Chapter 116: share the pain

Chapter 116: Chapter 116: share the pain

Reid, sitting opposite her, didn’t look away, giving her a knowing smile "You’re not the last piece of meat... you’re the only piece we all want to completely own at the same time. Hope you didn’t have plans tonight."

Amelia’s thighs pressed together tightly of their own accord. She shifted her weight, trying to ease the sudden, low ache building between her legs. A soft, breathy half-laugh escaped her—more nervous whimper than actual amusement.

"Shut it, horny dog."

She turned her face away, but she couldn’t quite hide the small smile that followed. After taking in three deep breaths, she continued. "It feels weird now... trying to talk to you all normally. Even after everything abnormal that’s happened between us."

"You can’t call it abnormal when you’re literally our partner." Enzo teased.

Amelia turned her head and gave him a pointed look. "You know this marriage is fake."

"It doesn’t feel fake to us. Doesn’t it feel the same way to you?"

It did. The quiet truth of it settled warmly in her chest. But she wouldn’t say it out loud. It still felt... nice.

A sudden memory cut through the moment and she sat up more.

"My friend—Kate. She was with me right before I stopped being myself. Did you find her?"

Dean, on her other side, shook his head once.

"We didn’t know you had another company. She could be among the victims still receiving treatment... or those that have—"

He didn’t finish. Amelia’s stomach dropped.

"No... Kate can’t be dead."

But the thought refused to leave. Kate had been unconscious when everything started. She wouldn’t have been able to run. She wouldn’t have been able to protect herself.

The heaviness returned to her chest all over again.

Enzo took one of her hands, interlocking their fingers. "We’ll find your friend. And we’ll do everything we can to make sure she’s all right."

Dean took her other hand." Yeah...what you need to focus on right now is defending your innocence—and making sure the real perpetrators are dealt with."

Yeah, but their hands are very distracting right now.

Reid’s amused voice cut in from across from them. "All right, can the two of you let go of her hands now? She looks like she’s about two seconds away from short-circuiting and floating out of the sunroof from all the romantic hand-holding."

Dean didn’t release her fingers.

"You’re just jealous."

Reid scoffed. "Jealous of what? I can hold her hand whenever i want."

"At least I don’t sound like a walking pick-up line every time I open my mouth."

"Better a pick-up line than a walking thunderstorm, you dramatic—"

Their bickering continued in low, overlapping mutters. the atmosphere felt more warn. Amelia lets out a quiet chuckle, having such a strange and yet happy feeling she isn’t doing this alone.

—

Sometime later the vehicle slowed to a stop in front of the Supreme Court building.

Night had already fallen. Outside the entrance, a restless crowd pressed against barricades while security officers pushed them back, voices raised over the noise. Chants for justice rose and fell in uneven waves.

Amelia stepped out of the car. The three brothers closed ranks around her at once, forming a protective barrier as they moved forward. Insults and accusations flew from the crowd—traitor, murderer, Underworld bitch—but she kept her expression carefully blank and gave them nothing.

They entered the lobby. The officer from earlier—Caleb—was already waiting. He gave a short nod and turned without unnecessary words.

"Follow me."

They walked down a long hallway until they reached a wide set of double doors. When the doors opened, the room beyond was already loud with argument. Several figures sat in elevated chairs, their posture and clothing marking them as people of significant rank and influence.

The moment the four of them stepped inside, every voice died.

Silence settled over the chamber like a held breath.

Amelia swallowed, the weight of every staring pair of eyes pressing down on her at once.

Caleb gestured toward the raised platform that is close to the moonfist subjects.

"Kindly stand over there."

Amelia walked forward, taking her place on the platform. Behind her, the three brothers moved to follow—only for Caleb to lift one arm horizontally, blocking their path.

"You only have to watch from here. You know the rules."

The glare the brothers gave him was lethal. Caleb wasn’t bothered, he simply walked past them and took up a position near the platform.

The man seated in the middle of the high chairs cleared his throat.

"The city has been in an uproar over what occurred. You—" he pointed directly at Amelia, "—are guilty of inflicting harm on a number of civilians. What do you have to say for yourself?"

Amelia takes in a steady breath. "I was under some kind of hypnosis."

A second man cut in immediately.

"That doesn’t erase the fact that people are dead because of you. You must take responsibility for your actions."

A woman to the left of the leader nodded sharply.

"He is right. The angry citizens will not be pleased if we simply let her off the hook."

"Why don’t we punish the actual perpetrators instead? And wasn’t the Underworld Territory also involved in the incident?"

Silence filled the room after enzo spoke, and The 1 leader’s expression hardened.

"The evidence we currently possess is not strong enough to calm the citizens. And I would like to remind you, Enzo Ellington, that you are only permitted to interrupt when given approval to do so."

"We’ll interrupt however we like. It’s our partner these old farts are trying to send to her death." Reid retorted.

Anger flared across several of the seated figures at once.

The second man shouted, offended at his remark "Just because the three of you are some kind of prodigies in this place does not give you the right to disrespect us!"

The woman beside him nodded, lips pressed thin. "They’ve been raised with silver spoons their entire lives. That’s why they believe they can act however they please toward their elders."

The brothers didn’t reply, but something else did.

Their combined Alpha pressure rolled through the chamber like a controlled, suffocating wave. It stopped short of driving the elders to their knees, which was intentional, but it was more than enough to instantly choke off every voice in the room.

A handful of council members stiffened rigidly, the color draining clean from their faces as the brutal, crushing weight of true dominance pressed directly against their throats.

Enzo spoke coldly that they felt a chill on their backs. "It seems that because we have been away from this territory for so long, you’ve forgotten just how ruthless we can be."

The lead council member cleared his throat carefully, the earlier arrogance tempered by caution.

"I will make a proposition. Amelia will not receive the death penalty—so please stop with the unnecessary displays of force."

The crushing pressure lifted at once.

The man coughed into his fist. Around him, the other elders hurriedly smoothed their expressions, trying and failing to pretend the moment of fear had never happened.

"If you do not want her to receive the full punishment, then as her partners you will be required to share the sentence."