THE WOLF KING'S RUIN

5

Chapter Five

Vera's Pov

"State your case," Marcus said. He hadn't turned to look at the screen, he just kept his eyes on the table in front of him. The dismissiveness of it was deliberate.

Evan's smile tightened slightly. "I'm here regarding Vera Ashwood, who fled Crescent Lake Pack territory two weeks ago after stealing valuable pack documents and breaking the terms of her supervised residency. She's dangerous, unstable, and I'm formally requesting her return to face pack justice."

"Supervised residency," I repeated. "Is that what you're calling it now?"

"Vera." Marcus's voice was quiet, but I heard the warning in it. Let him talk. Allow him to lie. We'll dismantle it after.

Evan continued like I hadn't spoken. "Ten years ago, Vera murdered her mother in an unprovoked attack. The pack chose mercy, allowing her to live under strict supervision rather than face execution. She's been a model resident since then, which is why her sudden theft and flight came as such a shock."

"A model resident who you had threatened with death if she didn't leave," I said. I couldn't help it. The lies were too blatant and it had started to get me annoyed.

"That's a serious accusation," Torres said, looking between Evan's image and me. "Do you have proof?"

"The enforcers who delivered the message aren't likely to testify against their Alpha," I said. "But I have the silver burns on my wrists from where they cuffed me and left the restraints on too long. I have three days of running through winter territory with no supplies because I left with nothing but what I was wearing. And I have the fact that I'm here, nearly dead, instead of safe in Crescent Lake if everything was so pleasant."

"Silver burns could come from anywhere," Kane said. "That's not proof."

"It's more proof than Evan has of these supposed stolen documents," Marcus said. He finally turned to look at the screen, and I saw Evan's expression flicker—just for a second—with something that might have been fear. "What documents were taken, exactly?"

"Pack financial records. Strategic planning documents. Sensitive information that could compromise our security if it fell into the wrong hands."

"And you have evidence she took these things?"

Evan hesitated. It was barely noticeable, but everyone in that room was trained to read hesitation. "The documents went missing the same day she left. The connection is clear."

"Correlation isn't causation," Torres murmured. "Alpha Cross, do you have any witnesses who saw her take these documents? Any proof they existed in the first place?"

"I have the testimony of my enforcers who can confirm the timeline."

"The same enforcers Vera claims threatened her," Marcus said. He leaned back in his chair, and that smile appeared again. It appeared pleasant, easy and completely false. "Forgive me, Evan, but your case seems to rest entirely on the word of wolves who serve you directly and have every reason to support whatever narrative you present. That's not evidence. That's loyalty."

"Are you calling me a liar?" Evan's voice sharpened.

"I'm calling your evidence insufficient." Marcus's tone didn't change. "You're asking me to hand over a wolf who sought refuge on my land based on accusations you can't substantiate. Pack law doesn't work that way."

"Pack law says rogues answer for crimes in their home territory," Kane said. "If she committed theft—"

"If," Marcus interrupted. "That's a significant word, Dominic. We don't extradite wolves based on 'if.'"

The room went quiet. I could feel the tension like a physical thing. The pressure was there.

Evan's face on the screen was tight with barely controlled anger. Kane looked frustrated. The other Alphas were watching Marcus with expressions ranging from annoyed to cautiously impressed.

"There's another matter," Evan said finally. "Vera is my rejected mate. That gives me certain rights regarding her welfare and supervision."

"You rejected her ten years ago," Marcus said. "You severed the bond publicly and completely. You have no more rights to her welfare than any random Alpha on the street."

"I have the right to ensure she faces justice for her crimes."

"What crimes?" I couldn't stay quiet anymore. "The murder you and my father lied about? The theft you invented five minutes ago? Or the crime of embarrassing you by surviving after you threw me away?"

"Vera—" Marcus started.

"No." I stepped forward, moving from behind his chair to stand beside it. Every Alpha in the room tensed, but I didn't care. "I'm done letting him control the narrative. Evan, you rejected me because your parents told you I'd ruin your reputation. You chose politics over truth, and I lived with that. I stayed in your pack, kept my head down, did everything asked of me. And it still wasn't enough. You still needed me gone because you couldn't stand the reminder that you were wrong."

