Chapter 149: The Night of Reckoning III

The doors opened, and two guards stepped into the Hall of Ashes, followed by a woman in a simple servant’s dress. She looked frightened.

Or, at least, she looked frightened enough.

Mara kept her head lowered as she walked into the chamber, her fingers folded tightly in front of her.

Selene released the breath she had been holding.

There!

Someone who could save her.

Someone who could contradict everything Beatrice had just said.

Malachi watched the maid approach, but his expression didn’t change. He knew this face very well. If he remembered correctly, she was the one he had asked to show Della around the first time she came to Eclipse Crown Pack, and the same maid who had testified for Della that she was never in the Workrooms.

"Your name?" Malachi asked, although he already knew her name. He knew the names of all the guards, servants and maids that were living in this castle.

"Mara, My Alpha." She replied.

"Your position?"

"I serve within the castle."

"She was the one on duty in the Workrooms that afternoon." Selene finally spoke.

"And you believe she can testify on your behalf?" Malachi looked at her.

"Yes."

"Then let her speak."

Mara swallowed. She could feel everyone’s eyes on her, especially Selene’s.

That look was familiar, a silent command.

Do what I told you.

"My Alpha," Mara lowered her head, "I should have told the truth that night."

Malachi’s expression didn’t change, "What truth?"

"I lied when I said Della never entered the Workrooms."

Beatrice’s head lifted sharply, and Selene’s shoulders relaxed just a little bit.

"Why did you lie?" He questioned.

"I was trying to protect her. She...seemed so helpless,"

Malachi slowly moved around the table, stepping closer to the trembling maid, "Tell me what happened."

"Della entered the Workrooms that afternoon, and she didn’t quite notice I was also in the room. I saw her near the sovereign banner." She explained softly.

"What was she doing?"

"She was touching it."

"Touching it how?"

"She was loosening the reinforcement."

Cordelia said something similar about how Della had challenged her and noted that the reinforcement lining hadn’t been stitched properly.

"Continue."

"She also had Moonfire with her, and I watched as she tore off a piece of the lining and coated the damaged section with it before leaving."

"So, you’re saying she was actually there, and you saw her. Then, you decided to lie for her on the night of the Sovereign because you...pitied her?"

"Yes," Mara shook again.

"Did Della threaten you?" The question came so out of the blue that the maid’s head snapped up in bewilderment.

"No." She shook her head.

"You’re sure you only testified for that night because she looked helpless?"

Mara’s fingers began moving against one another, and her throat suddenly felt strange. "Yes, My Alpha, was afraid she would be punished."

Something was wrong.

Her tongue felt heavy, and it was as if the words she’d rehearsed weren’t coming as easily anymore.

"Did you tell anyone that you saw Della in the Workrooms after the incident?"

"Yes."

"Who?"

"I..." Mara blinked, "Lady Selene."

Selene’s expression flickered, and then Malachi turned toward her, "You spoke to Mara about what she witnessed?"

"Yes. She...," Selene felt like someone had wedged a huge stone into her throat and blocked off normal speech from reaching her lips, "She came to me a few days later, and confessed, saying she’d been feeling guilty about it,"

"What did you tell her after she told you that?"

"I asked her to tell the truth." Selene replied again

Mara suddenly shook her head, "No." The word escaped before she could stop it, and Selene’s facial expression changed.

Mara stared back at the floor in horror, wondering what on earth had come over her again.

Malachi stepped toward her, slowly, like he was approaching a scared animal, "What did she tell you?"

Mara tried to answer, but nothing came out. Something was blocking off the words she wanted to say, and her eyes widened. Her hands flew up to her throat and massaged, "I can’t..."

"You can."

"No." She took one step back.

"I wouldn’t move again if I were you," Malachi warned.

Mara’s hands began trembling.

Selene instantly shot up to her feet again, quite abruptly, "She is frightened, Alpha. Perhaps this sudden interrogation has gone too far—"

"Sit." One word. One red glare from him.

Selene froze, and then she slowly lowered herself back down.

"What did Selene tell you?" He questioned the maid again.

"She..." Mara’s lips trembled, and then she squeezed both eyes shut like she was fighting an internal battle she couldn’t explain, "She told me what to say."

Selene’s face went white.

Malachi’s voice remained calm, "What exactly did she tell you to say?"

"That Della had entered the Workrooms."

"You said you saw that yourself."

"I didn’t."

Selene shot to her feet again, "She is lying!"

"No!" Mara’s head snapped toward her this time, her eyes a horrendous red, "I’m not!"

The scream startled everyone, and Mara’s eyes widened in realisation of what she had just said again. Tears had begun forming in her eyes, and she had the urge to turn around and leave.

She would be out of here in the blink of an eye. Kill the guards if she had to.

But Malachi’s gaze felt like there was a mountain sitting on her shoulders.

"I don’t know why I’m saying this." Her knees felt so weak.

"So," Malachi turned back to Mara again, "You were instructed to lie."

"Yes."

"By Selene?"

"Yes."

Malachi turned toward Selene, and she could not bring herself to meet his gaze again, "You selected your own witness."

"No, Malachi," She shook her head frantically, looking more helpless than anyone else in the room, "I don’t know why she’s saying all that. I would never—"

"Mara," Malachi wasn’t even listening to her anymore.

The maid lowered her head even more till her chin was tightly pressed against her neck like she wanted to merge them into one, "Yes, my Alpha,"

"I want you to tell me everything,"

Selene’s head snapped up in horror.

"Tell me everything that you know Lady Selene has done against me or Della. Tell me everything else she asked you to do. You are NOT allowed to leave a single thing... out of it,"