The Lost Luna Princess

Heartbroken

Vanessa’s POV

It had been a long day; I had gone back to my room to settle Angel as the festivities had worn her out, and she was beginning to become fussy. There was a sudden knock on the door before it burst open, startling me. William had ordered Nick to get us to safety so he could lead the road to victory against the rogues that had entered our territory, slaughtering a few guards on patrol.

“Follow me, Luna, and keep close!” Nick shouts as we run down the palace corridors toward our safe room. In normal circumstances, he would use my name, but it was customary for him to call me by my title with what was going on.

I held Angel in my arms as she could somehow sleep through all racket of what was happening. Pack warriors rushed past us as they went outside, shifting into their wolves before heading towards the western borders.

William and I had always treated our pack respectfully, wishing for nothing but the same in return. We were a pack, yes, but in our eyes, everyone was family. I hoped William was coming with us, but I knew being an Alpha and a King to the Royal Pack meant he needed to be by his fighter’s sides. Giving them strength and courage as he fights with and for them.

“Luna, wait here.” Nick whispers, my eyes widening as the smell of rotten eggs comes from the staircase leading from the basement.

“Rogues,” I replied, hugging Angel tightly. I would die for any member of my pack. That’s what a true Luna would do, but Angel was my priority right now, for she was our future.

I wished I, too, could fight beside my pack; I was a skilled warrior before becoming a mother, something I would never regret. The day Angel was born was the best day of my life. William didn’t like that I would fight when needed, but he knew he couldn’t stop me, for I had gifts that outweighed and outmatched his power. My wolf Diamond and I enjoyed the hunt. Diamond was an ivory colour wolf with green eyes that resembled emeralds. I, too, am the daughter of a pure-blooded alpha, just like my William; however, I am also a direct descendant of the moon goddess. My wolf’s colour was rare, confirming that we were of special blood. That meant I was stronger than most Lunas, but when in wolf form, I was also stronger than the standard Alpha.

As I held Angel closer to my chest, Nick rounded the corner, my heartbeat thumping away as I hoped he wouldn’t be overpowered. Had I needed to shift, it would have left Angel vulnerable and unprotected, not to mention I wouldn’t be able to focus on the task at hand. Growls and whines came from the staircase before everything suddenly went quiet until Nick finally emerged.

“Right, let’s go!” His voice strained as he led me down the corridor. My eyes focused on the blood that splattered his clothing until he turned to offer his hand, leaving me confused until I looked down.

On the ground were the bodies of two rogues. One had entirely shifted, and by the looks of it, the second died while shifting. Nick had been quick to deal with them before they could harm us. Once Angel and I were inside, the door was locked. I had asked Nick to go and aid the others, knowing no one could get in here. He reluctantly agreed after mind-linking his mate, the gamma female Marie, asking her to join us as she was a well-trained warrior.

Marie didn’t take long to arrive; she wasn’t as slim a build or looks-obsessed as most she-wolves. Marie was muscular in shape, with her red hair styled in a bob due to all the training she underwent to join the pack warriors. She dreamed of joining the Elites, but both William and the council forbade it. No matter how skilled she was, it wouldn’t change the fact that she was female. Unfortunately, the law stated that only men could join. Marie didn’t wish to be a mother as she enjoyed the thrill of the fight and feared that if she had a pup, she wouldn’t be able to train. It wasn’t that being a mother meant she couldn’t, just that her priorities would change. Something I quickly learned after Angel was born.

Time seemed to pass slowly as we waited to be told it was over. That our pack was safe and everyone could return to their homes. It wasn’t the waiting but the not knowing that left me anxious. It was then that Marie got a mind link from Jason, our beta telling her that things were ok and that he was coming to escort us back upstairs.

‘Do you not think it’s strange that it’s Jason informing us and not our William?’ Diamond was concerned, but I reminded her we had no reason not to trust Jason. He was, after all, the beta and Williams’s best friend.

