7
I woke with a start, my hand Instinctively reaching across the bed. Cold shoots met my fingertips. Kalus was
The room was dark, but a faint glow from beneath the door told me someone was in the adjacent sitti bed, wincing as my silver–burned shoulder protested the movement
was gone.
sitting room. I slipped from the
Frost sat in an armchair, his posture tense despite his seemingly related position. He looked up as I entered, his ice blue eyes assessing me quickly,
“Where is Kaius?” I asked, the memory of last night’s conversation rushing back.
“You need more sleep,” he replied, evading the question.
“Gone, where?” Alarm sharpened my voice,
“Gone.” He stood, moving toward me with that fluid grace all powerful wolves seemed to possess.
“I know he is about to b
to be punished; I need to be there. The words tumbled out before I could consider them.
Frost’s expression hardened. “You don’t need to worry; he’ll be back to a while, and Ill be here with you.”
I turned, heading back toward the bedroom to dress.
“Where are yo
you going?” Frost called after me.
“I know he is about to be punished; I need to be there,” I repeated, pulling clothes from the wardrobe simple black pants and a sweater, something unobtrusive.
Frost appeared in the doorway. “He doesn’t want you there.
“I don’t fucking care v what he wants. The vehemence in my voice surprised even me.
His eyebrows rose slightly at my outburst. “He would be mad.”
“I’m sorry,” I softened my tone. “Could you just take me there, please
Frost studied me for a long
ng moment. “You are very determined to watch Kaius being punished; I wonder why.”
I didn’t answer, just continued dressing, avoiding his penetrating gaze.
“It’s taking place on the training grounds,” he finally said, relenting
“The training grounds?” I looked up, surprised,
“Yes. Usually the younger ones won’t be present.”
it Kajus would
“Before everyone? The thought of public punishment made my stomach knot. No wonder Ophelia had warned me that suffer for my actions.
“Yes, Usually the younger ones won’t be present.”
“But that’s just so… wrong. The words felt inadequate for the barbaram they represented.
1/3
“Just like what Kalds had done, it was so… wrong. Frost’s tone held hudgment, just a statement of fact.
“Nothing could be done?‘ I asked, a last desperate hope that somehow this could be avoided.
If Kalus wanted this blown over, trust me, it would have been so. 1 simply wouldn’t show up and the elders would eventually get tired of waiting and leave, but he chose to respect this law to prove to them he couldn’t be affected by it
His explanation made sense, in a twisted way. Kalus would never show weakness, never demonstrate that he feared punishment. That would undermine his position as Alpha more than any physical pain could.
“You don’t seem bothered by this, I observed, noting Frost’s calm demeanor.
“Oh, I am.” Something flashed in his eyes–a glimpse of the worry he kept carefully contained.
“Well, you
you’re doing a very good job hiding it.
“What do you suggest I do? Tremble? The hint of sarcasm in his voice reminded me that Frost, too, played a role–the steady Beta, unshakable in crisis.
I glanced down at my simple attire. “I should have picked out something better to wear,”
“Don’t worry, the last thing anyone would be doing is looking your way. His assurance was meant to be comforting, but it only highlighted how significant this event must be if even the Luna–albeit a temporary one–would be ignored.
Frost’s expression softened slightly. “Elowen, do you think you can handle this?”
“I’ve watched people been whipped before; I can handle it.” The memory of Dorian’s casual cruelty flashed through my mind. But somehow, I knew this would be different–more formal, more ritualized, and potentially far more severe.
Frost nodded once, then led the
e way from our rooms.
The training grounds were already crowded when we arrived, though the sky still held the deep blue of pre-dawn. Pack members stood in concentric circles around a raised platform at the center. Upon it stood a simple stone pillar with iron chains hanging from its top.
ty stomach lurched at the sight. Kalus–proud, powerful Kalus–would be chained there like a common criminal.
My
we wouldn’t be
“We would get a better view here,” Frost said, guiding me to a position near the front, yet slightly to the side where we immediately visible.
The
e crowd parted as we approached, eyes widening at my presence fare quickly looking away. Clearly, I wasn’t expected to witness this. Was it tradition for mates to be spared the sight of their partre’s punishment, or was Kaius specifically trying to shield me?–
A hush fell over the assembly as twelve figures in white robes entered the training ground. They moved with an unnatural grace that made the hairs on my neck stand up. These weren’t ordinary wolves there was something ancient and otherworldly about them. their faces obscured by deep hoods.
“The elders,
s.” Frost murmured unnecessarily.
They formed a semicircle on the platform, their white robes stark against the predawn darkness. One stepped forward, taller
the rest.
“Where is he?” I whispered to Frost.
r than
He didn’t need to answer. The crowd parted again, and Kaius strode through. He wore only black pants, his chest and feet bare – -aming chill. He walked with his head high, his expression impassive, every inch the Alpha despite being summoned
2/3
for punishment.
My heart clenched at the sight of him, proud and unbroken even as he approached his public humiliation. He climbed the steps to the platform without hesitation, turning to face the tallest elder.
Alpha Kalus of the Ravenhollow Pack, your punishment is due, the older intoned, voice neither male nor female but something in between, ancient and powerful. “You answer with only two words: gality or blameless”
Kaius stood straight, his expression unreadable. “Guilty.”
The word echoed across the silent training grounds. My breath caught. Why would he admit guilt when he’d only defended me? When he’d only responded to his father’s cruelty?
“You instigated a battle with the Alpha King,” the elder continued.
“Guilty.” Kaius’s voice remained strong, unwavering.
The elder moved closer. “You interfered between the Alpha King and his moon chosen.”
Wait. That wasn’t right. I was the one who had interfered, who had stepped between Alaric and Ophelia. Not Katus, He had only arrived after I’d been struck.
Kaius’s eyes
met mine for a brief moment across the distance. “Guilty
Two more elders approached Kaius, taking his arms and guiding him to the stone pillar. He didn’t resist as they fastened the iron chains around his wrists, securing him with his arms stretched above his head, his back to the crowd.
The tallest older pulled something from within the folds of their rob a whip unlike any I’d seen before. Not leather like Alaric had used on Ophelia, but something that seemed to shift and move of its own accord, almost alive in the elder’s
1 gripped Frost’s arm so tightly my fingers went numb, “What is that?
“A soul whip,” he whispered, his voice tight. “It causes pain beyond the physical.”
Chapter Comments
