WARNING: Violence. Death.
The building didn't look imposing, but as soon as Seth stepped out of the van, he could feel a sense of power emanating from it. He also saw rather a lot of humans milling around the neighbourhood, walking dogs and drinking coffee and acting in general as if there weren't a werewolf hotspot in their midst. "The... trial isn't happening here, is it?" he asked as he watched Becky manoeuvre her wheelchair down the van's ramp. For being so new to the wheelchair, she was handling it pretty well. "I mean, I know hiding in plain sight is a thing, but this...." He gestured to the cafe on the corner, the public transit bus that had stopped across the street, the cluster of teens chatting mere metres away. "This is a little more than that."
Vida smiled easily. "Don't worry. We have exceptional security. You know what it's like when you're stuck indoors for too long, I assume. To have a trial in the open air, surrounded by trees—it would be cruel in one way and kind in another." Then she gestured to the front door. "I'll go open the door for you, Becky."
Becky glanced up at Seth, face pinched with concern. "They're just going to... kill someone in a building in the middle of a city street?"
It confused Seth too. It obviously wasn't a main street or in the best neighbourhood, but it looked like the kind of area that was attracting young hopefuls. In a year or two, there probably wouldn't be a Vacancy sign to be found for blocks. "I guess?" He fought the urge to walk behind Becky's chair and kept pace beside her instead until the walkway narrowed and he had to step aside to let her pass.
"The building is slated to be demolished in a few months, alas," Vida explained as they entered. "We've used it to shelter runaways, primarily, but now we have a better centre for that. If... a small fire were to break out, for example, no one would be too surprised. We'll try to destroy evidence in a more environmentally friendly way, of course, but it's always good to have options. This way."
The interior of the building didn't look that bad to Seth's untrained eye. He had seen both Black & Brave and 392 Davenport during their renovation phases and this building didn't look much different. Many doors were closed; the open ones looked in on barren rooms, stripped of anything of value right down to the light bulbs. Vida was waiting at an open elevator, though, so he didn't want to dawdle; Becky was already steering her chair onto the elevator. "Sorry. Just... curious."
"Understandable. The foundation itself is viable," Vida said, "but there are too many upgrades and repairs required to bring it up to modern standards. That's how we got it so cheaply. We intended to run it as a halfway house, but we found a better building elsewhere, so we're using this mostly for storage until it's torn down."
"And a trial location," Becky remarked, struggling to turn the chair around in the elevator. "Seth?"
"Got it." He grabbed the handles and turned the chair around to face the doors. "And you're sure Maggie won't be able to see us?" Seth was more worried about Maggie lashing out at Becky, spewing trash and trying to attack her again, but he didn't want to say that.
Vida nodded as she pressed the button for the lowest floor. "You'll be in a completely separate room, and pack representatives will be surrounding her. She'll never even know you're here."
Becky shivered a bit, and Seth was sure it wasn't because of the temperature. He squeezed her shoulder and was reassured in kind when she leaned in to his touch. Selfishly, one of his biggest worries after the attack had been that she wouldn't want anything to do with werewolves at all—including himself. "How long do trials like this normally last?" he asked.
"It depends on the amount of evidence. I don't foresee this one lasting particularly long, which is why I had offered to livestream it to you at the hospital," Vida replied, glancing at Becky when the elevator stopped. Vida held the door while Becky wheeled out. "If you just wanted an excursion and a chance to try out your chair, we could have taken you on a far more interesting field trip."
"I need to see for myself," Becky said simply. "I know it might not make sense and I might regret it later, but for now...."
"You don't have to justify it to anyone, Becky. We honour your choice." Vida led them through basement corridors that were surprisingly clean for not being in use, and stopped in front of a thick grey door. "You'll be in here. You'll be able to see and hear everything, but no one in the chamber will be able to tell you're in here."
Becky tapped her nose. "You were in the van with us. Won't Maggie be able to smell our scents on your clothes?" Seth was impressed: he hadn't even considered that.
Vida pointed to a chunky turquoise bracelet on her left wrist. "It's enchanted to deaden scent. I'm sure Maggie will assume one or both of you are here, so I sadly can't guarantee she won't say anything to you, but she'll have no proof. All my people have been under strict instruction not to reveal your status to her, so she may assume you're dead."
Seth's hands tightened on Becky's chair, not to push it but to steady himself. If he hadn't had Vida as a contact, Becky mostly likely would be dead. But if I hadn't met with the pack, Seth countered, Becky wouldn't be in this situation at all. He stayed quiet as Vida unlocked the door and motioned them inside. "Thank you. If we need anything...?" He had his phone with him, of course, but he wasn't sure if he would get a signal.
