We fell asleep almost immediately. Tomorrow we had court.
Chapter Twenty–Four
The next morning we pulled ourselves out of bed, still a little more tired than we liked. It seemed no matter how hard I tried, I was never quite able to catch up on sleep during this journey. Since the elders were gathering that morning, breakfast was delivered to the rooms. Adam had to dart across the hallway, still shirtless, to collect his from the room he was supposed to be sharing with Adam.
“I’ve never testified for anything before,” I said as I got dressed. “What should I expect?”
“Just answer their questions honestly,” Adam said. “The elders know that Seth did everything he’s accused of. The point of the trial is really to determine how severe his punishment will be.”
“So I’ll just be talking about the attack on Ashford Castle and our carriage?”
“They may ask you some background questions, just to get to know you, but yes, that’s how this should go.”
I sighed. “Do I look all right?” I asked. I had chosen a gown in my favorite sage green with a lace collar.
“Perfect,” Adam said.
Once my hair was twisted into a low bun, we left the bedroom and started down to the courtroom. Thankfully Adam knew his way around or we certainly would have gotten lost as we followed the labyrinthine halls. After many twists and turns, we came upon a rotunda with several settees and large wooden double doors. Around the room, secured above the seating, hung flags of all different countries in between flickering sconces. We took a seat along the wall, nodding at Peter and Bernadette and Hooper, waiting for the rest of our group to arrive.
Finally, after people had been trickling in for about five minutes, Christine and Jasper arrived. Christoph’s wife was watching the children so the two were alone, and sat on one of the open settees.
“Good morning,” Christine said. She was clutching Jasper’s hands, and even from across the room I could tell her knuckles were turning white with the force. Most of the blood had drained from her face, and I was concerned she might pass out.
A few moments later the wide double doors opened and Benedict stepped out. “You may enter,” he told us.
We followed him inside the massive room. Beams curved along the high ceilings, the stone walls broken up by arched stained glass windows. On either side of the center aisle, rows of pews had been set up. The jury sat to the right, each of the elders watching us as we approached. Our group filed into the seats on the right side of the room, just in front of the witness stand. We had a special lycan lawyer seated in front of our benches, waiting for the trial to begin.
Benedict sat at his judge’s bench and motioned to the guard standing beside an arched door on the left side of the room. He nodded back and opened the door. A moment later, a prisoner appeared between two guards. I had never met Seth before. It was hard to believe he was Jasper’s brother. Seth’s face was gaunter, his hair almost black and long enough to reach his shoulders, his body more slight. He looked over at us and smirked.
“Lord Wolfric,” Benedict said, looking at Seth, “your defender has not arrived yet.”
“I didn’t solicit one.”
Benedict stared at him. “Pardon?”
Seth leaned back in his seat, crossing his arms. “I didn’t solicit one. I’m acting as my own defense.”
I glanced at Adam sitting next to me. He shrugged.
Benedict spoke up. “Before we proceed, I need to verify: you are acting as your own counsel and do not wish to solicit a defense attorney?”
“That is correct,” Seth said.
Benedict turned to the little old woman who was taking notes. “Let the record show that the defendant insists on defending himself.”
The woman nodded.
Benedict addressed us all. “Ladies and gentlemen, we are gathered here to hear the case of Seth Wolfric and to determine proper punishment. Lord Wolfric, you have been charged with the murders of Gareth and Eva Wolfric, Ellen and Leonard Henstridge, and Roderick Melle; the attempted murder of Christoph Wentz and Adam Wellington; the planning of the murder of Jasper Wolfric, Duke of Faolancaster; and several counts of assault and attempted murder of Christine Wolfric.”
My eyes widened at the charges. I’d never been in the presence of someone who had caused so much destruction.
“Do you have anything to say before we begin?” Benedict asked.
“Not guilty.”
Benedict frowned. “Of which part?”
“All of it.”
Benedict sighed. “Lord Wolfric, your guilt is not in question here. We are deciding your punishment.”
Seth shrugged.
I leaned toward Adam, keeping my voice low. “Is this normal?”
“Absolutely not.”
“What is he doing?”
“Trying to cause trouble, most likely.”
It seemed he would succeed. Christine was called to the stand first. She answered the prosecutor’s questions easily enough, but looked almost nauseated when Seth began his questioning.
“Hello, Christine,” Seth said. She didn’t respond. It didn’t faze him.
“Christine,” he said, strutting as if he were on stage, “let’s talk about the so-called attack in the library. You claim that you were looking for a book and I assaulted you.”
“You did,” she said.
“Are you sure, Christine?”
“I’m positive.”
“I think that our stories are a bit different.”
“Of course they are.” She rolled her eyes.
“What I remember is that you were in the library, and I came in looking for a book. You called out to me. You wanted me to help you find something. I came to you, and you kissed me.”
“I would never.”
“Really? If I assaulted you, why didn’t you tell anyone? I think you wanted it.”
“I did tell someone,” she said, gesturing toward the seats. “I told Bridget.”
Next to me, Bridget nodded.
