Zephyrine “What is the report?” I asked, my tone sharp, the same one I used to rule back in my pack. The smile had withered off my face, and my eyes were fixed on Princess Serena, who had also slipped into her working mode. With the King present, neither of us would risk disappointment. “At the afterparty of the beta ascension ceremony,” Serena began, her voice clear, “Kaela Yadev, a werewolf, humiliated a maid from this Kingdom. Alpha Nyroth of the Hue Pack is here today as her accomplice. He too will have to apologize.” A hush fell over the chamber. Slowly, I lifted my gaze to the maid. She was young, beautiful, about Blue’s age, and my chest ached for her. All I could think of was Luna Tahlia, how Nyroth and Kaela ruined her reputation until I stopped the rumors with blood. “Are you okay?” I asked at last. She bowed respectfully. “I am fine, my lady.” “Do you need an apology?” I pressed, and she glanced nervously at Nyroth, who refused to look her way, then at Kaela, who glared. Finally, she returned her gaze to me. “I… I don’t want any problem. I am perfectly fine.” I studied her, then gave a small nod. “When next they strike you, you’ll be fine too, won’t you?” “My lady…” “Or perhaps when they accuse you of theft, or blackmail you, you’ll still want no problem, and you’ll be fine?” Her lips trembled as she stared, then lowered her gaze, shaking her head. “If they apologize… what will that change?” she whispered. “It won’t erase that night, how she called me an omega and poured wine in my face. It won’t… undo the way she looked at me, as though I was nothing.” “And yet you’d let them off?” I asked, steady. She looked up again, hesitant. “My family once went to war, the Ashmeres,” I told her. “Do you know why? Because at a certain festival, a noble raped one of our maids. By morning, he apologized, and my father forgave him because the maid wanted peace, just like you. She thought being an omega made her worthless. That she deserved no justice. That it won’t make any impact. The next festival, it happened again. Another apology, another forgiveness. By the third, he paid with his life. Omegas…” My voice hardened. “Being an omega makes them believe they are nothing. But that is a lie. You must stand for yourself. For your rights. And as a Lycan this is why you have a King. In your own Kingdom, no outsider, no werewolf, has the right to humiliate you. Not here.” I let the silence hang until my words sank into her bones. When I finally looked up again, her eyes brimmed and she sniffled softly. “I demand an apology,” she said at last, voice trembling but sure. “Because I am not useless. Not worthless. And I refuse to be humiliated in the Kingdom I was born into.” I nodded firmly in support, then turned my gaze straight to Kaela. “Go on,” I said, cutting through the silence. “Apologize for pouring wine in her face.” Kaela, seated across from me, set her jaw. “I have come with compensation instead.” She gestured at the maid. “What do you say to a chest of gold and expensive…” “Apologize.” My voice cracked like a whip, and she snapped her glare toward me. “Keep your stolen compensation to yourself. No Lycan will accept it. Apologize for your rudeness.” Her lips pressed into a thin line. Defiance blazed in her eyes. “How about letting the maid decide?” she countered, turning back to the girl. “Which will serve you better? A fortune to free you from servitude forever or an apology that means nothing?” The silence was sharp. We all waited. The maid lifted her chin, her voice steady now. “Just because we are maids does not mean we cannot afford the dresses you wear. This is the Lycan Kingdom. Since our new King’s reign, things have changed. We are compensated well enough. Thank you for the offer, but I will go with an apology.” A smile tugged my lips before I could stop it. The girl had struck Kaela where it hurt, and satisfaction bloomed in me. Kaela’s jaw locked. She turned, bowing stiffly to the maid. “I apologize for spilling wine on you.” The chamber stilled. Then came a soft, mocking chuckle from Dessyn, who delighted in Kaela’s humiliation. Kaela glared, but said nothing. My eyes shifted at last to Nyroth. “Princess Serena?” I asked.She nodded. “He is summoned to apologize as well. He arrived with Kaela Yadev and occupied the Hue Pack seat. That makes him responsible for her misdeeds.” This time I nearly laughed aloud. Fitting. “I won’t apologize, Zeph,” Nyroth said before I could speak. His eyes fixed on me, sharp and wounded. “If this is your way of punishing me for our past, it is unfair.” I stared back at him, blank. We were finished. All ties severed. And yet, he clung to something unresolved. “Zeph… why didn’t you tell me you were an Ashmere?” “Apologize to the lady, Alpha Nyroth. I have nothing else to say to you.” My voice was cold, my eyes elsewhere. But he pushed on. “Zeph, we need to talk. There’s so much left between us. You wronged me by hiding who you are. You…” His words cut short. Slowly, I turned to see Lycannar had stepped forward, one broad palm pressed flat on the table, his pale-gold eyes locked onto Nyroth’s. He had never done such a thing before, never wasted words on strangers. Yet here he was. “This session is not for your wounded feelings,” Lycannar said, voice low, threaded with warning. “Choose your words carefully. I have no patience when it comes to my woman.”