Julian's POV
"I want to see Violet!" I repeated, my voice bouncing off the walls of Aurelia's small cottage.
The look on Aurelia's face shifted from shock to something darker—a combination of rage and disbelief that made my wolf stir uncomfortably. Her emerald eyes narrowed to slits, and her hands curled into fists at her sides.
"You want to see her?" She spoke each word deliberately, as if testing their weight. "Now? After five years of neglect?"
I squared my shoulders, trying to project the confidence I usually felt as Alpha King but failing miserably under her piercing gaze. "I've seen the security footage from the Moonlit Reflection Pool incident. I know Violet was innocent."
Aurelia's bitter laugh cut through the tension between us. "Congratulations on discovering the truth only everyone else already knew."
