Chapter Eighteen
"Alpha Bennett, are you certain?" Alpha Hendrix asked, the room suspended in a breathless hush.
"Yes, Alpha Hendrix," her haughty voice answered. I had never been more grateful to hear the snotty tone come from her overly manicured face. "We have found no conclusive evidence that this was indeed interference from Northern Circle."
The tension in my shoulders that wound like a coiled spring finally released.
It had only been a couple of days since the accusation was flung and the investigation committee had already returned.
We were ushered into the chambers like mindless cattle.
The usual posturing over 'rightful places' was gone.
Everyone filed silently into rows of dark wood, consumed by the need for answers.
Even the once-plush cushions sagged with the same exhaustion I wore like armor. I would never be free from this suffocating room with its intruding eyes looming lupine guardians.
"But there's no evidence it was someone else?" A voice spoke from the back, drawing my glare to his shadowy seat on the opposite side of the room.
"We were unable to identify the attacker for certain," Alpha Bennett answered, almost sounding disappointed.
My brain ached from trying to keep up with the constant bickering and relentless back and forth. No amount of sleep could make up for the mental energy it took to keep my emotions down when everyone was so hellbent on dragging them up from their frozen cage.
"Then it's settled?" Alpha Benuit looked as exhausted as I felt. Her usually kind eyes were weathered and weary. As the closest almost-ally of the Northern Circle, I could only imagine how she was navigating a level of neutrality through all of this.
A familiar clearing of a throat took the room's attention and my hackles raised as Alpha de Silva opened his hands in a gently warming gesture.
"Now I understand that this might seem like a conclusion for some of you but I must point out that the investigation came back inconclusive.
It did not clear Northern Circle from blame," Alpha de Silva reasoned to nods of agreement and understanding.
"I think we need to be reasonable in mitigating a threat here. "
I bristled but held back the growl that wanted to roll through me. It was a time for strength, not rising to bait.
"Of course no one is blaming Kiera here," Lyra chimed in, her brown doe eyes melting as she looked towards me with blatant sympathy.
"But I wouldn't be looking out for my pack" - she placed her hand on where Dax's rested on the arm of his chair - "if I didn't say I'm wary of the potential danger this could bring to our territory. "
Another murmur of agreement rose through the room as wary glances were tossed my way.
"We can't trust what we don't know and we don't know the secrets that Northern Circle holds yet." Alpha de Silva sounded almost apologetic as his eyes roamed the room. He was no doubt signalling to his allies, pulling the strings in his favour.
"If we banished every wolf with secrets, this room would be empty." Lucien's eloquent voice rose above the hushed whispers, drawing the attention of de Silva but he only responded with a cheeky grin and a flash of his fangs.
The hum of voices rose until the shouting matches had started again, everyone arguing for something though no one could decide what it was.
Calls for banishment and shouts of innocence mingled with the occasional question of traitorous execution.
The voices echoed through my skull in a dull pounding as the ice battled its way through my veins.
"She doesn't leave." His voice cut through the raucous noise, each word commanding attention. Dax stayed sitting but all eyes were drawn to him. In his usual tailored suit and flashy watch, his dark hair barely neat and his jaw covered in a shadow, he was foreboding and it echoed through the room.
"This is my pack, my territory. If there is a threat, it's aimed at us. She says under my room. Under my watch."
No one dared to argue. The nods of agreement were silent, the only sound Alpha Hendrix knock his gavel.
The heat flooded through me as Dax met my eyes, it itched under my skin and warred with the ice inside. He nodded his head to the side in a silent order.
The deal was done. No arguing, no questioning, just a crushing blow to my pride as my new babysitter beckoned me.
I was numb as I returned to my room and packed my things. The feeling wasn't a stranger. In the depths of winter, I had been outside long enough that I lost the burning warmth of my wolf until I could no longer feel my nose or lips, my fingers or toes.
Talia didn't try to speak as the guard escorted us through a patch of trees that separated the Council house from the main pack lands. I had never been more grateful for her.
It looked similar to the Council house with the same dark wood and embellished, arching lines.
The house had not been built all at once, that much was clear.
While the style was the same, the layout spoke of years of expansions, each wing branching from the next.
Windows covered nearly every surface, embraced by dark, decorative panelling.
Warm, yellow light poured from inside and a fire crackled in the centre of the house.
Imposing but cozy.
We hauled our cases up the steps and inside the embrace of the heat. His scent was everywhere, flooding me with that intoxicating scent of deep amber and fresh pine. It was heavenly and I hated it.
It wasn't what I expected from Dax. He always dressed so clean and polished with crisp lines and accessories that screamed wealth. Yet his house was filled with memories.
The brown leather couch was soft and worn with a hand knit blanket draped over the back.
Bookshelves lined the walls, a plush armchair framed with lamp light in the corner.
