The Luna's Queen Revenge: Cursed To Love My Enemies

The Note

Liah's Room

I shut the door with a soft click, pressing my back against it as if the wood could shield me from the memory of Rael’s gaze.

My breath came fast. My palms were still clammy from holding that folded parchment.

I crossed the small room, pulling the stolen paper from my apron pocket. My fingers shook, not from guilt exactly, but from the aftershock of almost getting caught.

I dropped onto the edge of my bed, unfolded the parchment, and scanned the contents.

A few names. A shipment date. And a single phrase scrawled at the bottom in hurried handwriting: Red Moon, before the next tide.

I didn’t know what it meant, but every instinct in me said it wasn’t innocent.

The names, some I recognized from whispered palace gossip, others I didn’t were not merchants or seamstresses. They were wolves who’d vanished from their packs without a trace.

I swallowed hard, the air suddenly colder.

Proof Aurora was keeping connections outside the palace was one thing. But this… this felt like the edge of something sharp, something meant to cut deep if I got too close.

I exhaled a shaky, bitter laugh. “Could’ve been thrown out today,” I muttered. “Or worse.”

Why had Rael let me off so easily?

He could’ve called the guards. He could’ve dragged me to Aurora himself.

Instead… his voice had been low, his eyes unreadable, and then, he’d let me go.

I shoved the parchment under my mattress, but my fingers lingered there, brushing the worn fabric as if the paper might burn a hole straight through.

“But Liah, you need to be smarter. Faster. Careful,” I whispered.

I forced my hands to stay still, clutching the parchment hidden under the mattress.

My mind kept going back to Rael, how easily he could have caught me, yet he didn’t. The way he moved, his eyes, the danger around him, the pull I couldn’t name it all twisted with my fear and my plan, making it hard to breathe.

A bitter laugh slipped out.

“Stupid,” I muttered. “All this… and I’m still risking it.”

I pressed my forehead to the wall, letting the quiet of the room settle over me.

But even in that quiet, the weight of what I’d found the Red Moon note, the vanished wolves, the tide coming soon pressed down like a storm waiting to break.

I straightened, jaw tight, fingers clutching my apron. “No,” I whispered. “No mistakes. Not now. Not ever.”

The parchment would stay hidden. My plan had to move forward. And somehow… I had to survive. One mistake, and all this… my plan, my revenge… would vanish.

~Some time Later~

Rael's POV

The training yard echoed with the sound of clashing swords.

Kael’s sword struck mine hard, forcing me a step back.

“You’re off today,” Kael said, pressing forward. “Your footwork’s sloppy.”

“Or you’re too smug for your own good,” I muttered, blocking the next blow.

Kael smirked, circling him. “No. Something’s on your mind. You’ve been like this since yesterday, hell, maybe longer.”

My silence was answer enough.

Kael lunged again, and I parried, but there was no real force behind it. Kael stepped back, lowering his blade.

“We should be thinking about Aurora. She’s our mate, even if we haven’t claimed her yet. But you, your head’s somewhere else.”

I exhaled, gaze fixed on the ground.

“I’ve been… feeling something. And I can’t place it.”

Kael frowned. “What kind of ‘something’?”

I hesitated, gripping the hilt tighter. “It’s not pain. Not like the curse. But it’s not… nothing, either. It’s this pull like I’m standing too close to the edge of something I can’t see.”

Kael studied him, expression sharpening. “And you don’t know why?”

“That’s the problem,” I said.

“It doesn’t make sense. It’s like a shadow that moves when I try to look at it.”

Kael’s jaw tightened. “You’d better figure it out fast. We can’t afford to be distracted not now.”

Rael gave a humorless smile. “If I could shake it off, I would.”

Kael lifted his sword again. “Then maybe a few more rounds will knock it out of you.”

We met again, blades clashing, but I could feel my mind wandering even as my body moved.II almost missed Kael’s next strike. The blade skimmed my arm, not enough to cut, but enough to jolt me back.

“Damn it, Rael!” Kael barked. “If you keep zoning out, I’m going to put you flat on your back.”

“Try it,” I shot back, though my tone lacked its usual bite.

He narrowed his eyes, and I knew he could see it, the crack in my focus, the weight of something I wasn’t ready to explain.

The curse already made us weaker than we wanted to admit. Every moment not spent fighting it felt like a risk. But this… this was something else entirely.

Kael swung again, and I blocked, this time holding the bind. Our swords locked, faces close enough for me to see the thin sheen of sweat on his brow.

“Tell me what’s really going on,” he said, low enough that it didn’t echo in the yard.

Before I could reply, the steady tap of heels on stone drew our attention. We both turned.

***

Aurora crossed the yard, her neat golden hair shining. She wore a pale blue silk dress that made her look gentle, though her eyes were sharp. A maid followed, lifting the hem so it wouldn’t touch the dirt.

“My princes,” she greeted, voice light but calculated. “I didn’t expect to find you… playing with swords this early.”

“It’s called training,” Kael said, sheathing his blade. “You should try it sometime.”

Aurora’s smile didn’t waver.

“I’ll leave the swinging of weapons to those who enjoy sweating.”

She let her gaze drift toward me, holding it just a second too long before turning back to Kael.

“Mother sent me to find you both. She wants to speak with you about the banquet.”

I exchanged a glance with Kael. “Banquet?”

“In four nights. The palace will be hosting the Alphas from the surrounding packs. It will be… a rather important evening for all of us.”

Her tone made the implication clear: important for her most of all.

Kael crossed his arms. “Why are we only hearing about this now?”

“You’ve both been busy,” Aurora said sweetly.

“And I thought it was better to wait until Mother was ready to give you the full details. She’s in the east garden if you’d like to join her.”

I stepped closer, ignoring Kael’s curious glance. “Then why not let us hear it from you?”

Aurora tilted her head, pretending to think.

“Because I’d rather not spoil the surprise. "Besides,” she smiled, sharp and knowing, “Mother prefers to speak for herself.”

“I actually went to your chambers earlier to find you,” I said evenly, watching her expression. “But you weren’t there.”

Aurora’s brows lifted slightly, but her smile stayed intact. “I was with Mother. She prefers to have my opinion on such matters.”

I nodded slowly. “I see.”

I studied her for a moment. There was something about the way she held herself, poised yet watchful, as if she was already three steps ahead in some game we weren’t invited to play.

“Fine,” I said finally. “But I’ll walk you there.”

Kael’s brow furrowed slightly at my tone, but he didn’t stop me.

Aurora’s smile widened, as if that was exactly the answer she’d been hoping for. “How gallant.”

She offered me her arm like this was some kind of courtly dance.

I took it “Lead the way.”