“Seer Matthews of the Hagan Pack,” Stefan intoned. “You have a claim to make against this girl.”
“I do, Polemarch.” Her back stayed ramrod straight, her voice didn’t betray even the hint of a quiver, and her eyes stayed resolutely trained on the man in front of her. There was no indication, not even the smallest of hints, that she felt any regret for handing over a child she once hugged and cuddled over to the proverbial wolves. “I have witnessed this girl, who does not come from Shifter blood, Change. Such an unnatural act could only be accomplished by a Thaumaturgic.”
Stefan leaned forward ever so slightly. “This is a very serious accusation. Are you certain you want to proceed?”
“Absolutely,” she said with zero hesitation.
“And you understand the punishment that will be met if she is found guilty?” Stefan’s reluctance seemed genuine, which was more than a little unexpected.
“I do, and I do not wish to retract my claim.”
“She was once a babe under your care, was she not?”
Mrs. Matthews’s voice finally shook, but not with the emotion I originally expected. “And I pray every single day that God will forgive me for being led astray by this devil.”
I heard a small gasp and didn’t have to turn around to know its origin. Talley was as horrified by the words coming out of her mother’s mouth as I was. Knowing Talley, she was possibly even more horrified than me. At least I expected people to be selfish and weak minded. She honestly believed everyone was good and strove to do what was right. To hear her mother speak with such vile and hatred probably turned her entire world view upside down.
“You are a woman of great faith,” Sarvarna said. “May God hear your prayers with a gracious ear.”
Mrs. Matthews once again dropped to the ground. “Thank you for your kindness, your Highness.”
Since I couldn’t bear to look at her groveling, I took the opportunity to scan the rest of the Alpha Pack. On the Shifter side, Mandla and Hashim both looked like trained soldiers ready to leap up and protect their Alphas at the first sign of trouble while Travis was somewhere in between ready to attack and ready to take a nap. The Seers, on the other hand, were all over the place. Lizzie was fidgety. She would cross and uncross her legs, and then do it all over again. I was pretty sure all her fingernails were already gnawed to bits, but her fingers stayed in her mouth all the same. She seemed even more spastic because she was sitting next to the cool and collected Mischa, who managed to look even more regal than Sarvarna with her perfect posture and detached interest. True sat next to her, the princess to Mischa’s Czarina. The way she relaxed into her chair and regarded the audience as if they were sent to amuse her, but were failing miserably, spoke of a lifetime of pampering and entitlement.
Somehow, seeing their detachment made it easier to push back the wolf and even gain a bit of distance myself. After all, getting overly emotional and flipping out wasn’t going to help anything. I might as well try to enjoy the show.
Of course, that proved difficult once Mrs. Matthews straightened back up and started answering the Alphas’ questions. My mother died during childbirth, and my only knowledge of her came from stories other people told me. Since no one is going to say something bad about your dead mama, she was the very definition of perfection in my head. I liked it that way, which meant I was not at all fond of Mrs. Matthews referring to her as a “manipulative witch who sacrificed herself for the advancement of her people’s ungodly doctrine.”
Once Mrs. Matthews finished her account of my life — from unholy birth to murdering a Shifter so I could steal his essence to spiriting away the most promising of the Hagan Pack by playing on their emotions — the Alphas turned their attention to the members of my Pack.
“I would like to know what Hoplite Hagan, the young Seer Matthews, and Potential Donovan witnessed during their time with Miss Donovan post-Change,” Stefan said.
Mrs. Matthews sat down, and the three people I was closest to in the whole world came forward. Talley managed to trip on the leg of a chair as she came up, catching herself on my shoulder. The contact was brief, but just long enough for her to send three images through the bond - A truck. A gate. A barn.
“Seer Matthews, let’s begin with you.” Stefan flashed Talley a mangled smile. “Has Miss Donovan attempted to pull information about the whereabouts of other Shifters or how to contact the Alpha Pack?”
“No, sir.”
“When she Changes, can you hear her as you can a real Shifter?”
