Chapter 70 — The Law
The Elder council chamber was colder than Nora remembered. She sat beside Raphael on the raised bench meant for petitioners, her hands folded in her lap, watching three old Elders shuffle papers like they had all the time in the world while her whole future was in a state of jeopardy, was more worse than facing rejection.
Elder Thomasin cleared his throat and unrolled a long scroll of law text, his reading glasses sliding down his nose.
"An Alpha's unborn child, born outside a formal bond," he read slowly, "loses pack standing unless the Alpha publicly acknowledges the child and either bonds formally with the mother, or grants the child direct Alpha lineage recognition through a separate ceremony."
Raphael's shoulders were tight beside her, but his voice came out
