All the agents in pursuit stopped short. The palace agent in charge quickly pulled his phone out of his pocket. He needed to let the king know that the foxes were not waiting. The human was about to fall to her death.

But Susie did not fall back to the ground like she expected. She flailed helplessly in the air until Honey Thunder stepped in. The queen bee descended from the clouds, wings thrumming like war drums. Its legs caught Susie mid-fall, lifting her higher, carrying her away from the battlefield.

The fox agents cheered, the palace agents cursed and shouted, but the bee was already vanishing further out of their sight. The farmhouse lay in ruins and the two factions departed.

By evening, The palace agents had cornered Gary, only to find that the fox lord himself had arrived in person. As he touched down, tension spiked rather quickly. The palace agents did not dare to venture forward and Gary did not dare to squeak.

The leader of the palace agents, a lion beast man with a thick light brown mane transformed into human form.

Elias recognized him immediately. "Nash. I will take it from here."

Nash shook his head, locks of long, curly. brown hair flying. "Elias, you know that I cannot do as you wish. We have orders to bring him in. Trust me, I want to kill him too on your behalf. The assassination of an innocent cub is the most disgusting thing someone can do. The king is not going to protect the mouse beast man, he is going to see to it that justice is served. This man will serve as a warning to others that dare to tread such a path."

Elias growled. "I can serve justice on my own."

Nash shook his head. "No. Yours is selfish justice. Who knows if he has harmed others? He must be interrogated."

"For all I know, the mouse clan will offer something and make the king decide to kill the scandal and cover up his crime." Elias smirked. "This mouse bitch belongs to my wife. I promised her that she would carry out justice with her own hands. If the king truly wishes to make an example of him, then he should wait for Sienna to vent and then take whatever remains of him."

The lion beast man prepared to argue.

Elias unleashed an attack with his mental strength. It was a warning. Fox agents growled, palace agents roared. For a moment, it seemed like claws and fangs were about to clash.

Nash raised his hands, then laughed--a sharp, dangerous laugh. "We are under strict instructions not to fight you because you will bring this whole city down if that’s what it takes to get what you desire. So, you can have the mouse. But, he must be delivered in two days at most."

Two fox agents picked up the mouse, dragging him out into the street.

Elias turned and walked away.

Nash sighed in relief, though he still felt brave enough to shout, "Alive, Elias. He must be brought to the palace alive." He muttered softly, "Let’s hope you keep your crazy pan wife in check."

****

Sienna had just finished her healthy version on a lemon brownie when noise came from the hall. A mouse beast man was dragged into the room by Elias, his tail twitching nervously, his whiskers damp with sweat. Drops of blood fell from his mouth. He was missing a few teeth, bruised in some places and almost blind in one eye.

Sienna untangled herself from the children, pushed the plate with brownie crumbs aside, and sat upright.

"Out." Elias barked to the others in the room.

The glacial look in his eyes and sting in his voice frightened them. His mother wanted to argue, but his father dragged her out. Grandpa Corven herded the rest out, leaving behind three fox guards and the children.

Sienna stepped down from the bed. Every step she took echoed with a promise of reckoning. "I would recognize Susie’s fat mouse beast man from ten miles away. You must be Gary, the bitch that funded the attack on me and my son."

The mouse beast man whimpered.

Instead of laying a hand on him, she turned to bed, sat down and placed a hand on Eli’s head. "This one," she whispered, her voice low but steady, "tried to kill your mother. He would have taken you from us if he had his away. Or taken me from you, leaving you without a mother. Do you understand?"

Eli nodded, his small fists clenching despite the tremble in his lips. Sienna placed a hand on his shoulder, steadying him. "I wanted you and your sister to be innocent. I thought your father’s way of teaching you ruthlessness was wrong. But, I was wrong. Mercy is for those who deserve it. Ruthlessness is for those who strike at our family, If you hesitate, they will strike again. Mama doesn’t blame you. I blame him. Show him what happens when enemies cross us."

Elias raised a brow, watching silently, but he did not interfere. He understood her lesson, which was similar to the knowledge he had stuffed into his son’s brain over and over.

Sienna didn’t think Eli could do anything. He was still hesitant. But Ali--she was already pulling her poison carrying hairpin from her hair.

Eli suddenly jumped from the bed. He stepped forward, his frame dwarfing the mouse beast man’s trembling body. "You hurt my mama," he said, his voice small but fierce. "You are a bad man."

Sienna’s heart clenched with sorrow and pride. She handed him a pan. "Strike him," she commanded. "Let him feel the pain you suffered when you didn’t know if I would live or die."

Eli took the pan, but he was not quick to strike.

Suddenly, Ali leaped forward, grabbing the pan from her brother. With no hesitating, she swung it upward. striking Gary on the chin. "You made my mama bleed." she shouted, swinging the pan again and again.

Sienna pulled her back and took the pan from her. She handed it to Eli. "Your turn. This lesson is for you."

The boy nodded. He swung, clumsy but determined. Gary squealed, collapsing to the floor. Eli struck again, this time with more force, his face set in grim determination. Sienna took his hand, guiding him to strike lethal points. "Good. Do not flinch. Remember this, those who try to kill you must never walk free. You protect yourself and your family with everything you have."

Gary sobbed, begging for mercy, but Eli didn’t stop. Each strike was a lesson etched into his young heart: survival demanded ruthlessness.