I sat at the table feeling like a juvenile that had done something wrong. Except it was worse because what I had done, what I had allowed, was even worse than anything a juvenile could ever think of doing, let alone actually doing. The Commands mattered little. I should have been stronger, should have prevented it, should have pushed off the Commands. There were so many moments that I could have taken to leave before it had reached the point it did but I had ignored them all. I had put my faith in Stenton, in the belief that the pack's rules and laws would be followed.

That was the worst mistake I had ever made in my entire life. Outside of the choices that had led to me losing my Chrissie. There was that small tugging in my stomach that told me there was nothing I could have done to prevent Chrissie's death but I rushed it off. I should have pushed back against her wanting pups, waited to see. That was on me.

I swallowed again, rubbing at my throat. It felt weird not having the Commands on me anymore. There was a heavy relief, to be sure, but my throat felt off, like there was something there and it made swallowing feel stuttered.

"Okay."The hunter looked at me intently. I had a feeling he didn't really like me. I didn't blame him. I didn't like me either. "This was a standard welfare check and while our previous concerns were not warranted, we have learned some other concerning information." I gave a small nod. I knew they did and we deserved whatever it was that the Hunters were going to drop on us. "Was there an illegal rogue attack on the pack?" The question was asked evenly and I closed my eyes, clasping my hands together tightly.

"Yes." I knew she must have been so fucking scared that day. She told me about it and I could see how terrified she had been. And then afterwards? My heart hurt for her, a deep ache in my chest that instead of being strong enough I had allowed her brutalization. It was on me. There were so many other paths I could have taken that would have avoided all of that and yet I had gone down this one and she paid the price for it.

"You do understand that under the Criminal Code statutes pertaining to illegal rogues, that it specifies that packs must report any rogue attacks that happen to the Hunters or there will be legal consequences, correct?" I had known about the rule but that did little in my situation. Stenton had made sure no one in the pack could talk to to the hunters to report it. "Do you know why this specific attack was not reported?" There was a bit of an edge to his voice and I gave a helpless sort of shrug. Yah, I was back to being the Master-at-Arms but hat didn't mean I could report that shit. Stenton wanted the hunters well away from Sublatus, no one could say anything.

I cleared my throat, rubbing at it again. "He didn't want the hunters investigating."

"Is that why he put the Command on you?" At the follow up I gave another small nod.

"To the whole pack. It wasn't just me." Everyone had been Commanded with that one. It had been easy to push off. No one liked the Hunters so no one really questioned it, or they wouldn't have, if it hadn't been for Menza and Maeve being gone. We had wanted to use all we could and when Stenton took that away from us, it had been a heavy blow.

A thick bile rose up in my throat. She could have been found so much sooner than she had been. They both could have been brought home if Stenton hadn't done it. Then again, I could have had my females safely with me if Stenton hadn't interfered at all. Menza never had a chance against him, not against him wanting her dead.

I closed my eyes tight, swallowing heavily to keep from gagging as the bitter poison of my guilt and shame tore into my stomach. "That is a serious infraction and will need to be investigated by the Hunters. I understand there are extenuating circumstances preventing pack members from reporting it and that will be taken into consideration. However, it is your duty, especially as a ranked member, to report these things. Remember that." The Hunter didn't seem to be looking for a response but I nodded anyway.

"Muffin says you had a lot of Commands on you. Can you explain them?" The question caught me off guard slightly but I just shook my head.

"It doesn't matter." They really didn't matter. What had happened, happened. I should have been a stronger male, I should have fixed things before they reached that point.

"It can change the outcomes for you if you explain what he exactly did. I am legally obligated to explain that the Alpha's Command defense would negate a lot of your punishment if you had been Commanded by your Alpha. It would also allow the Council to punish him more severely." Officer Bently was looking at me intently and I shook my head again.

"They don't matter. What happened, happened and I deserve the punishment for it." I should have taken Menza and Maeve and left well before it got to that point, well before she ended up punished. There were so many chances I had to fix it, to correct it, before it got bad. I had failed in there, them knowing the Commands didn't make a difference in that.

"I must push back on this." The Councillor spoke up. "We would like to hear the Commands he had on you."

"What does it fucking change? Nothing. It changes nothing and I don't want to discuss it!" The words were threaded with growls. I didn't want to hear anymore of it because the Commands didn't matter. I could have fixed it. I could have changed things if I had been smarter. Besides, I didn't need them shaming me over it, over what I hadn't done. I had no use for the Hunters or their judgements.

"If you insist, Mr. O'Neill, but know that without the knowledge of the Command that your punishment will be as heavy as the others." The hunter said it like I cared. I wanted my punishment to be harsh. I deserved it for all that happened to Menza that I could have fixed but hadn't because I had been too blinded by trust to see the writing on the wall. I shook my head again. I didn't want to discuss it. "Alright then, second order of business, there are Omegas on the territory, correct?"

