KARMA IS A BIT*H

*Vannesa POV* "Mother, tonight is the full moon," I whispered, spinning in the hallway like the moonlight was already mine. "And tonight I finally find my mate." My heart was drumming so loud I was sure the whole pack could hear it. For 18 years I’d felt him. Felt _Roland_. The way my wolf woke up whenever his voice cut through the training field. The way my chest tightened when he looked at me like I was the only girl in the world. "T- tonight my dream is coming true," I said, voice shaking with hope. "I’ve always known Roland is my mate. I’ve always known." In the kitchen, Mother stirred the soup, her back to me. The smell of rosemary and roasted meat filled the air. Preparations for tonight’s dinner party. For my mating ceremony. "Vannesa, calm down and help me, dear," she said, but her voice cracked. Uh-uh-uh. The sound froze me. She coughed into her apron. When she turned, I saw it. Red. Blood against white linen. "Mother—" "Don’t," she cut me off, hiding the cloth fast. But I’d already seen. Her ‘incurable disease’ was getting worse. My hands clenched. I was planning to tell her tonight. About the potion I’d spent months brewing in secret. A mate’s bond could heal, couldn’t it? If Roland claimed me under the full moon, maybe his Alpha blood would save her. Hope tasted like copper and moonlight. *Roland POV* "Man, I told you Vannesa was gonna be mine," I laughed, tossing the poker chips across the table. "And I’m the one who takes her virginity before the full moon. Now pay up. I won the bet." The guys groaned and threw credits at me. Stupid bet. Stupider girl. Six months. Six months I’d been sleeping with Vannesa, letting her think every kiss was fate. God, she was getting fatter every day. Soft. Clingy. Desperate. But I didn’t care. She was nothing but a bet to me. A way to kill time before the real ceremony. Tonight was the full moon. Tonight I got crowned Alpha. And tonight I proposed to the only girl who mattered. Pamela. My father’s Beta’s daughter. Strong. Sexy. Curved in all the right places. She’d been mine for a year already, behind Vannesa’s back. Silly Vannesa didn’t even know. She still thought those puppy-dog eyes would make me choose her...Pathetic. Knock knock. "Junior Alpha," the maid said. "The Alpha sent me to get you ready for the ceremony." I inhaled. Jasmine, strawberry... and dust. That exact scent caught in my nostrils. Natasha. My room maid. Damn. That girl knew exactly what she was doing in bed. Just thinking about last night had heat coiling low in my gut. I smirked. Tonight I’d be smelling roses instead. Pamela’s scent. Queen scent for a Queen. "Guys, get going," I told my friends without looking at them. "I need to prepare for tonight’s ceremony." The maid curtsied, eyes lowered. I caught her wrist as she passed. "After the ceremony, Natasha." She blushed. Stupid girl. They all did. “Be a good girl,” I told her. She knelt without question. I grabbed her hair and used her exactly how I used everything else in this pack: disposable. When I was done, I stood up and fixed my bath. “Swallow it all,” I ordered. She obeyed. Then I shoved her away. “Clean this up,” I said coldly. “And make sure your scent is gone before Pamela arrives. I don’t want her getting the wrong idea about me.” Natasha was just practice. Tonight, Pamela wore the Queen’s roses. Vannesa POV* “My word… Mother, it’s almost time. Let me go clean myself up.” I kissed her cheek, dropped my apron, and ran to my cottage. I found my dad asleep on his bed, tired and worn out. “Hello, my beloved Father… how are you this evening?” He smiled like he always did whenever I spoke. It’s a mystery what really happened to him. How he became a cripple. The pictures on our wall showed a different man. Happy. Most of them were half-burnt, but his smile was still there. I ran to my room, stripped off my clothes, grabbed my towel and bucket of water, and headed to the bathroom. “Tonight, after we mate, I’ll tell him I’m pregnant,” I whispered to the steam. “He’ll be a dad. Then I’ll ask him for one small drop of blood to finish Mother’s potion.” A little kick fluttered in my stomach. I smiled and rubbed my belly. “Oh, someone’s happy at the mention of his dad, is he?” I dressed in the floral gown Ronald always complimented. Thinking of him… he hadn’t texted today. Maybe he was planning my surprise. On my way out, pain stabbed my head. Chills ran down my spine. Fear clutched my heart and it raced. Something bad was coming. I could feel it. I prayed anyway. “Oh Goddess, please keep my loved ones safe tonight.” “Amen,” my mother said, smiling. I hugged her. “You look lovely, my dear,” she whispered. “May the Goddess bless you with a humble, decent, caring, fun, and most of all loving and devoted mate.” “Thank you, Momma. And may all children born today be blessed with mothers like you." Pamela's POV* "Daddy dearest, didn’t I tell you last year? This year, I become Luna." I smile at my reflection, dragging the lipstick across my lips. Behind me, Daddy sits on the edge of my bed