CHAPTER 82: CHAPTER 82: THIS IS MERCY

IVAN’S POV

The murmurs began then, hushed between suppressed mouth-to-ear conversations and cautious eyes.

Finally, a voice purred. Serena’s.

"Is it true," she asked with a tilt of her head, her red-clad lips extending to a flirty smile, "that the Rabid Wolf is a lady-killer?"

Her tone burned like acid under my skin, grating enough to leave it crawling, but I ground out a smile.

"Not in the literal sense, I fear."

A ripple of laughter floated into the room, nervous and strained, but meeting each other’s eyes with more courage.

Another voice: a guard, too bold for his own good.

"Alpha... is it true you lost control during the Severance? That you nearly killed the Moon Healer herself?"

I raised a brow, smirking. "Nearly? If that were true, she wouldn’t be walking these halls, would she?"

The chatter increased.

Then another: "Is it true your wolf gets triggered by anything? That you see shadows that aren’t there?"

I laughed—pitifully. The only one who has ever haunted me with the ghosts of her was Maeve.

And then, a voice rose right from my side, loud with evident intention and calm amusement: "Is it true... the boy is not yours?"

Mother.

The silence that followed was suffocating. Every head turned instantly to us, every breath held.

My grin widened into something manic as I gazed at her.

"There it is. The one question that truly matters." I clapped once, pleased, the sound slashing across the dead-quiet chamber. "At last, some honesty."

I turned forward, eyes burning.

"So let me answer openly. Asha is my son—of my blood, of my loins, and of my legacy. The rumor of the Rabid Wolf has been dragged before the Council, tested by the Goddess herself. I was tried by the Order of Three, and I was found blameless."

Well, mostly. But that did it for the crowd—gasps were set loose, wide eyes shifting across each one.

"And now," I said softly, almost kindly, "I am furious. For years I have served this pack—with my father, after his death, every day for the good of Ash Creek. And all it took to shake your faith in me was a whisper. A little fire."

I laughed, the sound dragged from the loathing part of me.

"We must be a joke to our enemies. Gullible, foolish wolves, rotten at the core. Rotten enough to sully not just me—but my son."

The murmurs quietened, and the maid who had bullied Asha sobbed louder, quaking where the guards held her.

She was the most pitiful thing in the room, but also the most pathetic.

I crouched in front of her with that same terrible grin.

"Which brings us to today’s lesson."

Every breath stilled, and every eye carefully watched the maid and I. I was certain that my voice sank into every corner of the room.

"Your hungry, insidious husk of a soul wasn’t satisfied with whispering filth on your Alpha’s name, and so you went ahead to hurt my son—forcing him to hear things no child his age should. And even spilling the dirt on his mother—my mate’s name!" The growl tore through me viciously, and the maid flinched back, trembling through every tear. I exhaled with a low chuckle and waved the guards forward. "Bring me a sword. And a whip."

When they obeyed, the atmosphere in the room collapsed into panic. The buzz of whispers was back.

From the corner of my eye, Serena shifted, lips pressed thin. Even Mother’s eyes were narrowed like daggers.

I crouched lower, once more to the maid, whispering as though to a child.

"Choose. The sword, or the whip."

Her sobbing grew violent. "Please, Alpha, I—I am sorry! Have mer—"

"Shh." I brushed a finger against her trembling lips. "Your voice aggravates me, so I advise that you only respond with the answers I seek."

I straightened to my feet and gestured toward the two items.

"The sword is your death. The whip, your life. One hundred lashes. But you will choose by your actions." I turned to the rest of the room, tension and nail-biting suspense glowing in their eyes, and I let myself smile as I said my next words. "Point out every last one who whispered, who spread filth about Asha or Maeve. Who pandered the lies of illegitimacy. Who called her a whore. Who shared it, cursed their name, sullied it. Point them out... and you live."

Her wild eyes darted through the room as it launched into chaos. Voices rose over each other, every face torn into fear and fury.

Maids and guards shrank against the walls, some trying to make themselves smaller, invisible to her eyes.

Lydia’s voice cut through the madness. "Ivan. This is unnecessary. She did not kill the boy. Justice must be tempered with mercy."

I turned, smiling sweetly at my mother. "Believe me, Mother. This is mercy. It has taken everything in me not to slaughter this entire room and salt the floors with blood."

Someone let out a loud cry of horror and sobs.

I turned back, voice dripping amusement. "But unfortunately, being Alpha means being kind. So: one hundred lashes. A lifetime working tirelessly in the caves. Chained like... rabid dogs."

The maid dropped lower, begging, sobbing.

The burst of fury I’d managed to somewhat mask for the sake of this gathering shot through my spine, and I snatched the sword from the guard, unsheathing with the intention of swiping her head off clean.

Instantly she screamed, rushing forward and into the crowd as the guards released her.

She broke, pointing wildly. "Her! And him! This maid right there! That guard too. Oh, heavens, Svari told me herself the ex-Luna had STDs!" There were gasps and rebuttals. "They all said it! They all whispered it!"

The room nearly split in two, and I watched, almost in amusement, as some of the people tried to run, some fell to their knees.

Of course, none of that meant anything to me. My guards dragged them down, wailing and pleading.

"Take them to the pack square," I said with a lazy flick of the wrist. "Whip them until dusk. Then to the mines. Effective immediately."

Their cries lasted for all sixty seconds the guards did their jobs, and once they were out, the chamber drowned in silence—not a breath in the air.

The people were deathly still.

Serena snapped. "This is madness, Ivan! And for what? That boy and his... wh—" she stopped herself, eyes wide, then cleared her throat. "Um... his mother. Like I said, this madness."

I shrugged, smiling still. "Maybe. But it won’t repeat itself. Not if you all learn your place."

I let my eyes wander through every face in the room before lowering my voice, my wolf surging, burning underneath my skin.

"This is your final warning, Ash Creek. If there is ever another word against Maeve Oakes or my son, Asha Cross, there will be no mercy. He is the future Alpha of Ash Creek. Regard him as the king he is. As for Maeve—she may not be Luna, but she is my guest, with the respect of kingdoms and Alphas. One more rumor against her, one more word of filth, and I swear death. No one will be spared."

My gaze swept the room, burning into Serena, specifically. Then Mother.

And I smiled.