Emilia

I entered the council hall, the walls lined with ancient wolf sigils and flickering torches. At the far end sat the council members, claimed in authority, their eyes cold and unreadable. At the center of them stood Alpha Dominic — tall, composed, and utterly unreadable. His presence filled the room like a storm building at sea.

“Emilia,” he said, his voice a low rumble, smooth but ended with warning. “You know why you're here.”

I met his gaze and nodded softly.

A pause followed, thick with tension. The councilwoman to Dominic's right leaned forward, her eyes narrowing. “Your fiance is dead. Is there anything we should know?”

Before I could reply, the council woman’s jaw tightened. “Speak wisely, Emilia or you won't walk out of here the same.”

I sat on the cold wooden bench inside the council chambers, her back straight, her eyes guarded. The room smelled of old parchment and judgement.

Alpha Dominic loomed above me on the dais, his expression unreadable as the council murmured around him.

Before he continued, the chamber doors burst open with a loud crack. Heads turned. My heart skipped.

Xavier.

Everyone stared in disbelief as he stormed in, dressed in his signature black coat, chest heaving with urgency.

One of the elders stood abruptly. “What are you doing here?!”

Xavier ignored them, eyes locked on Emilia. “I heard my sister was arrested. I came to see her!”

I shook my head, rising quickly from the bench. “I wasn't arrested. They just brought me in for questioning.”

Xavier turned to the council. “Then there's no reason to keep her. She should go home.”

Alpha Dominic's eyes narrowed. “If she leaves now, it will be seen as an obstruction of this investigation. And I will personally have you arrested.”

I moved towards Xavier, placing a hand gently on his arm. “Don't do this. I'll answer their questions. Then we can go home together. Okay?”

Xavier's jaw clenched, but he nodded. “Fine. I'll wait.”

The questioning resumed.

Alpha Dominic folded his arms. “Do you know anyone who held a grudge against your husband while he was alive?”

I opened my mouth, but Xavier stepped forward. “What kind of question is that? Why are you assuming someone hated him?”

“Xavier,” Alpha Dominic hissed. “Let her speak.”

I turned back to Dominic. “I can't think of anyone who hated Lorenzo…”

Dominic nodded. “Were there any who disapproved of your relationship?”

Again, Xavier cut in. “No one. Everyone was happy for them.”

The Alpha's eyes flared. “Xavier, if you interrupt one more time, I will have you removed.”

I inhaled, willing myself to remain calm. “I don't know who would be against us.”

Dominic leaned forward. “Anger. Jealousy. Bitterness. Think, Emilia. Was there anyone?!”

My mind pulled me into the past — the day Lorenzo and I announced our engagement. Xavier had smiled, but there had been something off in his eyes. Later, he asked me if I knew what was doing, agreeing to marry Lorenzo. I had brushed it off as overprotectiveness but now, it seems different.

“No,” I whispered. “There was no one.”

The Alpha narrowed his gaze as if trying to look through me.

Xavier leapt to his feet. “I think we're done here.”

Dominic equally rose to his feet. “And so are we. You may leave.”

Xavier grabbed my hand and pulled me behind him. “Let's go.”

When he offered his hand to help me into the carriage, but I refused. “I can climb in by myself.”

They rode in silence.

When we arrived home, I stepped out without his help and walked ahead.

Xavier caught up beside me, his brows furrowed. “Is something wrong?”

“No.” I answered immediately.

“Is it Lorenzo?” He asked suddenly.

I blinked. “What?”

“Why are you still so upset? He's dead, Emilia. You have to move on.”

I blinked. “What?”

“Lorenzo is dead. Why are you still so upset!” His voice had risen, sharp and angry.

“What?!” I snapped.

“Lorenzo is dead, Emilia! You have to move on!” He yelled.

My feet moved on their own and before I could react, my hand moved and ran across his face in a thundering slap. “Don't you dare speak to me like that ever again!”

He looked stunned. “Emilia…”

I was stunned. I had slapped him. I'd never raised my hand at him. Not once in ever.

“I'm…” I took a step back. “I…”

“Emilia…”

Without a word, I turned and ran, tears I'd been holding back breaking free. I didn't stop until I was in my room, door locked, back pressed against it. I slid to the floor, clutching my wedding ring, memories of Lorenzo flooding in.

I could still see the way he smiled when he proposed, how gently he had held my hands, whispering promises he never lived to keep.

A knock on the door interrupted me.

I didn't want anyone's attention right now. “Go away!”

The door creaked open.

Xavier stood in the doorway with a tray — carrot cake and wine.

“I'm sorry,” he said, setting the tray down. “I don't know what came over me. I just… everyone is pressuring you, and I lost it.”

I didn't respond.

“Please eat something. Dinner's in an hour. Everything's going to be okay.”

He kissed my cheek softly and left.

I stared at the untouched tray. Something in my gut twisted. I picked up the cake… and set it aside.

Xavier was hiding something from me.

At dinner, the tension thickened.

Ariel, my step mother, suddenly spoke as she cut through her chicken.. “I saw Moonclaw guards leaving the estate earlier. For a second, I thought Emilia would be arrested for killing Lorenzo.”

The room froze.

Father dropped his knife on his plate. “What kind of accusation is that? You know she didn't kill him.”

“Do we?” Ariel snapped. “People lie, even in grief.”

“That's enough!” Father growled.

I stood, trembling. “I've lost my appetite.”

Xavier touched my wrist. “Stay.”

“I can't.” I fled to my room again.

Hours passed. I finally laid down exhausted. My eyes had barely shut when the door opened.

Xavier.

“I'm sorry for what my mother said,” he said softly, sitting beside me.

I turned away.

The bed dipped and he slid under the covers beside me. “What are you doing?”

“I thought… you'd want company. To feel better.”

“I don't. I need space. Please leave.”

He paused, then slowly got up and left without a word.

Sleep didn't come.

Then… voices.

Faint. Below.

I crept out of bed and followed the sound to Xavier's office.

Male voices. One was Xavier's. The other…

My heart seized.

The man who had kissed my hand that night at the mansion.

What was he doing here?

I pressed my ear to the door. What were they talking about?

“You didn't pay me enough,” The man said. “My men were caught. This is on you!”

“On me?!” Xavier hissed. “You shouldn't even be here! Alpha Dominic is sniffing around. You'll blow everything, you idiot!”

“Then pay me…” The man replied. “Or I'll talk.”

“If you open your mouth, I'll kill everyone you love.”

I gasped.

What?

Kill?

“You think I care?” The man replied. “You already killed the only person your sister loves.”

I staggered, my hand covering my mouth.

“I did it to protect her,” Xavier snapped. “Lorenzo didn't deserve her. You think I care what he meant to Emilia? That mutt was in the way. Now, she's free.”

The man laughed coldly. “You keep telling yourself that.”

A drawer opened and coins clinked. “Take it. Leave the country.”

The man chuckled. “I'm fine. But you'll never be forgiven for this.”

The door is closed.

I was paralyzed.

Xavier had killed Lorenzo.

My knees buckled.

I clutched the wall, trying to breathe but the world crashed around me.

The man I had trusted, who claimed to love her, who brought me cake and kissed my cheek in comfort… had murdered my husband?

The man I had once called family.

The betrayal cut deeper than any blade.

And now, I was alone with him.

Alone with a killer.