"Lilith Addison, do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?" The head of the Council roars, and Lilith sits up straight.

Avery's blood is boiling, and Zephyr is sitting near the door in case he needs to be removed from the room quickly.

"Of course," Lilith announces, her eyes scanning the courtroom blankly.

Her demeanour is detached, and she has no emotion in her face at all.

She doesn't look at Zephyr or Avery.

Just because she's here doesn't mean she's going to say anything bad about us, Sonya reminds her.

If the Council have their way, they'll get her to blame us for her kidnapping and injuries, Avery responds to her wolf, her eyes flashing as she watches the woman on the stand twirl her hair.

What kind of mother could abandon their pup?, Sonya ponders sadly, miserable at the mere thought of abandoning a child.

We don't know what's happening in her life; it could be for his own protection, Avery warns her wolf.

She might be annoyed at Lilith, but she knows what it's like to have people presume the worst about you - she won't let her wolf be angry about Emmett being abandoned, she'll instead encourage her to appreciate Lilith for her sacrifice so that the little boy can have an even better life.

She's annoyed because Lilith volunteered to testify.

The fact she requested to be anonymous means she isn't going to be very nice.

Testifying anonymously implies that the testimony has sensitive or dangerous information. Avery can't see any information that Lilith has as being either, especially in relation to her - Lilith was only at her pack for two days before being attacked, she was never involved in any meetings or teleconferencing - Kali would be the one everyone had to worry about if that was what this was about.

"Mrs Addison," the man begins.

"Ms Cole, actually, please," she coughs, and the man grimaces.

"Ms Cole, why did you go to the Rapid Rock pack?" The man asks, fixing his tie and wiping sweat off his brow.

Now that Avery actually looks at the Council, they look petrified.

Of course, that could have something to do with the way Zephyr is staring at them like a dog stares at a steak. He looks bloodthirsty, and they all seem affected.

"As protection from my own former pack," Lilith simply responds.

"Protection from what?" He questions.

"There was an uprising. Some pack members wanted the traditional way back, but Zephyr refused to make human sacrifices, among other things. They quashed the uprising easily, but there were still concerns for my safety as I was pregnant," she elaborates blankly.

Her face is so emotionless that it's creeping Sonya out.

It's like she's a robot or something, I don't like it, the wolf mumbles, and Avery frowns.

"So you went to Rapid Rock for protection?" He asks again.

"Yes, but if the pack asked, I went for training," she mutters, looking slightly uneasy.

Unease is the first emotion she has shown since she first stepped into the courtroom.

Every Alpha is staring at her.

During the other testimonials, some Alphas watched Avery for her reaction, to see what she thought of different things being said.

This time, no eyes are on Avery.

Everyone is watching the former Luna of Moonstone Mountain dig herself a hole.

"On this trip, what happened?" The man asks, pacing the stage.

I'm surprised he hasn't worn a hole into the ground yet, he hasn't stopped moving, Sonya comments with a laugh.

"I was kidnapped and taken to an underground cave, where I was held for a number of hours. During tha-" she gets cut off by the man.

"Only answer the questions you are asked, please," he states sharply, glancing at his colleagues who nod at his order.

"What happened in the cave?" He asks, and Lilith shifts her weight on her chair.

Avery doesn't miss any of her movements.

"They threatened my child and me," she mutters, looking around the room.

"Is it true that you gave birth almost immediately after leaving the cave?" He queries, ready to jump on anything she says.

"Yes, the doctors said it was shock that forced my labour to come on early," she sighs, looking bored of the conversation.

"Is it true you have been involved in a scheme to take down a network of Alphas, including Alpha Wilcott, and your own mate, Alpha Addison?" The man suddenly roars, and Avery flinches back in her seat, her jaw-dropping open as she looks over to where Zephyr sits.

He looks horrified as well, the anger gone out of his face, it now being replaced by utter disbelief.

Lilith looks gobsmacked, and her jaw drops open too as she scrambles for an answer.

There is a flurry of murmurs around the room as everyone looks around to see if anyone else they know is as shocked as they are.

"Yes," Lilith finally manages to get out, and there is more murmuring at this admittance.

The head of the Council has to bang his gavel as he stares around the room, his sharp eyes taking in the reactions of all of the present Alphas.

He scribbles some notes, paying particular attention to Avery's baffled expression.

She feels shell-shocked.

She felt betrayed last month, but she feels worse now - she's actually thankful that her Godson isn't around such a treacherous person.

"Who else was involved?" The man asks, and Lilith looks around the room wildly, looking for any ounce of support.

