chapter 201: A Truth Revealed
chapter 201: A Truth Revealed
(Celeste’s POV)
The young omega wolf’s sobs hung in the air like shattered glass. “She paid us to pretend we were attacking her. But then he killed my father!”
I felt my body tremble slightly at the raw pain in the boy’s voice. His father–dead because of Scarlett’s scheme. My silver–scarred wolf stirred beneath my skin, a low whine building in my throat that I struggled to suppress.
Luna Victoria’s gaze flickered toward me, noticing my reaction. Her eyes narrowed with
suspicion.
“Are you saying my daughter paid you to fake an attack?” Alpha James’s voice was dangerously calm, his golden eyes cold as he addressed the young omega.
The boy clutched the pouch of silver coins tighter against his chest, tears streaming down his dirt–smudged face.
“Yes, Alpha. She promised no one would get hurt.” His voice cracked. “She just wanted to
make someone look bad.”
Alpha James’s jaw tightened. His gaze slowly shifted to me, his finger rising to point directly
at my face.
“Was it her?” he demanded, his voice hard as stone. “Was she the one who gave you the silver
coins?”
The accusation wasn’t surprising. I’d lived with their suspicion for so long that it felt almost
natural now. I kept my face carefully blank, but inside, a fresh wound opened. Once, I had been his cherished daughter. Once, he would never have assumed my guilt without proof.
Now I was just an outsider pretending to belong. A former daughter with only residual value to the pack.
The young omega followed Alpha James’s finger, his tearful gaze landing on me. There was confusion in his eyes, then recognition, then a firm shake of his head.
“No, Alpha. Not her.”
Alpha James’s face contorted with frustration. He turned back to the trembling omega, his
1/5
chapter 201: A Truth Revealed
patience visibly thinning.
“Boy, if you can’t clearly identify who paid you, then this entire story becomes questionable.” His voice carried the weight of his dominance. “Who exactly gave you the silver?”
The young omega’s eyes darted nervously around the room. “I–I can identify her by scent, Alpha. She was beautiful, with green eyes like forest pools.”
Alpha James’s wolf surged with irritation. He gestured sharply to a nearby beta guard.
“Take him to scent–mark the guilty party from their personal items,” he ordered. “I’ve had enough of these vague accusations.”
The young omega flinched as the beta approached. He pressed himself closer to Matthew, who despite his injured state, stood protectively beside him.
“Alpha James,” I spoke up, keeping my voice measured. “Why not simply have him identify Scarlett directly? She’s just in the other room.”
Alpha James whirled on me, his face flushing with anger.
“How dare you! My daughter was the victim of this supposed plot, not the perpetrator!”
I held his gaze steadily, refusing to submit. “If that’s true, then having him see her will only
confirm her innocence.”
Alpha James opened his mouth to deliver what would undoubtedly be a scathing reply when
Lucas suddenly spoke.
“Father,” he interrupted, his voice strangely strained. “Let the omega see Scarlett.”
The room fell silent. Lucas’s face had drained of color, his golden eyes troubled in a way hadn’t seen before. Something in his usually confident demeanor had shifted.
“Lucas?” Alpha James questioned, taken aback by his son’s unexpected support of my
suggestion.
“Please,” Lucas continued, a slight tremor in his voice. “Let him see her.”
Alpha James stared at his son, his anger yielding to confusion. After a moment of tense
silence, he stepped aside, wordlessly giving permission.
Sensing Alpha James’s silent agreement, I moved toward Scarlett’s private room where she
remained hidden in Victoria’s protective embrace.
Luna Victoria rose as we entered, her body positioning instinctively between us and Scarlett.
+8 Point
2/5
+8 Point:
chapter 201: A Truth Revealed
“This is unnecessary,” she protested, her wolf’s aura flaring defensively. “Scarlett is too distressed after her ordeal. These accusations are only making things worse.”
Before she could finish, the young omega wolf let out a strangled sound. His whole body trembled as he pointed directly at Scarlett, who had pressed herself against the headboard of
her bed.
“That’s her!” he cried, his voice breaking. “She’s the one who paid us! She told us to wait at the
abandoned den at the territory’s edge.”
Scarlett’s emerald eyes widened with fear.
The young omega continued, his words tumbling out in a desperate rush. “You paid my father extra to spread the news that you’d been taken by rogue wolves. You said no one would get
hurt!”
His anguished howl filled the room. “Give me back my father! Your brother killed him! Give him
back!”
The raw pain in his voice silenced everyone. I turned to Nina, who had followed us into the
room.
