Chapter 121: The Lies

​A low groan came from my chest, sounding more like a wounded animal than a man. My body felt completely wrong—heavy, stiff, and disconnected, as if I had been buried under a pile of wet dirt all night. I forced my eyes open, squinting against a morning light that felt much too bright, stabbing at my eyes with a painful glare. My room was never this bright; I usually kept the heavy curtains closed tight against the world.

​Hair.

​Lilies.

​"What are you doing here?" I rasped, my confusion deepening. I struggled to sit up, my head spinning. "How did you even get in here?"

​I didn’t answer right away. My eyes scanned the room, landing on three empty whiskey bottles scattered across the floor. A bit of doubt tried to creep in—Did I actually do this?—but then my wolf snarled. It was a loud, angry sound in the back of my mind, hating the very air in the room.

​"No," I croaked, the certainty returning to my blood. "I didn’t drink those. I don’t remember opening a single bottle."

​Talia froze, her breath catching in her throat. I jumped out of bed, grabbing my pants and pulling them on with sharp, angry movements, ignoring how the room swayed. "And I sure as hell don’t remember asking you to be here."

​Something flashed in her eyes—a quick look of panic—but I didn’t wait to see her next move. I pulled my bedroom door open and stepped into the hallway, only to find my brothers already there.

​"I didn’t drink anything," Liam said, his voice tight with rage. "I went to bed early. So how do I wake up with empty bottles and her in my bed?"

​Leo’s lip curled into a snarl. "I remember her coming in. I told her to leave. I tried to move... tried to shift..." His voice dropped to a whisper. "I couldn’t."

​The silence that followed was heavy. Then, I spoke the truth we all felt. "We were drugged."

​As the words landed, the heavy thud of boots echoed from the stairs. Our fathers—Lennox, Levi, and Louis—appeared at the top. But they didn’t look happy. Father Lennox looked furious, his eyes darting between us and the girls.

​"What is the meaning of this?" Lennox roared, his voice shaking the walls. He looked at Talia, who was trembling behind me. "Talia! Why are you in a man’s bedroom at this hour? Have you no shame?"

​Talia sobbed, sinking to her knees. "Father Lennox, please... we only came to check on them. They were so sad... they started drinking... they begged us to stay!"

​"Is this true?" Father Levi snapped, looking at Camilla. "Did you girls sneak into their rooms?"

​"We didn’t sneak!" Camilla cried out, covering her face. "They asked us! They said they were lonely... they called us by her name! We didn’t know what to do!"

​Our fathers exchanged looks of deep shock and anger. For a moment, I actually believed they were on our side.

​"This is a disgrace," Father Louis whispered, looking at us with disgust. "I expected better from the girls, but from you? My sons?"

​"We were drugged, Father!" I snapped, my patience gone. "This was a setup!"

Father Levi exhaled quietly, rubbing a hand over his face. "All three of you?" he muttered. "On the same night?"

​Father Louis stepped into my room, looking at the mess before stopping at the bed. He pulled back the sheet, and the sight of the bloodstain made him go silent. He turned back to us, his face pale.

​"Drugged?" he repeated, his voice cold. "With what? You are Alphas. You would have smelled a poison. You would have fought it." He gestured to the empty bottles. "The only drug here is grief and whiskey."

​"It’s not!" Leo yelled. "I couldn’t move!"

​He stepped forward, his voice turning firm. "There is only one way to stop a war. You will marry them. The wedding will be set this weekend."

​"No," Liam said, his voice flat and final.

​I stepped forward, my Alpha power rising. "I said no. I will not marry a woman who lies to cover her tracks." I looked Father Lennox right in the eye. "I don’t care about their honor. I don’t care what war this will bring... I will not tie myself to a lie."

​"You have no choice!" Father Louis growled.

​"Watch us," Leo hissed, showing his teeth. "I will never put a ring on her finger. I’d rather be kicked out. I’d rather rot in the Lunar Asylum than call her my Luna."

​Our fathers went stiff. Father Lennox’s voice dropped into a threat. "You will think again, or the results will destroy this pack."

​"There is nothing to rethink," I replied, glaring straight at him. "We were drugged... they dared to drug us, and they will pay dearly for it."

​I turned back into my room. Talia stood there, frozen. I grabbed her by the arm and pulled her toward the door. "Get out," I ordered. "All of you. Get out of our rooms before I forget that you’re ’royalty’."