Chapter Five: The Woman Beneath the Earth
907 Words
The raven dropped from the sky, landing on the marble railing with a harsh cry.
Selene's fingers tightened around the message in her hand.
"The grave is empty."
Those four words refused to leave her mind.
She read them again.
And again.
"No..."
She whispered.
"That's impossible."
She had watched Evelyn's coffin disappear beneath six feet of earth.
She had watched the guards shovel dirt over it until not a single inch of wood remained visible.
She had smiled.
Because she had finally won.
She had become Luna.
She had everything Evelyn once possessed.
The Alpha.
The title.
The palace.
The respect of the pack.
Everything.
Everything...
Except Kael's heart.
Her nails dug into her palm.
Three years.
Three years of sharing the same palace.
Three years of sleeping in separate chambers.
Three years of pretending they were a happy couple whenever the council was watching.
Not once had Kael called her "my love."
Not once had he reached for her hand.
Not once had he kissed her willingly.
Every smile she received from him was polite.
Every conversation was distant.
It was as though his heart had been buried with Evelyn.
Selene hated that woman.
Even in death...
She refused to disappear.
A knock interrupted her thoughts.
"My Luna."
"Enter."
The maid hurried inside, bowing low.
"The guards have returned from Darkwood Forest."
Selene straightened immediately.
"And?"
"They found... nothing."
"What do you mean nothing?"
"The coffin is gone."
Her heartbeat quickened.
"And the body?"
"They couldn't find it."
Silence.
The room suddenly felt colder.
Selene slowly walked toward the window.
Outside, wolves bustled through the palace courtyard as if nothing had happened.
Children laughed.
Merchants shouted.
Life continued.
But she knew.
Something had changed.
Something terrible.
"Leave."
The maid hesitated.
"My Luna—"
"I said leave!"
The frightened girl rushed out of the room.
The moment the doors closed...
Selene's calm expression vanished.
She swept everything off her vanity with one violent motion.
Glass shattered across the floor.
"No!"
Her breathing became uneven.
"I killed you."
"I made sure you died."
"So why..."
"...why are you coming back?"
A soft chuckle echoed through the room.
Selene froze.
She wasn't alone.
Slowly...
She turned around.
A hooded figure stood in the darkest corner of the chamber.
Their face remained hidden beneath layers of black cloth.
"You seem frightened."
Selene swallowed.
"You told me she would die."
"And she did."
"Then explain the empty grave."
The figure remained silent for a long moment.
Finally...
"The Shadow Realm has awakened."
Selene's face turned pale.
"No..."
"It cannot."
"It already has."
The hooded figure stepped closer.
"You failed."
"I did everything you asked!"
"You framed the Luna."
"You manipulated the council."
"You convinced Kael to remain silent."
"You buried the vessel."
The figure's voice grew colder.
"But you failed to destroy her soul."
Selene's hands trembled.
"What do we do now?"
The figure laughed.
"We prepare."
...
Miles away...
Deep beneath the forgotten ruins of the Shadow Kingdom...
Evelyn stood in the center of an enormous training arena.
Black flames circled her feet.
Across from her stood Nyx.
"You are distracted."
"I'm trying."
"Trying isn't enough."
Nyx lifted one finger.
Instantly...
Hundreds of shadow wolves emerged from the darkness.
Their glowing crimson eyes locked onto Evelyn.
Every instinct inside her screamed.
Run.
Nyx smiled.
"Fight."
The wolves attacked.
One lunged for her throat.
Evelyn barely rolled aside.
Another slashed toward her back.
Pain exploded across her shoulder.
She cried out.
"They're real?"
Nyx folded her arms.
"If they kill you here..."
"They kill your spirit."
"And a broken spirit never returns to the mortal world."
Another wolf charged.
This time...
Evelyn stood her ground.
She remembered the execution.
The chains.
The coffin.
Kael's silence.
The dirt falling above her head.
Something inside her snapped.
"No more."
Black energy burst from her body.
Every wolf froze.
Then...
They were thrown backward by an invisible force.
Nyx's crimson eyes widened ever so slightly.
"Interesting."
Evelyn stared at her own trembling hands.
"I didn't..."
"I know."
Nyx smiled.
"You acted on instinct."
The black flames slowly disappeared.
"You've taken your first step."
Toward becoming a Queen.
...
Back in Darkwood Pack...
Night had fallen.
Kael stood alone on the palace balcony.
He hadn't slept.
Not after visiting Evelyn's grave.
His mind replayed the events over and over.
The heartbeat.
The scent.
The laughter.
The empty grave.
None of it made sense.
"Alpha."
Ronan approached quietly.
"The patrols are ready."
"Good."
"We've surrounded the forest."
Kael nodded absentmindedly.
"Ronan."
"Yes?"
"If..."
He hesitated.
"If Evelyn were somehow alive..."
The Beta looked at him carefully.
"What would you do?"
Kael closed his eyes.
"I'd spend the rest of my life begging for forgiveness."
Silence.
Ronan lowered his head.
"I think..."
"...that would never be enough."
Kael smiled sadly.
"I know."
Neither man noticed the woman standing behind the curtains.
Selene.
She had heard every word.
Every single one.
Tears filled her eyes.
Not from heartbreak.
From rage.
"So that's it..."
She whispered.
"No matter what I do..."
"I'll always come second."
Her expression hardened.
"If she's alive..."
"Then I'll kill her again."
Outside...
The wind suddenly changed direction.
A strange voice drifted through the night.
Soft.
Cold.
Ancient.
"Try."
Far beneath the earth...
Inside the forgotten kingdom of shadows...
Evelyn slowly opened her eyes.
For the first time since her burial...
They no longer glowed their warm golden color.
They had become...
Crimson.
- Writer