Seth regained his composure. “But you didn’t tell your husband. Why not?”
“I was embarrassed. I didn’t even know how to tell him,” she said, keeping her eyes on her husband. “And I didn’t want to be the reason that he didn’t speak to his brother. As it turns out, I would have been doing him a favor.”
“Christine, you were with child during this time, correct?”
“Yes.”
“And isn’t it true, don’t we all know, how women’s minds get when they are pregnant?”
Bridget scoffed, Annabelle rolled her eyes. I narrowed mine.
“What are you implying?” Christine asked.
“I’m implying that perhaps you weren’t quite in your right mind during these episodes, and that you may have gotten a little mixed up.”
“Imply if you like. I have witnesses for many of these attacks.”
Seth shook his head as he approached the stand. “Christine, are you mad at me?”
“Of course I’m mad at you! You’ve ruined my life!”
He sighed. “Are you sure it’s not because I’m Lowell’s father?”
Murmurs filled the courtroom. I looked over at Bridget, who shook her head angrily. “That mangy—”
Christine’s jaw had dropped open. “I’m sorry, what?”
He tilted his head at her. “Is it possible that I am the father?”
“Absolutely not!”
“Are you sure?”
“We never had relations in that way!”
“Are you saying I never touched you?”
“Never!”
“Well, then, Christine, how could I have attacked you?”
She took a deep breath and held her head high. “You never touched me in a romantic way. Besides, I was already pregnant when we met, so I’m not sure what you’re playing at.”
“Are you sure you were already pregnant?”
“You can ask Dr. Brighton. He’ll confirm.”
“I’ll do
that.”
Seth resumed pacing. “So, for now, let’s operate under the assumption that it is my baby.”
“Absolutely not!”
“Aren’t I asking the questions here?”
“Objection!” the prosecutor Mr. Chadwick said, and Benedict turned to Seth.
“Lord Wolfric, no more foolishness, please. If you cannot continue your line of questioning with respect and facts, then I am going to have to ask you to sit down and forfeit your questions.”
“Fine,” Seth said with a wave of his hand. “Christine, you claim that I kidnapped you.”
“You did, yes,” she said.
“But the way I see it, you came willingly.”
“You’re joking.”
He shook his head. “Not at all.”
“Your men dragged me kicking and screaming from my carriage and tied me up, then locked me in a room. I have witnesses.” She glanced at us, and I gave her a comforting nod.
We got the chance to tell our side of the story a few days later. Seth had crossed the line too many times in his attempt at a defense, so the elders had hired an attorney on his behalf, and Seth was to remain muzzled for the remainder of the court case. When I took the stand, it was his attorney who questioned me.
“State your name for the record, please,” he said.
“Hazel Ackerman.”
“And what is your relationship to this case?”
“I’m a friend of Christine’s. I was along with her when we stayed at Ashford Castle and I was present at her kidnapping.”
“How long have you known Christine Wolfric?”
“Nearly a year.”
“Would she say that you’re friends?”
“I certainly would hope so.” I glanced over at Christine and she gave me a small smile and a nod. I felt so terribly for her; after her testimony that first day, she had locked herself in her room and refused to see anyone, no matter how many times we assured her that we didn’t believe his words.
“Why did you take the trip to Ashford Castle?”
“Me, personally? Jasper wanted Christine to have company on the trip.”
“Why was Christine sent there in the first place?”
“Jasper needed to come here, to see the elders, and wanted her to be somewhere that Seth couldn’t find her.”
“What can you tell me about your time at the castle?”
“It was very stressful. We were there for a few weeks, and we were in constant fear. One night the wolves attacked the house, trying to get in. Another day, we went into town and came back to the castle to find a wolf had been strung up outside the house.”
“Who is ‘we’?”
“Adam and me,” I said, gesturing to my fiancé.
“Tell me about the ambush.”
Through his muzzle, Seth scoffed and rolled his eyes.
“Of course,” I said, flashing the elders a kind smile. “We were on our way back to Wolf’s Peak when our carriage came to a sudden stop. Out the window I could see a wolf dragging our driver away. A battle ensued. Christine was dragged away. I tried to save her, but I was bitten by a black and brown wolf. It tore up my Achilles tendon.”
I glanced at Seth, wondering what he would say to that, but instead, he just looked confused.
“Did you see Seth through all of this?” the attorney asked.
“I did not. He had people do everything for him. I think you can tell by Christine’s testimony that the kidnappers were working for Seth.”
“Had you ever interacted with Seth before this?”
“I had not.”
“So all that you know about Seth is what you’ve been told?”
“Yes.”
“Could that not sway you?”
“I’m not here to give you a personality assessment of Seth,” I said. “I’m simply here to tell you what happened.”
He gave a brusque nod. “You are dismissed.”
Several others went after me, Bridget, Christoph, and finally, Christine was back on the stand. Today she looked much better, not as tired or afraid. She took the stand and held her head high.
“Hello, again, Christine,” said the prosecutor.
“Hello.”
