Chapter 97: Chapter 97

The entire room erupted into chaos. People from all sides were yelling angrily, hurling obscenities and threats. They called me a monster, a beast that needed to be sacrificed. Their words bounced off me, but their emotions tainted with acid burned and cut through me.

There were some who didn’t join the chaos, the golden-haired couple being two who remained quiet and stoic during this farce.

As horrible things were being said and death threats were spat out like venom from bared teeth, the guards patrolling the room were on high alert, emerging from their hiding spots within the crowd. They came out one by one, blending in with the people around them.

I was surprised when each guard reached the center of the room. They stood around the High Table and the section that contained my family. I knew that the High Table would be the top priority in a situation like this, but I didn’t expect my family and I to be included.

Amidst the chaos, Andrew Evans chose his moment to arrive. The oak doors that served as the main entrance swung wide open, but that did little to calm the manic witnesses.

Sitting above it all, watching the chaos like a rebellious god, was David Zoe. He didn’t intervene, where he certainly could have. These people would listen to him, they would quiet down for him. He remained seated, poised and serene as he observed the unfolding chaos.

It was Sven Ross who stood up, slamming the table in front of him with such force that the witnesses who had been pressing forward recoiled. Even I took a step back as Sven’s emotions registered within me. My skin erupted in flames, scorchingly hot as if it were real. His irritation and anger invaded me just as his eyes met mine. They weren’t hurt, nor were they haunted. They were frustrated and angry.

As his eyes met mine, I could feel him reining in those emotions, deliberately trying to dampen them. Perhaps he knew the strength of his own emotions. I was beginning to think that Sven Ross had to be much more than he appeared.

“Enough,” his voice was a quiet whisper, but each and every one of us could hear it. There was another whisper or two from the other side of the room, so low I almost missed it, but Sven Ross didn’t. He lifted his head, his eyes scanning the room. Thick cords of muscle moved beneath his leather jacket as he looked around. His lips twisted, and I knew he had found the two poor individuals he was searching for. He pierced them with his gaze, and both middle-aged men stood completely still. “I said enough.”

The whole room was silent now, barely breathing as we all shrank back. Ethan, of all people, seemed intrigued by Sven’s outburst. I heard several sighs of relief as Sven slowly lowered himself back into his seat. I could still feel the remnants of his anger, like a harsh sunburn that I knew would peel. While I wanted to look into his eyes and thank him for silencing the room, my attention shifted to Andrew Evans.

Perhaps it was Maurice’s genes, but Andrew was almost a replica of his father. The sole singular difference was his eyes. Andrew had his father’s reddish-brown hair and sturdy build, but his eyes were hazel. The green and golden hues seemed to show more, highlighted by his tanned skin.

I wasn’t the only one with my attention on Andrew Evans. I could feel much more than I wanted, and I questioned how desperate some of these women really were.

I knew the kind of person Andrew Evans was the moment his emotions registered in my mind. He was confident, pleased, and absolutely above it all. He entered the room, relishing the attention as he managed to look both calm and confident.

Andrew walked to the center of the room but turned and locked eyes with me. It was only a second or two of a glance, but the damage was already done. Maurice’s crumpled form flashed behind my eyes, along with the other two beside him. I swallowed my guilt, though it felt like a golf ball going down my throat.

Andrew approached the raised platform where the High Table sat and greeted each of the men. David played the role of the respectful businessman, Robert was polite and somewhat robotic, Sven was uninterested and unimpressed, and Sebastion was still angry enough to breathe hellfire through his nose.

“Seems like things got pretty heated,” Andrew Evans commented with a smug smile. There was no way, shape, or form I missed the growl that came from Jason’s lips, nor the way his emotions turned dark and murderous. I wasn’t sure if Andrew was talking about Sebastian’s furious expression or the crowd that had once been shouting obscenities.

“Yeah, well, it’s in our nature, isn’t it?” David asked, his eyes narrowing only in minimal amounts. Andrew Evans looked too much like his father, without the brains to back it up. David stood up, and the entire crowd’s attention shifted from Andrew to David. Andrew seemed to realize that, and he had some mixed emotions bubbling to the surface. “Andrew Evans, Maurice’s eldest son, will now temporarily take a seat at the High Table.”

