CHAPTER THREE
The council chamber had never felt so small.
By dawn, every elder in Silver Ridge had claimed a seat around the long oak table.
Some still wore yesterday's ceremonial robes, while others had changed into formal council attire as though this meeting had been planned for months instead of dragging everyone from their beds before sunrise.
The only person who looked completely out of place was Elodie.
She sat quietly beside Iris, swinging her feet above the floor because they couldn't quite reach it.
The little cloth rabbit rested in her lap while she watched the room with solemn curiosity.
Every few moments, she glanced toward the door, almost expecting her mother to walk through it despite everything she had been told.
Mara remained in the healer's quarters under strict observation.
Exhaustion had finally claimed her.
Iris was grateful for that.
The woman deserved one peaceful hour before the world started asking more from her.
"The documents have already been verified."
Elder Rowan folded his hands neatly atop the table.
"The healer's seals are authentic. The blood records match. There is no reason to delay the necessary arrangements."
Lucien hadn't sat down.
He stood near the window with both palms resting against the stone ledge, staring out toward the courtyard where the first patrol of the morning crossed the training grounds.
Necessary arrangements.
The words made Iris's stomach tighten.
Matthis leaned forward eagerly.
"The child should move into the Alpha House immediately."
Another elder nodded.
"The sooner she settles, the easier the transition."
"We'll need tutors."
"And a formal announcement."
"The Harvest Festival is still underway. The timing couldn't be better."
Voices overlapped until the chamber filled with plans that grew larger by the second.
Education.
Ceremonies.
Future responsibilities.
Guard assignments.
Lineage records.
Not one person asked whether the frightened little girl wanted any of it.
Iris reached for the plate of warm rolls that had been left untouched near the center of the table.
She tore one apart and placed half into Elodie's hands.
"You haven't eaten."
The child looked uncertain.
"Is it allowed?"
"It would be a terrible waste if it wasn't."
A tiny smile appeared before Elodie took a careful bite.
For a brief moment, nothing else in the room mattered.
Lucien noticed.
He crossed the chamber and knelt beside the child.
"How are you feeling?"
She considered the question with surprising seriousness.
"I'm sleepy."
"I imagine you are."
"My rabbit is sleepy too."
Lucien glanced at the faded toy.
"I think your rabbit has had a very busy week."
That earned another shy smile.
It was the first genuine expression Iris had seen on the little girl's face.
Something inside her softened despite herself.
Children never deserved to carry the consequences of adult decisions.
Rowan cleared his throat.
"Alpha."
Lucien stood.
"The Alpha House has six family suites."
"I know how many rooms my own house has."
"Then assigning one to the child should be straightforward."
Another elder tapped the table thoughtfully.
"The eastern wing receives the morning sun. It would suit a young heir."
The word landed heavily.
Heir.
Nobody had used Elodie's name for several minutes.
Only her future.
Only what she represented.
Iris looked down at the little girl.
She had finished only half the roll before becoming distracted by a tiny crack running through the wooden tabletop. Her fingertip traced the line with complete fascination.
She had no idea strangers were discussing the rest of her life.
Matthis smiled broadly.
"We should begin introducing her to pack traditions immediately."
"She just buried her mother."
The room quieted.
Every eye turned toward Iris.
Her voice remained calm.
"Perhaps today isn't the day to schedule ceremonies."
Matthis shifted uncomfortably.
"Of course not today."
"Tomorrow, then?" another elder suggested.
Iris stared at him.
The elder seemed genuinely confused by her expression.
Lucien finally stepped away from the window.
"Enough."
His voice wasn't loud.
It didn't need to be.
Conversation stopped instantly.
"No ceremonies."
Several elders exchanged uneasy glances.
"No announcements."
"But Alpha..."
"No tutors."
Rowan frowned.
"The pack will expect guidance."
"The pack can wait."
The old elder's fingers began turning the silver ring he always wore whenever someone challenged him.
"Leadership requires difficult decisions."
Lucien met his gaze without flinching.
"This one isn't difficult."
