Wolf Girl (Book 3)

Chapter 8: Rhydian

    "I sentence you both to the Kronock, ten days and ten nights."

Some of the crowd cheer, and some protest, wanting a harsher punishment. Carys just sobs. Beca starts whining and whimpering.

"No one is to talk to them. No one is to bring them food or water. If the sky wills it, they will drink rain!" The crowd cheer again. "If they survive, we will gather to decide their fate once more."

    Aran pulls them off of the ground. Tove cooperates, she doesn't look at anyone, not even Beca who just keeps crying and begging. Aran drags them past us, and Carys backs away from them, trying to avoid eye contact.

    "Carys! I'm sorry! Please don't let him take me there, I can't take it! I can't!" Beca's hysterical, "I'm not strong enough!"

    I walk right up to her, face to face, "So, you can torture my sister for being tame, help your friend to nearly kill my brother, but you're scared of the Kronock? You call yourself a Wolfblood," I growl in her face and she cowers away from me. I feel no sorrow for her, not after all of this.

    "Rhydian leave it," Carys yanks me back, "They'll get what's coming to them."

    Aran pulls the girls off into the woods to tie them to the Kronock.

    Alric comes to us, "Are you alright Carys?" Since he witnessed the fear that Jana went through when Ingrid was trying to kill Carys, he's grown rather protective of her. "You don't have to be here for this."

    "Yes, I'm fine. I won't give her the satisfaction of thinking she's beaten me. I just want to get it over with, so we can figure out how we're going to get my brother home. And she needs to be punished."

At that moment Aran comes back with Ingrid tied up. She was sent to the Kronock for the night until the trial began, if she wasn't mental before, she is now. With a sick smile on her face, she doesn't take her eyes off Carys, who can't take her eyes off the ground. Aran drags Ingrid into the middle and throws her down.

    "I think it's safe to say that this was an attempt at the lives of two former heirs," Alric says.

Everyone goes crazy, some people have to hold others back from attacking Ingrid themselves. I could kill her right now. But that wouldn't do Carys or Bryn any good. I look back at Carys, Jana's holding her, her head buried in Jana's auburn hair. I can hear her crying. Her recovery was going so well, I worry that all of this has brought her right back to square one.

    "Execute her!" Mum shouts.

I didn't expect her to want her dead, but I agree, so I can't judge. I don't say anything. I see dad whisper to mum, calming her down. She's beet-red with fury. The crowd's opinion is split, some shouting 'Kill' and some shouting 'Exile'. But at least no one thinks she should get away with just the Kronock. The majority want her dead. Some of them are convincing others to vote to kill. I'm not exactly surprised by this, it's a good thing that they're all trying to be on the same page. It's hard for me to admit that it's wrong to want someone dead, but anyone in this situation would feel this way. At least I think they would.

    "I did it for the pack!" Ingrid shouts. The crowd silences, Carys lifts her head off of Jana's shoulder and looks slowly up at her. "She's too human."

Something about her reminds me of the old Alric. I glance at him and he looks back at me with regret. Like Ingrid, he used to fear his humanity. Now the only thing he fears is losing his pack, his family, his daughter. It's so quiet out here, you could hear a pin drop.

"She's a disgrace to our kind, and you're letting her come in here and taint our pack. Just like Rhydian did, and just like Jana did. Yet you keep bringing them back too."

    "I'm done," Carys says, as she walks off to the river. Jana tries to follow her. "I'm fine, Jana."

    "That's right, run away!" Ingrid shouts at her, but she doesn't even look back. Aran shoves her to the ground. I walk past the crowd and stand over Ingrid.

    "She didn't do anything to you, or this pack. Your problem with her has nothing to do with her humanity, does it? It's your lack of humanity."

She looks at the ground in front of her. That's probably the first time anyone has managed to shut her up. I look back at Maddy and Jana. They want justice, maybe even revenge. We all do. I walk back over to them.

    "If I didn't have a duty to protect this pack, I'd string you up and execute you myself. But I will not turn us into murderers," he pauses with a sigh, "Exile!"

The pack cheer and crowd around her. Leaving Alric and my parents watching as they carry her off into the distance. Usually they just send off the wrongdoer right then and there, but I think everyone wants to make sure she's as far away as possible. I can hear her screaming. Now all anyone can think about is finding Carys to tell her that it's finally over.