"I was wrong?" Evan's laugh was bitter. "You killed your own mother, Vera. You're unstable. Dangerous. Everything that's happened since proves it."

"I defended myself against someone who was trying to kill me. If that makes me dangerous, then I'm dangerous. But at least I'm honest about it." I looked around the table at the assembled Alphas. "He's not here because he cares about pack justice or stolen documents that don't exist. He's here because I left on my terms instead of his, and that's something his ego can't handle."

The silence that followed was deafening. Then Marcus stood, the movement drawing every eye in the room. He was smiling again, but this time there was something predatory in it, something that made the hair on the back of my neck stand up even though I was standing beside him.

"Gentlemen," he said quietly. "It seems we're at an impasse. Alpha Cross wants Vera returned to Crescent Lake. I'm unwilling to send a wolf back to a pack that clearly wishes her harm based on unsubstantiated accusations. The question before the Council is whether pack law supports Evan's petition or my protection of a refugee wolf."

"There's precedent for both," Torres said carefully. "It would come down to which takes priority—the home pack's right to address internal crimes or the sanctuary pack's duty to protect vulnerable wolves."

"Then let me simplify things." Marcus turned to look at me, and something in his expression made my breath catch. His eyes were gold, his wolf present and watching, but there was something else there too. Something calculated and cold underneath the heat of the mate bond. "There's one law that supersedes all others. One right that cannot be challenged or denied."

I knew what he was going to say. I could feel it coming like a wave about to break.

"I claim Vera Ashwood as my mate," Marcus said, his voice carrying to every corner of the room. "By the laws of blood and bond, she is mine. Any challenge to her is a challenge to me. Any attempt to take her is an act of war against the Thorne Pack."

The room erupted in murmurs with Alphas speaking over each other, chairs pushing backwards, tightened fists. Evan's voice shouting from the screen.

But I only heard the rushing of blood in my ears and the sound of Marcus's heartbeat too close to mine.

He looked down at me, and for just a second, his mask slipped. I saw something in his eyes that wasn't love or devotion or even desire. It was satisfying. The look of someone who just made exactly the move he'd been planning all along.

Then the mask was back, and he was the devoted mate claiming what was his, and I was left wondering what game I'd just become a piece in.

"This is outrageous!" Evan's voice cut through the chaos. "You can't just—this is political maneuvering, not a genuine bond!"

"Are you questioning the mate bond?" Marcus's voice was soft but dangerous. "Because that's a serious accusation, Evan. It implies I'm lying to the Council about something sacred."

"I'm saying the timing is convenient," Evan shot back. "She shows up at your door, and three days later you're claiming her? You expect us to believe that's fate and not strategy?"

Marcus smiled, and this time it was all teeth. "I don't particularly care what you believe. The bond is real, witnessed by my pack, and confirmed by both our wolves. Pack law is absolute on this matter. A mate belongs to their Alpha above all other considerations. Vera is mine. The Council has no authority to challenge that."

Kane stood, his chair scraping loudly against the floor. "This is exactly the kind of abuse of power the Council exists to prevent. You're using the mate bond as a legal shield—"

"I'm exercising my rights under pack law," Marcus interrupted. "Unless you're suggesting the Council should have authority over mate bonds now? Because that's a precedent I don't think any of us want to set."

The Alphas exchanged glances. Kane looked like he wanted to argue further, but Torres put a hand on his arm. The young Alpha who'd been so eager earlier sat back in his chair, clearly out of his depth.

"The law is clear," Torres said finally. "If Alpha Thorne has claimed Miss Ashwood as his mate, the Council cannot force him to surrender her. The mate bond takes precedence over all other pack obligations."

"This isn't over," Evan said. His face on the screen was flushed with anger, his eyes wild. "You think you can just take what's mine—"

"She was never yours," Marcus said quietly. "You made sure of that ten years ago when you rejected her. This is just you facing the consequences of your own choices."