Don't Dirty Your Hand With Her Blood

••• Arabella’s POV ••• Could it really be? Could Abigail have really killed Aurora? When I thought of this, I felt the blood in my body boiled. My anger almost consumed me, and not because of external factors like inhaling the scent of that magical, poisonous liquid. This was the rage from my own self and Iris - the killer instinct of a werewolf when facing someone who had killed their beloved family member. “Bitch!” Iris roared in my mind, her anger combined with mine, making my body shake, and a snarl escaped my lips. Iris had also loved Aurora. She had watched her growing up from a baby till fifteen years old before Aurora fell into her demise. It would be more than expected for her to want to take revenge against Abigail, too. I rushed over to Abigail and grabbed her by her neck, ignoring all the people present in her trial, ignoring the fact that I shouldn't attack someone in the open like this. “Did you design the death of my sister that year?” I growled. Abigail tried to pry my hand away from her neck, but I tightened my grip, not going to let her go this time. “ANSWER ME!” I roared and forced her to confess what happened during Aurora’s so-called accidental death. Her face turned red as she began to suffocate, and she tried hard to beg me, “Let me… go… Bella… Let me go…” “Princess Arabella!” someone shouted in shock as they saw me strangling Abigail. “Ari!” “Luna Arabella!” I heard both Rosa’s and Beta Jaxon’s shocked and worried voices. “Someone stop Princess Arabella!” another shocked shout joined in the first one. I knew everyone was shocked, but I couldn't care less about it. All I wanted right now was to get the truth and nothing else. As I bared my canines and let out another snarl, my killing intent becoming even more powerful, I felt an arm circling my waist from behind, and a hand grabbed my outstretched arm. “Arra… Let go…” Max tried to pull my hand away from Abigail’s neck and forced me to separate from my arch-enemy. “Let go, Arra…” Max held me tightly, comforting me with his soft and gentle voice. “She’ll get what she deserves. Don't dirty your hand with her blood. She’s not worth it. Let go, Arra. I’m here… I’m here…” After being comforted by Max, I finally let go of Abigail’s neck, and she dropped to the ground. My tears had long spilled from my eyes, and I stared at Abigail, who had her eyes closed, with intense hatred. One of the wardens moved toward Abigail to check on her and found that she was unconscious. Max turned me around and held me tightly, kissing my forehead tenderly and caressing my hair. I circled my arms around his body, buried my face on his shoulder, and sobbed out my grievance. “Max… My sister…” I didn't know what to say. I was heartbroken. I just wanted to call his name to know that he was there for me, that I could depend on him at this moment. “It’s okay, Arra… I’m here…” his soothing voice reached my ears. “Everything will be alright. Everything will work out fine…” If it was any other time, I might lash out at him for easily saying everything would be alright. How could it be alright when I knew there might be a chance that my twin sister was murdered instead of dying accidentally? But at this moment, I believed him. Even though I felt empty, I believed him. I believed that Abigail wouldn't have a good life from now on and she would be punished severely for killing an Alpha Princess. The room had quieted after I let go of Abigail, and the warden informed the elders that she was unconscious but still alive with no life-threatening injuries. “This trial and sentencing of Abigail will be adjourned to another day,” one of the Elders announced. “And Abigail will be put into a special prison due to the development of this case,” he added. “We will look for Lina and find out what had happened to her.” I looked at the Elders with a complicated feeling. I wanted Abigail to be tried straight away but knew it wouldn't be possible without concrete proof. They had to at least find Lina first and find out if what Abigail said of her being threatened by Lina was true. At that moment, I finally noticed that Shawn was present in the makeshift trial room. He had a worried look in his eyes and tried to come over to check on me, but Max just gave him an icy stare and picked me in his arms, leaving the room without even bothering to bid goodbyes to the Elders. He knew how affected I was after what had happened, and I needed to get away from there as soon as possible. Beta Jaxon had already brought the car over, and Rosa was leaning against it, waiting for Max and me to get into the car. Once Max and I got in, Rosa went into the front passenger seat, and Beta Jaxon drove us back to the Silentmane Canines Pack. “I can't believe that murderer didn't get executed immediately,” Rosa expressed her dissatisfaction with the Elders’ decisions on the way back to the Max’s pack. I kept quiet in Max’s arms even though I felt the same way as Rosa. “I’m worried it’ll create more trouble for Ari if she’s only being imprisoned. Especially since Lina is still on the loose,” she added. Beta Jaxon glanced briefly at her and focused on the road again while telling her, “As far as I know, the special prison is extremely remote and heavily guarded by some of the strongest guards from the werewolf community.” “So what? Can they keep dark magic away?” Rosa snorted, apparently still not happy with the arrangement for Abigail. “In the cells of the Elders’ court, dark magic is ineffective. Abigail wouldn’t be able to escape, and Lina can’t enter it,” Beta Jaxon assured her. “You don’t know how strong dark magic can be,” Rosa was still skeptical of his explanation and reassurance, still deeply concerned about it. “But I hope what you said is true. I don’t want Lina to save that damn killer.” I had the same concern as her. Would the special prison be able to keep Lina and her master away? “Jaxon is right, Arra,” I heard Max’s comforting voice through our mindlink. “That prison is impenetrable.” We all kept silent throughout the rest of the drive, and upon returning to the pack, I found Max had mindlinked the Omegas to prepare dinner for us. I forced myself to eat the already prepared dinner even though I had no appetite at all. After dinner, the four of us retreated to our respective bedrooms. As I sat on the couch in our bedroom, my mind began wandering to the blonde woman and Elder Charles, who was still imprisoned in the Silentmane Canines Pack’s dungeons. They were adamant in saying that Max and I were not real mates and thinking of the dark aura surrounding that blonde woman, they must have something to do with black magic and a connection with dark witches. I wondered if Max had had time to see and investigate them. “Max, have you learned any valuable information from them during your questioning?” I asked him. His expression changed to be one of uncomfortableness. I raised an eyebrow at him. “Have you not questioned them yet?” I asked and added while standing up, “We should go to the dungeons now. We shouldn't delay this matter anymore.” “Arra.” He caught my hand, preventing me from stepping further. I looked at him with furrowed brows. Did I get it wrong? Had he actually questioned them? He seemed hesitant to say what was on his mind, but in the end, reluctantly explained, “The pack's dungeons couldn't contain the blonde woman's dark magic. She had bewitched the guards and successfully escaped, brutally killing and dismembering Charles.” Upon learning the information, I felt a dread and fear wash through my whole body. I was now sure that the blonde woman had some connections with Lina. Lina wasn’t alone in plotting and executing her plans against us. She had an ally or even allies, and they were around us. “I’m sorry, Arra,” Max apologized guiltily and then admitted, “I should’ve told you about this the moment I learned of the news. I shouldn’t have kept it from you out of fear that you’ll worry. You already have too many things on your plate, especially about Abigail, being disrespected by our pack members, our mateship, and our mating marks.” I sat back down on the couch and circled my arms around his muscular body, leaning against his chest. “I’m not angry with you, Max,” I assured and comforted him. “Thank you for always thinking of my feelings.” He pinched my chin and tilted my head up, pecking my lips before reminding me, “Make sure you always wear my grandmother's necklace, Arra. It is crucial to do so in your current situation as it could counteract dark magic.” I subconsciously brought my hand up to touch the necklace, only to realize I had taken it off on the day I was kidnapped. No wonder the dark magic could affect Iris and me on that day… Thinking of the necklace I had put in my jewelry box, I stood up to get it, only to be stopped by Max’s hand again. “Let’s take a shower,” he said and stood up, pulling me gently toward our spacious bathroom.