Page 139 of The Alpha's Cursed Queen

“You can say that again,” he laughs shakily.

I put my hand on his chest, my voice gentle. “You don’t have to pretend to be strong in front of me. I know this is hard for you. We will find your parents. And whether or not you are the king, or who your parents are, doesn’t change the fact that you now have a family. Your own family. A mate and a daughter. And if you’re not the king anymore, it will remove all chains from you, won’t it?”

He sighs. “Silver lining, huh?”

“I don’t know what else to say to you. Everything you know has been fundamentally changed. There’s nothing I can say that will fix it. But I can tell you that I’m here for you.”

He puts his arms on my shoulders and rests his forehead against mine. “I know.”

“We’ll figure everything out,” I reassure him. “For now, though, we have to protect our daughter. That is why we came here.”

He meets my eyes, and he nods. “You’re right. We’re here for Mira. I can put aside my personal problems for her.”

“You don’t have to put anything aside for anybody,” I tell him firmly. “Let’s make sure we can protect our daughter, and then let’s find out about your parents and whoever this ‘true heir’ is.”

Darian looks thoughtful now. “If the white witches conspired to eradicate the dark witches, we already have proof of it. We can use that against them.”

“And it’s not like they’ve been killing those with the dark witch bloodline. They’ve been using them for rituals. That can also be used against them,” I add. “We have to topple them from their powerful positions. A scandal like this will do it. If you go after them without any proof, the wolves will turn against you. But if you have proof that they’ve harmed our own kind and have conspired against the royal family and blackmailed them, the wolves will turn against them. Getting rid of the white witches will be easier, and the backlash will be minimal.”

Darian agrees, but he’s still hesitant. “We still have to take into account that the white witches will deny everything. Just saying that we have proof from the royal archives, which no one knows exists, won’t go far.”

I rack my brain, looking around the room.There has to be a way.

I’ve argued plenty of cases with insufficient evidence or evidence that the court ruled inadmissible. I’ve always found a way around it. Why should this situation be any different?

I’m too emotionally involved, which is why I’m not thinking straight. My eyes narrow as I take in the archives room. If all the records of the white witches can be disposed of in a heartbeat, there has to be a way to convince the wolves that the white witches are working against them, that they have been lying to the wolves for all these centuries. I doubt that the white witches will come out and say it themselves—

As soon as the thought strikes me, my head whips around and I look at Darian, my eyes glittering. “Wait! Wait! What if we force them to say it?”

He is surprised and confused by my sudden outburst. “Force the witches to say… To say what?”

My nails dig into his arms as I explain my thought process. “What if we put them in a position where they have to admit what they’ve done? We can broadcast it. With all the technology that humans have, that we have, we can force them to admit what they’re doing on a live feed. If the wolves hear it from the witches’ own mouths, they’ll have no reason to doubt it, will they?”

Darian shakes his head. “They will never admit to it. We both know that. They’ve managed to hide their secret for all these years. Why would they ever admit on live television—”

“I’m not saying we bring a TV crew with us,” I cut him off. “We can both wear those pin cameras. I’ve seen them multiple times. There are cases where it’s been done. Heck, I’ve had clients do this. But the only problem is, we will have to create a situation inwhich they feel comfortable revealing their actions. We’ll have to have bait.”

“We are not sending Mira in as bait,” Darian growls.

“Don’t be ridiculous.” I glare at him. “Of course we’re not going to use Mira. But what if we use me? I could—”

“Absolutely not.” Darian refuses to even consider it, but I try to persuade him.

“Just think about it, please. Darian, we don’t have time. We don’t know where Thomas is. You’re the one who said he has supporters. We have to deal with the situation before he gets to them and creates a riot, before he has people coming after Mira and me. If he creates the narrative that you are under the influence of dark witches, the entire Wolf Kingdom will fall apart.”

“There has to be another way,” Darian argues, turning his head to the side so he doesn’t have to look me in the eye. “I am not putting you in a room with those witches. Everything can go wrong in an instant, Alice. I will not take the risk.”

“We can’t win if we don’t take a risk,” I insist. “We have to do this. For Mira’s sake.”

“I can just execute them,” my mate snarls. “I can wipe out the entire race. Pick them off one by one. No more witches, no more problems.”

“Don’t be ridiculous.” I frown at him. “The Wolf Kingdom will turn against you if you behave like that. And you will give more leverage to Thomas and his followers. You may be the king,Darian, but you’re not infallible. Don’t give anybody an excuse to come after you.”

He looks like he wants to object, but I don’t give him the opportunity.

“You are not thinking straight,” I tell him. “Killing indiscriminately isn’t the answer. You will only succeed in putting our daughter in more danger. If even one person considers her a threat, she will never be safe. We have to completely open the eyes of the public to what the white witches have been doing. Violence isn’t always the solution.”

I can see my mate’s reluctance before he asks, “And what if they don’t admit it? What if they keep their yaps shut?”

---