(Alaric's POV)
"Is this enough proof for you?" Gio throws a sword my way and I catch it before it slices my head in half.
Arsenio, Gio, and I stand in Gio's new office at the higher court in New Orleans, going over Chris' fate. I can hear Don pacing back and forth outside of the room and Chris is in a separate room, waiting to hear what's the verdict.
I hold up Anne's sword, Dragons Blood I believed she called it, and frown. The black blade with a red handle doesn't shine like it should under this lighting.
The blade is not as sharp as I used to remember it, probably from not being sharpened in a while. The scent of Markus' dried blood is on the black blade.
"I still can't believe that Chris and Anne would just kill in cold blood," I tell the both of them. There has to be another explanation for this.
"What more evidence do you need? Chris' story is a lie. They weren't rogues, we would've smelt it. They killed my father and his pack in cold blood. Their blood was painted all over the walls of that mansion. That deserves the highest degree of punishment," Gio says robotically. He lost all signs of sympathy once he saw his father's cold body.
"Gio, their your friends. You can't really think that they'd just do something like this," I tell him. According to law, Anne and Chris are in our pack because Chris is Don's mate and Anne's dad works with Arsenio. Before Gio can do anything rash and decide a punishment for them, he has to speak to the pack alpha first.
Arsenio hasn't said a word for or against Gio's harsh punishment. He's been standing here, silent and listening to what we have to say.
"I don't care who they are. I'm focusing on the facts," Gio concludes. His eyes aren't blue, but instead they're black. His anger surpasses his mourning and that's all he's training his brain to think about. He thinks he's getting justice, but this isn't solving anything.
"You want to say anything in defense of your pack member to see if it changes my mind," Gio asks Arsenio. Arsenio snaps out of his daydream and focuses back on us.
"You weren't even listening. This is someone's life on the line. How much more of an asshole can you be," I ask Arsenio. He glares at me for a moment, but turns his attention to Gio.
"I already made up my mind and I agree with Gio," Arsenio speaks for the first time during the meeting, but it's not what I wanted to hear.
"What," I ask in a deadly tone. Am I hearing him correctly?
"Anne has always been like this. The first week she arrived at the pack house, she shot one of my pack members in the legs multiple times. He couldn't walk properly for two weeks. I didn't punish her for it. After that, I got complaints from many of our other members that she believes she's above all of them and tries to control them. She also doesn't respect the fact that you have a wife. I've looked back at her past and she's had many incidents where she's choked others half to death. She always lies about the situation and she's never been punished. She's a dangerous person. It's time for her to face the consequences now."
"Anne is missing and you probably won't be able to find her," I tell them, hoping that Anne is in good hiding and won't get herself caught or killed. "How does Anne's past determine Chris' punishment? You can't give her a harsh punishment because of her cousins past."
"Chris was with Anne. Anne is a cold blooded killer and Chris was involved, so she falls under the same category." Gio is determined to get his way.
"I agree. I am the alpha of this pack, not my son, so it wasn't necessary to discuss this with him. He doesn't make the final decision," Arsenio says and it boils my blood.
My heart thumps fast, dreading what comes next. I watch as they shake hands and smile in agreement. They open the door and walk out, not caring if I follow behind them.
"Wait! What are you doing," I hear Don yell in agony. I rush out of the office and run to the room Chris is being held in. I can hear her pleading and crying for mercy.
"Please don't do this! Please! I'm telling the truth! Your making a mistake," Chris yells out as Gio tells her the verdict. Don is hugging Chris in a tight hold, hoping it'll protect her.
"You should have rethought your actions before you created a massacre," Gio growls out at her. Don growls back at Gio.
"Down dog," Gio yells at Don. Don has no choice but to whine into submission once again and crawls away from his mate, leaving her unprotected. "Take her," he barks to his workers.
They grab Chris from her magic restraining cuffs and yank her to stand up. She tries to fight back with all her strength, but it doesn't work. She's dragged out of the room.
"Where are you taking her," I ask Gio. His eyes are already black, but I can't help thinking that they've turned a shade darker.
"Where all murderers go." Gio follows behind his workers as they drag Chris and Arsenio stays behind in the room, keeping Don under control. I follow after Chris.
They take her down a set of stairs. It's dark and we go down a narrow hallway. I pass many doors, but they're all closed shut. I can't imagine what other prisoners like Chris are going through behind these closed doors.
This is a dungeon.
They stop in front of a metal door thats wide open and take off Chris' cuffs. Before she can retaliate, they pierce a needle through her arm and she becomes woozy.
"Please. No." She still begs in her weak state, tears falling down her face. I look inside the treacherous room and my mouth opens in shock.
"You can't do this to her, Gio," I beg him one last time. There's nothing I can do to fix this. "I know you still have some sympathy in you."
"Sympathy is for humans," He says, not even giving my begging a single glance. "Chain her up."
Chis' hands are put in strong chains on the wall of the dungeon. They leave her on the wet, stone floor with her hands chained.
She lets out one more useless plead before blacking out.