1. The Shattered Crown

|| Lilac's POV ||

“Please,” I whispered, my voice trembling as I turned to Kael. “Please, let them go.” The words felt foreign, bitter, like ash on my tongue. Begging was never something I had done, never something I thought I would have to do. But for them, for my parents, I would cast aside my pride. I had begged before—pleaded with Kael to remember the vows we had made, the promises he had whispered in the dark, when the world had felt small and safe.

“You will always come first,” he had once told me, his voice a soothing balm to my insecurities. But that was before Coco. Before she had arrived at the palace, her presence was like a storm that swept away everything in its path, leaving only ruin in her wake. He had assured me nothing would change, that I would still be his queen, his partner, his love. But it had all been a lie. A beautiful, cruel lie.

Kael’s gaze flickered, something unreadable flashing behind his golden eyes, but it was gone before I could grasp it. He was unmoved, his face carved from stone, his silence cutting deeper than any blade. My hands clenched into fists, my nails digging into my palms, drawing blood, but the pain was insignificant compared to the devastation blooming inside me.

The air was thick with the metallic tang of blood and the acrid stench of betrayal. It clung to my skin, seeped into my very bones, as if trying to etch this moment into my soul so I could never forget. The grand hall, once a place of opulence and celebration, now felt like a tomb, silent, suffocating, an unholy shrine to my suffering. The towering marble pillars, carved with the history of our pack, seemed to lean inward, as if they too could not bear the weight of what was unfolding. The flickering torchlight cast long, jagged shadows across the polished floor, their twisted forms dancing like specters over the scene before me, mocking me, taunting me with whispers of my downfall.

My heart, once a steady drum of hope and certainty, now thundered in my chest, each beat a painful reminder of how far I had fallen. The pain was visceral, like claws raking down my ribs, sinking deep into my flesh, and twisting mercilessly. My knees gave way, and I sank onto the cold, unyielding stone, the impact jarring but insignificant compared to the agony that burned inside me. My dress, once a symbol of my status as the luna queen, now felt like a shroud, heavy and suffocating. The gold embroidery, the delicate lace, it all seemed so trivial now, meaningless in the face of the ruin that surrounded me.

My gaze lifted, my breath catching in my throat, and there he stood, Kael, the Alpha King, my husband of five years, the man I had given everything to. His broad shoulders were squared, his jaw set in a hard, unyielding line, his golden eyes gleaming with a coldness that made my soul shiver. This was not the man I had fallen in love with, the one who had once held me close and murmured promises against my skin, the one who had sworn to protect me from the world. No, this was someone else entirely, a stranger wearing his face, a shadow of the love we once shared.

In his arms, cradled like something fragile and precious, was Coco. Her delicate frame was draped in silk, her raven hair cascading over her shoulders like a dark waterfall. She was breathtaking, undeniably so, but to me, she was nothing more than a venomous viper wrapped in silk and secrets. Her lips curled into a smirk, one that spoke of triumph, of cruelty, of the destruction she had wrought with nothing more than a single glance. She had unraveled the fragile threads of my life effortlessly, watching as everything I had built crumbled to dust at her feet.

Behind them, the warriors of the pack stood like statues, their expressions unreadable, their swords drawn and pointed at my parents. My mother and father, once proud and unyielding warriors of the Royal Beta family, were on their knees, their heads bowed in defeat. Silver chains bound their wrists and ankles, the enchanted metal burning into their skin, leaving angry red welts in its wake. The sight of them like this, broken, humiliated, was a dagger to my heart, twisting deeper with every breath I took. My father, a man who had once stood tall and unshaken even in the face of war, now sagged under the weight of his shame. My mother’s eyes, usually so fierce and full of fire, were now hollow, devoid of hope. The woman who had once taught me to stand tall, to fight for what I loved, was reduced to nothing more than a prisoner in the kingdom she had once defended with her life.

My throat tightened, a sob clawing its way up, but I swallowed it down. I could not afford to break. Not yet.

“Kael,” I choked, my voice breaking now, the dam of my restraint beginning to crack. “Please… if there was ever a time you loved me, even a little, let them go.”

Coco’s laughter cut through the silence, sharp and mocking, “Oh, darling,” she purred, tilting her head as she gazed down at me. “Love has nothing to do with this.”

She stepped forward, her movements graceful and deliberate, like a predator circling its prey. In her hand, she held a dagger, its blade glinting in the dim light. She pointed it at me, her eyes gleaming with malice. “I’ll let them go,” she said, her voice dripping with false sweetness, “if you die instead.”

The words hit me like a physical blow, stealing the breath from my lungs. I stared at her, my mind struggling to comprehend the depth of her hatred. Before I could respond, she tilted her head, her smirk widening.

“Too late,” she purred. “I’ve changed my mind.”

In one swift motion, she hurled the dagger across the room. Time seemed to slow, stretching into an agonizing eternity as the blade spun through the air, its deadly arc unerring. My father’s eyes met mine—those same strong, steady eyes that had always guided me, always reassured me. But now, they were filled with sorrow, with an apology he would never get to voice. The moment shattered as the dagger struck true, piercing his heart with a sickening thud.

A strangled gasp left his lips, his body jerking violently as the silver seared through him. His fingers trembled, reaching for something—reaching for me—but his strength faltered, and he crumpled to the ground. The convulsions wracked his frame, his body fighting against the inevitable, but the silver was merciless, burning through him, extinguishing his life like a candle in the wind.

"No!" The scream tore from my throat, raw and guttural, a sound so primal and broken that I barely recognized it as my own. Agony ripped through me, splitting me apart at the seams as I lunged forward, desperate, frantic—

But before I could even reach him, before I could touch him one last time, Coco threw another dagger.

This one found its mark in my mother’s chest.

A sharp gasp broke the suffocating silence, her body jolting backward as the blade buried itself deep within her. Her hands, trembling and desperate, clutched at the hilt as if she could pull it free, as if she could undo what had just been done. A fresh bloom of crimson spread across the fabric of her gown, stark and violent against the pale silk.

Her gaze locked onto mine, those warm, fierce eyes that had watched over me my entire life. Eyes that had glowed with love, with pride. But now, they were filled with something else. Regret. Not for herself, but for me. For the pain she couldn’t stop, for the fate she couldn’t protect me from. Her lips parted, as if to say something, as if to comfort me one last time—but no words came. Only a shuddering breath, a final exhale as her strength gave way.

She collapsed beside my father, her body falling in a lifeless heap.

A hollow, keening sound rose from my chest, a grief so raw and consuming that it felt as though my soul itself was being torn apart. My parents—my home, my anchor, my everything—were gone. Just like that. Stolen from me in the blink of an eye, their lives reduced to bloodstains on cold, unforgiving stone.

The world around me blurred, the edges of my vision darkening as grief and rage consumed me. My wolf surged to the surface, her growl reverberating through the hall, a primal sound of anguish and fury. My claws elongated, my fangs bared, as I turned to Coco, my body trembling with the need to tear her apart.

But Kael stepped in front of her, his massive frame shielding her from my wrath. His golden eyes bore into mine, cold and unyielding, and in that moment, I saw the truth. I was nothing to him. Less than nothing. The bond we had shared, the love I had believed in, had been an illusion, shattered by the arrival of his true mate.