Chapter two

#Trials and executions#

#courtroom#

#justice#

An entirely unwelcomed surprise.

♥Elena's POV♥

Laws are important, but they can only be effective if the people know about the particular law, and rule number one of the supernatural states: No killing or slaughtering of vampires.

In accordance with the noise and the crowd gathered outside the quarter, it was clear that they all demanded justice which had nothing to do with what went on in a courtroom, and more of what came out of it.

We were all gathered in the official courtroom of the quarter and I could tell everyone was itching to spill one thing or the other. Father was sitting at the seat allocated to the judge and trying to get things kicking in motion, while mom stood right behind him to serve as the queen of the vampires and the alpha of the wolves.

"Can we all now be quiet?" Dad asked rhetorically with his strong baritone voice which instantly silenced the indistinct whispers, not forgetting the part I played in ensuring the total silence in the courtroom as I had sent a wave of calmness to everyone. It was one of my gifts to tamper with emotions as a vampire.

"Everything is running right on schedule. Could someone stand up and inform this court about the cause of the conflict without saying too much?" Dad asked, resting his angular jaw on his fists.

A vampire known as Oscar stood up immediately to speak and he looked really pissed at first. "It is no news that witches aren't allowed to use magic, because Section 2(1) of the Constitution states clearly: In order to peacefully coexist, no witch is allowed to use magic," He paused, then continued with a smirk, "However, it would seem that one of the witches, Mary, was caught cooking something magically delicious..."

The vampires cackled at his choice of words and the witches face mirrored disgust.

"Enough!" Dad thundered as he held his hand to stop Oscar, and signalled to the witches to air their own argument.

"Your vampire attacked a young witch and almost killed her," An elder witch lashed back as soon as they had been given a chance to speak, then folded her arms to her chest and crinkled her nose.

"Guilty or not guilty?" Father asked, obviously ignoring their own side of the story as he cocked his brows at the oldest witch known as Bastiana Lopez.

"It doesn't change the fact that she was almost killed. I leapt to save her life," a werewolf known as Harry chipped in, then slammed his fists on the table and wore a deep frown.

"Oh! Loverboy to the rescue. The mighty power of a sugary healthy pussy," Suzy whispered in my ears and chuckled.

"What does pussy have to do with what is going on?" I rolled my eyes and exhaled heavily.

"So much, sugar plum, so much that you can't even imagine." She then licked her lollipop and shot a wink at a hot werewolf guy.

"Why was she performing magic when it was clearly forbidden in the first place?" Dad nudged his head at the curly-haired witch that sat in a corner and appeared flustered.

"I owed a debt to the ancestors and I would have been dead in no time if I didn't pay up my dues," Mary replied, sniffing and fiddling with her trembling fingers.

"Why didn't you come to seek my permission before breaking my rule?" Dad asked in a harsh tone and cracked his knuckles, eyeing her from head to toe inquisitively.

"Because the last time I checked, it was none of your business," Bastiana retorted, glaring furiously at dad.

"What do you mean? You have something you intend getting off your chest, isn't it? Let it out then, old witch," Dad said as he inclined his head and leaned back to his chair.

"The last time, I asked for permission to put the soul of my dead sister to rest..." She paused as tears welled up in her eyes, struggling to give a tight-lipped smile.

"...but you refused!" She yelled, pointing an accusing finger at dad. She then went on, "So tell me, why should anyone even seek your permission when they will be rejected either way?" She concluded.

Dad heaved a deep sigh. "Where is the vampire in question that attacked the young witch and caused the whole conflict?" He asked. His brows furrowed as his gaze shifted between everyone sitting.

The courtroom became dead with silence as no one dared to move nor say a thing. In the silence, there was confusion, panic, and terror. My heart hammered fast and my body trembled. The moment the flow of words stopped was the time the blazing truth dawned on us all.

Dad scoffed and said calmly, "I believe I asked a question that demands an answer."

"Where is Diego?" Dad hollered with his mouth quivering with anger. His strong voice made me flinch in my seat and I could tell everyone was paralyzed by fear.

"He is dead," Bastiana responded, with eyes wandering every corner of the room except towards Dad, whom she obviously couldn't look in the eye.

Rule number one just got broken and things were about to get really bloody.

Dad's feet rhythmically tapped the wooden floor and his nails dug deeper into the table. He was apparently trying to suppress his anger.

"Now, what should we call this?" He let out a low peal of laughter. "A twist of fate? Or an entirely unwelcomed surprise?"

"More like an entirely unsurprising welcome," Mom suddenly said, and strolled to the front of the court to face everyone.

She was a tall and confident woman with beautiful chestnut hair that peeked the eyes of sea spun souls, the bluest of heaven's best. Her bodycon gown hugged the softness of her curves and emphasized on her slim-thick goddess-like figure that no one dared not admire.

"Harry's mate was almost killed by a blood-sucking vampire so it is no fault of his to stand up to Diego and even kill him if the need arises, after all, we know how quick they are to stir up trouble," Her smile grew bigger and a twinkle illuminated in her blue eyes as she spoke those words.

"This is my city, things run by my rule only-" Dad started but was interrupted by mom.

"I'm sure he didn't mean for it to happen." Mom nudged her head at a downcast-looking Harry.

"That doesn't change the fact that he broke my most important rule," Dad roared as veins popped up from his forehead, so much that anyone could tell he was almost losing it.

"Father Kinley, the overall ruler of the human faction; you must be itching to say something, so the floor is yours." Dad said, scratching his tousled dirty blonde hair.

