“My mother,” I say, each word precise as a knife stroke, “who has stood by your side for thirty years. Who has swallowed every humiliation and every fucking insult you’ve thrown her way. And this is how you repay her loyalty? By fabricating evidence that she’s an adulterer who abandoned her own child?”
Vincent’s face remains impassive, but I catch the slight tightening around his eyes. He didn’t expect me to defend her so vehemently.
“The evidence speaks for itself,” he says, his voice steady.
I laugh, the sound echoing off the marble walls. “Does it? Let’s talk about evidence then.” I turn to address the council. “Weeks ago, I had DNA tests performed on both myself and Seraphina Carvelli.”
A murmur ripples through the room. Elder Fairmont’s eyebrows shoot up to his hairline.
“The results were quite illuminating,” I continue, pulling a folded paper from my inner pocket. “Not only are we not siblingsor half-siblings, but we share absolutely no familial DNA markers whatsoever.” I toss the results onto the table. “Which means either these tests are wrong, or every document in that folder is.”
“DNA tests can be falsified,” Vincent counters smoothly.
“So can medical records,” I snap back. “The difference is, I had these tests done at three separate facilities, two without any connection to Black Crown. Can you say the same about your evidence?”
The council members exchange glances, their certainty visibly wavering.
“But even more damning than the DNA results,” I continue, my voice dropping lower, “is the question no one seems to be asking: Qui en profite? Who benefits from this lie?”
I walk slowly around the table, feeling the weight of thirteen pairs of eyes following my movement. “Not my mother, who would lose everything if this were true. Not Seraphina, who was raised believing she was a Carvelli. Not the Carvellis themselves, who would face humiliation and scandal. They’re already on the outskirts, they can’t afford that.”
“My father is attempting to manipulate this council because he’s pissed that I chose a woman he told me I couldn’t. One he truly believed to by his daughter.” I straighten up, buttoning my jacket in one smooth motion. “The question isn’t whether Seraphina is my sister because that’s already been proven false. The question is why Vincent Devereux is so desperate to destroy my Chosen bond that he’d forge medical records and slander my mother’s reputation.”
Monroe sputters, “These are serious accusations?—“
“Yes, against my mother. Occam’s razor, Elder Monroe,” I cut him off. “The simplest explanation is usually the correct one. Which is more likely: that my mother had a secret affair with a man she openly despised, hid a pregnancy, faked child loss, andgave away her baby without anyone noticing...or that my father is lying to manipulate this council because he’s lost control of me?”
The council shifts uncomfortably, and I can see the exact moment when the tide turns. Elder Fairmont’s eyes narrow at Vincent, no longer looking at me as the problem. Several others are exchanging glances, their allegiance visibly wavering.
“We will need to conduct our own independent tests,” he finally says, clearing his throat. “This matter is far too serious to be decided on contradictory evidence.”
I smile, a cold, calculated expression that doesn’t reach my eyes. “By all means. Test whatever you like. Just make sure you keep the process far away from him.” I tilt my head toward my father. “We wouldn’t want anything else to sully the reputation of this council.”
Vincent’s jaw tightens, a vein pulsing in his forehead. He knows he’s lost them—for now at least.
I straighten to my full height, placing both hands flat on the table as I lean forward. The room falls silent as I lock eyes with each council member in turn.
“Potestas in sanguine. Honor in sacrificio. Immortalitas in legato,” I recite, my voice resonating through the chamber. Power in blood. Honor in sacrifice. Immortality in legacy. The ancient words echo off the marble walls, reminding them who I am—who we all are.
“This council has stood for centuries on those principles,” I continue, my voice dropping to a dangerous register. “Are you really prepared to let one man’s wounded pride undermine everything we represent?”
Elder Monroe shifts uncomfortably. “Perhaps we’ve been...hasty in our judgment.”
“Hasty?” I laugh, the sound sharp as broken glass. “You’ve called me here on fabricated evidence, attempted to dissolvemy Chosen bond, and slandered my mother’s name based on nothing but my father’s word.”
I straighten up, adjusting my cufflinks with deliberate precision. “My Chosen will remain my Chosen. The bond stands. And when I take my place as head of this council, I will remember every single person who stood against me today.”
The threat hangs in the air, crystal clear without being explicit. Several of the older members pale visibly.
“No action will be taken regarding your Chosen bond.”
“See that it doesn’t.” I turn to leave, then pause, looking back over my shoulder at my father. “Oh, and Vincent? If you ever attempt to use my mother as a pawn in your games again, I will personally ensure that every dirty secret you’ve buried comes to light. Many of them affect people in this very room, don’t they? Don’t play checkers with a chess master, father.”
Chapter 24
Seraphina
I’ve been staring at the back of my father’s head for twenty minutes while he pretends to read some bullshit file. The leather chair beneath me is stiff and uncomfortable, just like this entire house—all perfect angles and cold surfaces that never felt like home.