“Take him somewhere quiet,” I instructed softly. “And find him something to eat.”
Nina nodded, gently guiding the distraught young wolf away. His sobs echoed down the hallway long after they’d disappeared from sight.
A heavy silence settled over the room. Luna Victoria stood frozen, her hand still outstretched
protectively toward Scarlett. Lucas leaned against the doorframe, his face ashen. Alpha
James remained utterly still, his golden eyes fixed on his biological daughter.
Alexander stood apart from the family tableau, watching with the detached interest of
someone observing a play rather than participating in it.
(Lucas’s POV)
I couldn’t breathe. My wolf thrashed beneath my skin, howling in disbelief and horror.
The omega’s words echoed in my mind: “Your brother killed him!”
I had killed an innocent wolf. A father. Not a rogue threatening my sister, but someone Scarlett had paid to pretend.
My hands felt sticky with invisible blood. In my mind, I saw again the omega’s face as my claws tore through his throat. The confusion in his eyes. The way he had tried to speak before death silenced him forever.
3/5
+8 Point:
chapter 201: A Truth Revealed
He had tried to explain. And I hadn’t listened.
Celeste’s voice cut through the silence, calm and measured as she addressed Scarlett.
“Well? Do you have anything to say in your defense?”
Scarlett’s face crumpled. She scrambled off the bed and rushed toward Father, grabbing his
hands in hers.
“Daddy, please, I didn’t mean for anyone to get hurt,” she pleaded, her emerald eyes swimming
with tears. “I was just so scared of losing Alexander to Celeste.”
Father didn’t respond. His face had turned to stone.
Scarlett turned to me next, clutching at my sleeve.
“Lucas, you have to believe me! I was frightened after seeing how everyone treated Celeste.
How she fell from grace, how everyone abandoned her.”
Her voice dropped to a whisper. “I couldn’t bear the thought of that happening to me.”
I stared at my sister–my blood sister–feeling something cold settle in my chest.
“Did you know?” I asked quietly. “Did you know I would kill them?”
“No!” she cried, shaking her head frantically. “I just wanted you to scare them away! To be the
hero! When I saw what was happening, I tried to call out, but it was too late.”
She gripped my arms tighter. “Besides, they weren’t innocent! They were trying to blackmail
me for more silver after our initial agreement. You saw them threatening me!”
Her explanation sounded hollow. A twisted justification for an innocent wolf’s death.
“They had surrounded you,” I said slowly, remembering the scene. “But they weren’t attacking. They were… talking.”
The realization sickened me. I had been so ready to believe the worst, so eager to protect Scarlett, that I hadn’t questioned why a group of supposed attackers were standing around talking rather than actually harming her.
I had killed without thought. Without question.
Scarlett continued her tearful explanations, but her words washed over me without meaning. No one moved to comfort her. Not Father. Not Mother. Not even Alexander, who remained by the window, his face unreadable.
Our wolves, usually so quick to respond to her distress, remained silent and withdrawn.
4/5
+8 Point
chapter 201: A Truth Revealed
(Celeste’s POV)
Scarlett’s tears fell without effect. Her carefully crafted victim persona was crumbling, exposing the manipulation beneath.
I watched the family that had once been mine grapple with this new reality. No matter what
happened now, something fundamental had changed between them.
“You needn’t worry about losing Alexander to me,” I said into the silence, my voice carrying
clearly across the room.
All eyes turned to me. I shifted my gaze toward the courtyard visible through the window, where Matthew stood waiting, his bandaged head catching the morning light.
A small, genuine smile curved my lips. “I’ve decided to accept Matthew Sterling as my mate.”
Matthew’s head jerked up at my public declaration, surprise registering on his face before his
lips curved into a responding smile. Our eyes met across the distance, a silent confirmation
passing between us.
Something warm unfurled in my chest at his expression. After years of pain and isolation, this
simple connection felt like a ray of moonlight cutting through darkness.
Alexander’s gaze burned into me. I could feel it without looking, intense and unrelenting. From
the corner of my eye, I noticed his claws digging into his palm, drawing blood that dripped
unnoticed to the floor. His white wolf stirred visibly beneath his skin, a silent whine of distress
at odds with his carefully controlled expression.
The moment hung suspended in time–Matthew’s warm gaze, Alexander’s silent struggle, my
own unexpected happiness.
Then Alpha James shattered it with a roar of disapproval.
“Absolutely not!” His wolf surged with dominant energy, filling the room with his authority. “My
former daughter will not mate with a mere second–in–command!”