"Nobody," she splutters, and the man scowls, stopping his pacing in front of her podium.

"I will now remind you that you are under oath, and you have to tell us, or you will certainly face further prosecution," he snarls, slamming his hands against the table.

"Some other former Lunas," she snarls back, her eyes flashing.

"Kali Petty being one of them?" Avery asks, rising from her chair.

The Council barely even turn to look at her.

"Yes," Lilith spits in her direction, and Avery sits back down, her lip curled in disgust.

"Did you fake your own kidnapping?" The man asks, raising an eyebrow and glancing over his shoulder at a trembling Avery.

Her anger is barely contained.

"I did not fake it, it was real, but I was not harmed if that's what you're asking," she grits out.

Avery runs a hand through her hair, inhaling slowly and taking a gulp of her water.

She looks around the courtroom and notices the different expressions on people's faces.

Alpha Lexus looks murderous, and Scott seems downright bloodthirsty.

Zephyr looks lost, as if all of the hope he had in the world has vanished.

Avery can't blame him, he basically just lost his mate again - she wasn't even the other version she pretended to be.

"Lilith Cole, you are under arrest for conspiracy to commit harm to Alphas, conspiracy to harm Lunas, threats towards packs, and also for fraudulently presenting yourself in a manner that is untrue and dangerous," the head of the Council announces, nodding to the man who questioned Lilith.

The man sits down, and the head of the Council remains standing.

Lilith is stony-faced, and Avery grits her teeth.

"You will now be taken into custody, where you will be able to avail of a lawyer and legal services," he explains calmly, and she scoffs.

She's clearly trying not to act like a brat.

She thought she was invincible, Sonya growls.

Avery shifts in her seat, wondering what'll happen next in the trial as she takes another sip of her water, rubbing her neck uncomfortably.

She feels a little claustrophobic, but she isn't dizzy or anything, so she doesn't think she'll faint or anything very embarrassing like usual.

Taking a deep breath, the room is silent as they all watch as Lilith is led away from the room in handcuffs.

It's very unusual for someone to be arrested so publicly, especially at a trial.

She must not have known that anyone knew about the conspiracy, and assumed that by submitting herself for the trial that they would have been gentle on her, only asking questions relating to Avery.

As she thinks about it, Avery realises they didn't ask a single question about her or her conduct during their interrogation of Lilith - which is a little weird, if they had such an issue with Lilith, they could have just interrogated her privately.

"Alpha Marcus, Alpha Leon, Alpha Martinez, we have arrest warrants for you three also," the head announces, and Avery's eyebrows raise even higher than they were.

There are gasps in the audience as guards appear out of nowhere and slap silver cuffs on the Alphas, leading them away immediately.

None of them try to fight, and Avery furrows her brows at this - they must have known it was coming as soon as it was brought up with Lilith.

Zephyr looks extremely hurt.

Avery knows that he was allied with at least one of the detained Alphas, and she feels an insane amount of sympathy for her friend.

She can't imagine the betrayal he feels.

Actually, I can, Sonya scoffs, have you forgotten about Roman?

How could I forget about Roman, Sonya? You constantly bring him up, Avery snaps.

"Alphas, thank you for coming. We are almost finished, there are maybe two hours left of the day, and then dinner will be served if anyone would like to stay," the man announces, "there may be more arrests over the coming days, and there have been Beta and Gammas arrested outside already. No Lunas have been detained, but there will be some who get pulled for questioning, so please allow us to do our job."

There is a murmur of consent and plenty of nodding heads.

"Alpha Wilcott, is there anything you would like to say before we begin deliberations?" The head of the Council asks calmly.

"I simply hope you can see me the way that my pack does. Ask any of them; I lead with respect for all of them. I am a fair leader who is trying to modernise a pack which has been stuck in the past for too long," she sighs, sitting up.

"Okay, we are done for now, I believe you are needed at the Mating Panel," the old man nods, and Avery shrugs, standing up and then pausing.

"If that's the case, I would like to petition the Council that I am able to rename my pack as the Wilcott Pack," she announces, getting some raised eyebrows in response.

"We will consider it while we deliberate, but the decision of that may take longer than the deciding of your Alphaship," the man nods, and Avery smiles at him.

"Thank you for your consideration, Council, I'll see you soon," she beams, a guard leading her out of the room.

As soon as she walks out of the doors, Kathleen pounces on her, pulling her into a hug as they walk rapidly.

"What time do you need to be there for?" Hayden asks, scuttling along beside them.

