Chapter 239
0239
(Brady POV)
My parents, James and Lily, Charlotte, and I were all sitting in the alpha office talking about last minute
details relating to the takeover of the council, the takeover of the werewolf council, and the related trials.
The allies had all already gone back to their packs to ready their teams. We did not think that we would
need any of them, but as before, we wanted to be prepared for all possibilities.
With respect to the trials, we knew that we would need to have the trials held as soon as possible. Doing
so was important, because it would not only ensure swift justice, but it would also (hopefully) allow
everyone to move on and focus on the future once they were done.
The primary question that we had left to decide-or rather, that Lily had left to decide-was how to
conduct the trials at each pack. The decision had already been made that Evelyn, Andrew, and the Black
Moon traitors should be tried separately from everyone at West Mountain, but we had gone back and.
forth on whether there should be one trial or multiple trials at each pack.
The allies had given their opinions, but those opinions were essentially that the decision depended on what was best for each pack. As long as there were trials, and as long as the trials were public, they did
not care. In other words, they basically said, “you decide.”
There were a number of factors weighing in favor of both options. A single trial at each pack would be cheaper and faster, and it would allow observers to see all of the evidence all at the same time. On the other hand, each individual’s involvement was different, as was the nature of the crimes committed.
That weighed in favor of separate trials for everyoné. In addition, doing a combined trial would allow each offender to share the negative spotlight with the others, instead of having to deal with the pressure
of being alone and accountable for his or her own actions.
Ultimately, after we hashed it out again and again and again, Lily decided that each individual should be tried and judged on his or her own merits. It would be expensive and time-consuming, but in her view, it would be the fairest way to proceed.
Lily’s decision led to another question, this one voiced by Charlotte:
“So… if we are doing
doing separate trials… who gets to be the one to tell Evelyn that Andrew marked her by mistake, thinking that she was Lily?”
Lily shook her head. “Andrew did not mark her by mistake. He just thought that she had powers that she did not have.”
James squeezed Lily’s hand. “You know, sweetheart, I know it had to have absolutely sucked for you to shift for the first time by yourself, but I keep wondering what might have happened if anyone else had
Lily smiled sadly. “I would like to think so. But it did turn out to be a huge blessing that I was alone, and
that no one else knew that I had a wolf. I think the rumors that I was wolfless strangely protected me.”
“You were not alone. At least, not completely,” my father said.
Lily looked at my father in surprise. “What?”
I
“I am a doctor, and I was well aware that it was your 14th birthday. That was why I originally came to the
I
pack that day. During the funeral, I saw the obvious signs that you were about to shift, so I followed you
to the waterfall.
I stayed back because I did not want to scare you, but I also did not want you to be alone. I also wanted. to be nearby in case there were any problems. I quietly prayed to the Moon Goddess on your behalf. I was close enough to see that you had special coloring just like Brady, but not close enough to see the
symbol on your rump.”
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