Chapter 87

Scarlett’s POV

They led me to the center of the great hall, and I felt the weight of every gaze upon me as i stood there in chains, exposed and vulnerable. The hall was filled with people, some looking at me with judgment, others with indifference, and a few with a hint of concern. I searched for the familiar faces of my mates, hoping for some reassurance, but they were nowhere to be seen.

“They have distanced themselves from you,” Tasha’s voice came from behind me, cold and final. “Until you are proven innocent, you are no longer their mate.” Her words sank like stones, and I felt a pang of despair as I realized the depths of my isolation.

At the front of the hall was a raised platform with five tall chairs. Each chair was occupied by an elder, their faces lined with age and hardened by years of judgment. Tasha took her seat on the far left, and in the center sat an older man whose resemblance to Lucian was uncanny, though his eyes were far colder, filled with a harshness that unnerved me. I realized then that he must be Lucian’s elder relative, the root of Lucian’s strength but without his warmth.

“Do you know why you are here, Vladislav?” the man in the center asked, his voice booming through the hall. I managed to shake my head, though fear constricted my throat.

“You are here,” he continued, “because you slept with a guest and sought his help in leaving our territory, abandoning your mates and the people you swore loyalty to as their Luna. This is an insult to your mates, an affront to the North, and an act of dishonour.”

The accusation hung in the air, heavy and damning, pressing down on me like a physical weight. I fought the urge to protest, knowing that my words held