does he sound so smug? What the fuck is he playing at?~

“But, Your Majesty, Bambi Jedrek is not a Luna, not officially anyway. She has yet to be initiated in accordance with pack law, a custom usually performed immediately after mating,” he said, causing chaos to erupt throughout the crowd.

My heart sank as I listened to the rumbling of the spectators.

He…he was right.

She was never initiated…

I’d just wanted to give her space.

But by the rules of pack custom, Bambi was never officially a Luna.