Father Kinley was a priest and he led the Sunday service and abided by all sort of Christian doctrines. He was the pillar of the community that maintained the city's supernatural balance. He had to ensure the humans remained ignorant about the supernaturals and he ensured they stayed out of one another's way. Merely looking at him, one could tell that he was in his late fifties. His eyes and grey hair were a reflection of wisdom and experience.

"I think justice should be tempered with mercy. I rest my case," Father Kinley voiced out his own opinion, then raised his hand to prove his point and sat back to harmoniously watch the possible outcome.

"We won't sit here and watch you kill Harry or give decrees that are only in favour of the vampires," A wolf with long dreads stood up to protest and the other wolves murmured in agreement. Dad rushed towards him in blinding speed and snapped his neck at once.

"Is there any other miscreant who might want to challenge my authority?" Dad raised his brows and his gaze shifted between everyone sitting.

When no one said anything and silence prevailed again, he spoke: "This meeting will be adjourned. My final verdict will be announced today." Dad hit the gavel and stood up.

__

"Have you gone mad? What was that all about, Cedric?" Mom stood with her arms akimbo over Dad.

"Setting things straight. I can't afford to let them get away with this," Dad replied as he ran his hand through his hair and paced around his private chamber.

"Why can't you listen to a single thing I say? You have to let the case die down else things might escalate," Mom told him amidst furry while placing her slender fingers on her throbbing head to massage her temple.

"I have a right to be angry," Dad hollered and punched the wall aggressively.

"I can't just sit by and do nothing when you are being bias in the courtroom," Mom raised her voice at dad and stabbed a finger at his chest to portray her annoyance.

"My rules state that there should be no killing of vampires and no performance of magic in the quarter." Dad leaned forward to mom, then continued, "This city runs by my rule and if anybody breaks those rules, they die," He decreed with clenched teeth.

"So, this is about your ego," Mom scoffed and continued, "If you ignore my warnings and you do whatever you deem fit to do, then you must be prepared for another war."

"Well, it is always the same war even though the enemy might differ," He said with wide eyes and shallow rapid breathing.

"And in wars, there are always casualties. Prepare to lose more of your most prized vampires then," Mom spat and walked away.

"You look so hot when you are angry." Dad raced towards her in a blurry velocity and grabbed her by the waist.

"All your charms and flirtations simply prove that you are every bit of the liar and manipulator your father once was," Mom said through clenched teeth and stared at him in disgust, then tried to walk away again, but dad's grip was too strong.

His once playful smile was replaced with an extreme grimace. "Is that what you really think of me?" He cocked a brow up.

"By all means, prove me wrong," Mom's eyes widened with a strong eye contact and raised eyebrows.

"Very well, come on," He held her hands and led her back to the court.

I decided to make a move and talk sense into him before the case continued.

"Dad, please temper justice with mercy," I told him as I took his hands with cold trembling fingers. Whatever judgment he gave today was most likely going to backfire.

"Mercy is for the weak, child. I'm not some pathetic excuse of a leader, I was given the title of the Dark Lord for a reason," He told me, cupped my face and gave a small reassuring smile before resuming the case.

"Before I pronounce judgment, I will like the forensics examiner to tell us her diagnosis." Dad nudged his head towards a young witch wearing a lab coat, surgical gloves, and goggles.

The young witch walked towards the front and the name tag on her breast pocket read 'Megan.'

"According to the forensics report, the deceased body's heart was pulled out by force and that happened many hours ago." She adjusted her glasses and continued.

"But that wasn't all because after the body had gone limp and lifeless, someone went back to slash his vocal cords..." She couldn't complete her statement as gasps were heard by everyone in the court as they began to mumble amongst one another.

"Silence!" Dad raised his hands to shut everyone up.

She went on, "And right at the back of his neck shows a sign of struggle and a burned scalded skin, and the last time I checked, a werewolf bite doesn't burn, so where did the fire come from?" The scientist asked rhetorically then bowed her head and walked away.

"Hmm!" Dad stroked his beard. "Doesn't that sound magically interesting? Does any witch care to shed light on how fire suddenly appeared out of the blue?"

For a brief second, they let the silence pass on and let their eyes do the talking.

"No more witty responses? I thought as much," Dad said with a smile which was slow and easy, revealing the deep-rooted dimples in his cheeks.

"This is clearly a case of xenophobia." Mom shared a silent gaze with dad and nodded in acknowledgement. She finally understood what he was driving at.

"Considering the long-lasting feud between you all, the animosity and desistation between the supernaturals has eaten so deep into your minds that you can no longer control your disgust, so what did you do?" Mom's heels clicked as she walked towards the front to face everyone.

"You went back to torture an already dead corpse," Mom said viciously and rushed towards Harry at a blinding velocity. She held his neck and raised him to stare at her furious eyes before flinging his body to the other side of the room.

"And yet, someone told me to temper mercy." Dad said with a smirk, cracked his knuckles and stood up.

"Do they deserve mercy?" His strong baritone came out authoritative.

"No!" Everyone except the witches chorused.

"It might have started as a small quarrel, but there is more to this case," Dad said and clenched his fists.

"Yes!" They all chorused even louder.

"They killed him in fair combat and went back to punish the dead body with a fire ignited by magic just because of the discrimination between you all.

"As the sovereign ruler of this quarter, my number one rule states that there must be no killing of vampires, while the second forbids the use of magic. Not only did Mary and Harry defile my rules, but they also broke two of them and there shall be no mercy in my judgment."

As we sat on the bench, staring at Cedric Marshall and wondering what punishment awaited the murderers, the clock ticked with every second and minute counting-- but dad, as usual, enjoys having a little suspense before pronouncing his judgement, and so, we dallied with darting hearts and sweat-soaked clothes.

Kindly comment your opinions and vote, expect another update before this week runs out.