"What are you talking about? Explain!" Alpha Asher thundered in fury and Brown swallowed hard.
"You'd better start explaining right now," Asher growled. "What did Skylar do to our children?" Alpha Asher demanded as he was growing impatient.
Brown's eyes widened with fear, his voice trembling as he spoke. "She... she said the children would be an obstacle to our plans, she planned on killing them in two days but I'm surprised she did it sooner," Brown revealed, avoiding Alpha Asher's eyes.
Then he continued. "With our plan so perfect, we were never meant to be caught. We were going to run away together, and start a new life. But she said we couldn't do that with the kids around and she also didn't want to leave them with you so you wouldn't use them to hold her down so she was to poison them and frame it on their nanny before we escaped."
"What!" Alpha Asher's scream almost tore down the servants' quarters.
"And you went along with this? You agreed to harm my children?" Alpha Asher questioned, his grip tightening on Brown's collar.
Brown hesitated, then nodded reluctantly. "I didn't want to, Alpha. But Skylar said it was the only way. She never really loved you, you know. She only married you because you were mates and she wanted the power and status that came with being Luna."
"Shut your filthy mouth!" Alpha Asher thundered as he landed a blow on Brown's face. It sent him flying. He paced around the room, trying to sink into his mind what Brown had just revealed.
His eyes blazed with a mixture of shock and anger as he turned his attention back to Brown.
The revelation that his Luna, Skylar, had been planning to leave him with this man was difficult enough to process, but the thought of her harming their children was nearly unbearable. Alpha Asher headed towards Brown, grabbing him by the collar again, forcing him to meet his fierce gaze.
As he locked gaze with Brown who had a mocking look in his eyes, Alpha Asher felt as though the ground beneath him was crumbling away. He had loved Skylar blindly without knowing she had motives, he'd never imagined she would go to such lengths to escape if she no longer wanted him. Alpha Asher loosened his grip on Brown, as pain shot through him, his mind reeling.
Sensing an opportunity to further prove his claim, Brown reached into his pocket and produced a necklace – a delicate, silver pendant that Asher recognized instantly.
"How did you get your hands on this," Alpha Asher questioned, his eyes which had gone cold, blazing back in fury.
"S–Skylar gave me this," Brown stuttered, his voice barely above a whisper. "She said it was precious to her, that she'd kept it with her ever since she was a child in the orphanage."
The sight of the necklace felt like a physical blow to Asher. He knew how much Skylar treasured it; she'd told him she'd never give it to anyone. If Brown had the necklace, it could only mean that Skylar had willingly given it to him.
Asher's anger boiled over, and he struck Brown with a powerful blow, sending the guard crashing to the floor, unconscious.
The Alpha gestured to the other guards in the room. "Lock him up," he ordered, his voice cold and emotionless.
As he sank back on the chair in the room with his mind clouded in different thoughts, he wanted to go confront Skylar but he couldn't bring himself to face her, not yet since he might kill her with how much anger that was brewing in him. The pain of her betrayal was too raw, too overwhelming.
After a few minutes, Asher finally left the room, his heart heavy with grief and rage.
*
The palace was a somber place, preparations underway for the funeral of the deceased children. The pack doctor had confirmed the autopsy results: the children had been poisoned, and Skylar was the prime suspect.
Asher listened to the elders in silence, his mind clouded with thoughts of Skylar's betrayal. The meeting concluded with a unanimous decision.
"No! That cannot happen," Alpha Asher interjected. Finally saying something, surprising the elders.
"I cannot bear another blood being shed even if she is an alleged murderer. Let's banish her," He mentioned, leaving all the elders in shock.
"Alpha. She is your Luna whom you love but she killed your children and cheated on you. How could you spare her? She deserves death," the head of elders said.
"Enough!" Alpha Asher thundered and stood up. "I have made a decision to banish her. Let's do that," he insisted, leaving all the elders no choice than to agree.
The meeting went on, with the elders addressing other issues and when it finally ended, Alpha Asher stood up and left while having a destination in mind.
Finally, he decided to confront Skylar one last time before she was banished, his heart twisted with a knot of grief and anger. He stood before the dungeon door, his voice echoing through the damp, dimly lit corridor. "Skylar..."
Inside the cell, Skylar's eyes widened with hope when she heard Asher's voice. "Asher! Please, let me out! I didn't do this, I swear! I can explain, just let me out!"
Asher kept his distance, his chest tightening at the sound of her voice. How could he have been so blind to her deceit? "We can talk like this, Skylar. I can't trust you anymore."
Skylar's pleas intensified, her voice muffled by the door. "Please, Asher! I'm innocent! You have to believe me!"
Asher's voice was cold, his words laced with anger. "The council of pack elders has made their decision, Skylar. You are to be banished in two days."
A stunned silence filled the air, broken only by Skylar's choked sob. "Banished? Asher, no... please! I didn't do this, you have to believe me!"
Asher felt the force of her anguish, her tears piercing his heart like shards of glass. But the memory of his children, lifeless in their beds, brought back his anger, and he killed off the pity he nearly felt for her.
"What children, Skylar?" Asher asked, his voice bitter. "The ones you killed to achieve your plans? You thought you wouldn't get caught and you'd get away with it, right?"
Skylar's screams echoed through the corridor, her voice like a madwoman. "Asher... What are you talking about? My children are dead? What happened to my children?"
Asher's anger boiled over, his voice thundering through the dungeon. "Shut your hypocrite mouth right now! How could you deny it, Skylar? You killed our children, and now you'll face the consequences!"
Skylar's tears flowed unchecked, her voice barely a whisper. "No, I don't believe you, Asher. Please... let me see them. Just once more, don't deprive me of seeing them because of what happened..."
Asher recoiled as though struck, his heart heavy with pain. "You killed them, Skylar! Have that in your mind. You have no right to ask for such a thing now. I came here to tell you of the council's decision, but now... I can't even bear to look at you.
"You are despicable."