Silence followed.
Iris watched relief pass briefly across Elodie's face.
She hadn't understood every word.
She had understood enough.
Damon entered carrying another stack of documents.
His expression immediately told Iris he wished he were anywhere else.
"Apologies."
Lucien accepted the papers.
"What now?"
"The northern delegates have requested clarification."
"About?"
"They've heard rumors."
"Already?"
Damon gave a tired smile.
"You know how fast rumors travel."
Unfortunately, everyone did.
Before Lucien could answer, Rowan resumed the discussion.
"The sooner the truth becomes official, the less damage gossip can cause."
"I agree."
Several heads turned toward Iris in surprise.
She folded her hands on the table.
"The truth should be told."
Rowan nodded approvingly.
"Exactly."
She continued before he could speak again.
"But it will be told after a grieving child has slept in a proper bed, after the woman who crossed two territories to protect her has recovered, and after my husband has had more than one night to understand what happened."
The chamber fell silent again.
This time even Rowan had nothing ready.
Lucien looked at Iris.
Gratitude flickered across his face before exhaustion swallowed it again.
He hadn't expected her to defend him.
Perhaps she hadn't expected it either.
Matthis broke the silence with an impatient sigh.
"We're allowing emotions to interfere with duty."
Iris looked directly at him.
"No."
Her answer was steady.
"We're allowing humanity."
For a heartbeat, nobody spoke.
Then Elodie quietly raised her hand.
Every adult looked at her.
She swallowed.
"May I ask something?"
Lucien immediately knelt beside her again.
"Of course."
She pointed toward one of the windows.
"Can I see the horses later?"
The innocence of the question broke something inside the room.
Even Matthis looked away.
Lucien smiled gently.
"I'd like that."
"I've never ridden one."
"Then we'll fix that."
The child nodded, satisfied, as though horses were suddenly the most important subject in the world.
Maybe they were.
For a five year old who had lost everything else, tomorrow's promise mattered more than titles.
The meeting slowly resumed.
Only now the conversation shifted toward practical matters.
Blankets.
Clothing.
A healer's examination.
Finding toys.
Meals suitable for children.
It wasn't perfect.
But it was better.
Lucien answered question after question.
He signed temporary orders.
He reassigned guards.
He instructed Damon to contact Blackwater Ridge for additional records.
Every decision pulled him in another direction.
Every answer created three more questions.
Iris watched him carefully.
He wasn't choosing duty over her.
He was drowning.
There was a difference.
The realization should have comforted her.
Instead, it made her unbearably lonely.
Because he hadn't looked at her once in nearly an hour.
Not intentionally.
Not carelessly.
He simply hadn't noticed.
The discussion moved on to renovations.
"The eastern suite requires repainting."
"The nursery should become a classroom."
"We'll need children's furniture."
"The Alpha House must be prepared."
Again.
And again.
And again.
Plans filled the room.
The future unfolded around the table as though it had already been decided.
No one asked where Iris wished Elodie to stay.
No one asked whether she wanted a nursery changed.
No one asked how she felt about opening the home she had carefully built over six years.
They simply assumed.
She realized, with startling clarity, that she had stopped being part of the conversation.
She was sitting inside it.
Quietly.
Politely.
Almost invisibly.
Elodie leaned against her arm.
"I'm sleepy."
Iris stroked the child's hair.
"I know."
She looked toward Lucien.
He was answering another question from Rowan while Damon handed him yet another document.
His shoulders looked heavier than they had yesterday.
He still hadn't looked her way.
Not once.
Iris rose without interrupting anyone.
"I'll take Elodie upstairs."
Nobody objected.
Nobody even acknowledged she had spoken.
The discussion continued behind her.
Rooms.
Ceremonies.
Tutors.
Inheritance.
As though the Luna had already left the room.
By the time the chamber doors closed softly behind her, Iris realized something that frightened her far more than the little girl with Lucien's eyes.
Everyone else had already begun deciding the future.
And somehow...
they had forgotten she lived in it too.