Chapter 64: A part of this family

After asking the head butler for directions, Caroline reached the guest room where Emmett was staying. She knocked on the door and waited.

A few moments later, the door swung open.

"Caroline?"

"Please, come in," Emmett said, pulling the door wide.

She stepped inside but remained standing, declining the chair.

"Why do you look troubled?" Emmett asked, entirely unaware of what had transpired in the palace.

"Victor has disappeared," Caroline stated.

Emmett frowned, a crease forming between his brows. "What do you mean? How could he vanish? There is no way he could have anticipated us tracking him."

"Andrew cornered him just as he was preparing to flee," she explained, taking a slow step across the room. "He had him in his grasp, but an unknown force intervened and pulled Victor right out of his reach. According to Andrew, it was an unknown figure. Also in the middle of their confrontation, Victor managed to wound my husband."

Emmett took a half-step forward, his voice rising in alarm. "Wounded? Where is the Prince now? Should we head back to the pack?"

Caroline shook her head, holding up a hand to steady him. "He is already back in the palace, having used his ability to teleport directly home. He is resting now."

"That is a relief, at least," Emmett murmured, studying the tension carved into Caroline’s features. "Prince Andrew is an Alpha; he will recover. But who on earth would risk everything to help Victor escape? Was it a witch?"

"Andrew said it wasn’t a witch," Caroline replied, her gaze hardening. "We will uncover the truth in time. For now, Emmett, you should prepare to travel back in the morning. I cannot ask you to stay here any longer. And thank you for accompanying us. If you hadn’t stepped forward as my witness, I never would have been able to clear my name."

Emmett looked away, his jaw tightening. "I was a coward. I panicked, fled with my family, and scrubbed the database clean to protect ourselves. If I had simply stayed and faced them instead of running, Victor would have been behind bars long ago."

"Perhaps the Moon Goddess has simply woven another path for us to find Victor," Caroline said, offering him a firm nod. "As for yourself, staying any longer would have put you and your family in grave danger. I must take my leave."

She turned toward the door, but Emmett’s voice halted her before she could cross the threshold.

"Caroline, everything will turn out fine. And I am deeply sorry that your parents could not be saved."

She acknowledged the words with a hum, stepping out into the corridor.

While trying to navigate her way back to Andrew’s chambers, Caroline became lost in the large corridors of the palace, only to find herself face-to-face with the Luna Queen.

She dipped into a quick, respectful bow.

"What are you doing wandering these halls?" Seraphina questioned with cold suspicion.

"I lost my way, Your Majesty," Caroline replied steadily, keeping her gaze grounded. "I went to speak with Emmett in the guest quarters."

"I will never acknowledge you as a Kensington," Seraphina affirmed in her icy demeanor. "You are in no way suitable for Andrew. As a mother, I know how deeply it hurts to watch your child put in harm’s way. Andrew never once did anything reckless in his entire life until you manipulated him into marriage."

Caroline remained silent, fully aware of the deep-seated hatred the Luna Queen harbored against her.

"And yet you had the audacity to demand punishment for Nina," Seraphina’s eyes flashed with fury as she took a step forward. "An omega wolf thinks she can dictate terms and rise above the Alphas? Go to the Alpha King this instant and tell him to withdraw the sentence."

"Pardon me, Your Majesty," Caroline replied. "I cannot do that. Princess Nina must bear the consequences of her actions."

The Queen’s senior attendant lunged forward, raising a hand to strike Caroline across the face for her insolence. But before the blow could land, Caroline’s fingers snapped out, catching the woman’s wrist.

"Do not mistake my silence for weakness," Caroline said, her gaze locking directly onto the Luna Queen’s. With a shove, she shoved the middle-aged attendant backward, sending the woman stumbling in a flurry of outraged gasps.

"How dare you!" the attendant screeched, gesturing furiously to the staff standing in the rear.

Several maids rushed forward, forcefully grabbing Caroline by both arms and pinning her in place.

"Your Majesty, grant me permission to discipline this insolent omega," the chief attendant requested, bowing low.

"Take her away," Seraphina pronounced, a cold smirk touching her lips. "It is time she learned what happens when someone runs her mouth in front of her Queen."

Caroline struggled to get free as the maids began dragging her out.

"Enough!" The Alpha King’s loud voice stopped all of them. "Let Caroline go at this instant."

The maids instantly withdrew and lowered themselves on their knees while the attendants bowed deeply.

"Davian, don’t intervene in this matter. Caroline disrespected me. I must teach her a lesson," Seraphina said bitterly.

"Did my mother punish you when she was alive in any way?" Davian questioned his wife. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

"Your Majesty, that’s a different matter. I never disrespected my mother-in-law," Seraphina’s tone turned defensive.

"That is because in this palace, our daughters and daughters-in-law are never laid hands upon," Davian said. "Seraphina, this is beneath you. You cannot lay a finger on Caroline. Have you stopped to consider what Andrew would think of you if he learned of this?"

"Andrew is naive. He always has been," Seraphina insisted defensively.

"This is not the way things are handled here. Caroline is now a part of this family, and you cannot defy your Alpha King," Davian declared, bringing an abrupt end to the argument.

Seraphina fell silent, though her eyes burned with bitter hatred as she kept her gaze fixed on Caroline.

"Follow me," Davian instructed, turning on his heel.

Though slightly bewildered by the Alpha King’s intervention, Caroline offered no objection and quietly followed a few steps behind him down the grand corridor.