"There's a panel by the door. It will go directly to my phone. The door is unlocked, so you can exit at any time." Pointing to the smoky glass, she added, "I'll activate the viewing once I step out." Then Vida stood by Becky's chair and reached for her hand. "I know you disagree with our methods, but I hope you can understand why they're necessary. Regardless of whichever path you choose to take after this, I wish you the best and offer you whatever help I can. You will always be a friend of our pack."
"Thank you." Becky waited until Vida left to slump in her chair. "I feel bad being here, but...." She trailed off as she gazed at the one-way mirror. Vida must have activated it, because they could see dark-robed people filing into the room.
It looked like a lecture hall with stadium-style seating, except this room was devoid of furniture. The only fixtures were a few hooks bolted to the floor, and Seth had a good idea what those were for. His guess was confirmed when two large werewolves marched Maggie into the room. The prisoner was wearing only a short robe, and her previously long hair had been chopped unevenly, making her look even younger than she was. "Becks, are you sure you want to watch this?"
Becky nodded, but he could see the stiffness in her shoulders. When the werewolf guards tugged off Maggie's robe and forced her to her knees, locking the shackles around her wrists and ankles to the hooks, Becky winced. Maggie's arms were dark and swollen with bruises and improperly healed bones. "Did she put up that much of a fight against the trackers?"
Seth swallowed hard. He hadn't told Becky about confronting Maggie in her cell on the plane or breaking her arms. Part of him had hoped they would heal before the trial so he wouldn't have to see the damage he had caused, but now that her improperly healed arms were on full display, Seth didn't regret a bit of it. There was no remorse in Maggie's bleak gaze, so why should he feel bad for her? "No," he said simply. "It wasn't them, though by the sounds of it, Lorenzo would have happily torn her limb from limb."
"Seth." Becky reached up and grabbed his hand. "Did you do that?"
The look on her face wasn't fear or disgust, but it rattled Seth all the same. "Yes." He couldn't bring himself to lie. "She hurt you—she tried to kill you—and the things she was saying on the plane... I snapped. I shouldn't have and I'm sorry, but...."
Becky held his hand to her mouth and kissed it over and over. "I don't want you to do that ever again. Not for me." Her breath rasped across his knuckles. "I don't want that on your conscience because of me, okay? If you're going to turn me—"
"You can't!" Maggie's shriek made Becky stop mid-sentence. "Please! The full moon is so close. Please, just one more moon! One more run, please. VIDA, PLEASE!"
Vida had changed into a robe similar to what the others were wearing, and Seth had a feeling he knew why. "Ian, present the evidence, please."
Maggie kept screaming and thrashing and crying as a nerdy-looking werewolf stepped forward and recited a list of facts and figures without the benefit of a list. Becky flinched a bit with each new description, and Seth crouched by her chair, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. Once the list was complete, Ian let silence reign for a moment to let it sink in. "If anyone thinks she is innocent or deserves mercy, speak now."
Only Maggie's desperate pleas rang out in the room.
"Maggie, you have committed several grievous crimes. You attacked a human, tried to turn her without permission, and when that failed, you tried to kill her. You evaded justice. You endangered your pack and all werewolves with your actions. You have been found guilty of all charges," Vida declared, "and will now be punished."
"She deserves this, not me!" Maggie wailed. "She's keeping him from being a full wolf! Why aren't you punishing her?"
Seth leaned close to Becky's ear. "Don't listen to her." Part of his brain was still hung up on her unfinished sentence: If you're going to turn me— He had figured she wouldn't want to be bound to Maggie in any way, but hearing Becky say it still made it feel more real.
"She's not wrong," Becky whispered, tightening her grip on his hand. Her gaze didn't move from the viewing window, however, not even when the assembled werewolves started to drop their robes to the floor and shift forms.
In a minute or two, only Vida was left human. "The guilt is not entirely yours. We're your pack. We should have seen that you were struggling, that you were going astray. We bear this shame also." The other wolves stepped back as she changed forms, and she let out a quick howl before darting forward and ripping out Maggie's throat.
After that, it was almost impossible to follow. Each wolf bit and wrenched, breaking bones and tearing flesh until Maggie was little more than a heap of bloodied pulp strewn between the now-useless shackles. Seth kept trying to get Becky to turn away but she wouldn't, not even when she started crying and shaking. "Vida's bite would have practically killed her," Seth said softly, not sure if it was for Becky's benefit or his own. "Maggie wouldn't have felt much after that."
One by one the wolves turned human once more. Many of the robes were now in tatters, so some wolves left the chamber wearing nothing but blood. Vida turned towards the viewing screen and bowed slightly before leaving the room. A moment later, the screen went blank, leaving Seth and Becky looking at their haunted reflections. "Can we wait in the hall, please?" Becky asked, voice small.
"Sure." Seth opened the door and let Becky out first. Back when he first revealed his secret to her, he worried she would reject him. After he had accidentally hurt her, he was sure she would leave him. Now it seemed like the wedge that drove them apart might be another wolf entirely.