I hesitated before I winced and nodded. I had been a ranked member when those laws had passed. We had brushed them off. The Sublatus Omegas were well taken care of. They only ever catered to the ranks and were given time off in a semi-annual schedule. I had thought, we had thought the new laws were a ridiculous overreach trying to erase tradition. Seemed stupid now but hindsight was always twenty-twenty.

There was a thick silence before the Hunter's pen made some noises on the paper. "That is a serious infraction and will need to be investigated." I nodded again and opened my eyes.

The pack was going to be found guilty of everything they found. Menza told the truth and we deserved every punishment they laid down at our feet and I wanted it made worse. I wanted it to be as bad as what we did to her. I needed my own punishment to be as bad as what I had allowed happen to her. I knew that it had been bullshit, I had known but I had continued on the path anyway.

I had stood there, watching them beat her back bloody and said nothing. I was a weak, pathetic sort of male to allow that to happen to the female under my care.

"That is a serious infraction and will result in the rest of the other Councilors coming to Sublatus." At the new voice I glanced up at the other male, the one that must have come with the creepy witch. I swallowed against the strange feeling in my throat, like a phantom squeeze over talking to them.

"Agreed." Officer Bently nodded and I hunched my shoulders slightly as I shifted on my chair. "According to Old Way tradition, Ms Aristotle was given to you, meaning she is your property." At the unsaid question I nodded. I hadn't cared about it before but Chrissie had argued with me that it was a bit demeaning. It was probaly why Stenton didn't much care for her. That had anger fighting with the guilt and shame inside of me. Fuck did I want to kill him.

"That is a serious infraction and will need to be investigated as it violates the Personhood Act." I nodded again and glanced at the Hunter. He was writing down on a notepad before he looked at me, his expression hard. "She was whipped, severely. She told us that after that, she met Mene, meaning that she was whipped beyond the point of death. It is, quite frankly, a miracle she is alive right now." I grimaced at that, swallowing convulsively to keep the bile from rising in my throat.

I had known it was bad. Straight from the moment they had dragged her up there. I had known it was bad. I wasn't surprised to hear it. That she had died, even for a moment. It was just another sin to add to the list that was against my soul. Another sin against Stenton that gave me another reason for why he needed to die. Mene was going to punish me, there was no way she wasn't and I knew I deserved it. But I hoped to all the corners of the universe that I could be the one to send Stenton, Regan, and Getts to her brothers. I didn't care if it was killing them or begging Mene on my hands and knees to not allow the cycle of their souls to continue.

"That is beyond a serious infraction and as we have proof, there will be a punishment handed out. What happened to her is not okay on any level." At the words I felt like my shoulders were being shoved further and further down with the weight of them. I knew it wasn't okay. I knew it had been horrible. It didn't matter that I had told Stenton no, what mattered was that I had allowed the situation to happen in the first place. "She is a hemi-lykos, Mr. O'Neill. They are not shifters, they are closer to mundanes. To whip one to the extent she was whipped, is a crime that could result in the sentence of death because of how severe it was. You need to understand that she died from those injuries, regardless of her walking and talking now, she died." There was no understanding to his voice, a very controlled rage, but nothing soft or gentle and I understood why. Looking at the entire situation from the outside, he could see just how fucked up it all was.

I could see how fucked up it was. He laid it all out there and looking at it, I could see exactly what type of monsters we were. No matter the circumstances, what happened to Menza had been abhorrent.

"We have, in our records, that she was mated to a male. This is why her case was closed. From our prior conversation I understand that despite your name being on the forms, you did not know of this, correct?" The edge to his voice was not dulling, in fact it seemed to get worse, making his voice almost brittle. I nodded in response, not trusting my voice.

"No. I didn't know. I wouldn't have accepted that. My female..." I cleared my throat, swallowing against that phantom feeling. "My female had just died. I never would have accepted that." I wouldn't have and I should have questioned it. Hell, looking at it from now, I could remember William mentioning it offhandedly. I had simply been too dense to put it all together. Mene I had been so fucking stupid. I rubbed at my face with my hands, my shoulders hunching even more.

"That is a serious infraction against those involved and will need to be investigated. We will take into account your circumstances and the fact you didn't know." The Hunter's pen scratched across the paper and I let out a shuddering breath.

I wondered if it would be better to have them slap me with a death sentence but I knew that was a coward's away out but then again I knew it would leave Menza free to take my precious little Maeve and live a life better than what I had given her. They could both be free of the shit that I caused. I realized it wouldn't fix it but I knew it would be a step in the right direction. They would be safe. Stenton had shown me that my ability to care for them could be taken away, that it was seriously compromised.

"Due to the severe nature of the brutalization of the hemi-lykos, Menza Aristotle, and the acknowledgement of Omegas within the territory. This will be a full scale investigation, meaning there will be Hunters, Enforcers, and the rest of Council arriving on the territory." At the words I simply nodded.

