Rhea was already asleep when she heard a heavy banging on the door. She opened her eyes softly and wondered if perhaps her father had forgotten his keys, but as the banging got louder, she knew it wasn't her dad because he would never hit the door like that.
With a soft yawn escaping her lips, Rhea got off her bed, put on her slippers, and walked to the door, and to her surprise, she saw Lauretta, a maid from the Luna's house.
From the way Lauretta was panting, it was as if she had run here, so knowing Lauretta wouldn't understand her signing, she was going to go bring her phone when Lauretta held her hand.
"We don't have time, Rhea. We need to hurry to Sir James's house. Mr. Daniel, your father has just been accused of stealing by Lady Helen. You need to hurry."
Rhea's heart sank at the news. How could her dad be accused of stealing from the house of the former Beta? Without even bothering to lock the house, Rhea ran to Sir James's mansion, and when she got there, she saw her dad kneeling on the floor with gold coins and a map lying in front of him.
Rhea tried to run to him but was stopped by two guards.
Lady Helen, who saw this scene, said, "Let the traitor daughter in."
Traitor? Why was she calling her dad a traitor?
The guards released Rhea's arm, and she ran to her father, kneeling beside him and hugging him tightly.
Daniel looked at her, his left eye already swollen from the beating he had received before she got here. "You shouldn't be here, princess. Why are you here?"
Rhea had already begun to cry when she saw her father's state, and with tears flowing from her eyes, she signed, 'Why are they saying you stole? My dad can never steal.'
Daniel smiled and whispered, "Yes, your dad can never steal. So you don't have to worry; it's just a misunderstanding that will soon get resolved."
"A misunderstanding, you say?" Lady Helen coldly interrupted. "Gold coins and the map of Vale Pack territory were found in your bag, and you say it's a misunderstanding?"
"Like I said before, I have no idea how those things got into my bag." Daniel said.
"If you continue lying, then this matter will be reported to the Alpha, and when that happens, he will not hesitate to behead you for trying to give our map territory to a rival mark."
"I may be a lowborn warrior, but I am not a traitor. I was called in by Sir James because he said he wanted my service, but when I got here, I did not see him, and now I am being accused of this. Even if this matter is brought to the Alpha, I will still say the same thing I have told you."
"So what are you trying to say, that you are being framed? And who would frame a lowly Gamma like you? Are you perhaps saying that both I and my husband called you here to frame you?"
"I did not say such things."
"Yes, you did. You may try to twist your words to get out of this, but there is no getting out of this. You were caught with evidence proving not just theft but treason, and you know the consequences of this."
Listening to Lady Helen, Rhea immediately looked at her and held the hem of her gown. Right at this moment, she wished she could talk, but no matter how hard she tried, words were not coming out of her mouth. She kept crying and pointing to her father, shaking her head profusely.
Irritated by her action, Helen kicked her away.
"Rhea!" Daniel shouted, and when the guards saw that he was about to move, they held him down.
"Mom! What are you doing?"
Hearing the voice of her friend, Rhea turned to see Violet. Her eyes lit up with hope when she saw Violet walking towards them.
Rhea stood up and stood in front of Violet, pointing to her father.
Violet looked at Daniel with a frown and asked, "What happened, Mom? Why is Mr. Daniel kneeling on the floor?"
"That's because he is a thief and a traitor."
"What do you mean?"
"A bunch of gold coins and the map of the Vale pack territory were found in his bag, and I am certain he planned to give the map of our pack to a rival pack."
"What?"
Rhea held Violet's hand and shook her profusely.
"Rhea, calm down. We will figure it out." Violet said.
"Of course, we will. Guards, take him to the cell, and until he confesses, neither serve him food nor water." Lady Helen commanded coldly.
Seeing that her father was being taken away, Rhea rushed to him and kept crying. 'I can't live without you. Please, don't go.'
A tear slipped from Daniel's eyes as he said, "Your dad didn't do anything, and it will be proven, and when that day comes, we will be together again, ok? But in the meantime, remember to not skip your meals, and don't wear little because you know you get cold easily, and if that happens, I won't be able to call the healer for you."
Rhea cried bitterly at her father's words, and then she signed, 'Don't leave me."
Daniel wanted to hug his daughter, but he couldn't because his hand was being held tightly by his guards, so he just said, "I can never leave my heartbeat. I will be back, ok?"
Rhea nodded and felt Violet's hand on hers.
Daniel smiled when he saw Violet holding Rhea's hand, so he said to her, "Forgive my audacity for giving the Luna such a task, but please, take care of Rhea; you know you are her only friend."
Violet nodded. "I will, and do not worry about anything. I'm sure this is just a misunderstanding, and it will be cleared very soon."
"Thank you, Luna." Daniel said and glanced at his daughter once more before leaving. How was his little girl going to survive without him? Just the thought of that broke his heart into a million pieces.
Rhea sobbed silently as the guard took her father away, but Violet squeezed her hand tightly, saying, "It's alright, Rhea. Everything is going to be fine, I promise."