Trials Ch. 09

She was being punished, too, and hadn't done anything to the now-Alpha of Ross.

So, what to do?

They had been told he was out playing with some of the pups and that meant that he was likely close to the den. He was likely being watched, as well, protected. Hmm.

Aurora walked out of one of the side doors of the den, towards a slice trees that separated the building from a sloping meadow that led down to a small stream. It was a fine place for the younger pups to chase and play. She skirted the area, listening to the yelps, yips, and growls. Yes, there, Jasmine was keeping an eye on them. [That the Ross Alpha heir?]

Jasmine, a light colored, somewhat larger female, replied [Yeah. Why are you here, Aurora?] Aurora's pups were older, she did not have one in this play group. This made Jasmine a bit suspicious of her.

[Just wanted to take a look. Anybody else watching him?]

Jasmine now growled at her. [Go back to the den, Aurora.]

Aurora charged her, knocking her down, and sprinted into the meadow. The pups were in a small, tumbling knot surrounded by dandelion fluff.

Jasmine set up a howl and took off after her. [Close meadow! Attack on the Alpha heir!] The broadcast hit all wolves in the vicinity.

The pups, startled, stopped what they were doing and looked around for the threat. At the approach of a wolf of their pack, they were confused. Clayton, however, saw a female tearing across the meadow, mouth agape. Headed straight for him.

He didn't know the area, didn't know where to hide, how to escape. He'd never been in this sort of situation but, upon being rushed, he bolted.

The wolves of the Kolchak pack mobilized, orders flying. [Who dares? How many?]

[Aurora, my Alpha.]

Everyone heard the response, and understood. Retaliation. Stephanie had maimed her mate. [Aurora! Stop and return to the den.]

Fur sprouted on bodies and they flew outside. Stephanie, enraged, ripped thrrough her clothing and looked for direction on where her pup was. She didn't call for him although it hurt not to. She didn't want to distract him if he was trying to get away.

Aurora overran him once as he turned like a jackrabbit. His practice at evading his adult packmates helped him here. But, he couldn't keep it up forever, especially in a strange den. And he couldn't outrun her.

As wolves raced into the meadow, she was able to tumble him and, after one abortive grab, caught him around the neck. [Aurora! Stop this! Let the pup go!] She growled at her Beta as Clay whimpered.

Stephanie, now in proximity, shifted to half-form and half-circled the pair, growling herself. How could she get them apart without getting her pup killed?

Cody crawled up, touched his mate's nose. [Mate, don't hurt him. He didn't do anything.]

[She took you from me. I'm taking from her.]

[No. I took from her. It's over. Let the pup go.]

[Maamaa!]

[Don't move, Clayton. Mama's here.] And, though she had done it infrequently, she may need to kill another today. Her Beta obviously wasn't getting through nor was her mate. This could very easily go bad. In half form, she could grab Aurora and toss her away or try to choke her but Clay could be dead even faster. And, she doubted she could say anything to stop it.

Numerous packmates were circling the four of them, growling. Silent discussions.

A small wolf, a juvenile, muscled his way into the group. [Mama, what are you doing?]

Aurora's eye flicked to her youngest. [Jordan, go back to the den.]

[But, mama, why? Clay was having fun; he didn't do anything wrong.]

[His mama hurt your papa.]

[But he didn't.] Aurora huffed. Clay squirmed and blood started to drip. Stephanie did all she could to hold herself back. She hadn't killed him yet, best to see if someone could talk some sense into her. [If you hurt him, the other Alpha will hurt you. What will we do if something happens to you?]

Aurora closed her eyes and her chest heaved. The other Alpha would kill her. Of that she had no doubt. She wouldn't see her pups grow up, get mated, see her grandpups.

But, neither would the Alpha Ross. Her grip tightened slightly. Clayton wheezed.

Stephanie moved closer; she was choking him!

[Mama, please!]

Whining, Aurora let go. Stephanie grabbed her and threw her sideways, knocking over 3 or 4 wolves. She grabbed Clayton and squeezed him tightly. [You're OK, Clay, you're OK.]