A real Shifter? Could I object?
“Yes, sir.”
“Are you able to See her as you are others?”
“Yes, sir.”
Stefan did that slight lean forward thing again. “And, tell me, Seer Matthews, what is it you See when you touch her?”
Talley’s fingers went to her hair, making my stomach clench. “Well, my ability isn’t very strong. I only get a bit of what the other person is feeling, but she was genuinely confused and scared after her first Change. And I’ve never felt any ill will from her at all.”
Speaking of confusion, I had a major dose of it. Why would Talley lie about her abilities? She was like the freaking Seer Golden Child. I couldn’t understand her subterfuge until I heard the sigh of relief from Lizzie and saw the smirk on True’s face. Talley wanted to stay off the other’s radar, not be seen as a threat. I imagined how “you can call me Your Highness” would react to finding out there was a Seer more powerful than she was.
There was a reason I always said Talley was the smartest person I knew.
“Tell me,” her royal evilness said, “would you confess to Seeing no ill will in the devil himself if he was standing here?”
“Excuse me?”
Sarvarna screwed up her face into a condescending smile. “Oh, I didn’t mean it as admonishment.” And I was in the running for the Heisman Trophy. “I was simply alluding to your exceptionally altruistic personality. I wouldn’t doubt you could find the good in even the most putrid of souls.”
“I know evil when I See it.”
Stop it! I mentally screamed at Talley. Don’t provoke her, you crazy girl.
Sarvarna kept going as if she didn’t register the insult. “But would you in a person you had grown alongside your whole life? Would you recognize evil in your best friend?”
“Scout isn’t evil!”
Sarvarna started to say something, but Stefan put a hand on her knee, silencing her. “I think Seer Matthews has told us all she can,” he said. “Hoplite Hagan, are you prepared to testify?”
Charlie bowed his head, his eyes closed. “With all due respect, I have forfeit my life to the accused. It is against our custom for me to speak for or against her.”
No one seemed to know how to respond to that. Sarvarna wrinkled her eyebrows at Stefan, and Lizzie whispered “Is that true?” so loudly to Mischa everyone in the room heard.
“You are truly a noble Shifter,” Stefan finally said. “What a better world it would be if everyone had your knowledge of our customs and the honor to adhere to them.”
Charlie dipped slightly lower before rising back up to his full height.
Stefan templed his fingers together. “I suppose that leaves you, Potential Donovan. Are you capable of speaking without prejudice about your sister?”
Jase’s eyes met mine, and I felt the rusty knife he’d shoved into my back twist. “She isn’t my sister.”
I decided right then and there that Sarvarna would die for the smug smile spreading across her face.
Never once did Jase lie during his testimony. Instead, he gave the truthful answers of a person willing to please. Was the late Mrs. Donovan a Thaumaturgic? He didn’t know, but her parents did wield a great deal of power in the human world. Was the accused’s Changes normal? They followed the pull of the moon and caused the same amount of pain, but the speed with which it was accomplished was shocking. Over and over again he stated the facts in a way that suggested I might be what they accused m
e of being. And over and over again my heart broke.
When the Alphas finally grew tired of using Jase to torment me, they allowed the three of them to sit down.
“Does anyone else wish to speak before we make our ruling?” Stefan asked in a tone suggesting it was the same type of rhetorical remark as the “speak now or forever hold your peace” part of a wedding ceremony.
Toby, being Toby, ignored the implied sentiment and stood up. “I would like to address the council, if I may.”
“Come forward, Tagmatarchis Hagan.”
Toby walked forward, did the whole bow thing, and then took a deep breath before speaking. “I offer myself as a guardian for this girl.” He took another deep breath and his hands shook. “I will take her under my care and my watch, alerting the Alphas to any questionable behavior. I am willing to forfeit my life should she harm another Shifter in any way.”
Of all the things said over the course of the evening, it was Toby’s words, said with a tremor of nerves and fear, that almost brought me to tears.