Once all five men were seated, Andrew began to speak.

“My father feels the same way as many of you do,” he began, addressing the crowd before turning his eyes back to me. His eyes were pretty, earthy like bark and moss. It was his attitude that made my eyebrows furrow more and moreThis wolf, we know very little about her. Facts are easy to come by, but who is this girl? Can she handle a power that brings all men to their knees? My father has served as a warrior and protector of his pack for a decade and will continue to protect us, even if those battles may take place in the future.

With each emotion of his that passed through me, my stomach sank a little further. Andrew Evans wasn’t on our side, and I highly doubted he would change his mind in the near future.

If I hadn’t been stunned by Andrew’s greedy and power-hungry emotions, I would have missed the man who pushed his way through the crowd.

He was casually dressed, in a black shirt and pants. His hair was dark and just a little curly on the sides where it poked out from under a dark cap on his head. He was dressed almost identically to the other security guards, but I was sure he wasn’t a guard himself.

There was nothing special about this man, and I almost looked away, almost.

Just as I turned my eyes away, I noticed him veering left, toward where the members of the High Table were seated. The stranger, quick as lightning, approached David Zoe and dropped a card onto the table in front of him.

The split second that David turned his head was all the man needed to slip back into the crowd. I tried to follow him with my gaze, but he disappeared from view within seconds.

Naturally, I was a bit curious. I watched as David finished saying something to Andrew and glanced down at his hands.

It might have been just a note, or some kind of reminder, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that the man wasn’t a security guard. He had moved so fast; he didn’t want to be caught.

David glanced at the paper for only a second before slipping it into his hands. He had to, it was natural. He smiled and nodded, responding to something Robert had asked him without missing a beat. His eyes raced down for three seconds before returning to the crowded room.

I could feel the moment those mysterious words registered, because that perfectly carved stone that enclosed David Zoe cracked. I could see it in the way his eyes lit up and his fingers moved idly. Just by his voice and behavior, you’d never be able to tell that this beast had almost broken out of his cage. The card with the note was in his pocket before anyone could notice, and it would soon be destroyed.

David stood up and addressed the crowd, silencing any murmurs or whispers. His movements were slow, but I knew he was just trying to appear relaxed. While he was an expert at concealing his emotions, that c***k was giving me a glimpse inside him. While I couldn’t feel any of his other emotions, I realized he was impatient. David Zoe was in a hurry to leave.

“The duties of an Alpha never end and are often not as entertaining as one might expect,” David sighed to the crowd, who let out small chuckles, as if he had made some kind of joke. I had to stifle my own laughter when Ethan rolled his eyes “I have matters calling me at the moment. While it is urgent, it will not prevent me from attending our final meeting tomorrow, where we hope to put an end to this issue. Maybe Maurice Evans will return when I do. Until then, this meeting is adjourned.”

“What was in that card that made him rush out of here so quickly?” Ethan whispered lowly in my ear as we followed his parents out of the council room.

The council room led into a grand foyer. A crystal chandelier the size of half a car hung from the ceiling. There were four elevators on both the left and right sides of the room.

Many of the witnesses were heading to the restaurant within the hotel, while others were planning a trip to the street bar.

“Why am I not surprised that you saw that too?” I chuckled under my breath, placing my hands against the smooth material of his jacket. Like every moment since Liam was taken, we both quickly turned serious “I have no idea what it might have said. Whatever it was, it cracked his self-control. He’s able to handle his emotions so well that I can’t even detect them, but this c***k let me see a bit.”

“If it made him snap, then it had to be important,” Ethan grumbled “Information is never a bad thing, and it might be worth finding out what made David Zoe run so fast.”

“I could ask Sven, but who knows if he knows,” I shrugged, then thought of Nicolas “Or we can ask, you know who, but I doubt he’s willing to help us.”

Ethan’s reply was lost to the wind because something else caught my attention. The golden-haired Alpha and Luna were leaving the council room, their four guards following them.

“I want to talk to those people,” I murmured to Ethan, nudging him as I jogged a few steps forward. I kept enough distance so as not to be perceived as a threat, but I don’t think the couple really expected me to address them.