Just as I opened the door to the safe room, we caught the smell of blood and rogues. We immediately knew something wasn’t right, but Jason had forced it wider open before we could shut the door. My eyes widened with shock as I took in the sight before me. The two warriors Nick had ordered to stand guard were lying on the floor, both torn apart, their blood covering the floor and walls.

“Why?” Was all I could say before I felt the burning sensation of something sharp enter my abdomen.

Jason had stabbed me with a silver knife that felt like it had been dipped in wolfsbane and something else, as the pain was like nothing I had ever felt before. Diamond whimpered as she too, felt the pain as I did before I felt her slowly fade away. I fell to the floor and looked through tear-filled eyes to where Marie was comforting Angel. Whatever flowed through my bloodstream had killed my wolf, instantly taking the power I needed with her.

‘Take Angel and run. Run as you have never run before, pl… please save her.” I begged through the mind link, using my diminished strength.

I could see the tears burning in her eyes, knowing she didn’t want to leave me to die her Luna and best friend. Seeing no other choice, I forced the command over her to make it easier for her to comply. Within seconds Marie had sped from the room, my daughter in her arms. Once she was out of sight, I tried to mind-link my mate before I succumbed to darkness.

William’s POV

I raced down to the safe room using my enhanced speed to check that Nick had gotten my family to safety before he confronted Jason. I had tried to mind-link Vanessa but was unable to reach her. We argued earlier during the festivities, and she had since blocked me out, as had Marie after taking Vanessa’s side. I was worried neither of them had heard me spread the news of Jason’s betrayal and feared the possibilities. I’d hoped Nick would have said something to Vanessa, but something deep down told me he hadn’t had the chance.

As I entered the staircase to the safe room, my nose was hit with the coppery smell of fresh blood. Fear and anger flooded my senses, and my wolf Maximus began growling in my head. He was just as pissed as I was, promising to make Jason and everyone else involved pay dearly. It was something I knew we would accomplish even if we died doing so. Everyone knew that with being King came a ruthless reputation. A reputation I was more than happy to share.

As I rounded the corner, the corridor walls were splattered with blood, and the lifeless bodies of two guards were torn apart on the ground.

Maximus spoke in my head, telling me what I already knew. The scent from down here wasn’t that of the rogues but of my lifetime friend and beta Jason. I opened the safe room door, and my beautiful mate and Queen were on the floor. Vanessa was alive, but her injuries were terrible, and her breathing was shallow. Her wound wasn’t healing, and I knew she’d lost her wolf by her change in scent. Pulling the blade from her stomach, she winced. The smell of wolfsbane and silver with the hint of something else instantly hit my nose.

‘That bastard laced the knife in poison.’ Maximus confirmed what I was thinking: Vanessa had lost too much blood, and with the war continuing outside, I couldn’t get her to the pack hospital in time. There was nothing I could do, a feeling that was foreign to me as I’d never been in this situation before.

For the first time in my life, I felt utterly useless. Vanessa needed me, and I wasn’t here to protect her. Her blood was literally on my hands. Had I swallowed my pride and apologised, this wouldn’t have happened. She wouldn’t have blocked me out, and she would have been safe.

My face felt wet from the tears that fell from my eyes at the sight of Vanessa, my mate, the love of my life, and the woman who made me who I was. There was no way she was going to survive, not without her wolf to heal her. Even if the fighting had finished, it would be too late. The poison had spread, evident in her black veins like snakes under her fair skin.

Through our mate bond, I could feel her pain, fear, and anger. As she opened, her beautiful blue eyes, which once looked like the sparkling reflection of the ocean, had now darkened. Her silent tears fell onto her beautiful, flawless face. She looked at me, and with her soft voice, she said one thing that made me feel as though my world had ended.

“Angel.”

Had Angel been taken, had someone saved her? I didn’t know, but I promised Vanessa I would find her. Maximus was using all of his strength to try and come to the surface, knowing that our pup was missing; it took every ounce of power I had to hold him back. And with that, I felt my heart tear into pieces. My Vanessa slipped away. I felt our bond fade, leaving nothing but cold, dark emptiness and the feeling that half of me had died. I couldn’t hold Maximus back any longer, and with a deafening howl, I gave him control.