Page 22
Griffin
“The reputation of the throne is in line.”
“The royal family cannot be subjected to such humiliation.”
“It is a thing of shame and is unacceptable.”
“Failure in anything is a sign of weakness, marriage included.”
Those words have been forced down my ears like the next national anthem. Apparently, it was a thing of shame for a member of the royal family to be involved in a ‘divorce scandal’ regardless of the situation.
We were expected to stay together and fix our problems. Otherwise, we’d be considered weak and incompetent. A king who cannot keep his home together is not fit to rule and unite a kingdom.
Not that I cared, my mind was made up and both elders and nobles could go to hell with their rules. Lilith and I were done, and nothing was going to change that .
She could go to the high court and cry to the high heavens, and my decision would remain the same. I refuse to be trapped in a loveless marriage with a bloodthirsty tyrant who could not see past the bridge of her nose.
“Divorcing your wife at a time when you should be focusing on making an heir to secure your birthright is not a wise decision, Your Highness,” Elder John cautioned, hot on my steps.
“Making kids with an evil woman is hardly ideal. Have you not seen what she has done to people?”
“Believe me, I have, and I’m totally nauseated by the thoughts of it, but this is a critical time, and we need to be cautious. You stand the chance to be given an extension to have kids when you’re married, but without a wife, you cannot even be considered.”
I knew what he was talking about. In fact, I had considered all of this, and it was not enough to change my mind about Lilith. I’d rather drag myself through burning coal tar than spend a night next to her.
If reporting me to the council and sending her father’s minions to spread false notions about our marriage was her way of making me regret losing her, then she was in for a surprise.
“I already thought about that, Elder John. I still have enough time to chase another woman.”
He let out a very loud scoff.
“You just divorced the only woman you’ve known for years. How sure are you that the same won’t happen with someone else?”
Sometimes, I forget that the rest of the kingdom was not aware of Mira’s bond.
With the exception of the few people who were present at the palace at the time of the pheromone incident, I can’t think of anyone else who knew about us, and those who witnessed the incident were strictly warned not to let a word get out .
With the knowledge of a mate in mind, I smiled at Elder John’s statement. “Let me worry about that.”
Sensing that I had no intention of changing my mind about the divorce, Elder John left me with a few words of caution and advised that I hasten whatever plans I might have, as my opponent was well on his way to securing the position for himself.
I thanked him for his support and headed for my office. With Mira’s decision to leave and the deal with Henry to be reviewed, I would have a long day tomorrow. If I could have it my way, I’d skip the meeting.
When she came to inform me about leaving, I had to fight off the urge to pull her into me and ask if she was okay, but something told me she wouldn’t want that. I wasn’t sure I was ready to dive into that conversation while withholding the culprit from her. It felt wrong.
My reason for getting involved with the deal was to get closer to Mira, and in her absence, I couldn’t find the zeal to stay committed. But I do not go back on my words no matter the circumstance, so I have to see the deal through.
My phone vibrated with a message from Michael, informing me that several shifters stormed Mira’s house. My first instinct was to rush to the scene and make sure Mira was okay, but when Michael assured me she was fine, I refocused my energy on seeking out the culprit.
Anger sizzled through me as I made my way to Lilith. I was going to make sure she paid for this. I was done being lenient, and I was going to treat her like the murderer she was.
“I knew I should’ve ordered for a direct hit and run, but I wanted to look into her stupid eyes and torture her first.”
I wasn’t one to eavesdrop, but the words stopped me dead in my tracks. I slowly approached the door to the drawing-room, taking care not to make any noise, and I placed my ears on the door .
“I wanted to make sure my face was the last thing she saw before putting her miserable life to an end. I didn’t know he would be there to save her at every corner.”
Cold sweat ran down my spine as the voice I was certain belonged to Lilith proceeded to divulge in explicit detail what she had intended to do with Mira and how frustrated she was about her plans falling through.
By the time the conversation got to her making new plans of hiring a sniper to take Mira and her son out from a distance, I was done listening and fuming to the point of explosion.
