THE QUEEN WHO LOVES HER MATE'S FATHER

SORA'S POV The first thing they never tell you about being a Luna is how silence can hurt more than claws. For ten months, I’ve been mated to Lucien, the man the Moon Goddess chose for me, the Alpha I once thought was my miracle. In those ten months, I have suffered three miscarriages. Three. Each one left a hollow ache where my heart used to be, each one a quiet funeral that only I attended. I should have been strong. I’m the daughter of a true-blood Alpha. My bloodline commands respect, strength, and power. Yet every time I bled, every time my body betrayed me, I felt smaller… weaker. Lucien always told me it wasn’t my fault. He’d brush my hair back, kiss my forehead, and say, “You’re my light, Sora. The Moon Goddess is only testing us.” His voice would sound soft, convincing. I wanted to believe him. I needed to believe him. When my father’s pack was massacred and I ran for my life, it was Lucien who found me. He saved me, offered me his home, his heart, his mark. I thought fate was being kind for once. I thought losing everything had led me to him. He was the perfect Alpha once, before his father stripped him of his title and cast him out. That part of his story always broke my heart—the way he’d flinch whenever someone mentioned the name Kalus. His father. The cold, ruthless Alpha who ruled neighboring lands with fear instead of love. Lucien said they hadn’t spoken in years. “He died to me the day he betrayed my mother’s memory,” he told me once, his voice edged with pain. I believed him. I hated Kalus too—because Lucien did. Together, we built something new. My bloodline, the red wolf line, gave me the ability to form a pack even from ashes. So I did. Our pack, our people. It was supposed to be a fresh start. And for a while, it was. But my wolf… she was restless. “Our bond is not strong enough,” she whispered in my mind some nights. “Something about him feels… wrong.” I ignored it. Love is blind, and I was its perfect victim. Everything seemed fine again when I realized I was late. My stomach fluttered with hope. Maybe, just maybe, the Moon Goddess had finally forgiven me. Maybe this time, our pup would live. I wanted to surprise him. I remember smiling for the first time in months as I walked toward his study. My hands trembled, heart racing with excitement. I even rehearsed what I would say: “Lucien, it finally happened. We’re going to be parents.” But before I reached the door, I heard laughter. Cecily’s laughter. My best friend’s voice. And Lucien’s. I froze. “It’s about time Sora got pregnant again,” Cecily said, her tone sharp with amusement. “I love watching her lose her mind after losing her pup. It’s what makes me forgive you for… you know.” Lucien’s low chuckle followed. “For f*****g her? You love watching me pretend to care. You love watching her cry.” The room tilted. My breath caught somewhere between disbelief and denial. “She’s really stupid for thinking I’d love someone like her,” Lucien continued. “She’s just my second-chance mate. The bond isn’t that strong anyway. But I can’t wait for the finale.” Finale. The word felt like a blade across my chest. I wanted to burst in there, to scream, to tear the room apart with claws and rage—but my body refused to move. My heart cracked, but my wolf stayed silent. Even she didn’t know how to save me from this. I turned and fled. My legs carried me to the pack clinic before my mind caught up. My life was ruined. My mate that I love so much and my best friend. They caused my miscarriages? "Luna, you are pregnant. Congratulations!" He blinked, then smiled faintly. I am pregnant again for that bastard. No! No. I wasn’t. I was breaking apart. But all I managed to say was, “I… I am.. I'm pregnant?” He blinked, “Congratulations, Luna.” I laughed. It wasn’t a happy sound—it was the laughter of someone unraveling. “ He frowned. “Luna, I know you’re happy, but this is a high-risk pregnancy. Especially with your health issues.” “What health issues? What are you talking about?" I asked, unsure of what he was talking about. "I mean you are sick..." He said, giving me a stern look. "What? I am not..." I replied, shaking my head, my heart beating faster. What is going on? "Luna, why are you pretending? You need to accept it and do something about it. I still don't understand why Alpha let you follow your decision of not wanting a kidney transplant. You may die any second. And now you are pregnant again...' "Kidney transplant? Dying? What are you talking about?" I screamed at the Pack Doctor. He gave me a confused look, "You didn't know that your kidney and heart are failing? But Alpha said..." He stopped talking and he probably saw the heartbreaking look on my face. I am dying and my mate who is cheating on me didn't tell me or give me any prescription. My own mate wanted me dead. The doctor hesitated. “You… you mean Alpha Lucien didn’t tell you?” “Tell me what?” “You refused a kidney transplant, Luna. And your heart, your tests show early failure. You’re very sick.” My body went still. “No,” I whispered. “That’s not possible.” The doctor’s eyes softened. “You didn’t know.” The silence stretched like a scream. I staggered back, the walls closing in. So that was why I had been so weak. Why every breath burned. Why I’d been sleeping more, hurting more. And he knew. Lucien knew. He watched me dying. “My mate wanted me dead,” I whispered. The doctor looked horrified. “Luna, please—” “Don’t tell him I came here.” My voice came out flat, lifeless. “Please.” He nodded, afraid. I left the clinic in a daze. The painkillers he gave me rattled in my hand as I walked through the rain back to the Alpha’s house. The scent of sugar and vanilla hit me before I even reached the door. Laughter again. Hers and his. When I stepped inside, I saw them, Cecily and Lucien, dusted in flour, baking a cake together. My kitchen. My home.