Chapter 269
0269
(Lily POV)
It has now been five weeks since the pack and council takeovers. Since then, there has been a whirlwind
activity both inside and outside of the pack.
of
Randall and Jane’s belongings were boxed up and moved to (separate) storage units, and James and I
moved in to the alpha suite. Meanwhile, the belongings of my parents and Stephanie have also been
packed up so that Joey and Jessica could move in.
All photographs and shrines to Stephanie have been taken down and repurposed, and the Steffie Garden
has been given a very not-s**y new name: “Staff Break Room.” Additional tables and benches have been
added to accommodate the re-purposing of the space. Similar changes have occurred throughout the
pack
The individual trials are well underway. My mother’s trial was first. I decided to recuse myself from any
decision making related to her punishment, both because I am both her daughter and one of her victims. I
also decided not to attend the trial, sending James to observe in my place.
The trial ended with the committee recommending that my mother spend the rest of her life in the
dungeons without the possibility of parole. They also recommended that her wolf be freed, which James
confirmed was something her wolf desperately wanted. I will do the freeing ceremony once all the trials
are completed.
All of the money that my mother had hidden away has been seized, and we plan to distribute it to victims
as restitution as soon as criteria can be developed to do so.
The trials for James’ parents will occur at the beginning of next week, and Stephanie’s trial will occur the
week after that.
Interestingly, Stephanie has sent me a letter every day since the takeovers begging to see me. So far, I
have refused to see her.
Charlotte thinks I am crazy. She came running up to me at the end of the party and told me that she was
disappointed that there was no big showdown between myself and Stephanie, between myself and Sheila, and between myself and my mother. She practically wanted to drag me to the dungeons right then
and there so that we could have those confrontations.
Thankfully, Jessica convinced her to back off a little bit. I think my perspective has been easier for Jessica to understand because she lived in the craziness with me for so many years.
Basically, the way I feel is this: I lived in Stephanie’s shadow for many years. Everything about Stephanie
me, for years,
the pack and I both forced to live and breathe nothing but Stephanie this and Stephanie that.
Given that context, for me, there really isn’t anything more empowering than caring so little about
Stephanie that a confrontation with her no longer matters to me.
It took me a long time to get there, but there was something about seeing Stephanie on that stage
fumbling and shocked, pointing the finger at my mother and others, refusing to accept any
any responsibility-
that took all the steam out of any desire I had left to confront her. She and Sheila reminded me of
deflated balloons; now that the air had been let out, they were nothing but a sad, pitiful mess.
That does not mean that I want to allow Stephanie to get off without a punishment or that I want her to
get another opportunity to hurt people; I will bend over backwards to make sure neither of those things
happen.
But it does mean that Stephanie simply does not matter to me anymore. I think that is where the pack is
too, and why they did not have many (any?) questions for her and Sheila.
In effect, from where I stand Stephanie went from sainthood to nothingness. It is the ultimate fall.
That sentiment may not make sense to outsiders or others who have not lived it, but it makes sense to
me. Even without the closure that others think I should have….. even without all the answers…. the takeover
night represented the ending of my first story and the beginning of my next.
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