Chapter 222: Darach Elrod’s Suffering I
"That’s unnecessary," Alpha Thorton interrupted swiftly, his face blackening almost immediately at my words. I could tell he was going to say more regarding my lack of suitability, but I took great pleasure in interrupting him for a change.
"I beg to differ, and the oracles have given their approval," I replied, stepping out from the desk to approach the nearest oracle.
She watched me, her cool silver eyes appraising me from head to toe, wordlessly asking if I was sure. I pulled myself up to my full height and nodded, even as my heart continued to race. Not from fear, but more from general anxiety at the unknown.
"How do I offer..." I asked wonderingly, peering down at the placid surface of the moonwater and seeing my own face reflected back at me, my ears stained a faint red with blood.
I wondered if I was meant to dunk my entire face in it for them to take my memories. Did I have to think of a specific memory for them to see? Or would they get to see all my memories?
Before I could continue to ask more questions and make a fool out of myself in front of every renowned pack, the oracle stepped forward to touch my temples.
A cold, clammy sensation overtook my senses, and my head suddenly felt like I was dunked in an icy lake. I shuddered and shivered. If I looked behind, I would have noticed the shocked and worried looks on Blaise and Damon’s faces. But as it was, I could not look away from the pale, spotless skin of the oracle’s face and her still, unmoving eyes. This close, I finally noticed that her pupils were silver, with a ringlet of black around them.
"What...what on earth..." I breathed out weakly.
She didn’t look like a living creature at all.
She looked like she was made of moonlight.
The oracle seemed to let out a hum before she withdrew her hands from my temples. The cold faded at once. My eyes widened as I saw streams of silver trailing from my temples to her fingers. She held her hand over the bowl, and the streams fell into the bowl soundlessly, dissolving into the moonwater without any residue.
Goosebumps emerged from my skin. Before I could go back to my seat, ripples appeared on the moonwater’s surface, revealing my first-ever interaction with Darach in the gardens. Alpha Thorton smirked when Darach spoke about how Damon tormented him in his youth, but his smirk slowly stiffened as the memory continued.
’Of course I don’t know this!’ Darach all but yelled in surprise. ’How could Father do this? This is utterly insane!’
Darach was exclaiming how no one told him about Dahlia’s engagement with Damon― the first chink in the armor protecting Alpha Thorton’s lies.
After all, if Darach was so beloved by his father that he was willing to curse out Fangborne under the light of the divine, why wouldn’t Alpha Thorton let his son know about the upcoming nuptials?
Alpha Thorton slammed both hands on the table’s surface. "Outrageous! She is deliberately trying to malign me by altering her memories!"
"That’s not possible," Alpha Burke replied mildly from his table. "If she could alter her memories, that would also bring into question the legitimacy of your memories, Alpha Thorton. Now hush, we still have a lot more to watch and I’m hoping we’ll finish before supper."
"You―" Alpha Thorton wanted nothing more than to leap through the air and shut Alpha Burke up, but he caught sight of the oracles and forced himself to sit back down. Next to him, Dahlia crossed her arms and huffed in humiliated embarrassment as Darach continued to talk about how foolish she was to go for a man like Damon.
The scene faded, replaced with a scene of us at dinner where Blaise and I mentioned we wanted to go sightseeing, and Alpha Thorton insisted on giving us an escort.
I mentioned that Darach had already volunteered to help us. Internally, I rejoiced as Alpha Thorton’s dismissive words echoed throughout the room. Everyone could see how his face was a picture of disdain as he talked about his only son.
’Darach? That son of mine is a good-for-nothing who twiddles his thumbs all day. He can’t even look after himself, let alone escort guests like yourself. I’ll arrange for someone else to look after you.’
There was the second chink in the armor.
The scene transformed into us talking in the car. Darach was talking about how he got to meet Damon. I winced as I briefly recalled the contents of the conversation; this wasn’t going to help Damon’s case, but hopefully, the people watching would realize that Damon was not the only one to blame for Darach’s suffering.
To my surprise, the oracles only highlighted a part of the conversation between Blaise and Darach.
’Back when I was a teenager, my father sent me to be fostered in Fangborne. Said that it would toughen me up, being with another alpha’s son my age. I had a feeling he simply wanted me to snap and shift early since I wasn’t showing much promise as his heir. Either that or he was hoping I would die,’ Darach said.
The scene shifted again. This time, we were at Hornstead, and a worried Milo had just caught sight of Darach at his doorstep, along with the rest of us.
’Did Thunderstrike finally kick you out? You would never be here otherwise,’ Milo said.
’No they didn’t, but it’s not for a lack of trying,’ Darach muttered.
Alpha Burke cleared his throat and chimed in casually, "How fascinating, that your son seems to believe that you would toss him out at first chance." He tapped his chin with his finger. "I wonder what could have possibly given him such an impression. Milo, have you ever thought that I might want you dead or gone?"
"Of course not, Dad," Milo said with a confused look. "You care for me."
"My son has always been dramatic," Alpha Thorton retorted with gritted teeth. "It’s like he never stopped being a teenager. You should take what he says with a grain of salt― after all, you’ve only witnessed his words. I have never laid a hand on my son."
As if to taunt Alpha Thorton, the next scene that happened showed him slugging Darach straight in the face.
