“I'll kill him.” Marcus snarled when Blake finished filling his lieutenants in. Pulling them to one side of the clearing, It had taken no more than a few minutes to bring them both up to speed on recent events and the two lieutenants had reacted much as Blake had expected them to.

Marcus whirled around, scenting the air, his chest heaving as he fought to control the anger surging through him. Sighting the nearest trail leading towards Sweet William, he braced himself to shift.

“Stop!” Blake's shout snapped like a whip, jerking the Beta back. “He answers to me and me alone.”

Fierce and pale, Marcus wheeled to face his Alpha with accusing eyes, his voice cracked and broken. “I trusted him. You trusted him. Wolves are dead because of him. Good wolves, loyal wolves – ” He didn't need to continue. All three knew the Beta had almost counted himself among them.

Alex was shaking his head in disbelief, staring at one of the photos as though he could somehow change what he was seeing. “It can't be,” he muttered for the third time. “Simon? He's a peacekeeper for Goddess sake, a diplomat! He always argues against violence.”

“Apparently there's such a thing as too much diplomacy,” Blake pointed out, jabbing at the picture. His eyes remained locked on Marcus's struggling form, silently begging his friend not to force him to use his Alpha's dominance against him.

“It can't be,” Alex muttered again.

The sting of Simon's betrayal bit deeper than any frozen shard of ice and Blake's wolf joined with the others, snarling his hatred from the depths of his soul. His own anger was so intense that, when he clenched his fists together in a last-ditch effort to maintain his control, the tips of his half-extended claws drew blood.

For the first time in his life, he was forced to draw on every ounce of calm he had inside him to maintain the control for which he was known. The need for revenge was both deep and personal; for their wolves it overrode all other things, including the natural hierarchy of the pack, and Marcus in particular, was struggling.

“You can't judge this,” Blake told him softly. “You're too close to it.”

“I know,” Marcus growled, his tone as dark as his eyes, Akoni stalking just below the surface. It took a supreme effort to calm down and focus his mind on the trial ahead. “There must be three witnesses,” he reminded his Alpha, his voice stiff and unnatural as he fought for control.

“Find them,” Blake ordered his Beta, feeling his need for distraction. “A warrior, a wolf of high rank and an Eta.” The Elders had laid out the laws carefully to ensure fair judgment on any wolf accused of a crime.

“We didn't bring any Etas,” Alex growled, his eyes finally lifting from the photograph.

“An Omega then. Just make sure none of them have any affiliation to the prisoner, nor any incentive in their bias towards me.”

Marcus nodded stiffly and stalked away.

“Want me to keep an eye on him?” Alex asked, handing the incriminating photo's back to his Alpha.

Blake watched his Beta disappear into the forest with worried eyes. “No, head up to Sweet William and make sure our new prisoner doesn't wander off unexpectedly.” He turned to scrutinise his Gamma. “You’re taking this remarkably calmly,” he observed.

The beleaguered look returned to Alex's eyes. “I carried a dead child in my arms today,” he revealed. “That sort of thing changes your perception of things a little.” One hand swiped at the stray locks of blond hair that fell into his eyes, and he shrugged. “His fate is sealed. I'm sure I can restrain myself until then.” He turned his gaze towards the steep trail leading to Sweet William and grimaced. “Do we have to do this inside the cave?”

Blake nodded. “Just us, the witnesses and the guards.” Less chance that the trial could be invalidated by outside interference.

Alex sighed heavily and as he ran towards the embankment, poised to change forms, Blake caught his final complaint as it drifted back to him on the winds...

“I hate caves.”

*

The warrior was seasoned – Liam, one of James's patrol. Blake knew him to be a good fighter, but had never had the opportunity to train with him one on one. As a result of the enmity between the two clashing wolves, none of James's warriors had ever run alongside Simon's before either.

He hovered near the entrance to the cave, clearly as uncomfortable with the tight space as his Gamma, his eyes bright with interest as he glanced frequently at the huddled figure near the alter.

The socialite was a face Blake knew only too well. Eric Cartwright, Angela's father. It had been a surprise to all of them when he'd volunteered as a relief for the injured warriors, but he seemed resolutely determined to prove his worth.