As she turned, the Beta of Kolchak shifted. "Alpha Ross, do you wish to punish Aurora?"

Stephanie turned as her pup squirmed in her arms. She could hurt Aurora, even kill her, without retribution. But where did it end? Cody sold her to a pack of rogues and she had been abused for years. In return, she'd maimed him; he would never sire another pup. Aurora wanted to hurt Stephanie for what she'd done to her mate.

She turned, putting Clay down, and looked at the female, who was being held by her packmates. Aurora had the good sense to drop her eyes.

A deep breath. "No. Let it end here. But, if it were to happen again..." The implied threat was that someone would die.

Aurora was hustled off somewhere with her mate following behind. Clay was looked at by their healer and his wounds were deemed superficial. Clothes were brought for Stephanie.

Vernon was brought into the room where they were. "Oh, daughter, I'm so sorry."

Stephanie patted his arm. "It's OK, papa. He's not hurt."

They left the den later. After hugs, sniffs, and promises to return. The Beta again apologized for his packmate and assured her of safety if they returned for a visit.

Stephanie smiled and thanked them but inwardly reminded herself that no one was ever really safe.

-------

Simon and Madeline were in the garden picking green beans when she felt nauseous again. She picked beans a little longer then went to rest in the shade. When that didn't help she went to medical.

Thomas called Natalie to attend to the Beta female. After palpating Madeline's abdomen, Natalie told her to stay where she was. [Erich, please come to medical.]

In the middle of discussions about replacing the roof, the second Beta abruptly stood and bolted out of the room. His Blossom hadn't been feeling well.

He practically took the door off the hinges upon his entry. "What is it? What's wrong? Blossom?"

Madeline was sitting on a table, looking down at her lap. "We've found out why your mate hasn't been feeling well."

"What is it?"

"It should resolve itself in a few months."

Fur began to sprout on his arms, claws pierced his palms. His voice dropped into a growl. "What is wrong with my mate?"

Madeline launched herself at him and, surprised, he barely caught her in time. They hit the floor, Madeline on top. She whispered in his ear. "I'm pregnant." And wrapped her arms around him.

He pushed her upper body away from himself and looked into her lavender eyes. She smiled down at him. "Really? A pup?" Still grinning, she nodded, and Erich crushed her against his chest.

After a couple of moments, she sent [Need to breathe, mate.]

"Oh! Did I hurt you? The pup?"

Madeline laughed. "We're not that fragile."

"A pup. I can't believe it. Thank you my beautiful Blossom."

Erich pulled his mate back to him and kissed her. Then threw back his head and howled.

-------

It was three days later that the lawyers called to say that the jury was returning with a verdict.

Luckily, Lyssa's heat had ended.

At this point, it had been decided that Randall and Lyssa would go. Alex and Desiree wanted to be there but Lyssa cautioned against it in case Ronnie didn't get convicted of Jamie's murder. The packs couldn't understand how that was possible but Randall acceded to Lyssa's experience. The Alpha would also be least likely to lose his temper and take out lawyers, judge, or jury.

They sat behind their lawyers as Ronnie was led into the room and was seated at the other table. Lastly, the jury filed in, eyes downcast. Lyssa tensed. [Trouble?]

[They aren't looking at us. I don't think this is good news.]

Lyssa's mind flickered through things that had come up during the trial. The gun had never been found nor had the rounds matched anything in the system. There had been partial prints on the casings but not enough to definitively match Ronnie.

It all depended on how much stock the jurors had put on Mercy's testimony. She had been argumentative on the stand. Had it hurt them?

The first "Not guilty" for murder in the first degree had Lyssa sucking in a breath and Ronnie grinning. This grin got broader as the Not Guiltys continued. He was found not guilty of all charges but two. Ron Wilson Jr. was found guilty of felonious assault, for shooting Mercy, and possession of a firearm by a felon.

Randall sat, stoic, as all the verdicts were read. [I don't understand. He killed Jamie. He won't be punished for it. How can that be?]

[There won't be an explanation but it's probably because he shot a wolf, not a human. But he's gonna go to prison.]

Lyssa could hear the low growl of her Alpha. Randall was not pleased with the result of human justice. She was sure Desiree and Alex would think even less of it.