“No,” Sarvarna said without even the pretense of thinking it over. “You have shown poor judgement where this girl has been concerned from the beginning. Instead of turning her over to us the moment you knew of her unnatural abilities, you gave her a territory of her own. You are too emotionally attached to operate as a fit Pack Leader in this regard. So, no. We will not allow her to be taken under your watch. I do not wish to wake up dead by her hand, thank you very much.”
“How do you wake up dead?” Thankfully, I muttered it softly enough Stefan had to ask, “What was that?”
I cleared my throat and opened my mouth. When nothing but a creak came out, I did the whole throat clearing thing again. “I was just asking if I get to speak in my defense.”
Sarvarna flipped a strand of hair back over her shoulder. “We really aren’t interested in anything you have to say, Thaumaturgic.”
“What was the point of all this?” My voice was eerily calm considering the havoc taking place on my insides. “To humiliate me? To break me down just to watch me crumble?” I took a deep breath and pulled back my shoulders, refusing to fall apart for them. “This was never a trial to see if I was guilty or innocent. It was a show, your own freaking Hunger Games orchestrated to prove your power while entertaining the privileged. Well, no more. I’m done. Pass the flippin’ poisoned berries.”
The look the Alpha Female threw my way was normally reserved for crazy street people. “Poisoned berries? Am I supposed to know what you’re referring to?”
Only if you’re literate. “Sentence me. Now.”
Sarvarna stood. After a barely perceptible sigh, Stefan followed her. “You know,” she said, “this could have gone differently.”
“How?”
“You could’ve begged. Groveled. You could have petitioned another Pack. I’m sure the Matthews would have found a use for you.” I shuddered at the thought. “But no, you had to stand there as if you deserve our mercy. You spoke as if you were not only our equal, but superior in some way.” She slinked towards me, stopping at what would have been just out of my reach if I had use of my hands. “You’ve shown us your soul tonight, and it is not one that can co-exist with the Shifters and Seers of this world. Therefore, to protect those under my care, you are sentenced to death.”
Chapter 28
I knew it was coming, had known it was coming for weeks, but still my knees turned to jelly and my heart exploded in my chest. Bob and Cory barely managed to keep me from hitting the ground.
I wasn’t the only one having a bit of a reaction. There was a lot of muttering and movement going on around me, but no single voice broke through my haze of complete and utter panic. I was completely cut off from my surroundings until someone prodded me forward.
“Where are we going?” I asked… Travis? Yes, Travis was the person with one hand around my upper arm and the other pushing on my lower back.
“This ain’t the US penal system, sweetheart. We follow through with our sentences rather quickly.”
“What? Now? You’re going to kill me now?” Fresh panic flooded my mouth with a metallic tang. “I don’t get to say goodbye?”
His eyes, which I once found mildly attractive, reflected nothing. “Nope, but they’re letting your boyfriend go along for the show since he has that life debt and all. He can’t be executed in your stead, but it does allow him to be with you when you die.”
Oh God. Charlie was going to have to witness this? “No, I don’t want him there.” He would break for real this time.
“Sorry, cupcake. Your opinion no longer matters.”
In the end it was Travis, Hashim, Mandla, Stefan, Sarvarna, Bob, and Charlie who walked with me out into the moonless summer night. Rocco and Cory stayed behind to “protect the Seers”.
The path we took led up from the lake into acres upon acres of untamed forest. There was only enough room for two people to walk side by side, so we created a bizarre parade. I was trapped in the middle with Travis at my side, his fingers leaving bruises on my arm. The other two higher ranking Shifters sandwiched us, Mandla in front and Hashim close on our heels. Bob and Sarvarna brought up the rear while Charlie and Stefan led the way. Pieces of their conversation floated back to me. From what I could catch, Stefan was offering Charlie a spot in the Alpha Pack.
When the path finally stopped in a freshly made clearing I thought perhaps it was some elaborate and unfunny practical joke.
“That’s a guillotine,” I said eyeing the blade swinging ever so slightly above the wooden base. Where did someone buy a giant blade like that?