"Four, they said," she gasps, sipping her water as they practically run through the stone corridors.

"Do you know what they need you for?" Mitch questions, glancing back at his Alpha.

He leads them, knowing the architecture of the place pretty well - expected, since he helped the redesign to make the building a little more tactical.

"No, the messenger never said. I think it'll just be questions about some of the younger pairings in our pack, you know that we have a young average age for finding your mate," she sighs, "they're probably wondering if we put something in the water."

Kathleen snorts, shaking her head at Avery.

"Only you would make a joke like that right now," she laughs, the noise coming out slightly high-pitched and making Avery flinch away.

Was that a joke?, Sonya asks, puzzled.

It absolutely wasn't; I think she's just very stressed out by today, Avery responds to her wolf in equal confusion.

"Has anyone mentioned anything about this Panel that you heard?" Avery asks the group, and the three people present shake their heads.

"I didn't even know it was happening," Mitch grumbles, turning a corner.

Hayden nearly slams into a wall at the abrupt turn, but they all manage to make it into the narrower corridor.

"Okay, we're here," Mitch breathes, stopping in his tracks.

Kathleen skids a little at the sudden stop but manages to right herself.

"Good luck, we'll be here when you're done!" Kathleen cheers, hugging Avery again and then nudging her into the room.

"Hello, Alpha Wilcott, you're right on time!" A woman beams, nodding to her cordially.

"Yes, thankfully the trial didn't run over," Avery laughs lightly, placing herself in the seat at the centre of the room.

This room is much smaller, with two medium to long tables in an L-shape, two chairs in the middle of the room facing the table.

Avery briefly glances at the second chair, raising an eyebrow as she wonders who else has been called.

"We're just going to wait for the other Alpha, if that's okay," the woman winks, and Avery shrugs, looking at the ten people sitting at the tables.

They're all around her parent's age, and she's more comfortable like that.

"I don't mean to be rude, but why have I been called? You are all aware I don't have a mate, and I can't explain my pack's statistics," Avery warns them, and some of the people present giggle joyfully.

The Mating Panel is a nice place to be called to - they're all very welcoming and open, and they never really have bad news for anyone - that's the Council's job.

It's a good job to have, too - but you can only be a part of it if you had, or have a mate, so Avery had to automatically exclude one of these roles once she was branded, hence her place on the Rogue Control board.

"We have some new research, and you're - I'm sorry to say - part of our test case," one of the men pipes up, shooting her a sympathetic look.

Avery nods slowly, sitting up and fixing her posture a little.

What the fuck is this, some little cult? I don't want any part in it, Sonya growls.

Sonya, chill out, it's probably nothing, Avery groans.

Her wolf is on edge, and her nervous energy is making some of the members in the room twitch a little.

This room is traditionally very zen, with candles and aromatherapy oils burning all day, the lights turned down low and drapes shut.

The door bursts open, and Avery turns around to spot Roman.

She gives him a nod, and he gives her a small smile, hurrying over to the chair beside her.

"How are we today, ladies and gentlemen?" He asks, looking around the room with a smile.

"We're good, Alpha Lancaster, how are you?" One of the men grins, nodding to him.

"I'm doing well, very busy today, unfortunately," Roman responds.

"Okay, can I get your attention for just a minute to explain our findings to you both? We were initially going to call you both individually. Still, since it technically involves both of you, we decided to do it this way," the woman grins, looking down the table.

They all have broad smiles on, and they look ridiculously happy.

Sonya is scowling at the happiness.

She really isn't in a good mood after the hearing.

"Okay," Avery mumbles, and Roman nods with her, raising his eyebrows as they look at the table.

"We've discovered that Unfortunates can have mates!" The woman grins, clapping her hands.

"Excuse me?" Avery and Roman ask at the same time, glancing at each other with matching expressions of confusion.

"Yes! You heard me!" She cheers.

"How?" Avery asks, at the same time Roman repeats, "Excuse me?"

"Okay, so we've had scientists working on it for years, obviously, because it doesn't make sense for some of the most powerful werewolves to be Unfortunates, there's no reason to end your bloodlines. We ruled out natural selection ages ago, so it was never that," the woman babbles, and Avery scowls, her short temper being poked by this woman who just can't seem to find the point.

"Okay, please get to the point," Roman snaps, and Avery raises an eyebrow.

I never thought I'd appreciate his impatience, Sonya snorts.

"What Emily is trying to say is... You're mates!" One of the men exclaims happily.

He's greeted with silence.

"Yay?" The man whisper-squeaks, confused by the lack of excitement.