He strayed towards the back of the small cave, and after one, startled glance at Simon's dishevelled form, he turned his back, his face registering a faint expression of disgust as his eyes traced the painted story on the walls.

Rothan uttered a low rumble of approval. Both were strong witnesses with no compelling personal connection to either Simon or the Alpha.

He didn't recognise the Omega. “What's your name?” Blake asked.

“Adrian, Alpha,” the young Omega stammered. Judging by his nervous disposition, the young wolf wasn't used to being in such close proximity to his Alpha. All the better. He stood alone in the centre of the cave, a lack of confidence preventing him from approaching the higher-ranking wolves. “I work the packs.”

Blake nodded. The boy was a carrier, among other things, tasked with organising and lugging the supplies carried with them during excursions like this one. The Alpha's face softened as he realised how daunting the situation must be for the lowest ranked wolf in the cave. “Do you know this man?” He gestured towards the prisoner.

“Only by name, Alpha. I don't live in the main village. Don't work there either.”

Blake nodded again, inwardly proud of his Beta. Despite his personal hatred, he'd carefully selected an entirely neutral group of witnesses.

Finally, he turned to his prisoner, wretched in his defeat. There had been no fight. No attempt to flee. Simon had taken one look at the photos and walked quietly into arms of the waiting warriors with the bearing of a man who knows his time has run out.

He blanched when he caught his Alpha’s expression. The fire in Blake's eyes burned with unquenchable intensity, his merciless gaze bearing down on him with all the power of an Alpha's fury.

Simon kept his head bowed, showing little reaction as Blake recited the charges to the shocked witnesses – passing the incriminating photos between them and summarizing the events of the last few months, listing every act of treachery they had uncovered.

Blake took a deep breath, a part of him consumed with the need to understand why his friend had betrayed them. "How did it start?" he began.

"With my brother," Simon admitted, in an unemotional voice. "Nothing I did could ever compare to the pride in our father's eyes as he watched my brother succeed in the only thing that ever mattered to him. And I tried, I really did. I - "

"Spare us the sob story,” Liam muttered. “So daddy favoured your brother, big deal. That doesn't explain why you betrayed your Alpha."

"I mourned him when he died,” Simon continued as though Liam hadn't spoken. “But my brother? I felt nothing. I was too busy anticipating my rise to Gamma in his place.” His expression suddenly twisted into remembered anguish and he shot an accusing glance at Alex. “Then you gave my rightful position to an outsider.”

“Your rightful position?” Alex choked in disbelief, his eyes black with anger.

“The rank of Gamna is mine,” Simon snarled unexpectedly, eight years of bitterness spewing out all at once. “Mine by blood! You stole it from me.”

Alex snarled with fury, his claws extending as he took a step towards the wolf who showed such blatant disrespect.

“It was never yours,” Blake intervened coldly, raising a hand to restrain his friend. "It was your father's. And would have belonged to your brother, had he lived. He didn't."

“I was next in line,” Simon scoffed, the disbelief still prevalent in his tone. “You made a mistake, Alpha.”

“And Syrus promised to help you correct my mistake?” Blake guessed, ignoring Alex's stifled expletive.

"He sympathised,” Simon admitted. "Convinced me that the best thing I could do to prove myself worthy, was to accept his help."

"Flattery and foolishness," said Alex in disgust. "I thought you were smarter than that."

"So did I," Simon muttered. But you have no idea how convincing he was." He shook his head. "I knew I could serve our pack better than you. I knew it." The conviction in his voice rang with bitterness as he glared at the man who had taken what he believed to be rightfully his.

“Quick question, “Liam interrupted suddenly. “How did you get past Asher?” Blake raised an eyebrow and Liam shrugged. “He tested all of us before the meeting. Asked us outright if we were traitors.”

“I spoke no word of untruth,” Simon said sullenly.

