Elara stared at the parchment in her trembling hands. Then at the alpha who had brought it personally. His eyes ground her and left her helpless.
"You wanted a chance, I have brought it for you." he whispered with a cold authority that forced others to bow. Elara felt nothing as she opened it.
The wax seal had already been broken, its golden emblem of the Council smeared by her thumb. Inside, the words were simple.
"You are summoned to appear before the Shifter High Council to determine the validity of your mate-bond. You are to be escorted to Blackmark within three days. Refusal will be considered an act of defiance by Moonridge Pack" the words felt like a lead between them.
Callen stared at his alpha, the man he had grown up to serve. The man who was his childhood friend. He had run to him when his family did not support him and Garron had always been there.. He was still there but this time opposing them.
"I won't let them take you," he said at last, looking at Garron whose eyes narrowed with a dangerous gleam.
Elara noticed the shift in air too. She knew Garron was holding the last thread of his patience.
"They are not taking me," she whispered, pulling Callen back so that he looked at her. "They are summoning me. There is a difference."
"Not to Luca, there isn't." His voice was sharp. "He thinks this is a chance to claim you."
Elara looked away. "I have to go," she said softly.
Callen jerked away from her like he had been slapped. "No. Elara, no—"
"You have lost your mind, Callen. Do you want us to be proven as rebellious!" the man inhaled sharp, his face contorting. "I can't even believe I am talking to you. You were going to be my beta soon. Did this pack not matter to you anymore?"
The threat hung in the air, freezing Callen for a second.
Her heart twisted. "I chose you. I still choose you. But if I don't face this now, it'll haunt me forever. And the pack—Callen, alpha is right, we need peace. I won't be the reason for a war."
He turned his back to her, muscles tight with restrained rage. "You think he will let you walk away?"
She didn't answer him but she nodded at Garron whose eyes were full of disappointment as he looked at Garren.
"From now on, you are not qualified to be the beta of my pack. This is the last favor I am doing you. After this, you both will leave my pack." he growled with rage burning his eyes.
Callen stiffened. This was his home. He had never thought of leaving this place no matter what! Looking shocked in his eyes, Elara felt her heart break.
She reached for him when Garren left without looking back at them. He reached for her and hugged her tightly.
"We will get over it, i Promise. Everything would be back to normal. I promise, Callen." tears filled her eyes but she refused to let them fall.
Callen nodded and he inhaled her breath.
"You are my new home, Elara. If there is no place for you, there is no place for me. We will find a new pack where no one would know us. We will start a new life."
—-----------
The Council chamber smelled of ash and iron.
Stone columns loomed overhead, carved with ancient insignias that pulsed faintly in the torchlight. Elara's boots echoed as she stepped inside, followed by Tamara and the Moonridge Alpha, her heart thudding in rhythm with every step.
Ahead, the Council Elders sat like carved statues. Each of them looked at her as if she was a miracle or a curse. Their eyes were full of curiosity and wariness as she walked slowly and stood in the center of the room.
She knew they were watching her, But it was the figure to the right that pulled all her attention.
Luca! He stood apart from the others. Tall, tense, dressed in black. His eyes locked on her the moment she entered the room. He looked hungry, tortured, and damn attractive. He could have every woman he wanted. His hands flexed at his sides as if fighting the urge to reach for her.
When their eyes met, she felt. A stranger pulled and he smiled. The look in his eyes told her that he would devour her. But She did not flinch.
Callen, who was standing behind her, reached to hold her hands as if showing his claim silently. Luca's eyes narrowed at their entwined hands, a storm slowly building in his dark eyes.
"Elara of Moonridge," an Elder began, voice rough with age. "You are here to testify about the bond between you and the Downthrone Alpha."
"I do not feel it," she said, clearly, before anyone else could speak. "I have never felt it."
Luca's eyes narrowed, a flash of pain and disbelief breaking through his carefully guarded expression.
"I was marked," she went on, "by Callen. I have chosen him willingly. There is no bond between me and Alpha Luca."
A slow hush fell. Everyone looked at her in disbelief. Their earlie eye contact was so strong, they all felt the way he had looked at her. As if he had finally found the cure of poison slowly rotting him.
Luca stepped forward, his voice low and breaking. "You're lying."
Elara's lips parted in horror.
"You felt something," Luca continued, taking a step toward her. "When You looked right at me, you felt it. We both know it."
"I looked at the man who murdered innocent wolves!" she snapped. "I felt fear, nothing else. I still do."
Luca froze and a hint of betrayal filled his eyes. "And who is at fault that my monster is consuming me, Elara? I did not want you too. But you are mine."
Callen moved beside her then, shoulders squared, his voice cold and steady. "She is not yours. She is mine. If there was ever a bond, it was broken when you drew blood in our home."