Chapter 3

~Valerie~

I couldn’t understand why the Pack council decided to hastily bury my parents in the space of six hours, especially for a Beta who was murdered. As long as I can remember, it takes at least one week before burial so that the relevant authorities can lay their hands on whatever evidence they can get their hands on. 

My eyes swept through the crowd at the burial ground. There were so many people; a lot of them that I didn’t particularly know. But Pack is family, right? I glanced around for a sign of Cordy but he was nowhere to be found. 

Maybe I’m trying to build castles in the air but I still refuse to accept that Cordy had rejected me last night. The bond that we have is too strong for that to happen. And the way he looked at me before the sudden decision that he took, I saw that he still loves me. Maybe I had seemed so needy. Isn’t that why he called me promiscuous?

I sniffled and turned my attention back to the two graves before me. At this point, my red, puffy eyes could barely see a thing from all the crying that I’d done. I didn’t want to cry anymore but who am I to stop this rush? A flashback of my father’s heart on the floor drove me to another bout of tears.

“Who did this to you?” I sobbed and laid my face down on the gravel that was used to cover them. 

I felt a familiar hand on my shoulder and turned. There was Cordy, worry written all over him. His arms cocooned around me immediately and all the feelings that I’d been holding back erupted. The single fact that I had lost the two people who mattered most to me made me bawl even more.

Cordy rubbed my back and cooed in my ear. “Shhhh….it will be alright. You’ll be okay”

I lifted my head and looked up at him. All the hurt, pain, and heartbreak lay bare before him. “Cordy….my parents…my father…he was… his heart was…”

He pulled me back into his arms and dropped comforting kisses on my forehead. “Don’t think about it. You can let it all out.”

I allowed myself to get into the comfort that his arms offered. I pulled back from him when I saw Alpha Lockwood walking towards us. He had some warriors with him who looked ready to pounce on me. They were a selected few whose job was to capture criminals in the pack. What were they doing here at my parent’s burial?

“Alpha Lockwood” I bowed my head as a sign of respect.

“I am sorry to hear about the death of your parents. It came as a shock to me” Alpha Lockwood said.

“They were murdered” I choked out and swiped at my tears furiously.

“Surprisingly too. For a man as strong as your father, with so many securities around the clock, most things didn’t add up to his death. I know that you think we haven’t been doing our investigation on his murder, but we have.”

“What are you saying Alpha?”

He motioned for two of the warriors to come closer. I took two steps back, unsure of what was happening.

“We need you to come with us right now to the investigation bureau. We have some questions for you to answer”. One of the burly guards said

Is this a joke or did I miss a few things in the reconstruction of the pack rules? I looked at the guard like he had suddenly grown two heads. “I don’t understand. Why do I need to be questioned? I am the victim here” I wiped off some stray tears forcefully.

“You can come with them willingly or they will drag you. Your choice” the alpha continued, ignoring my remarks.

Cordy took my hand. “Leave her alone, father. She just lost her parents. This is unfair. At least allow her to mourn their deaths first”. 

Alpha Lockwood glanced at him. “Let her go, Cordy. I understand that you haven’t forgotten the conversation that we had.

Fear settled in the pit of my belly and my eyes automatically glanced towards him. “What do you mean by that?”

Alpha Lockwood gestured to the guards. “Take her”

Cordy’s hands left mine and the guards dragged me away from the burial ground. I pulled and kicked, but they were a hundred times stronger than me. It was all useless. 

***

“Please let me out of here” I croaked a little bit embarrassing for someone who is supposed to be the Beta female. I don’t know how long I’d been locked up in here but from my calculation, it should have been up to six hours or more. 

“Father…mother… Please help me. I don’t know what is happening anymore” I sobbed

I tapped the window bars in the dungeon, hoping that someone would hear me. The light coming from the bars had already gone dim so I knew that night was coming. I’ve heard stories of the things that happen to prisoners here at night and that is something that I don’t pray to encounter. Wait. Is that what I am now? A prisoner?

