Chapter 356: It gets worse.
Sienna froze. Her aunts gasped. Her uncles leaned forward, almost scandalized. Soren’s jaw dropped. The cold fox lord, dignified lord of the city, fearless patriarch of the fox tribe, was practically glowing with joy at the cheerleaders’ performance.
Sienna’s eyes narrowed. "Oh hell no. My husband will not cheer for the enemy." She reached for her phone. With one swift motion, she called him. It just so happened that the cameras briefly moved to someone else before panning back to the Veythar brothers.
They all saw Elias look at the watch on his wrist, and then Miro tapped his shoulders and they both went back to chanting.
He did not answer!
The crowd in Sienna’s house erupted. Gasps, whispers, laughter, disbelief. Her uncles exchanged knowing looks. They all came to the conclusion that a husband was in trouble with his wife.
Soren muttered, "Sis, he ignored you. He actually ignored you."
Sienna’s face hardened. The paper work forgotten to the floor. Her eyes stayed locked on the screen, where her husband was still clapping, oblivious to the storm brewing at home.
"So..." Uncle Jorik muttered over the stadium’s roar as Kamden scored another goal. Without warning, he switched off the television. The screen went dark.
The room froze.
"What are you doing?" Uncle Daren shouted, half rising from the couch. "The second half has just started, our team is ahead!"
Uncle Jorik crossed his arms. "Enough. We have seen what we needed to see. Elias ignoring our niece’s call which should be more important than discs flying through the sky."
Groans erupted. Murmurs of discontent traveled through the house.
Sienna rolled her eyes, gathering her paperwork. "Watch your game. Don’t let me stop you. I don’t always answer my husband’s calls, depending on the importance of what I am doing. What he has done is not a crime. So, don’t let worry or anger on my behalf stop you." Her voice was calm, almost bored, but it carried a chill that silenced the room.
The uncles exchanged glances. For the first time, they realized Sienna’s silence was more frightening than the fox lord’s temple. He might rage, but she could freeze a room with a few words that were suspicious.
Sienna bent over her paperwork, pen scratching across reports. The screen came back to life just as Kamden scored again! The younger cousins shifted uneasily, their cheers muted now, careful not to sound too enthusiastic. Every clap was softer, every laugh restrained, as though her quiet presence demanded reverence.
Finally, she stood. "I am going to bed."
Ali was already dosing, and Mrs. Miller took her to bed. Sienna left the room, the sound of her footsteps echoing down the hall. The game continued. yet no one dared to shout loudly.
After the match ended. the house dispersed. Uncles and aunts retreated to their bedrooms, voice hushed.
In Mrs. Miller’s room, she was quick to call Chase, her new boyfriend, and lay out her complaints about her son-in-law. She was sure Sienna was not happy, and neither was she.
"What if it was an emergency?" She asked. "What if she was badly injured and dying and all he cared about where those stupid vixens?"
Chase Twindell, whose youngest daughter had joined the Starry vixens a year ago decided not to mention that fact. A wise man knew what to say and when.
In their bedroom, uncle Jorik and Numia were leaning close and Jorik was whispering as if the walls had ears.
"He is in trouble. Sienna’s silence tonight...it was colder than the winter itself."
Linera nodded gravely. "He’ll regret ignoring that call."
Down the hall, Uncle Daren chuckled with aunt Selra. "I bet she hits him with a pan tomorrow morning."
His wife smirked. "I’ll take that bet. One hundred beast coins says she will do it tonight."
In a different cottage, on the same property, Uncle Christo was quiet, but Numia, his wife, couldn’t contain herself.
She was laughing, "This is evidence that Elias does not love Sienna as much as she thinks. Did you see him looking at those cheerleaders? Singing like a boy with a crush on one of the vixens."
Her husband frowned. "Careful."
But she pressed on, voice gleeful. "Mark my words, divorce is coming. Maybe he already has his heart set on someone new. Why else would he ignore her call? His mother has been trying ti get him to marry from his own kind. Maybe it is finally going to happen. This is why I told you that we should find Corven a good marriage. Without the Veythar’s backing, what is Sienna?"
Christo did not reply. In fact, he started to snore.
Numia did not care, her laughter echoed, sharp and cutting.
Meanwhile, at the stadium, Elias had just finished handing the trophy to the Forever Foxes team. Other officials, the King and beast lords swarmed in for pictures with the team and congratulatory words.
The Starry vixens poured into the field to take a picture with the team. It so happened that Elias was still there with his brothers and the vixens approached them. The brothers took a picture with the cheerleaders.
While the stadium emptied, the Starry Vixens retreated to their cars. Their leader, Belinda Heart, pulled out her comm.
She posted a message to the beast-net:
"Congratulations to the Forever Foxes, the vixens are proud to have been a part of this historical night. Thank you to the charming Lord Elias Veythar for supporting us always. Your energy gave us strength. We will never forget your voice joining ours."
The words were simple, but the phrasing --for supporting us always and your energy gave us strength--were ambiguous enough to ignite speculation.
Within minutes, comments flooded in:
"What kind of support does she mean? Is he their financial backer?"
"Why single him out? The star of the night was Kamden after all."
"Is the fox lord secret backing the vixens?"
"Does she mean his strength in cheering for them or something more?
"Belinda, Belinda, Belinda....I see a pan in your future. All hail the pan goddess."