Stephanie's Trial

Finally putting the nightmare behind me

That night, the celebrations were huge. Not only had I returned home, but I was in one piece, and despite the pain of knowing I'd lost my wolf and that I'd never be able to bear cubs, being alive was enough cause for celebration, and we took it with both hands. 

One dark note did mar the celebrations, however; Ethan had been tried that day, and had, unfortunately, managed to talk his way out of the hefty sentence he should have gotten. Instead, he was sentenced to only 15 years, as opposed to the two life sentences he should have gotten instead. An immediate appeal had been launched, however, and now Ethan's future hung in doubt as he was remanded pending the appeal, which would take place at the start of the year. I did, however, take comfort in knowing that he was heavily guarded day and night, and wards had been placed around his mind in order to ensure he couldn't communicate with Finn.

As for him, he'd been sentenced to life without parole, and though he'd made it clear he was going to appeal, his chances seemed unlikely, not after all the damning testimonies he had stacked against him. I wasn't the only one he'd done this too, and with all those statements ready to be thrown at him again, he didn't have a snowball's chance in hell of getting out. In fact, I found out later on he'd given up on his appeal, finally accepting that he was beaten. But he wasn't broken, and, like Ethan, he was guarded day and night, and his mind too had been fenced off to make sure he could communicate with no one at all. I almost felt sorry for him, but reminded myself of the hell he had put me through, and that was more than enough to kill the pity quite quickly. 

In the meantime, one more sweep of the country had been done, to make sure any remaining operatives had been picked up. Finn had confirmed they were all accounted for, but no one believed him, and for good reason. Thankfully though, he was telling the truth, and once the coast was clear, I finally set out for Penzance in August. I did feel a slight shiver, remembering how, ten years ago, everything had fallen apart, but as I set out that day, I told myself that I was going home, that I was safe, and that Mason would rip apart the first person who so much as looked at me wrong. He'd adopted me as another sister during my second stay in Reading, and was thus quite protective of me. 

It was actually quite a nice feeling. 

Naturally, when we reached the packhouse in Peznance, I was once more almost smothered to death by my relieved pack members - of which there were a few more. In total, there were now about fifteen living in the mansion now, and more were coming to check the estate out and see if they too wanted to join. Not all would - for many, Simon's ghost held too many bad memories, and James, who was now working hard to erase the pack's bad image, wasn't entirely trusted either. He didn't blame the more cautious wolves for feeling that way. 

"I didn't cover myself in glory while I was Beta," he admitted, as we sat in the rear courtyard. It was a mild day, and while there was now a nip in the air, the sun was still warm enough to keep most of the oncoming chill at bay. "Truth be told, I feel almost like I want to become a solitary."

I put a hand on his arm. "I'd miss you," I said. We hadn't really talked about our feelings, and with Samuel's memory still heavy on my heart, I knew there'd always be that standing in the way of anything happening between James and I. It was a heartbreaking realisation, and I could already feel that core of heat finally start to cool down. James smiled sadly.

"I did love you," he said, giving my hand a squeeze. "And I still do. There's always going to be that part of me that will care for you. But there's always going to be a distance between us, and that is why we can never be together." He sighed. "If I hadn't let my past rejection hurt me so badly, then maybe you wouldn't have rejected me, and then Samuel wouldn't have taken advantage of you."

I bristled slightly at the unspoken implications. "Well, it's not like I had a choice with Samuel, not when he absconded with me in the middle of the night," I said sharply. "And he had me at his bloody mercy almost all the time, apart from when I was in the packhouse at Reading. And you sure as hell can't blame me for your boorish behaviour."