Elsie’s POV

Five days became five years of waiting for my mate to get me out of the confinement I subjected myself to, for him. But he never showed up. Not back then when he promised to do everything in his power to get me out within five days… also not now, the day I was supposed to be released on a bail request after five whole years.

The fresh air in the outside world soothed my skin, making me feel less disgusted at myself after five years of being punished for a crime I would never commit even if I were to lose my mind.

—-------

Five years ago, a few days before I was supposed to be crowned as Luna, my best friend (Kiera), was attacked on her birthday. She hadn't survived the attack and I was going to stop at nothing to bring whoever the culprit was to book.

As the princess of the Pack and the right heir to my late father's throne, I made Finn, my mate the Alpha of my pack with the strong anticipation to rule by his side with all the support I could give as a royal breed.

It was finally going to happen. I would be crowned Luna and I'll have everything it takes to get to the root of Kiera's death. There was also a big possibility she wasn't attacked, and I really hoped that was the case but if it wasn't, I was going to make the culprit pay brutally for ever messing with my best friend.

However, the day of the crowning ceremony was ruined when a few officers strode into the party, seeking the Alpha, my mate.

According to their investigation, Finn was a prime suspect to Kiera's murder. They claimed they had direct evidence that could back up their claims and they demanded that he follow them to the station. But Finn would never do that. He would never kill my best friend. He would never even kill anyone at all unless they truly deserved it. I was sure of it.

Finn had always been one with a soft heart. He would pardon criminals after minimal punishments if they showed him how remorseful they were because he couldn't bear to have his mate's pack member's blood in his hands.

‘I’m here to rule them by your side, not to kill them off. No matter what their crime may be, they can be redeemed if they recognize their mistakes and they’re truly remorseful’ he would always say and I couldn't be prouder to have a mate like him.

There must have been a mix up somewhere but before concluding, I turned to face him, asking if what the officers said was true. But he confirmed my trust in him. I saw the sincerity in his eyes when he held my hand and promised he wasn't that kind of person and that he would never deliberately hurt me like that.

I believed him. I trusted him, quite easily. He'd proven himself different for years. There was no reason for him to suddenly change. But the officers were quite sure of their claims that the suspect was within the royal family house.

They'd gotten a tip off and unless they went through with the investigation, there would be no way to clear the former beta's doubt about his daughter's sudden death.

Finn had to be arrested to clear a false claim. That would only mean dragging the Alpha's name in the mud. Rumors would never die down. Even if it was confirmed eventually that he wasn’t guilty, people would still see him as a criminal suspect. I knew how much stepping into the station would jeopardize his position as Alpha— so when he held my shoulders and pleaded with me to go in his stead, I didn't hesitate much.

I confessed to committing a crime I knew nothing about— just for him.

It was supposed to end within a day or two. I was supposed to visit that station for an investigation that should be cleared within hours but a day passed, nothing happened.

Two days passed, still nothing happened. Finn didn't visit. Yet I had hope. I had that much faith in my mate. I knew he would come if he had the chance.

He was probably occupied with pacifying the pack members and assuring them that everything was a mix up. He was probably busy gathering connections to get me out unscathed, physically and position-wise.

Then the third day, I received a letter. From Finn. He asked me to forgive him for not visiting. Then he promised it would take him just two more days and after that we'll finally be together again. But five years passed, and nothing happened.

Yet, even after five years, I held onto that letter. The words in it. I held onto the fact that he really meant it and that he would have an excuse for leaving me to go through thorns and thistles in a confinement made for criminals for five solid years.

There was no hope of escaping fifteen years of torture in prison but Finn still hadn't given up after five years. He released me on a bail that cost millions.

Just one excuse… one more excuse and I'll forget ever wasting five years of my life suffering in the place of the bastard responsible for Kiera's death. I just needed one more excuse from Finn to back up the amount of money he just spent to get me out— I was willing to forgive him after that. He's still my sweet mate after all.

But why wasn't he here to pick me up? Was it really excusable for Finn to not see me, his only mate for five years and still not come to pick me up after the sacrifice I made for him?

Elsie's POV

It wasn't a journey filled with a bed of roses, but I got home eventually. Barely anyone recognized me, their once beloved princess, adored for many years. All they saw was a battered, unkempt looking stray who escaped prison by chance.