Blake watched his eyes flicker between indignation and conviction and a sudden insight washed over him. “He believes his own lies,” the Alpha growled. “He's not a traitor, he's a patriot. Isn't that right, Simon?” He tilted his head to look at the pathetic husk of a wolf knelt on the ground before them. “Or maybe a victim,” he mused. “is that how you justified it in your head? Can’t be a traitor if you're a victim, right?”

“Asher should have asked if we had anything to hide instead,” Alex grumbled.

“It wouldn't have worked,” Blake disagreed. “We all have something to hide. Every wolf in the room would have been lying to him.”

Simon looked between them, his expression pleading with them to understand. “It didn't feel wrong,” Simon tried to explain, a plea in his voice. “Syrus understood. He was always so understanding. He knew I needed to prove myself to you, and he found ways to help me. He always had a new titbit of information to give me, something I could use to get ahead of the game. He was a friend.”

Eric snorted softly from the shadows, a look of contemptuous disbelief on his face. Simon ignored him, lost in his recollections.

“After a while, he started to ask me to return the favour. It was so insignificant at first. Hardly worth thinking about. A few questions about trade deals, the odd inside tip... harmless nonsense.”

“And then, it wasn't,” Blake murmured softly.

“And then, it wasn't,” Simon agreed with a sigh.

“When exactly did you cross the line into full blown treachery?” Liam asked, his lips set in a thin line of anger.

I don't really know,” Simon frowned. “I suppose... when I met her about a year ago. At the trade fair.”

Nearly thirty packs had sent representatives to strike new trade deals and barter for alliances. Elmwood had been among them, though Blake had seen little of them in the few days he was there.

“Tia was beautiful,” Simon reminisced. “Perfect. Syrus introduced us on the third day. I knew I wanted her almost immediately, and she seemed keen to reciprocate.” He sighed again. “She seduced me, for lack of a better word – on Syrus's orders of course. But it mattered little. By the final night... I was lost.”

“You could still have stopped it,” Blake said in frustration. “All you had to do was come to me. You’d made foolish decisions, but still hadn't crossed the point of no return. I would have negotiated for you. Argued for your mating. Why didn't you come to me, Simon?”

“How could I?” Simon cried wretchedly. “I couldn't see where it was leading me. Like a blind fool, I kept telling myself that I had it under control. That I would never – " He shook his head. “ – never cross the line. I visited Elmwood as often as I could, desperate to see her.” He almost sobbed with self-pity. “Every visit Syrus would invite me to chat, asking questions about my missions – " He cast his tortured gaze across the gathered wolves, seeking even one face that showed a hint of understanding. The young Omega's expression was filled with horrified pity and Simon directed his confession towards him. “I gave him everything he asked for, in exchange for a few hours in her company. I had no choice.”

“There's always a choice,” Alex growled.

“When did you cross the line?” Eric spoke up, the ice in his voice dropping the temperature in the cave by several degrees.

Simon flinched. “Six months ago, I received an email from Tia telling me she was with child. I found an excuse to go beyond the borders and headed straight for Elmwood believing Syrus would have no choice but to approve our mating now. I was wrong. He – he asked me to steal several sets of plans for him, acquire them was the way he put it.”

“My designs?” Alex said sharply.

Simon nodded. “Among others, yes. I said no.” He looked at his Gamma. “I did say no.”

“Let me guess,” Blake said wryly. “Your best friend Syrus suddenly wasn't as friendly as before?”

Simon shook his head, wretched in his self-pity. “He threatened her. Threatened our unborn pup.” He looked at Blake with desperate eyes. “I had to do what he asked.”

And still he didn’t go to his Alpha, Rothan snarled.

“And then he had another favour, and then another and another...” Eric predicted. There was no sympathy behind his eyes as he looked at Simon with something close to repulsion.

“Yes,” Simon agreed with muted resignation. “It's funny how much easier it became after that first step into the abyss.” He sighed. “I gave him everything, Alpha. Patrol movements, training regimes, the minutes of any meeting I was a part of...”

“When we entered Elmwood, Syrus knew exactly why we were there?” Blake surmised through gritted teeth.

“Yes.”

“Did he know about my brother crossing his borders?”

Simon shook his head. “No. I didn't tell him that.”

