Chapter 41: Why Did You Do It?

They stared at Kira for one long, frozen heartbeat. For a moment, nobody moved. It was as if Kira were a ghost haunting her own home.

"Kira!" Nana gasped. The elderly woman’s face transformed from a mask of weary grief to one of pure, unadulterated relief. She scrambled to her feet, her grey robes fluttering as she rushed toward the door. She didn’t wait for an explanation; she threw her arms around Kira, pulling the girl into a fierce hug. "Oh, thank the goddess! You’re safe. You’re home."

Kira stood stiffly for a second, then her arms came up slowly and returned the embrace. She felt Nana’s hands patting her back in gentle, soothing circles, the way a grandmother might comfort a frightened child. The scent of lavender clung to Nana’s robes. For a moment, Kira let herself lean into it.

Nana pulled back just enough to fuss over her, her hands hovering over Kira’s shoulders and face. "We were so worried. We thought—well, it doesn’t matter what we thought. You’re fine. That’s all that matters."

But Derek did not move. He stood by the window, arms still crossed, eyes locked on Kira with an intensity that made the air feel thinner. No relief or softening. Only a slow, burning anger that turned his amber gaze almost red.

When Nana finally released her, Derek spoke. "Who do you think you are?"

The words were quiet, but they cut through the room like a blade.

Kira lifted her head. Her heart gave one hard thud.

Derek stepped forward, each footfall heavy enough to shake the floorboards. "You left the palace without telling a soul," he continued. "You missed a sacred ceremony that this pack has honoured for centuries. And for what? A tantrum? Because you didn’t like the shade of a dress?"

Kira stared at him, her mind reeling. The nausea from the hospital was gone, replaced by a cold, sharp confusion. "Derek, I didn’t—what are you talking about?"

"Don’t play the innocent with me," he spat, stopping just inches from her, his pheromones hitting her instantly. "The entire pack was waiting. The farmers were standing in the sun with their harvests, waiting for a Queen who never showed up because she was too busy being petty."

Kira’s anger rose fast and hot. She stared at him, confusion warring with fury. She wanted to lash out at him.

Who did he think he was, yelling at her?

"A tantrum over a—" But she saw the faces around her, Nana’s worried frown, Declan’s tight jaw, Kai’s quiet focus on his laptop, Ruby’s stillness, and the words died in her throat. This wasn’t the time to get furious. She needed to explain.

She swallowed. "I’m sorry," she said quietly. "I’m sorry for leaving without telling anyone. I got a text from my best friend, Jessica. She said she was in danger. I had to go."

Derek’s laugh was short and bitter. "A text."

"Yes."

"You expect us to believe that?"

Kira’s hands clenched at her sides. "I don’t expect anything. I’m telling you what happened."

"Oh, really?"

Nana stepped forward, her voice gentle. "Drek, let her finish—"

Derek raised a hand, silencing her without looking away from Kira. "No. I want to hear the end of this story."

He turned his head slightly. "Ruby."

Ruby straightened at once. "Your Grace?"

"Bring the maids who attended her this morning."

Ruby nodded and slipped out of the room, heels clicking quickly on the marble.

The silence stretched, heavy and uncomfortable. Kira stood very still, feeling every pair of eyes on her. Derek didn’t move. He watched her like she was a puzzle he was trying to decide whether to solve or destroy.

Ruby returned with the two young maids. They curtsied, looking like they wanted the floor to swallow them whole.

Derek didn’t soften his tone. "Repeat what you told me."

The first maid swallowed hard. "This morning, Your Grace... we brought the Queen her dress. The pink one Lady Ruby selected. She... she became very upset. She said she wouldn’t wear it. She said it was ridiculous and that she wouldn’t attend any ceremony unless we changed it."

The second maid nodded frantically. "She told us she would go find something else herself. She asked us to leave. That was the last we saw of her."

Kira opened her mouth to speak, then closed it again. She remembered saying those words. She had said she was going to get something else. She had said them. But not like that. Not as a tantrum. She had been frustrated and annoyed by the pink ruffles.

Derek turned back to her. "Are they lying?"

Kira met his gaze. "I didn’t like the dress. I did say I would find something else. But that wasn’t why I left."

Ruby stepped forward, her voice soft and reasonable. "If you didn’t like the dress, Your Highness, you should have sent word. I would have arranged a change immediately."

Kira’s eyes flashed. She turned to Ruby. "Maybe you should have asked my opinion before choosing something so ridiculous in the first place."

Ruby recoiled as if Kira had struck her. Tears instantly welled up in her eyes, shimmering under the lamplight. Her voice trembled. "This isn’t the time to be snappy, Your Highness. I only wanted to help. I put so much work into today. The invitations, the seating, the timetable, the dress... everything. I cared about making this perfect for the pack. For you. I had to stand in for you. I had to bless the crops myself because the farmers were starting to think the ancestors had cursed the harvest." She wiped her tears. "Please, don’t discredit my hard work just because you didn’t like a colour. We were all so worried about you."

Nana reached out, touching Ruby’s arm. "That’s enough, dear. We all appreciate what you did. It wasn’t your fault. This is all a huge misunderstanding."

Derek’s voice cut through. "There is no misunderstanding." He stepped closer to Kira. "You are so stubborn it borders on stupidity. You think you can cook up a lie about a text and make all of this disappear?"

Tears stung Kira’s eyes. She blinked them back hard, refusing to let them fall.

"You’ve been talking this whole time," she said quietly. "You haven’t let me finish one sentence. Is this how you run your court? Do you decide guilt before hearing the defence?"

Derek’s eyes flashed gold, his restraint visible in the tightening of his jaw and the way his fists clenched at his sides. But before he could speak, Declan stepped forward from the fireplace.

"If you have a defence, Your Highness, make it. But stop trying to discredit people who’ve done nothing but try to help."

Derek began to pace, boots thudding softly on the rug.

Kira took a sharp breath. "I didn’t miss the ceremony because of a dress. I thought the event started at four in the evening. Ruby’s message said four o’clock. I was surprised when the gamma told me it had already ended hours ago."

Ruby’s voice rose, soft but sharp. "That’s a lie. I sent you the correct time. Don’t put this on me, Your Highness. Why are you trying so hard to make this my fault?"

Kira’s gaze snapped to her. "We can check my phone. The texts from you. Also, you can confirm the one from my friend."

Derek stopped pacing abruptly. He turned, a cold, venomous chuckle leaving him. "You mean the phone you damaged?"

Kira frowned. "What?"

She looked toward the low table where Kai had been sitting quietly. He lifted her phone, his expression unreadable, and shook his head slowly.

Her mind spun.

Someone had planned this. Carefully and thoroughly. Someone had poisoned her tea, cloned Jessica’s number, lured her away, and damaged her phone so it looked deliberate. Painted her as careless, selfish, and disrespectful.

And someone had benefited. But who would benefit from this?

"I had to stand in for you. I had to bless the crops myself..."

Ruby had stood in her place. Ruby had received the farmers’ gratitude. Ruby had looked perfect on the dais. Kira turned slowly and fixed Ruby with a hard, steady glare.

"Why did you do it?"