My shoes were worn out, my feet had scraped the stone-filled road tirelessly until they almost felt numb. The sole of my feet burned, every joint in my body ached, my entire legs burned but I barely felt any of it.

I was going to see my mate after so long, and even if I felt mad at him, I couldn't wait to rush into his wide open arms and find the solace I've been deprived of for too long. That was all that mattered right now. Later, I would sulk about the pain and Finn would take care of me… or at least that was what I told myself until the conversation between the guards and I.

There were new faces… ones I knew nothing about, and they wouldn't let me in, so I asked for a familiar face. My late father's most trusted guard, Midas. He came immediately, but not just as a random guard. He had become the head guard, one of the generals. I felt relieved to my bones but it only lasted for a millisecond until I saw the slight look of displeasure when his eyes met mine.

“Princess Elsie…” he trailed off.

He had stopped calling me Elsie the moment my father died— He always called me Luna but right now…

It doesn't matter anyway. Princess or Luna. I'm right here, back home to my mate.

“It has been a long time, Midas. You look… good and well” I muttered amidst the discomfort that raked through my entire body.

He smiled awkwardly… the smile not even reaching his lashes. “It has.” He added, tone almost dismissive… or was it just me?

“The guards won't let me in, probably because they don't know me. But I know you would, so I called for you” I explained and he sighed, almost like my presence alone was a thorn in his side.

“I wouldn't” his response came. Sharp. Unrestrained.

“What?!” I exclaimed, feeling utterly confused and betrayed at his response.

“You don't really mean you're going to keep me locked out of my own house, do you?” I asked, hoping he laughed it off and say ‘Of course not, I was just pulling your legs’

“No one is allowed into the pack house without the Alpha's permission” he added and I scoffed, a full blown laugh almost erupting from my lips but I held back.

“I am no stranger in this palace, Midas. This is my house, this is where I grew up with the man that brought you into this palace! Is five years really enough to forget all that?” I half yelled, deeply sad that even after five years of extreme tribulation, things still aren't working in my favor the one day I needed them to work desperately.

I saw guilt flash in his eyes for a millisecond before he faced me again and repeated “I cannot let you in. It's the Alpha's order”

“That you should lock his mate out?” I pressed, confused about the entire scenario unfolding in front of me.

“Everyone… including you” he affirmed and my stomach sank but I held onto the sliver of hope.

He probably forgot that he bailed me out before giving such orders to keep strangers away… my theory didn't make sense to me but I still held onto it anyway. Finn wouldn't give a direct order to keep his mate out of the palace, out of her own home. Midas took his order the wrong way. I kept telling myself even though doubt crept onto the surface.

My defiant gaze flickered between the new guards as Midas turned to leave. I silently calculated my escape with the distance Midas would have gone if I were to execute my plan. I could outsmart these ones quite easily but it wouldn't be so easy with Midas lurking around. Especially not without my wolf.

He had always known my tricks of getting what I wanted even before I executed them in the past. Once he reached a safe distance, I took a long escape route, diverting the guards attention to blocking the path and once I succeeded in stealing their attention, I bolted back to the original path I had in mind.

With sore shaky feet and burning throat, I raced through the steps till I missed the guards. They might be stronger… but no one knew the palace and its walls as much as I do. No one except Margot, my sister.

Smiling at the small victory, I wandered through every entrance, my smile faltering with every artwork I saw on the walls of the palace.

They had been replaced.

My father's favorite paintings, which were also my favorite, had been replaced by Margot's terrible taste in artwork.

I felt a lump grow in my chest at the indescribable feeling of betrayal at the little change in all the artworks. However, my hope remained, unwavering, but it only lasted until I incessantly walked in on Finn and Margot in an extremely compromising position with Finn’s hand invisibly deep in Margot's skirt as she grind her hips against him sensually, her legs parting easily for his wandering hands.

I blinked back hot tears, my heart clogging with a pang of pain that threatened to consume me.

That was it?

The reason why Finn never showed up for five years?

The thought of Margot being the reason my mate hadn't come to see me pushed bile to my throat, forcing the hard restrained tears out of my eyes.

“Finn…” I trailed off, my voice a broken whisper. One that was clear enough to have his wide eyes rounding on me.