I kicked the door open to find her wide-eyed and clutching a strange-looking phone I had never seen in my life.
“Griffin—” she started, taking a step backward with each step I took forward.
I was furious and ready to tear her to shreds, decorum be damned. It was one thing for me to put two and two together from the incident on the highway, but it was entirely a different thing to hear the woman you have been with for a great part of your life meticulously plan the murder of another.
Not another. She wants to kill our mate. My wolf fumed, and my anger increased by a thousand-fold.
“Griffin, I swear it’s not what it looks like,” she said, holding out the phone to me.
“You can take a look at the logs. I wasn’t talking to anyone.
I was merely playing the role to ease my anger about the direction things have taken between us.
I might not be the best person, but you know I would never try to take a life. ”
I snatched the phone from her and tucked it into my pocket. I might be shaking with rage, but I wasn’t blind to reason. The phone would serve as evidence for when I take her to court.
“You have to believe me, baby. It’s not what you think. ”
I looked her up and down and decided she wasn’t worth flexing any muscles. “Guards!”
She paled the moment the word came out of my mouth, and I could see her eyes fill with fear.
In a few seconds, the drawing room was filled with some of the palace guards.
“Take her to the topmost chamber of the castle. She is to be stripped of her titles and access to the outside world. No one is allowed to visit. She is not allowed the service of her maids, and she is to be served her meals at my command. Keep the door and windows locked. I want the room drenched in complete silence.”
The guards, although evidently surprised by my orders, got to work without questions, taking out handcuffs and moving towards Lilith, who was fruitlessly trying to escape through the connecting passages.
“No! You can’t let them take me away. You must put a stop to this nonsense right now.” Lilith yelled, kicking and struggling as she was dragged out of the room.
I watched, in part relief and in part shock, as she was dragged away. The scene oddly brought the night Mira was locked away to memory. I still found it difficult to reconcile this new reality and how nothing about it fit into the plans I had for myself.
When I eventually opened the phone Lilith gave me, save for the call logs, it was almost empty.
No wonder she gave it up so freely, but what she didn’t know was that there are ways to access these logs.
I sent Michael a text to double the security on Mira until she left the States and asked Elder John to schedule a court meeting.
I would love to see how the court reacts to the divorce now that I have evidence against her.
******* *
“I think it is highly unfair to punish someone for the sins they are yet to commit. Like she said, she was angry and was merely doing that to ease the rage she was feeling. Have none of you imagined a mirror to be the face of your enemy while punching it?”
In my twenty-eight years of existence, I have heard my fair share of rubbish, but I was certain they would look like world-class, morally upright suggestions next to what this man was spewing.
The worst part of it was how almost half of the elders nodded in agreement even after listening to some of Lilith’s call logs and hearing how I had to save Mira from the first attack.
They maintained that she wasn’t guilty, and it was very unlikely for a princess to concern herself with a nobody.
It was a glorified way of saying Mira’s life was not important enough to get Lilith punished.
The maids and everyone she sent to the infirmary were suddenly dismissed as deserving of whatever came to them.
I was baffled at the depth corruption had eaten into the community. There was a time when they would hide thoughts like this and discuss them in hushed tones, but since Victor’s arrival, the nobles and elites have been growing in audacity and didn’t bother to hide their depravity anymore.
“Are you saying the people she has hurt and deformed were worthy of the inhumane treatment meted out to them? A girl was almost murdered, and you all sit here and say it doesn’t matter because she’s an Omega, and the princess wouldn’t concern herself with such.
What has become of you? The lives of the people we’re supposed to be protecting are on the line. ”
“But the girl lives, doesn’t she?”
I opened my mouth to retort and was almost blown away by the mouth-watering scent of vanilla and strawberries. My wolf’s initial agitation was replaced with excitement, and I scanned the courtroom in confusion.
Mira would never return to the palace willingly unless something or someone was forcing her. My eyes narrowed to slits, and I was ready to destroy anyone who brought her here to justify Lilith’s actions.