-------

Desiree was visibly shaking with rage when told of the result. Alex maintained a low growl, flexing his hands, claws extending.

Randall called the pack together to explain what had come of the trial. Everyone was angry and in disbelief.

Unfortunately, some of that anger was directed at Lyssa, who had insisted that human justice be allowed to take its course.

Feeling the emotion directed at her, she headed for the front door to get a breath of fresh air. She was saddened, upset that Ronnie hadn't been convicted of more. She wasn't paying the strictest attention to her surroundings and hadn't gotten a half dozen steps from the front door before being rammed from the side and taken to the ground, claws at her throat.

[Your human justice has failed. He will not be punished for killing MY SON!]

Lyssa froze, taking a deep breath or two. Any sudden movement was liable to precipitate a serious attack. She smelled her own blood, feeling it trickle down the side of her neck.

"I know, Desiree, and I'm sorry." The claws tightened a bit more. "I wish it was different but we asked a bunch of humans to believe Ronnie shot Jamie on purpose. And, since he was in wolf form the jury probably thought he figured he'd only killed an animal, or, at least, some of them did."

"Everyone in the jury has to agree on a conviction and somebody probably didn't."

[I should have killed him.]

"We don't want the police searching the den, the pack's property."

Several pack members had noticed and started to gather around. Randall and Ariel stepped out onto the front deck. Emmett approached the two females. He growled a warning, "Desiree."

[Leave her be, mate.]

"His car would have been found nearby. The police would have torn the place apart. Confiscated computers, journals. Talked to everyone. If they saw something they thought was wrong they could take some of us away, maybe take the pups." Desiree sucked in a breath. "Used cameras to record us. It would be all over the internet. They'd have pictures of all of us. We'd be vulnerable. All of us."

Everyone was listening intently as Desiree stilled.

If they hadn't understood why they were relying on human justice, they were beginning to see what might happen.

Lyssa's voice dropped. "There had to be a first case, now that humans know about us. I hate that it was this. And I feel guilty enough. I'm so, so sorry."

Her eyes began to brim with tears; Desiree sat back on her heels. Lyssa sat up. "Would you feel better if you beat me up?"

Desiree's voice was gravelly. "No."

Alex came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her. "Nothing we do will bring him back." She turned, quickly, and lashed out, claws raking his shoulder. He pulled her against him. She fell into his arms, sobbing. "My baby. Oh, my poor baby."

Emmett came forward and pulled his mate from beneath the grieving pair. He inspected the punctures on her neck. "I'm alright." She slapped his hands away and turned to look at them. "I wish..." He put a finger to her lips. "I know."

Taking her hand, he led her back into the den, pushing through the others and turning briefly to see Alex pick up his own mate and stride off towards the woods.

The grieving pair remained at the cabin at the back of the property for four days.

-------

Lyssa spent hours explaining to the council why Ron Wilson, Jr. had not been convicted of Jamie's murder.

And, again, after he was sentenced to eight years in prison. There was an additional hearing where he was sentenced to a couple of years for shooting an endangered species but that did little to mollify anyone in the pack.

The trial of Ron Wilson, Sr. didn't take place as the video and police testimony was almost incontrovertible. A deal was made were he was sentenced to 3 years in prison since Lyssa was unharmed and no gun was used in the crime. Harassment of the pack after his release resulted in a permanent restraining order. Everyone became familiar with his scent and vehicles.

------

Later that summer, Ariel, their Madam Alpha, was delivered of a healthy male pup.

That fall, the Madam Beta, Madeline, also produced a male, her first pup.

Lyssa had also caught at her last heat and bore a female pup soon after.

Other pups were born, pairs were mated, older wolves died. The Alpha Ross' sire, Vernon, died late that year. And, while life in the pack went on, they continued to be embroiled in legal battles. They won some, lost some, but the humans finally decided that it was best to allow them to police themselves.

Wolves are pack hunters and patient by nature. Werewolves were both long-lived and had long memories.

Three years and some months following his release from prison, Ron Wilson Jr. disappeared from the face of the earth.

FIN