MATED TO THE SECRET ALPHA-Chapter 231: Owning The Room

"I admit that I defended myself," she said coolly, eyes glittering beneath her hood. "I admit I felt violated. I admit he screamed louder than Alpha Dren did."

A few Alphas choked on their breath. Alpha Alexander shifted uncomfortably in his seat, trying not to smirk.

Dren glared at her but didn’t speak anymore. It was no use fighting over words with a woman. He told himself.

Reana’s eyes locked on Alpha Dennis. "If this meeting is to put me on trial, then let’s not pretend it’s about diplomacy. Say what you mean. Ask the real question."

Alpha Dennis shot her a glare. "This council is not a place for rebellion."

"No," Reana said, pushing back her hood. Her face was pale, scratched, and proud. "But it is a place for truth, unless you think otherwise. And the truth is this: Killian was greedy and stupid. When I refused to be part of his terms, he turned violent. So I carved the lesson into his flesh."

"You–"

"Alpha Dennis, sit down." Alpha Alexander finally spoke up, earning a sharp glare from Alpha Dennis, but the Alpha didn’t speak afterwards and sat down.

"You spoke of Crystal mine, Luna, what does that mean?"

Reana explained what she thought crystal mine was and added, "It’s not beneficial to us, but to the humans."

"If it’s only beneficial to the humans, then shouldn’t we gain something from them? Why should we give them what’s ours for free?"

Reana looked at him. He was right to think so, but no, they didn’t deserve anything good from the humans. However, she replied, "The best gain we can ever get from the humans is connection. We need to bridge the gap between us, and what better way to do that than to give them the crystal mine? Moreover, it might go to waste if not used."

"You’re right," Alpha Alexander nodded, "but what exactly is this mine and what is it used for? Why do the humans want it? What if they use it as a weapon against us?"

Murmurs of agreement broke out as other Alphas agreed.

Reana’s fingers tapped lightly on the table, then stilled. She never thought about that, and that was because she had full knowledge of why the humans wanted that mine. However, she wasn’t going to tell these greedy, brainless bunch.

Secondly, the humans are affiliated with Ryder’s pack, so, obviously, they wouldn’t have malicious thoughts against the werewolves. Otherwise, Ryder wouldn’t have kept them around.

She met Alpha Alexander’s gaze directly now—her exhaustion tucked neatly behind resolve.

"That is a valid concern," she said. "And one I’ve thought about for weeks."

She took a breath, then continued. "The human leader, Orion, showed me what could be made from crystals. To us, they’re ordinary. To them, they’re everything. Fashion, utensils, windows and doors... even status. But most commonly, they’re turned into shiny little jewelry for their human females."

A few Alphas snorted under their breath. Even Alpha Dennis, usually sour-faced and angry, let the edge of his mouth twitch.

"It’s really a worthless thing." Alpha Hargon chimed in. "Not worth our time."

Arrogant fools. Reana thought.

However, Alpha Dennis objected. He didn’t trust Reana and anything that came from her. "What if that’s what they want you to think."

The hall quieted again.

He continued, "The humans are clever. Their heads are filled with ideas that our kind can never imagine. What if they turn those crystals to weapons against us?" He continued, "it’s just shiny junk. Until it isn’t. Until they secretly build something we can’t fight, using the very thing we threw away."

"Alpha Dennis is right," Alpha Rhys agreed. "The goddess gave us that mine for a reason. Maybe we haven’t discovered its uses yet. We shouldn’t be in a hurry to throw away what’s ours."

Reana’s jaw clenched for a moment, but she didn’t break her calm. She let the tension linger in the air, let the fear and suspicion run its course through the room before she slowly straightened her shoulders and met their eyes—one by one.

"Yes," she said clearly. "The humans are clever. That’s why we must be wiser."

A few of the Alphas stirred at that, unsure whether it was an insult or insight. But then again, anything from the bitch’s mouth was always an insult.

Reana continued, her voice steady and sharp, "You speak as if we’re helpless, as if we’ll just hand over what’s ours and watch them build a weapon against us. Have you all forgotten what it means to be werewolves? We don’t sit back and watch. We lead. We control. We make the terms."

She paused, letting her words sink in and caress their stupid ego. She sneered but continued anyway. "The humans are already interested in the crystals. Whether we allow it or not, they’ll find a way. And when they do, if we’ve denied them, they’ll remember it. With resentment. With caution. With fear. That’s how wars begin."

She stopped and faced Alpha Rhys directly. "You said the goddess gave us that mine for a reason. Maybe this is the reason. Not to hoard it out of fear, but to use it as leverage, to build something lasting while we still have the upper hand."

Alpha Rhys looked taken aback for a moment but didn’t argue. She was intelligent and smart, even though he didn’t want to admit it.

Then Reana turned back to the room, her eyes burning now. "We cannot afford to keep clinging to outdated thinking. The humans are evolving faster than we are. If we don’t adapt, we won’t just be left behind, we’ll be overrun." Then, she sprinkled a bit of spice. "Perhaps, there’s a reason the Dark Snow Pack protects them. Who knows if they have an ability to bring us out of this hellhole, back to the Kingdom of Eldrida...home."

Gasp!

Then, a hush fell over the entire chamber.

The mere mention of Eldrida had sucked the breath from the room.