like he owns the room. Which he will. Soon. "Tonight, Ronald chooses me over his mate," I say, blotting the excess on tissue. My voice stays sweet. "And tonight, after we mate... I start the slow poison. Only Royal blood can cure it." I laugh, low and pleased. "But Daddy, no Royal blood survived that fire." "My daughter, you’re brilliant," he chuckles, pride dripping from every word. "Soon I’ll wear that crown. The throne will be mine." "I told you I’d get it for you," I grin, capping the lipstick. "I know you will, my dear." He leans forward, eyes gleaming. "And soon, I’ll grant the Blue Moon Pack entrance to the Celestial Ground. No one can stop me from taking the Celestial Crown buried deep underground. The crown meant for the Alpha King." We laugh together. Two thieves, toasting over stolen futures. *Vannesa POV* I ran out of the house, heart pounding, feet barely touching the ground. The Celestial Ground was calling me. Everyone was already gathered. My mind buzzed with one thing: _What did Roland plan for us?_ Our future. Our pups. Our forever. The ceremony had started. I could hear howls of mates finding each other. Laughter. Vows. Hope. Then I stopped. Wait... what’s that smell? Pine. Husky. Muddy sweat. Mouth-watering. Familiar. _Mine._ It’s... it’s Roland. My wolf slammed awake for the first time in my life. Not a whisper. A scream. _MATE. MATE. MATE. MATE._ I ran. I ran straight to him, arms open, heart bare. He turned. Saw me. “No. No. No. No.” He shoved me. Hard. I hit the ground and a sharp, hot pain ripped through my stomach. I gasped. He knelt. His face close to mine. His voice cold. “You are not on par with me. Weak. Stinky. Useless mutt.” Tears burned my eyes. Pain shattered my heart. “I... I am your mate, Roland. You... you love me, right? You said so yourself...” He smiled. Devilish. Final. “Huh. You thought I loved you? Seriously, Vannesa? You’re nothing. A lowlife Omega. Trash.” He stood tall. Crown on his head. Knife in his voice. “I, Roland Kingsley, Alpha of the Celestial Pack, reject you. Imbecile. w***e. Omega of all Omegas.” That was it. My mouth moved before my brain did. Hollow. Broken. “I... I accept your rejection, Alpha.” The pain hit like lightning. I clutched my chest. The mate bond snapped inside me. From the crowd, a scream. My mother. She clutched her chest and fell. “Noooo!” I crawled to her, caught her before her head hit the ground. Everyone stepped back. Stepped away. Stepped _around_ us to keep celebrating. Roland was being crowned Alpha. The music played on. I held her, sobbing. “Somebody, please! Help me, please!” Deaf ears. Every single one. Mother’s eyes found mine. Faded, but full of love. “You’ve grown so well, my dear. And now... you’re going to be a mother.” She coughed. Blood. “Do me a favor, dear...” Blood again. More this time. “Take... care... of my grandson... and your father... for me...” Her hand trembled. “Hold... my hand... dear.” I took it. My tears fell on our skin. On our bond. And she used her last breath: In a high, cracked voice that shook the sky: “GODDESS SELENE, HEAR MY LAST WORDS ON EARTH. I CURSE ALL THOSE WHO BROUGHT PAIN AND SADNESS TO MY FAMILY. MISERY AND BEASTLINESS TO THEM. LET ONLY FORGIVENESS FROM MY LINEAGE BREAK THIS CURSE. AMEN.” The ground shook. Agreed. Sealed it. Mrs. Bane breathed her last in my arms. My scream tore through the Celestial Ground. From far away. Unanswered. Then wetness. Between my legs. Warm. My water broke. My father. The man who hadn’t spoken or moved in 18 years. He stood. Gripped chairs, tables, anything to keep upright. He walked to me. “Push, my daughter.” I couldn’t. I had nothing left. He knelt beside me, eyes on my mother’s still body. Voice breaking but steady. “Hold on to your mother’s body. Push, my dear. Do it for her.” I gave up. I had no life left in me. And then a voice echoed in my head. My wolf. Soft. Fierce. Ours. _Vannesa. Our mate rejected us. Our mother is gone. Our father stood up for us. Our only parent left. Please... let us do it for him. Please._ Third narrative Pov The moment Vannesa’s blood hit the celestial soil, the world held its breath. The ground _hummed_. Low. Ancient. Like a heartbeat that remembered her name. Then vines erupted. Not wild, not random. They grew with purpose. Thorns softer than silk, leaves wide as shields. They curled around her broken body, weaving a canopy of green and silver, hiding her scream, her blood, her son’s first cry from every predator eye. Roots dug deep and pulled light from below. The celestial ground _lit up_. Veins of gold raced under the soil like lightning, all converging on her. On the baby. On the Royal blood they’d tried to erase. The trees bowed. The wind stopped. Even the moon pushed through the clouds and shone straight down on her, a spotlight from the gods. The land recognized what Roland refused to: *Queen Vannesa. Mother of the true heir. Blood of the Celestial line.* And in that light, her curse didn’t just leave her lips… it sank into the earth. Sealed by the ground itself. Witnessed.