Alex scoffed.

“It's the truth! Part of me hoped there was still a way out, that” – Simon’s face contorted as he tried to find the words – “that Asher would find something I could use to – "

“Wriggle your way out of it?” Alex said in a voice filled with contempt.

Another shrug. “Yes, if you like. All it did was dig me deeper.” His eyes filled with regret. “I should have told him about Asher,” he mused to himself.

Without warning Blake shot forward, one hand wrapping around the warrior’s neck, the tips of his claws grazing the skin. The two guards assigned to protect him exchanged startled glances, neither prepared to step in against their Alpha. Simon didn't struggle or attempt to defend himself. He just hung there, toes barely touching the ground as Blake held him up towards the rocky ceiling.

“Blake?” Alex said half-heartedly, smothering the rising grin that threatened to emerge as he watched the traitor dangle.

“Did you know Macleiry was working with Syrus?” Blake asked, his face hard, like iron.

Simon attempted a short nod.

“And the mercenaries?”

“Yes,” Simon choked out, his voice a husky rasp. “Syrus set them up in the hope of getting the girl back before she let something slip that she shouldn't. They didn't know she'd lost her memories.”

“Alpha?” Alex interceded again as Simon turned slowly purple.

Blake dropped him and he landed in a crumpled heap on the floor, one hand rubbing his neck absentmindedly. “He didn't want to risk exposing me if he didn't have too.”

“I'll bet,” Alex snarled. “Why cut the puppets strings when you can simply create another to do the job?”

Blake closed his eyes, supressing the surge of anger with difficulty and reasserting his calm control. “Do you have any questions, Adrian?” he asked the young Omega finally.

“Me?” The Omega sounded startled, his eyes darting about the room.

Blake nodded solemnly. “Every witness must have a voice here. Do you have a question for the prisoner?”

“I – ” His face screwed up as he thought it through, his serious expression adding a sense of maturity to his feature. “Yes, just one,” he said tentatively. He turned to Simon. “Did you use Jenni to gain information about the hospital?”

Blake glanced at him in surprise. He'd forgotten about the warriors pursuit of the impressionable young nurse.

Simon stared at the Omega for the longest moment, his expression unreadable. “Yes,” he said finally, a hint of regret in his voice. "I needed information and I thought she might give it to me if I paid her some attention."

Adrian growled softly. "I like Jenni,” he muttered. He shuffled his feet and glanced at his Alpha. “That's all,” he said.

“Anyone else?” Blake looked about the room, but the others shook their heads. They'd heard all they needed to hear. Blake turned back to the Omega. “And having heard the charges and the evidence laid before you, how do you judge him?”

“Guilty,” Adrian answered in a clear voice, though he avoided Simons gaze.

“And you, warrior?” the Alpha asked.

“Guilty,” Liam growled, glaring at Simon's hunched form in disgust.

Blake turned to the socialite, the judgment he was most unsure of. Eric looked his Alpha in the eye, his back ramrod straight, shoulders set. “He is a traitor, Alpha and no quarter should be given for his crimes.”

Simon looked up at this last accusation. “You dare judge me?” he bit back. “You who would drag our Alpha before the Elders to appease your brattish daughter?”

“I defended my blood against someone I considered to be an outsider,” Eric snarled, then glanced at his Alpha. "I was wrong," he admitted reluctantly. "But not once did I place the safety of this pack before my own desires. You betrayed our Alpha out of petty jealousy! You’re barely worthy of the name wolf, never mind the Blackridge pack!”

The Gamma and Alpha exchanged surprised looks. They had not expected such loyalty from the man who had been such a thorn in Blake's side. The rumble of approving thunder echoing throughout the chamber made it clear how all the wolves felt about the situation.

Blake nodded. The decision had been made. “Simon Destrion,” he began formally. “You have been found guilty of treason against the Blackridge pack. If it is later proven that Elmwood is in league with the Rogues, a charge of terrorism will be added to your crimes. As – ”

Blake’s hesitated as his connection to Simon picked up on the whimper of despair emanating from the wolf within, the pathetic sound tugging on his resolve.