The shelf above the crackling fireplace was stuffed with pictures, so many frames that they overlapped in layers.
Fur rugs nearly covered the dark wood floor in its entirety.
But there was no time to revel in my surprise.
Lyra stood on the curved staircase, a practiced smile on her sweet face but no poker face was good enough to hide the distaste she clearly felt at having me here.
"We're so pleased to welcome you as guests in our home," Lyra said, her words thick with sugary honey. "If you have any questions, of course feel free to ask but everything should go smoothly as long as you remember your place."
My brow ached to raise but I managed to keep it still. Talia was not so restrained.
"Our place as guests or prisoners?" she asked, staring Lyra down with an icy glare.
The smile hardened in Lyra's eyes, soft curves turning razor sharp.
My fingers twitched, my body burning for a fight. I had spent so long putting up with the veiled taunts from her that one misplaced challenge was all I needed to put her in her place.
Dax cut in with a stern look, appearing in the doorway like a shadow. She softened under his warning gaze, her smile peachy and broad. "Daxy, so glad you're here to greet our guests."
I refused to savour the heat that curled in my chest when he looked at me. The severe edge was gone from his eyes, an admirable stoicism in his chocolate eyes.
"You'll have a room near mine," he announced, leaving no room for questions once again. "I made a promise to the Council I'd keep an eye on you so you're in my proximity. Always."
Lyra blinked, her smile no longer reaching her eyes. "But Dax, don't you think that's a bit risky? If she is a killer, you're giving her the perfect opportunity."
The desperation hidden in her words made me want to smile.
He didn't answer, just nodded towards the stairs and expected us to follow.
Dax didn't stay longer than to point to each of our rooms.
It was homey in a showroom type of way. No sweet mementos or happy memories, just a plush bed, an empty wardrobe and a stock photo a lake surrounded by forest hung up above the bed.
I didn't unpack. I sat on the bed as the reality washed over me.
I wasn't a guest. I was a prisoner.
When the sun had set, the still realisations had left and I was stuck with a stuffy restlessness.
Lyra could shove her 'place' up my ass.
I left my room, wandering the warmly lit halls. The same gentle yellow lights in gilded sconces hung here like they did in the Council building. It was eerily similar, almost comforting, though the overwhelming scent of Dax blurred everything else.
The scent was so overpowering, I didn't notice it get stronger.
"Why didn't you deny it?" Dax asked and I jumped, my eyes wide and teeth bared in a warning growl.
His eyebrow shot up and I fought my racing heart to steady my composure at the fright. It was a rare day someone snuck up on me but everything here smelled so purely of Dax that he was invisible.
"You just let them shit on you and accuse you of killing those rogues. Why?" he asked again, leaning his shoulder against the wall.
In a black t-shirt and dark sweatpants, he looked so effortlessly casual. I could appreciate the rigid suits but there was something about him looking so relaxed that called to me.
I hated it.
"What was the alternative? An emotional plea of innocence? A furious defense? Both look weak and guilty," I answered with a shrug. "The truth defends itself."
Dax shook his head and that faint line appeared between his brows.
"Silence can also be taken for guilt. No excuse doesn't mean a good excuse."
That almost sounded like advice. Advice given in good faith, like he was looking out for me. I knew better than that, he had proved it to me enough times.
"They're looking for ways to see you fall," Dax continued, searing my skin with his dark eyes. "It's not just you. Everyone wants to be on top and they'll drag anyone down if it gets them here faster. Don't let your integrity become a weakness."
"It's not a weakness to stand for something that matters." My heart clenched as his eyes somehow softened at my words. It wasn't fondness but maybe a glint of admiration.
"You still need to be around long enough to protect the things that matter."
"And what matters to you?"
The moment froze between us, the air tensing as he searched for something in my face that he wouldn't find.
"You're asking questions you're not ready to hear the answers to," Dax answered finally, his voice deep and smooth.
"I'm not ready? Or you're not?" I asked with a raised eyebrow. I took a step closer, tilting my head to look up at him.
His jaw clenched, and I didn't need the bond to feel the war he was fighting inside himself. Part of me wanted to reach for it-crack it open. Just to see what he was hiding.
"You're not just a threat to the Council," he said finally, voice low. "You're a threat to me."
I froze. "What is that supposed to mean?"
He didn't look away. "You make me hesitate."
The admission landed like a punch to the gut. Because I knew the feeling. Knew it in the fire that lit my veins whenever he looked at me like that.
"Daxy," Lyra's saccharine voice sliced through the air, too sharp to ignore.
Get ready for things to ramp up!
Kiera and Dax forced together and sparks will fly.
What do you think is gonna happen? Will they fall or will Lyra stand in their way?
Does Dax even deserve for Kiera to fall? I think he still has a bit of work left to go but stay tuned and we'll see the magic happen.