Chapter 5

Chapter 5. Echoes of Power

The next morning came like a warning. The atmosphere was cloudy, and a blanket of snow covered the ground. Lily stood on the balcony and wrapped herself in a shawl. She stared through the window toward the entrance of the estate.

Lily hadn’t slept at all since the fight with Jace. Her mind kept spinning, louder than the quiet night around her. Even the wind sounded different, restless and strange. It felt like something was about to break.

Jace left without words or actions after the altercation, but the feeling of what happened still hurt Lily. She slapped Jace impulsively, without hesitation. And he left as if it were insignificant. There was an essence in the manner the wind was hitting the trees, a pressure, like air being held in too long.

The kind that didn’t announce themselves until they were already rooted in the walls. Her mother tapped lightly on the door. “They’ve come.”

Lily turned. “Who?” “Council envoys. They’re downstairs.”

The parlor was colder than usual. Three men in long robes and council chains stood by the fireplace. One of them, Elder Tavian, offered her a short, tired nod. The other two didn’t acknowledge her.

They only looked at her mother. “We’re here regarding your daughter’s conduct,” the shortest one said. His tone was flat, deliberate. “There have been… accusations.”

Lily didn’t sit. “What accusations?” she asked.

“That she threatened an Alpha. Disrespected the authority of the throne. Used language unbecoming of a once-Beta household.” Lily’s lips twitched.

“And what language would that be, exactly?” The third envoy cleared his throat. “We understand there was a confrontation between Alpha Jace Thorn and Miss Rowan. In which she stated she’d rather.”

“Finish the quote,” Lily said, crossing her arms. “You’re already here.” Silence.

''Lilly, you must understand that we’re not here to punish you. But tensions are high, and you’ve made yourself a lightning rod.” Tavian stated calmly.

“So, you’re here to warn me?”

“We’re here to offer you… a correction of course. A public apology. A formal statement of remorse. And this… unnecessary feud with Alpha Thorn ends quietly.”

Lily smiled. It was the kind of smile people give right before a storm. “I’m not sorry.”

The third envoy straightened. “Miss Rowan,” She cut him off.

“He rejected me in front of the entire pack. He destroyed my father’s legacy. He tried to turn me into a kept woman. And now you want me to kneel?”

The short envoy cleared his throat. “We want you to survive. Wolves who speak out against Alpha Thorn… they disappear.”

Lily took a single step forward, not backing down, not even blinking. “Then let him come,” she said, her voice low, steady. “Let him try to finish what he started. I won’t hide under velvet apologies just to make his ego feel taller.”

The envoy opened his mouth again, but her glare stopped him mid-breath. “You were silent when he ruined my father. Silent when he smeared my name. And now you want me to polish his image for him?” Her voice sliced the air. “You’re not councilmen, you’re his mouthpieces.”

Her mother made a noise in her throat. Something like a protest. Something like grief. But Lily didn’t flinch.

“You’re afraid of him,” she said. Tavian sighed. “We’re afraid of what he’ll do next. And you should be, too.”

When they left, the parlor felt darker. Her mother sank into the nearest chair, trembling.

“They’ll use everything against us, Lily.” “I know.” “Even your silence will be turned into guilt.” “I know.”

Her mother looked up, eyes full of panic. “What are you going to do?” She asked concernedly.

“I’m going to use what they fear most.'' Lily said, “Memory-wise, mine is better. And theirs is full of blood.”

Her mother looked at her like she barely recognized her. “That sounds like a threat.” “No,” Lily answered softly. “It’s a reminder.”

Lily walked to the window. “Nothing yet. Let them believe I’m backed into a corner. Let them think I’m shrinking.”

She turned. “Then I’ll show them what it means to be cornered by a Rowan.”

Later that night, she went into the vault room her father used for council records. The place smelled of dust and forgotten power. She lit the lantern herself, dragging the light across shelves stacked with old seals, letters, and files.

She found the dossier marked value. The Lycan bloodline. The chairman’s family. She opened it slowly. Not out of curiosity. But necessity.

Max Vale. Her fingers paused over the name. The younger son. Not the heir. Not the golden boy. The shadow. The one no one ever saw coming.

Rumors said he didn’t sit at the table, but he pulled the strings beneath it. His name kept coming up in whispered council minutes, in quiet trade changes, in the financial recalibrations after Jace’s rise.

She turned the page. There it was.

Max Vale had intervened once before. Quietly. To stop a forced union between a rogue Alpha’s daughter and a Lycan lord. No council votes. No speeches. Just leverage. Quiet and brutal.

Lily closed the file. And for the first time in weeks, her breath came easier.

The next day, she sent a letter. Not through official channels. Not with a courier.

She sent it with a tracker, one loyal to her father, one who owed her blood and debt. A single line.

If you’re going to war with Jace, I’d like a seat at your table.

Signed: Lily Rowan.

She sealed it with wax. Not her family crest. But her mark. A flame etched into silver. Lily held the envelope a moment longer. Her hands trembled just slightly before she slid it under the door of the council chamber.

No going back now. That flame wasn’t just her mark; it was a declaration. One that would burn through every lie she’d been forced to carry.

Far away from the corridor, footsteps echoed. Her heart beat faster, sensing something was about to shift. When a voice finally spoke her name, it wasn’t one she expected to hear again.