Elsie's POV

Margot turned to face me too. Her gaze filled with shock, in a bad way and then zero amusement. She simply kept grinding on my mate's obvious hard-on, her glare fixed on me without the tiniest hint of remorse.

This… this was my sister. The one person I thought I could trust right after my mate. But the two were right in front of me, in the middle of a growing passionate make out.

They looked shocked to see me… too shocked. If I hadn't known better, I'd think Finn had nothing to do with my bail.

I watch his eyes slowly dim with lust as Margot angled her hips on him, her ass grazing his erection, hard. But with a tiny decency he had compared to Margot, he stopped her with his hand on her hips, urging her to stand up as he stood to face me.

“Why are you here, Elsie? Did you break out of prison?” His question threw me off guard and I badly wanted to ask if he had forgotten bailing me out but I wasn't that dumb.

He obviously hadn't done the bailing if he's asking me this ridiculous question.

“You don't seem very happy, Finn. Your mate escaped the prison she tolerated for you, but you seem rather agitated, annoyed even. You look like you'd have loved to see me rot in that hell” I muttered, my eyes heavy with unshed tears as I anticipated his response.

There was hesitation, long enough to give me the silent answer to my question even before he replied. “Don't be so dramatic, Elsie” he muttered sternly, his agitation filling the air like the slash of a whip to my gut.

Elsie…

Finn had rarely called me that. For the three years that we dated, he would call me babe, or his Luna but right now, the man I thought I knew was gone.

In front of me stood a lying, cheating scumbag that I wish nothing but a relentless torture for the rest of his pathetic life.

“It doesn't matter if you're happy or not about my return, Finn. What matters is I'm back and I'll take back everything that's mine” I muttered with strangled confidence, wiping my tears with the back of my hand but his mocking laugh filled the air.

“You sound just like the princess I met eight years ago but too bad, it's too late to play that card. You're nothing but an ex-convict right now. No one would accept an ex-convict as Luna, Elsie. Don't delude yourself” Finn muttered cautiously, his words bashing what I thought was left of my self worth.

“You don't get to be the judge of that!” I told him with all the calmness I could muster and that was Margot's cue to speak.

“Just save yourself the disgrace, Elsie. You don't have a place here. Not in this palace and definitely not in this Pack. But if you leave now, we might consider letting you stay in the Pack.” Margot muttered dismissively, her sharp glare holding a weight of hatred my heart couldn't bear.

She wasn't the sister I knew for the past twenty five years of my existence. This is the real Margot. And I failed to see this side of her for so long. I failed to see this side of her that hated my very existence. Masking my hurt with a defiant glare, I spoke again.

“This is my home, Margot. My father made me the rightful successor to his throne! You have no rights to tell me to leave” I retorted sharply, heart racing with perspiration.

“You're not the successor of MY father's throne, Elsie. You're just a stray my father took in many years ago. A stray that refused to know her place. A stray that dug her greedy claws deep into my father's eyes and refused to let him see who truly deserved his throne!” Margot said calmly, choosing her every word with utter arrogance of a queen bee.

The next minute, a documented file was thrown in my face. Instinctively, I caught it before it hit the ground.

“What is this?” I asked with a lump in my throat.

They both ignored my question and I proceeded to pull out the papers. On the papers was a legal report that I wasn't related to the man I called Father literally all my life.

“This isn't true. Alpha Parker is my father. And I'm his daughter. You fabricated this just to spite me. It can't be true… it can't be…” I muttered shakily, my defiance cracking with each word I muttered in my defense.

“You're doing this just because you hate me, Margot!” I yelled again, tears stinging my eyes as I squeezed the papers and threw them to the ground.

My head whipped to the side as a loud smack resounded in the air. Margot… just slapped me. And it fucking stung. My body wasn't prepared for the hit that it nearly pummeled me to the ground.

“Yes, I hate you, Elsie. God, I hate you with every fiber of my soul but I'm not desperate enough to have you evicted with some DNA test. You. Were. Never. A. Member. Of. This. Family! You were never my father's daughter and you will never be, Elsie. The faster you get that registered into your skull the better.

No… that can't be possible. Father would never do that to me. He would never have left me in the dark about my roots. He was always so good to me… like I was his own flesh and blood. This just doesn't make any sense.