Chapter 187

The whole weekend was a busy one for the police force. They clocked

in extra hours to interrogate the Kyltons, Tanners, Aphaels, the Kyltons’

guards and Greg.

When Greg surrendered the hidden camera footage he made eighteen

years ago when he colluded with the ex-ministers now behind bars and

Tanner, they found that Greg never “coerced’ any of them to join him.

From the looks of it, they were all extremely enthusiastic to go behind

the monarchy's back.

While some policemen interrogated the crooks, others played the

recordings on the devices Greg implanted all over the Kyltons' mansion,

transcribing everything for their Highnesses.

The third team of policemen scoured through the database they found

in the Kyltons’ home. In it, they found transactions, names, and most

importantly, locations of suppliers of illegal substances and weaponry.

It didn't take very long before one of Dalloway’s subordinates

requested permission to investigate these areas, which the Chief

granted after reminding his people to exercise the highest level of

caution

A week after arresting the Kyltons and the others, the police delivered

their report from the interrogation sessions, and the team was back in

Xandar's office once again. As the monarch, the royal family was

constitutionally permitted to submit a . recommendation to the

Attorney-General's Chambers and to the courts as to how they wanted

certain criminals to be dealt with. Whether their recommendations

would be followed through depends on the prosecutors and the judges

for the case. In the past, such recommendations were given some

consideration but that wasn't always the case.

Everyone was there to discuss what the monarch should recommend. It

was easy for most of those they arrested in the Kyltons' residence,

except for one: Greg.

The Duke's story to Deputy Chief Laurent was this: A few months after

Xandar ascended the throne, Greg was approached by a Lycan who

called himself Han. Han claimed to represent someone anti-

government, and he offered Greg a way to get back at his cousins. Greg

asked for the identity of his employer but Han said that they wanted to

remain anonymous. He then showed Greg his own criminal record to

prove that he wasn't sent by the govemment. Greg looked him up, and

it turns out he was legit, being an ex smuggler of dangerous

substances. Arrested, indicted and served his sentence.

Blinded by his lust for revenge, Greg accepted the offer and rounded

up the ministers and Tanner, and they put the plan into action. Greg

claimed to have never seen Han again after the first transaction went

through smoothly. He never knew he was working with the Kyltons,

which was believable with the conversation recorded in the Kyltons

dining room. Lord Kylton made it clear during that conversation that

Greg never spoke to him or Lady Kylton in any of his past transactions.

And Dalloway’s men got Greg to describe Han, which he did, and they

found a profile match in their old archive.

Laurent then got him to explain how he ended up in the Kyltons’

residence, so he gave his account of events on the night Livia came to

his casino. As expected, Laurent asked for the location and ordered an

immediate infiltration of the casino, only to find it empty and deserted

Upon being questioned, the Duke said he had no clue where the

people there had gone. When Lucianne asked Dalloway about Greg's

demeanor, the Chief said that the Duke exemplified a creature who was

telling the truth.

Despite Greg's ignorance of working with the Kyltons and of the empty

casino, there was no denying that he had committed numerous crimes.

So, the question remains: how should he be punished?

Tate argued, “If it's true that he sent the rogues to the Jewel Pack, I

don't see why he shouldn't be given the highest form of punishment.”

Toby lifted up his copy of the report and said, “Maybe it's because he

was just the middleman who made the call? I mean, according to this,

Sasha Cummings was the one who came up with the idea. The Duke

merely h —

"Does it matter?!" Zelena shouted from across the table.

“It does, actually.” Lucianne’s cool voice caught everyone's attention.

She was on Xandar’s lap with his arms secured around her abdomen,

pressing her back to his chest because the King was finding it very

difficult to remain calm while they discussed the contents of the report.

He read it the previous night, and lost his temper twice before Lucianne

decided that it was better for her to b e in his embrace as she stroked

his hand while they read the document together.

Lucianne explained, “If Greg didn’t come up with the idea and merely

did what Sasha got him to do, then he was only an accomplice. Sasha

was the perpetrator.”

Tate argued again, “If he hadn't made the call, she wouldn't have been

able to send those bast*rds to the Jewel Pack, Lucy!”

“Are you sure about that, Tate?” Lucianne asked, which got everyone

thinking before the Queen added, “I'm definitely not. Sasha was mad.