The Hunter leaned closer to me and I lifted my head to look at him. His expression was angular and filled with disgust. "I understand you're raised how you are but to allow that to happen to her, a hemi-lykos who are akin to juveniles with their inherent vulnerabilities, is fucking sickening and I hope they fucking burn you and this pack to the fucking ground." He leaned away and stood up. I didn't react to his words because I had told that to myself already. I was feeling wrung out but I knew there was more to come. We had dug this hole, now we were going to be buried in it. Myself included.

It was deserved. I fucking deserved it.

I stopped for a moment, confused. "What do you mean, in her condition?" That was confusing, I didn't understand why he stated it the way he did. "Because she's not full shifter?" I looked at the Hunter and he stared down at me before he opened his mouth.

"I wouldn't do that, Bently." The witch's voice was even and I shifted to look at her as she stood in the hallway. The witch's pale brown eyes were holding the Hunter in place. "you can't say anything about that. No one is to know and the less people who know the better because there will be deadly consequences." At the words my heart jumped in my throat.

"What do you mean?" What did she mean deadly consequences for Menza? "Who would hurt her? What are you talking about?" I felt a little frantic at the thought of it. I wanted to know what danger there was. I wanted to know so I could mitigate it, she had suffered enough. "Is it Stenton?" I turned to look at Officer Bently and the Counciller. "There is a reason we had her in Vis. It's not safe here. I don't even like that she's here now. Stenton wants her dead!" I felt a bit more frantic at that. She wasn't safe. In fact, despite what they were even talking about, I knew Menza couldn't be on the territory.

My words seemed to hit them and there was a thick silence as the four of them, creepy witch included, stared at me. "He wants her dead... how do you know?" The Hunter asked it carefully, as if worried I would clam up and not tell him anything. Normally I wouldn't. That was what we were taught, to never trust the Hunters, to never give them anything. But that didn't mean anything now. They knew and every bit of information that was being hidden would come out. They had reason to investigate and I knew we fucking deserved every fine, punishment, and decree they slapped us with.

"Yes! It's why he took over her punishment and why he keeps letting Regan get his hands on her. Why he practically Commanded me to give her over to that sadistic prick. With her dead then there's no reason for the Hunters to come." I spoke quickly, urgently. I needed them to understand just how dangerous it was for Menza to remain on the territory.

To my surprise the Councillor grimaced, looking uncomfortable. "He did it because of the welfare checks, didn't he? All of it, the false records, Commanding everyone, he did it so we wouldn't have access to the pack anymore." I nodded and he cursed, pinching his nose, muttering to himself.

There was a bit of a silence before the creepy witch chortled. "Jovan and Thomisina are gunna lose their shit when they find that out." She sang it in that raspy, creepy voice and I resisted the urge to shudder.

"I don't want her here!" It came out of me sharply as I stood up. She couldn't be on the territory. "There is a reason I sent her away!" I wasn't sure what it was that had me turning to look and Menza was standing there, looking like death warmed over, all pale and ill.

However it was those damned brown eyes of her, all wide and innocent and fucking hurt that had me wanting to swallow my fucking feet. "I didn't mean it like that. It's just-" I shoved my hand through my hair, bunching it tightly.

She glanced up at me, her cheeks wet and her form looking so delicate and fragile as those big brown eyes of hers welled up with tears. "I'm sorry." It came out trembled before she burst into tears. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to do it! It's all my fault!"

I blinked at her, feeling like the floor was moving beneath my feet and all my blood was rushing to my feet as she cried. I really needed to think before I fucking spoke. It was like Stenton Commanding me fucked with my ability to word things properly. "Oh Mene." I cursed to myself before I took a step towards her that was abruptly stopped by the witch and that old female shifter I could only guess was Duffy. "I didn't mean it like that, Menza."

"Oh shut your fucking mouth!" The old shifter hissed the words at me, a growl on the back end of her words. "I see where you stand with this bullshit." The look she gave me could have curdled milk and I cursed again.

"It's not like that! Fuck! It's because it's not safe here!" I threw my hands out and Menza flinched, just the slightest and I immediately yanked my arms back. "Shit! Menza, I would never-" I couldn't finish the statement, a heavy lump in my throat.

"I think we should keep them separate for a bit longer." The Councillor looked rather displeased and I cursed, running my hand through my hair as I turned on my heel and stalked into the living room. She had flinched from me. I didn't fucking blame her for it but fuck did it hurt to see. I would never hurt her like that but then again I did, didn't I? It hadn't been physical but what I had been forced to say was just as bad. That was all on me.

"Fine by me." I could feel the others staring at me, some glaring at my back and Menza's muffled sniffles and small sobs were enough to tear at me and my wolf. He whined demanding he come out to try and fix it but I knew there was no good that could come of that. We had done enough. As it was those small sounds were enough to break my fucking heart.

I was the worst sort of male.

I really was.