The woman turned around first; her eyes narrowed until she realized who I was. Her gaze turned from a look of surprise to one of anticipation. It was strange to feel her go through these emotions. It felt like she already knew me and knew where this conversation might lead.

“Come, Sussan. I won’t speak in front of these people,” the golden-haired woman looked me in the eyes and spoke in a delicately accented voice. The tone of her words was warm but had the potential to set the world on fire. She started walking forward with her companion again, but she stopped and turned back to Ethan and me “You can bring your partner. Now come.”

“Are you sure about this, sweetheart?” Ethan asked lowly enough for only me to hear.

We both watched as the couple continued walking, pausing to press the button for one of the elevators. I only had a few moments to decide before those doors would open, letting in the two people who seemed to truly see the truth.

“I’m not sure, but I know I need to talk to them,” I smiled a little timidly and walked out after the couple.

“Do you trust the High Table enough to enter their domain, but you can’t extend us that courtesy?” the man commented with a bitter tone. His emotions pointed more towards offense than malice, and his gaze towards the council room led me to believe the same.

“She doesn’t trust the High Table, Bruce,” the woman frowned at her partner and patted his hand with hers “She’s wise to only trust those she’s brought to her side. Now, rein in your anger and let us speak.”

Bruce fell silent as the eight of us entered the elevator. He swiped his keycard against the keypad, allowing us to travel to their respective floor. These elevators were larger than normal ones and easily fit us. Classical music played softly through small speakers within the elevator, and the woman seemed to hum along to the melody under her breath.

Their room was a suite that mirrored mine and Ethan’s. It made me feel a bit better to know I wasn’t receiving any special treatment while I was here.

My room was the same as everyone else’s, lavish as hell. I was starting to miss my room at the twins’ house.

“It’s safe to talk in here,” the woman told Ethan and me as she closed the door behind us. She went into the kitchen and retrieved two glasses of wine. Her seafoam eyes occasionally flickered towards where Ethan and I were as she spoke “You can both call me Helena. It’s as secure in here as it is in your own suite. We have guards stationed in our room, even when we’re not here. We have everything swept for bugs and cameras every day.”

“Do you really think that’s necessary?” Ethan asked, to which Bruce instantly replied.

“Isn’t it?” Bruce snorted. The sound was somewhat amusing with his delicate accent, but I couldn’t mistake the irritation bubbling beneath his skin “The High Table are children, children fighting over every shiny toy they find. They’ve destroyed packs, families, and lives in pursuit of the newest thing. Then they shove down your throat these common places of preserving our kind until you’re so full with their shit.”

“Don’t strain yourself, dear,” Helena sighed, running her fingers through Bruce’s very short hair. Some of the tension ebbed from his shoulders, and instinctively, I sought the same comfort from Ethan “Lately, you’re getting stressed far too often.”

“When you spoke of the High Table, were you speaking from personal experience?” I asked with a touch of audacity, but I had a feeling Bruce and Helena would appreciate that quality in a person.

Both froze, their inquisitive eyes on me. They were weighing what they should tell me, what version of the truth I might know.

Deciding to take a different route, I hardened my voice and hoped that the two could read the determination in my eyes, the desperate need for change that pulsed in my veins.

“I’m here fighting for my right to live, proving that I deserve to live like everyone else,” I said to both of them, feeling my own anger grow in my chest. No one should have to prove their right to live; it was something freely given to all of us “If anyone understands the hatred for the High Table, it’s me.”

What many of us feel goes beyond hatred. Once hatred festers and grows, it becomes a disease that entraps you,” Bruce grumbled under his breath.

I could feel the last of his resistance fading as he saw the same fire burning in my eyes that was also burning in his “The High Table was once fair. There was a time when we truly thrived. We didn’t take human cities; we lived among them.”

“Your kind weren’t hunted during that time,” Helena said with the same strong voice as her partner “There are still many of you now, but you know what happens to most of them.”

“David.” I nodded, seeing the approval in their eyes. They were weighing how much I knew while offering some information of their own. It was a give-and-take, I realized. We were trusting each other, getting to know each other. Was this how alliances were formed?

“Well, you’re not ignorant like many of ours,” Helena spat, looking truly angry for the first time “He hides behind his smiles and pretty words, but there’s no beauty inside him, just rot.”