She was infuriated and...insane. If Greg hadn't helped her, I doubt she'd

just abort her plan and leave me unharmed. She would find someone

else to get the job done. And from whatever the bartender

eavesdropped through the door on the night Greg and Sasha had a

drink together, it seems he was trying to get her to pull the brakes.

But...” Lucianne sighed as she continued,”

There's also the fact that he made it possible for Wu Bi Corp to exist

and flourish; for former ministers and the head of the National Audit

Department to siphon government funds; and he confessed to...

sterilizing the Duchess.”

That last item did not sit well with any of them. On the previous night,

Christian growled so loudly that the kids had to be hiddened while

Annie tried to calm her husband. He was ready to storm to the police

station and tear Greg apart but Annie pulled him back, begging him to

not do anything rash. His eyes had been onyx since then, and he was

anything but cheerful during the meeting.

With Annie on his lap, Christian then said in a low voice, “Sterilized with

the same poison that was then used on you, my Queen, because of

what he shared with the now dead Cummings.”

“I didn't know that was Sasha's pitch, Christian. I assumed it was Kelissa

who came up with the idea to render me infertile. I didn't kill Sasha

because of that. And I kept Kelissa alive despite thinking she'd done it.”

Lucianne clarified.

Christian then said in despair, “I know that. It's just... how can you even

think of forgiving Greg after everything he did? He put the idea into her

head, and she used it against you. My Queen, you wanted children.”

Xandar's breathing got heavy, too. His grip around his mate tightened

as he buried his nose in her hair. Lucianne tried her best to not be

swayed by his bubbling inferno or her own loss, and said, “It's not a

question of forgiveness right now, at least not yet. Forgiveness is

personal. In our professional capacity in the service of the Kingdom, we

have to...find a balanced solution.”

Everyone's hard looks showed discontent and dissatisfaction by the fact

that they would not be able to go all out on the other Duke. Xandar

then said, “Baby, listen. I get that you want to go a little easier on Greg

but let's face it, we have every reason to commit him t o the highest

degree of punishment.”

She locked eyes with her mate and said sternly, “Only if you ignored

what he had been doing for us in recent weeks, Xandar. Have you

forgotten that he was the very reason the justice system had ample

evidence to put those ministers behind bars?”

“He STARTED the corruption, sweetheart.” Xandar noted ferociously, his

voice getting louder.

Lucianne challenged her mate with equally fierce eyes and tone, “And

he ENDED it, my King. Are you saying that doesn’t matter? A t all?”

Silence ensued and she continued, “You very well know we were hitting

a dead end with the corrupt ministers. The audits Ellia gave us were

flimsy because they were in hard copies, hidden for almost two

decades. It wasn't possible to authenticate those. The court was ready

to throw it out as suspicious evidence. Even if we got Ellia and the

others to testify, there was a chance that the sentencing wouldn't be as

heavy as it now is. Greg's evidence came in a chip, and it was

authenticated with ease. The strength o f the evidence he handed over

put those people he colluded with behind bars. Now, he’s even given

himself up.”

Xandar argued, “If I remember correctly, we arrested him, Lucy. He

couldn't run.”

Lucianne’s eyebrows raised as she questioned him, “Do you really

believe that? Do you really think he couldn't get out of anywhere i f he

wanted to? How do you explain his impeccable disappearance for the

past couple of weeks? And if he wanted to run, why didn't he do just

that right after sending us the location of the Kyltons' residence? Why

did he wait for us to get there to bring him back with us?”

Xandar averted his eyes and breathed in anger because he wasn't able

to answer her. No one could answer Lucianne, or argue against her. She

turned to face everyone and said, “We only have him now because he is

giving himself up. I don't know why he’s doing it but if there isn't a

balanced indictment for Greg, then every other criminal lurking in the

dark corners of the Kingdom would never see the point in leaving their

ways and coming to us. We CAN'T have that. We can't disregard the

help that a criminal has given to the government and the monarchy.

Omitting to take their contribution into account amounts to a form of

punishment that is greater than torture, greater than any punishment

that can be imposed by the law.”

“What's that? What can be greater than torture or death?” Juan asked

the question running through everyone’s minds.