#Chapter 67: The Sockenee River

Ruby Caleb was not being as subtle as he thought he was. It was clear to everyone at the table how much this document was bothering him. I could only imagine it wasn’t the document itself as much as the reminder of all that he’d been deprived of his entire life. Clearly, these Trials were designed to be cruel. “We have one more matter to discuss before we get to the Trials,” Elder Roman responded. “Which is the matter of your alleged mate bond.” I gripped my fork tightly at the word “alleged.” I could feel Caleb in my bones. There was nothing alleged about our bond. “The Elder Council is still deliberating on the best way to test that claim,” Elder Roman said. That made me nervous. If they were still deliberating, that gave Sophia room to influence their decision. “We have decided to provide you with the next Trial before examining your claim to being mates.” “And how many Trials will there be?” I asked. I didn’t like the fact that we’d started before they’d told us what