|| Lilac's POV ||

“You witch!” I snarled, my voice a mixture of pain and fury. My wolf howled within me, her grief echoing my own.

But Kael’s expression remained impassive, his loyalty firmly with Coco. The woman who had destroyed my life, who had taken everything from me, stood behind him, her smirk a cruel reminder of my powerlessness.

Tears streamed down my face as I looked at the bodies of my parents, their lives extinguished so callously, so cruelly. The girl who had once believed in fairy tales, in happily ever afters, was gone.

"Tell me, Kael, was she worth slaughtering the entire Royal Beta lineage?" I yelled.

Kael stood tall, his regal posture unyielding, his golden eyes cold and distant. How did it come to this? How had the man I had helped build an empire become the architect of my ruin?

"Answer me, Alpha King. Or do you still not see blood on your hands? Blood of your own Beta..." my voice choaked.

I stared at him, my heart a battlefield of grief and rage. It was me who had stood by his side, it was my family who had fought for him, bled for him, and secured his place on the throne. My parents, proud and unwavering, had led armies against the dark witches on the border, their sacrifices ensuring the peace of our lands. And what had it earned them? Silver chains and a traitor’s death. What had it earned me? Betrayal. Humiliation. A love turned to ash.

"They fought for you, day and night. My father almost lof his wolf protecting pur kingdom...." I screamed. But he remained silent as if my words couldn't even get through him.

"They were traitors," Kael said finally.

"Traitors? Just because Coco said so? What proof do you have?" I growled.

"Oh dear. Looks like our Luna has lost her mind," Coco taunted instead and he let her.

My mind drifted to the day Coco had arrived at the palace. She had been a fragile thing then, her eyes wide with fear, her hands trembling as she knelt before me. “Please,” she had begged, her voice trembling, “let me stay. I have nowhere else to go.” I had been foolish, so foolish. I had seen her as a lost soul in need of shelter, not the viper she truly was. Kael had taken her in, not as a servant, but as his concubine.

And now, here I was, kneeling before her. The irony was not lost on me. The woman I had once pitied now stood above me, her delicate features twisted into a mask of triumph.

"So you still remember that I am the Luna and your queen," I growled.

"Are you?" Coco’s lips curled into a smirk.

"Was I ever anything to you?" The question screamed inside me, tearing at my insides like claws. "Was any of it real?"

Kael’s gaze flickered, just for a moment, a shadow of something unreadable passing through his golden eyes. Regret? Guilt? I did not know, and I no longer cared.

A bitter laugh bubbled up in my throat, raw and laced with sorrow.

"Tell me, Kael," I whispered, my voice a ghost of what it once was.

"Was it worth it? Was she worth the blood? Look around you... look at the blood in your hands." My eyes flickered to Coco, whose smirk only deepened, satisfaction glimmering in her dark eyes.

Kael’s jaw tightened, but he said nothing. The silence was louder than any answer he could have given me.

Coco stepped closer, her silk dress swishing against the marble floor.

"You should have left when you had the chance," she mused, her voice like honey laced with venom. "But I suppose you were always too stubborn for your own good. Now look at you. Broken. Defeated. Alone."

Alone. The word echoed in my mind, a cruel mockery of everything I had once had. But she was wrong. I was not broken. Not yet. My heart still beat, my lungs still drew breath, and as long as I lived, so did my vengeance. I would not fall. Not here. Not like this.

Lifting my chin, I met Coco’s gaze head-on, letting the fury in my eyes burn as brightly as the fire in my soul.

"Enjoy your victory while you can," I murmured, my voice steady despite the turmoil within me. "Because one day, Coco, you will kneel before me. And when that day comes, I will make sure you remember every drop of blood you spilled."

Her smirk faltered for the briefest of moments, a flicker of uncertainty crossing her face before she masked it with a scoff. "Empty threats from a fallen queen. How pitiful.”

I couldn’t hold back any longer. A deep, angry growl tore from my throat as I lunged at Coco, my wolf taking over. My claws slashed through the air, my fangs bared, and for just a second, I saw fear flash in her eyes.

Kael was too stunned to react fast enough. I shoved him hard, my paw slamming into his chest, sending him crashing onto his back. Then Coco was under me—small, fragile, trapped beneath my weight. I glared down at her, my growl echoing through the hall.

This was all her fault. She had created this nightmare. She had twisted Kael’s mind, shattered my family, taken everything from me.

Then Kael’s hand locked around my hind leg and yanked. I crashed into the wall, bones cracking as the force knocked me back into human form. I gasped, ribs screaming, my vision swimming as I tried to push myself up.

Across the room, Kael stood over Coco like some kind of knight in shining armor, his eyes blazing with fury.

At me.

I spat blood onto the marble floor and laughed—a raw, broken sound.

"Of course," I choked out. "You’d always choose her."

“I denounce you as my Luna,” he declared, his words striking me with the force of a physical blow.

“And I reject you as my mate. I am severing our bond.” He turned away from me, his attention focused on Coco as he lifted her from the ground, cradling her protectively in his arms. The tenderness in his touch was a dagger to my heart, a reminder of what I had lost.

“What should we do with her, Alpha?” one of the warriors asked, his voice devoid of emotion.

Kael didn’t even look at me as he replied, his tone as cold as the winter wind. “You can have your way with her. And once you’re done, get rid of her.”

His words shattered what little remained of my soul. I had given him everything—and this was my reward. Betrayal. Abandonment. Death. The warriors moved toward me, their eyes gleaming with malice, but I was already crawling away, my body trembling with exhaustion and despair.

My hand brushed against something cold and metallic. A dagger, forgotten on the floor. I clutched it tightly, the weight of it grounding me in the moment. My vision blurred with tears as I pressed the blade to my stomach.

“Moon Goddess,” I whispered, my voice breaking.

“Forgive me. I was not the Luna you expected of me. Forgive me, Mom, Dad. I have failed you too.”

A single tear rolled down my cheek as I closed my eyes, the dagger poised to end my suffering. If I were to get another chance, I vowed silently, I would never walk this path again. I would never trust so easily, love so blindly. I would rise from the ashes of my shattered life, stronger, fiercer, unbroken.

But as the blade pressed into my skin, a spark of defiance ignited within me. No. I would not give them the satisfaction of my death. Not like this. Not while they still breathed. With a trembling hand, I lowered the dagger, my resolve hardening.

Goddess, was this your justice? I was the Luna Queen and that was the death I deserved! I fell slowly in a cold dark place.