Filled with newfound determination, I went to the iron door and banged with all the strength I could muster. “Let me out of here or I’ll kill myself”

The door opened in that instant and one of the guards motioned for me to come out. He led me to a room filled with people that I had never seen before. Are they the investigation jury? I was pushed to the ground by the guard and my stubborn self didn’t let him go before giving him my signature scowl.

“Do you know why you are here?” Alpha Lockwood asked.

“All I know is that I was dragged here, thrown in the dungeon, and treated like a prisoner on the day of my parent’s burial” I snapped before I could process what I should say.

There was a collective gasp in the room. I have done it again. My big mouth is finally ready to put me in a much bigger mess than I am right now. I glanced at the alpha and saw that his eyes were blazing red. Yep, I made him angry.

I bowed my head and said in a more submissive tone. “I’m sorry alpha. What I meant was that I am not aware. Forgive me please”.

A thick burly man who I assumed to be the new Beta, spoke up. “There has been a confession that involves you in the death of your parents which is what we want to clarify with you”

“I don’t understand. A confession? Of what?” I asked, looking from the man to the alpha.

Alpha Lockwood cleared his throat. “Four security guards from your house claim that on the night of your parent’s murder, you called them and ordered them to leave their posts and go on a two-day leave”.

I stared at the alpha, confused. What is happening right now? I scoffed and gave a confused laugh. “What?”

The burly man spoke up again. “You sounded drunk and you told them that some people will be coming to take care of your parents. You told them how tired you were with your parents, especially your father, treating you like a kid and you need them out of your life”

My jaw dropped open. I opened my mouth to say something but nothing came out. My heart was beating so fast that I felt it would jump out of my chest. The panel whispered to each other and motioned to the guard. A few seconds later, the four security guards in our house came in.

“These are the guards who gave the witness against you. We will ask them the same thing before you now.” Alpha Lockwood turned to the four guards. “Did she call you on the night of her parent’s death to give you a two-day leave?”

They all nodded and the alpha continued. “What else did she say?”

“She wanted her parents out of her life and that some people would take care of them that night. She also sounded drunk” one of the guards answered.

“Thank you. That will be all”

They bowed and left the room. I was too stunned to talk.

“So what do you have to say for yourself?”

“I never made any calls to them and I certainly was not drunk last night. I was with Cordy all through…before we had a misunderstanding”

I wasn’t about to tell the group of bald men that my mate rejected me last night.

The panel exchanged glances. “You were with Cordy last night?”

“Yes. We went out for a few hours. He can tell you if you ask him. We were together”

From the corner of my eye, I saw Cordy slowly emerge from the shadows behind the door. I gave a sigh of relief. 

“So, Cordy, Valerie says the two of you were together last night? Is that true?” the Alpha asked.

I looked at Cordy hopefully, willing him to say the words that will set me free. Our eyes met for a split second and the coldness that I saw in them frightened me.

“No father. I was never with her. I was in the field all evening training with my friend”

I gasped. “What? Cordy! What are you doing? We were together last night!”

“If that is all, father, I’d like to leave now. I was busy with mother before you called” he continued, ignoring me.

“You can leave, son”.

My heart palpitated as I watched Cordy walk away from the room. From me. I couldn’t believe what had just happened. The tears I thought were finished from my eyes came up again in waves.

“We knew that you’d try to lie with Cordy’s name and that was why we sent for him,” the man beside the alpha said.

“But we were together. He is not telling the truth”

“Are you calling the alpha’s son a liar?” 

I sobbed and hung my head low, devoid of words to say.

“You have been found guilty of your parent’s death and because of this; you will be demoted to an Omega. You will receive a hundred strokes of whip every morning and evening and the dungeon will be your home until I decide what to do with you” Alpha Lockwood declared, practically sealing my fate.

He signaled the guards. “Take this filth away from here and make sure the hundred strokes start from tonight”

“No please, alpha. I am innocent” I cried as the guards dragged me away to what might be my permanent residence.