Outside the hall facingElla’s chamber, the cold night air felt strangely refreshing. Ella inhaled deeply as Damon gently wrapped his arm around her shoulders. He was fond of doing that, and Damian had warning several times to leave his wife alone.
The cheers from the departing guests still echoed faintly behind them, but her heart was pounding for an entirely different reason.
“Mother,” Damon whispered, brushing a thumb along her cheek, “Elina did well in there. She held yourself together better than most female Alphas I know.”
Ella swallowed hard, trying to process everything—Theo’s downfall, Elina’s shocking ascension, Mina’s sudden madness, and Lambert’s punishment. It all weighed on her chest like a ton of stones.
“I didn’t expect this,” she murmured. “Any of it. How could a mothe
