Jade’s pov:
I didn’t know whether Alex intended to do the sneaky vixen real harm, and I didn’t believe it would be of any consequent issue really. Considering she had betrayed her alpha, and treason was usually punishable by death…
Jessica was still struggling to get his hand off her neck when the door to his office opened. The elders made a dramatic entrance and the one who spoke up first was haughty more than I would like if I were to be honest, “Alpha Alexander, have you lost your mind?”
“I have my reasons,” Alex said simply without even glancing their way.
“Let’s hear them,” another one supplied, the glint in his eyes making me stiffen at once.
They knew more than they let on, that much was obvious, and they had it against me and Alex.
“Jessica betrayed the pack,” I told them in a calm tone despite the feelings warring within me.
“And how, pray tell, did she do that?” The elder went on, his question hanging in the air for a moment.
I sighed and then walked to Alex, putting a soothing hand on his shoulder, stopping him from doing something that could cost him too much. He relaxed under my touch, and soon enough Jessica dropped to the ground, wheezing as she tried to get enough air in her lungs.
“Let us have a meeting, alpha Alexander,” the first one to speak let out again, his tone of voice decisive.
“Luc, Trevor,” Alex began in a firm tone of voice, “Take Jessica to the dungeons where she will stay until I decide her punishment.”
“Yes alpha,” they responded in unison, and soon enough were escorting the traitor out of the office, even as she tried to beg for mercy.
“My office is hardly the place for a meeting,” Alex then let out, almost as if in passing only, even as he began to make a beeline to the door. “Let’s head to the conference room.”
Melinda and Victoria retreated, without breathing a word, before Alex and I walked out of the office, the elders trailing behind us. If I were to be totally honest, because of a moment of unparalleled ire, I knew I wouldn’t have stopped Alex. I didn’t care for Jessica to put it bluntly, and wouldn’t have mourned her loss either. She was a manipulative woman whom I wouldn’t miss at all… I had ignored her for weeks already.
Upon settling in our respective seats in the conference room, a heavy silence fell. And truth be told, under the elders’ accusing stares, I had a hard time controlling my wolf who wanted to submit… but then again, I was the Luna of the pack, and would only bow down in submission for my mate, and no one else.
“Alpha Alexander, do tell us why you were ready to kill a pack member, in your office no less, and with no proper trial…”
The elder who had spoken looked old enough to not be duped by an excuse.
“The Stevens family has always stood by you too,” another one added, almost mockingly, and I bared my teeth involuntarily, not liking where this was going.
“They only stood by their alpha like they ought to,” Alex let out as he put a hand over my thigh and stroked it, doing his best to calm me down.
And it was working.
But the way the elders acted was just too much, and I soon enough found myself growling in displeasure when one of them said, “Jessica Stevens is free to do with her body as she pleases, Alpha. You made your bed…”
“What are you implying?” Alex thundered out, his eyes blackening.
“We are worried about the pack, and how you’ve been handling it ever since you took Jade as your mate.”
Alex was gritting his teeth at that point, looking just about ready to kill one of the elders instead of the Stevens brat.
There was a knock on the door, and soon enough Trevor and Luc entered the conference room, and then made way for Alex’s parents.
“We sensed your anger, son,” his father let out, his tone of voice calm and yet menacing at the same time.
“Is everything okay?” His mother went on as she looked at each of the elders through narrowed eyes.
“Luna,” one of them began with great deference, “You have to understand…”
“I don’t understand,” she cut in at once. “I stopped being the luna of the pack quite some time ago. You now have Jade to address as your luna!”
“Please, she is a pup,” one of them exploded at once, unable to take her reprimands.
“She is Alexander’s rightful mate and fated luna,” his father said, his eyes blackening at once.
“She is nothing but a problematic child, a born healer they said,” another one spat out, and I stiffened at once, not liking where this was going.
Alex shifted right in the middle of the conference room at that point, seemingly unable to keep listening to their nonsense. The elders sprung up to their feet, startled and definitely scared for their lives too.
The less talkative of the lot, the one I knew to be the leader, spoke up at long last, “What are alpha Alexander’s intentions exactly?”
Ignoring him completely, I talked to my mate in a soothing voice, “Alex, my love, everything is okay. We are okay. Their disrespect means nothing to me.”
His black wolf, which had been snarling their way, turned to me, tilted his head, almost as if debating what to do.
“Luc, bring your alpha a change of clothes,” I ordered.
“Yes, Luna Jade,” he said before disappearing out of the conference room.
I then turned to the leader of the elders, and addressed him in a polite tone of voice that was fooling no one, “While I do not appreciate your words of contempt, I would not want chaos to befall the pack because of your inability to keep your mouths shut. Meeting adjourned.”
“I beg your pardon?” One of them said, outrage coating his words.
“You heard the luna,” Trevor said, his eyes hard on them, as he began to usher them out of the conference room.
“We’re not done,” the leader of the elders said in a clipped tone of voice.
“I know,” I shrugged, doing my best to keep all the unsavory comments burning my lips to myself.
The elders were beyond insufferable it would seem… they had become a little bit of a threat to our peace.