“My wife has more reasons than most to despise David Zoe,” Bruce frowned, took Helena’s hand in his, and pulled her until she relented and sat beside him on the couch.

“It was a long time ago; much has changed since then. Much has worsened since then,” Helena sighed, leveling her gaze on mine “Do you want to fight against David Zoe? Well, then you should know what you’re up against.”

“Are you sure about this, Helena?” Bruce asked, his eyes flickering towards Ethan and me. His voice grew a bit lower as he spoke, though Ethan and I could still hear every word he said “You don’t need to reopen these wounds for them. I won’t see you suffer. I’ll tell them what they need to know while you’re not in the room.”

“Darling, you’ve always protected me.” Helena smiled affectionately at her partner, placing her hands on either side of his face. Bruce seemed older now, no longer in his twenties as he looked at the woman who had become his entire world “There are times when I must be strong. I haven’t been in the past, but I’ll learn from these mistakes, Bruce. I’ll heed my sister’s word.”

Bruce smiled sadly at his partner and pressed his lips against her forehead.

“I protect you because even now, I can’t bear to see you suffer. I’ll gladly shoulder it all if it means you remain free.”

“I’ll never be free, Bruce. Not until all of them are free.” Helena said softly, and Bruce nodded, as if he had agreed with this many times before.

“Tell them your story, Helena.” Bruce’s smile was small, but it was reserved solely for Helena, a smile crafted for her “Let Emily live and breathe through your words.”

Helena nodded.

“When I was fourteen, David Zoe became the third member of the High Table. His father won this battle by the skin of his teeth, which meant the land was handed over to the Zoe family. David’s father ruled as the third member of the High Table for five years before he finally passed away, then David assumed the position. Two years later, none other than David Zoe was visiting my pack.”

“Helena laughed dryly, her narrowed eyes filled with tears that she wouldn’t allow to fall “Our pack was big and sometimes caught the High Table’s attention, but they had never visited us before. My father was the beta of our pack; his childhood best friend had grown to become the Alpha. You see, everything was rather quaint. Until the day David showed up. We didn’t know it at the time, but there was something he had been searching for. He spent two years searching, tirelessly searching while no other member of the High Table had any clue. He was looking for white wolves.”

“David has been the head of the High Table for eight years. Those first two, he occupied the third seat.” Bruce interjected, crossing a leg over his lap as he reclined on the couch.

“Then he leaped from the third place to the head,” I said, unable to ignore the suspicious feeling I had “How does he manage to jump ranks? Shouldn’t that be hard to achieve?”

“Oh, it’s very hard. You have to build your own pack and land larger, which means taking smaller packs. You have to be careful when doing that. Many of those smaller packs have alliances with members of the High Table, and you don’t want to mess with a mate.” Bruce shook his head.

“David Zoe leaped to the head shortly after leaving my pack with what he had been searching for.” Helena said somberly, her seafoam eyes turning navy blue “My younger sister, Emily. She had always been special, prone to night terrors. She would twist and scream, but always silently, and she would fall back asleep. One night, she didn’t. She started talking, saying these strange things that made no sense. We hadn’t realized she was an oracle, and this was her white wolf ability manifesting. After a few years, she truly understood it. The last time I saw my sister was when she was thirteen, and David Zoe was escorting her.”

“Your sister was an oracle?” I asked, marveling for a moment. The ability seemed exhausting, but it sounded so much better to be called an “oracle” than a “soul-devourer.” Nothing says run the other way quite like being called a soul-devourer “Could she see the future? How did that work?”

“It was hard for her as a child, to have that kind of responsibility. It can take some of the magic and fun out of childhood. She handled it as well as a child could, some days were better than others.” Helena confessed, a wistful look in her eyes. Even after all this time, her pain was still so alive, so close to the surface. She carried her pain with her and spent every waking moment remembering her name. “There was one night that I remember most, the only night she told me what she saw.”

“Do you think this is relevant, Helena? That Emily was referring to herself?” Bruce questioned, his eyes sparkling a bit.

“I believe this is what Emily spoke of, and I will honor her request until the end.” Helena nodded, her voice stern and true as she looked at her partner.

I knew we were about to be revealed only some of David Zoe’s dark secrets. I settled in because I knew the conversation was going to be longer than I had imagined.