“Today, we’re going to talk about your kidnapping. What happened when you left Ashford Castle?”
“We left early in the morning so we would have enough time to get home. It was just as Bridget said: we were riding, and the coach stopped suddenly. We were under attack from Seth’s men. Conor and Adam shifted in the carriage, and Bridget ran out to shift in the woods. Hazel, Annabelle, and I were left in the carriage. While the others fought off wolves, our carriage was still under attack. I was grabbed and dragged outside and thrown in a carriage. I blacked out, and when I woke up, I was bound in the bottom of the carriage with Seth’s men. We arrived at the castle where Seth was waiting, and they locked me in a room. I wasn’t able to leave there until Jasper came for me a few days later.”
“How were you treated while you were there?”
“They left most of my treatment up to Christoph, and he did his best to take care of me. When Jasper arrived, Seth held me at knifepoint to keep Jasper from attacking him. We managed to create a diversion and escape outside, but once we got out there, we were surrounded. I thought for sure we were dead, but then Jasper’s men showed up. I was injured, so Christoph and Bridget brought me inside to fix me up. When we came back out, the elders had arrived.”
“During this time, did Seth ever reveal his plans to you?”
“Initially, I thought Seth would kill me to kill the baby and destroy Jasper’s chances of keeping his title. Then, I thought that by killing me and the baby, Seth would utterly destroy Jasper. But Seth wanted more. He wanted Jasper dead as well. He used me as bait to draw Jasper in. His plan was to kill us both.”
“So he could become duke?”
“Yes.”
“In your opinion, is there anything that Seth wouldn’t do to gain that title?”
“He’s killed people, including his own parents. I think he would stop at nothing to become duke.”
“What do you think should happen to Seth?”
She paused for a long time. “I would recommend he be locked up for the rest of his life.”
The prosecutor raised his eyebrows. “Not executed?”
“Not executed.”
I watched her, amazed. I had never considered myself a violent person, but had someone destroyed my life the way Seth had, I would want him put on death row.
We broke for the day not long after, relaxing for a bit before eating. Christine and Jasper had gone out to dinner for the night, pleased with how their day in court had gone. The dining room was abuzz with excitement and relaxation, even though the two weren’t there.
After we’d lounged with the others for a while, Adam and I decided to head upstairs. We were halfway up the steps when Benedict called out to us.
“May I speak with the two of you for a moment?
“Of course,” Adam said, taking my hand. We returned to the main level and Benedict pulled us into an office. We sat down in high-backed chairs across a wide mahogany table from Benedict.
“I wanted to speak to you about the wolf that’s been attacking you, Hazel, the brown and black one.”
“Oh?” I asked.
“We’re baffled. We haven’t been able to get Seth or his men to give us any information on who this person might be. I was wondering if you had any more information.”
I glanced at Adam. “Not much,” I said. “This wolf has attacked me three times, once with Seth’s men, once at Wolf’s Peak, and once in my bedroom.”
“And there was the elephant,” Adam chimed in.
“Elephant?” Benedict asked, and Adam filled him in on what had happened in London.
“I see,” Benedict sighed. “Well, thank you for letting us know. We haven’t given up trying to find the wolf’s identity yet.”
“We appreciate that,” I said.
We w
ere about to stand and leave the office when a scream pierced the air.
Chapter Twenty–Five
The three of us bolted out of our chairs. From upstairs we could hear the pounding of footsteps as the others raced toward the sound, and we followed right behind. We rushed from Benedict’s office, and I followed behind the men as they navigated the halls of the castle until we reached the entry hall. My skirts bunched in my hands, I took the stairs two at a time to reach the second floor. The hallway was in tatters, broken mirrors and pottery were scattered across the floor, and the tapestries that had once lined the walls hung in shreds.
Everyone was congregating at the end of the hall. We pushed through to find it was Christoph’s bedroom. Jasper and Christine had sunk down to the floor, all the color drained from their faces. Annabelle held Alice, Christoph’s toddler daughter, in her arms and rocked her back and forth. On the floor was Christoph’s wife Ingrid, surrounded by a pool of blood as Conor and Dr. Brighton leaned over her.
Christoph shoved through the crowd and dropped to his wife’s aid. After a few terse words with the other doctors, he took Alice from Annabelle and sat back to observe. This movement seemed to snap Jasper from his trance. He jumped to his feet.
“Where, Ingrid?” he asked, his voice rising in pitch. “Where did he take him?”
“Jasper,” Conor said, voice full of warning.
“Don’t know,” she choked out before closing her eyes. Her chest still moved as Conor stitched her up.
Jasper pushed us out of the way and stormed down the hall. Benedict followed him, and the two exchanged words. Or rather, Jasper yelled at Benedict, while Benedict nodded and tried to calm him down.
“What on earth happened?” I asked Bridget.
She pulled me aside, out of Christine’s earshot. “Seth broke free. He’s taken Lowell.”
My heart dropped in my chest as my hands flew to my mouth. “Oh, God.”
The Wolf's Betrothed (The Wolf's Peak Saga Book 5) Page 19
