Chapter 154 Kael’s Suspicion

The intelligence office was dark when Kael slipped inside.

Theron kept the room locked when he wasn’t there, but Kael had watched him hide the key. He knew his brother’s habits. Knew where he kept his secrets.

The desk was covered in papers: reports from the south, correspondence with Elowen’s eastern agents, copies of the treaty amendments. Kael began sorting through them, his jaw tight, his eyes sharp.

He had never trusted Elowen. Not when she schemed against Seren. Nor when she fought beside them at the border. Trusting Elowen was like trusting a blade not to cut you. Eventually, it would.

The evidence was buried deep.

Not in the treaty itself—Elowen was too smart for that. But in the amendments. The side letters. The agreements that weren’t quite agreements but functioned as them.

Kael found it in a document labeled “Trade Coordination Between Eastern and Southern Provinces.”

On its face, it was innocent. A framework for cooperation. Shared patrols. Joint infrastructure projects. But buried in the fine print was a clause giving Elowen’s eastern provinces exclusive rights to southern timber and ore for five years. In exchange, the southern packs would receive eastern grain at reduced prices.

It was self-dealing. Technically legal, she hadn’t violated any laws. But ethically questionable. She had used her diplomatic authority to benefit her own territory at the expense of the crown’s bargaining position.

Kael copied the relevant passages and slipped the originals back into the file.

Then he went to find his brothers.

Aeron read the evidence in silence.

Theron paced. Kael stood by the window, his arms crossed, his expression grim.

“This is bad,” Theron said.

“It’s not illegal.”

“It’s not *right*.” Aeron set down the papers. “She negotiated trade rights for her own provinces while representing the crown. That’s a conflict of interest.”

“She’d argue that the eastern provinces are part of the crown.”

“She’d argue that the sun rises in the west if it benefited her.” Kael turned. “We need to confront her. Before she does this again. Before she escalates.”

Aeron nodded. “Summon her. Privately. Only her.”

Elowen arrived an hour later.

She was dressed in eastern riding clothes, her hair loose, her boots dusty. She had been inspecting the border patrols when the summons came.

“You wanted to see me, brothers.” She looked at Kael. “And sister-wife.”

Seren sat in the corner, her hands folded. She had asked to be present. Not to participate, but to observe.

Aeron slid the copied documents across the table. “Explain these.”

Elowen picked them up. Her expression didn’t change as she read.

“The trade coordination agreement,” she said. “I drafted it during the negotiations. It benefits both the eastern and southern provinces.”

“It benefits *you*.”

“It benefits the people I govern.” She set down the papers. “The eastern provinces have been neglected for decades. We need resources. The south has timber and ore. They need grain. I facilitated an exchange.”

“You facilitated an exchange that gives you exclusive rights to southern resources for five years.”

“Exclusive rights that expire. And that benefit the crown’s overall stability. A prosperous east means a prosperous kingdom.”

Kael stepped forward. “You used your diplomatic authority to enrich yourself.”

“I used my diplomatic authority to do my *job*. The crown sent me south to negotiate a treaty. I negotiated a treaty. The fact that the treaty includes provisions for the east is not a crime.”

“It’s a conflict of interest.”

“It’s *governance*.” Elowen’s voice was sharp. “The east is part of this kingdom. Its interests are the crown’s interests. You can’t separate them.”

Theron spoke. “You should have disclosed the provisions. Before signing. Before presenting the treaty to the council.”

“Would it have mattered?”

“Yes.”

“Then I apologize.” Elowen’s voice was flat. “I was focused on preventing a war. I didn’t think about disclosure protocols.”

Kael’s jaw tightened. “You didn’t think, or you didn’t care?”

“I thought about what mattered. Keeping the south in the kingdom. Keeping the peace. Everything else was secondary.”

“Everything else included your own profit.”

“Everything else included the east’s *survival*. You don’t know what it’s like out there, Kael. The bandits. The crumbling roads. The villages that have been forgotten by the crown for decades. I’m trying to fix that. And I’m using every tool I have.”

The room fell silent.

Seren watched Elowen’s face. The defensiveness. The exhaustion. The flicker of something that might have been shame.

“Elowen,” Seren said quietly. “Why didn’t you tell us?”

Elowen looked at her. For a moment, her mask cracked.

“Because I’m tired of asking permission. I’m tired of proving myself. I’m tired of being watched and judged and suspected.” Her voice dropped. “I negotiated a treaty that kept the south from seceding. I did my job. And now you’re interrogating me like a criminal because I also did what was best for my people.”

“Your people or your power?”

“Both.” Elowen met Kael’s eyes. “They’re the same thing. A leader who doesn’t fight for her people’s interests is no leader at all.”

Aeron stood.

“The trade provisions stay. You negotiated them in good faith, and they benefit the kingdom.” He paused. “But you will disclose all future agreements to the council *before* signing. No exceptions.”

Elowen nodded. “Fine.”

“And you will not use diplomatic missions to advance your personal interests without transparency.”

“I haven’t been—”

“You will not.” Aeron’s voice was steel. “This is not a negotiation.”

Elowen’s jaw tightened. But she nodded again.

“Fine.”

Kael wasn’t satisfied. “She should be punished.”

“She should be watched.” Aeron looked at his sister. “Consider yourself watched.”

Elowen laughed—a bitter, hollow sound. “I’ve been watched my whole life. By you. By our father. By the council. By every wolf who thought I was dangerous because I was ambitious and female.”

She walked to the door.

“If you’ll excuse me, I have a province to run.”

She left.

Seren stood. “That went well.”

“It went terribly.” Kael’s voice was cold. “She’s not sorry. She’s just sorry she got caught.”

“Maybe. But she’s also right. The east has been neglected. She’s fighting for her people. That’s not a crime.”

“It’s not honesty either.”

“No. It’s politics.” Seren walked to him and took his hand. “We’re not going to change her overnight. But we can watch her. And we can give her chances to prove herself.”

“I’m tired of giving chances.”

“Then give accountability. That’s what Aeron just did.”

Kael was silent for a long moment.

Then he pulled her close.

“I hate this.”

“I know.”

“Politics. Compromises. Watching my back against my own sister.”

Seren leaned against him. “That’s what ruling is. Not the crowns and ceremonies. The hard parts.”

“The hard parts never end.”

“No. But we get better at them.”