“Always so clever,” Sarvarna said from the tree line.
“Always so bitchy,” I replied. A slap jerked my head back, but it was worth it, especially since I knew Mandla would have a sore hand from the impact with my teeth. Plus, it snapped me out of my fog.
“You know…” I paused to spit blood out of my mouth. “This whole executing a witch thing? You’re doing it wrong. There should be a stake and fire. Or maybe some rope and a deep river. You could have even pressed me with heavy rocks and still been keeping with tradition, but a guillotine? That screams more French Revolution than Salem Witch Trials.”
A sneer doesn’t look good on anyone, but when someone of Sarvarna’s unquestionable beauty tries one on they manage to transform from the most attractive person in the room to the most beastly. “I can’t wait to watch your head roll.”
“Which is why you will not.” Stefan stepped between us, his back to me. “You’re going back to be with the others.”
“Noooo!” Sarvarna managed to turn the word into about fifteen syllables. The look she gave Stefan was one of a teenager to her father instead of a woman to her husband. “I want to watch her die.”
“Absolutely not. Life is sacred. No matter her crimes, Harper deserves to leave this world with dignity.” When she opened her mouth to say something, probably about my dignity or lack thereof, he stopped her by raising his hand. “You’re not degrading her final moments.” There was no doubt that was the final word on the matter. “Bob, please escort her back to the others.”
The Shifter didn’t looked thrilled at the idea of herding his queen back through the forest, but he followed orders, even when Sarvarna pulled out of his grasp, announcing she could walk just fine on her own. We all stood around and watched them leave, no one moving or saying anything until they were long gone. Stefan was the first to break the silence.
“I am sorry,” he said, and for some reason I believed him. “She is still young and does not understand the tragedy of a life ended. It is a kind of innocence I want her to keep a while longer.”
While I didn’t doubt his regret for the pre-death cat fight, I wasn’t so sure of Sarvarna’s innocence. My knowledge of tragedy and loss began on the day I was born, but I would bet good money I was more innocent than the chick who seduced a man at least twice her age. That slanky bitch possessed a wicked soul.
“You want to protect the you
ng, but you’re still going to Marie Antoinette me, right?”
Stefan’s heavy hand rested on my shoulder. “To protect our young, I must.” His eyes looked curiously wet as he dropped his voice. “I honestly believe you don’t know what you are and never meant to cause harm, but I can’t risk being wrong. Sometimes individual sacrifices must be made for the well-being of many.”
My throat closed up, choking off the ability to speak. Not that I knew what I would say to that. Somehow it didn’t feel like a victory to have Stefan on my side if I was going to go ahead and die anyway.
“Charles,” Stefan said to the boy who hovered closer than any of the others, “would you like a moment to say goodbye?”
Charlie’s thank you was low-pitched and gravely as he came forward, yet there were no tears in his brilliant green eyes. His hand went around to clasp the back of my neck, pulling my forehead forward to touch his.
“Be strong, be courageous, and do not be afraid.”
“Ummm… Isn’t that a church song?”
A raise of eyebrows. “Seemed appropriate.”
“Take care of them, okay?” I didn’t need to tell him who they were. He knew me as well I knew him. “They’ll need you, not Zombie Charlie.” The forehead against mine bobbed slightly. “I need to you promise, Charlie. Promise me you won’t go all silent and disconnected again.”
“I promise.”
This time it was my forehead doing the bobbing thing.
No one interrupted as we stood there, taking warmth and comfort from each other for the last time. The thumb of Charlie’s free hand, the one not still attached to the back of my neck, traced my bottom lip. It was soon replaced by his lips. It was a soft and sweet kiss, but not one of lovers. It was two friends who existed together for so long they were woven into the fabric of each other’s very soul saying goodbye. Then I was being pulled into a hug so ferocious I couldn’t breath.
“See the tree straight ahead with a knot in it?” Nothing more than a breath against my ear. I found the gnarled trunk and nodded. “Run that way as fast as you can.”
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