Initially it seemed like a slow increase of pressure, as if one were surrounded by water that keeps rising, but later on it became nonstop, ruthless, and overpowering.
For a very long time they had been secretly and subtly reducing the power of the Luna Isolde. They questioned her decisions in an open manner, kept her orders in a secret manner, and turned members of the pack against her in a quiet manner, people who had trusted her completely. Rumors were being spread that the Luna was not thinking clearly, that the Luna was not loyal to the pack anymore, that the Luna had been influenced by a vampire king. Every single quiet word, every small glance, every unsure nod of a council member was like adding another burden to the already weighed down side of her.
She might have laughed at the absurdity of it all if it didn't hurt her so much. She saw Leslie very rarely. She had driven him away in such a manner that even her wolf hadn't tried to connect with him anymore. He was away from her on purpose, quietly, like a shadow that is respectful of the limits set by her. But nevertheless, his absence was making a hole in her. She loathed herself for noticing, loathed herself for showing weakness, and loathed that the nights felt so much colder without his quiet warmth.
Even so, she stayed strong. She kept going. She made decisions by herself, led by herself, and stood by herself under the strain of a pack that had forgotten what she had given up for them. Duke Jordan stayed loyal by her side, reliable and steady, but even he couldn't protect her from the elders' sneaky influence. Years of pressure had left their mark on her.
---
It seemed like a sudden, thunderous clap when she finally lost her patience with the situation.
The pack hall doors slammed open, shaking the entire place. Fur of all wolves flashed automatically, as each and every one of them turned towards the source of the noise.
Feeling the cold, moonlit power flow through her once more, Isolde stood up from her seat and followed the pack hall doors.
Leslie Reed stepped into the room.
Behind him, a werewolf in chains made of pure silver and looking as if he was hurt, trembling and scared, was marched into the hall. The hall was quickly filled with quiet talks.
He approached the platform that was raised. His calm and controlled voice overpowered the murmurs. "This werewolf was found in my kingdom during the night. He was in fact carrying secret messages. Treason against both our worlds."
The elders looked very uncomfortable, some of them acting as if they have been right all along, and some not feeling very well in their skin.
Isolde came off the stage, her expression unchanged, even though her heart was racing.
"And what do you want?" she questioned.
"Fire"
Leslie uttered the word without any hesitation.
The entire place was filled with whispering and muttering. "That is vampire law," one of the elders whispered. "He wants us to follow that here?" another whispered.
Isolde raised her hand and stopped the talking of all the people present. Turning to Leslie she said, "Why?"
His glance was a little sharper when he said it. "He is the one who betrayed the alliance the most."
"And what proof do you have?" she asked.
He looked at her, not flinching, freezing, and steady. "My word."
The chamber went again into uproar. Several of the elder members showed their support, while some others shouted in rage that she dare challenge a vampire king. But Isolde did not waver, with a strength that grew inside her, slowly.
"No one will be killed on Moonlight land without proof," she said plainly.
Ever since he arrived, Leslie's serene demeanor altered only slightly, but enough for her to notice it. His mouth went tight, repressing his reaction, like a beast letting loose its fury but restraining itself. Whole her, her wolf, her heart, and her mind, told her to watch out.
Her wolf became more and more nervous and it was more alert as well.
Leslie took a long breath and then in a gesture that hardly ever occurs with vampire kings, he averted his gaze a bit, a very subtle defeat that made the whole place stop breathing.
"Alright," he uttered. "If you want to have the truth, I will give you the truth."
The chamber became quite.
To the council, he turned and said. "I think it would be best if Luna Isolde accompanied me to the vampire kingdom to see with her own eyes the proof."
There were sounds of great surprise in the room. "That is beyond words," an old member murmured. "Luna going into vampire land, it's the same as asking for death." "Or it's a trick," another one said, almost inaudibly.
Duke Jordan stepped up in front of her. "The vampire capital has not seen the face of a wolf leader in hundreds of years," he said, warning her.
Leslie kept his gaze with her. "Because no one was invited."
The elders looked at her firmly, not taking their eyes off her, waiting for her to deny, and hoping she would. Leslie also waited, very motionless, as if even the slightest movement would reveal too much.
Isolde looked Leslie in the eyes. "I will go," she said.
The council burst out in noise again, but Leslie said nothing. He just nodded once, a small, careful nod, full of unspoken meaning. Her heart beat faster suddenly, without her wanting it to. She hated that he could hear it and hated that he reacted with the smallest look of worry, quickly hidden.
For the first time, Isolde understood that the truth might cost her more than she was willing to sacrifice.
She felt it with her tightening chest, the uneasy feeling her wolf was inside her, and all her gut instincts shouting both worry and knowing something she didn't want to know. She was so close to doing something she had never thought of doing, but she had to do it. The group, the team, the easily broken trust she had made, were all up to her finishing the job.
She would finish the job.
Because she knew some things just couldn't be brushed aside. Some ties, no matter how
hard she tried to break them, would pull her ahead.
And if she was truthful, even painfully so, some part of her wolf was happy about it.