“Queen, you’ve been experiencing that pain since your pregnancy. Shouldn’t you tell the Alpha King about it?” my servant asked, concerned.

I shook my head, keeping my focus on the parchment before me. The letters I needed to send to the human world were crucial. Their accusations had grown louder, blaming our kingdom for their missing persons. Their suspicion fell on Lucas and his regency, convinced his kind couldn’t suppress their primal urges—their hunger for human flesh—just as we, vampires, constantly battled our thirst for blood.

Beyond that, the humans never trusted Lucas—they despised him and preferred to deal with me. But my condition made meeting them impossible, so I relied on these letters to ease the rising tensions—tensions Lucas struggled to contain and had borne for weeks.

“Your birthday is tomorrow. Will the Alpha King celebrate it privately with you?”

“I still don’t know. He’s busy, isn’t he?” I replied with a small smile, though I already knew the answer.

My servant said nothing, merely pushing forward a small bottle of yellow oil—the one I was meant to mix into my drink. By now, it was routine.

“Your tonic, Queen,” she murmured, not quite meeting my eyes.

“We both know it’s not a tonic,” I said softly, though I still reached for it.

She lingered as I wrote another letter, this time addressing an issue Lucas struggled to handle. He had made it clear—I was never to interfere in his leadership. He didn’t rely on me or need my help. So I did it in secret, ensuring my involvement remained hidden. He was a man—an Alpha. Accepting a woman’s help would make him appear weak.

Or so I thought.

“Let’s have a round of applause for Amethyst,” Lucas’s voice rang out, loud and confident.

On the night of my birthday, a feast was held—but not in my honor. The humans had received the letter, strengthening our alliance after I helped locate half of their missing people.

“She made this possible,” Lucas declared. “She truly is our miracle.”

Then he chuckled, guiding her forward—giving her the recognition I had fought so hard for.

Draped in white, her dark hair woven with delicate flowers—flowers I knew well. They came from Lucas’s personal garden, his favorite place. He had never given me flowers. Amethyst, his first love, had everything. I, his wife, got only what was left.

“Queen, the credit is yours, isn’t it?” my right-hand man asked, his voice tight with anger.

He knew the truth—how many sleepless nights I had spent commanding my servants to find the missing.

I smiled, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. He had stood by me since we were thirteen, and I knew he hated seeing me like this. But despite Lucas’s cruelty, despite his indifference, my heart still found a way to love him.

He didn’t.

Later that night, as Lucas left the gathering with Amethyst by his side, I called out, “Lucas…”

They both turned to face me. The celebration was over, and all I wanted was a moment—just a sliver of acknowledgment. Maybe even a greeting.

But I should have known better.

“Go to your chambers, Selene. I’m staying with Amethyst. We have something important to discuss,” he said dismissively, his tone void of any warmth.

With a flick of his hand, he dismissed me—like I was nothing. Like I wasn’t his wife.

Amethyst smirked, rolling her eyes as if I were pathetic. Triumph was etched across her face as she followed him.

Pain struck deep, sharp and suffocating. My vision blurred with unshed tears, but I stood frozen, foolishly hoping he would turn back. That he’d realize his mistake. That he’d at least remember my birthday.

But he didn’t.

Instead, his right-hand man approached, holding a goblet of thick, crimson blood.

“The King requests that you rest, my Queen. He instructed you to drink this. It will help you sleep peacefully.”

My fingers trembled as I took the cup. It nearly slipped from my grasp. I did not drink it. Not yet. Not when something inside me felt… wrong.

I made my way to Lucas’s office. The door was slightly ajar. He wasn’t inside. But beyond the grand bookshelf, the hidden passage to his private chamber was left open.

And when I looked inside—I saw them.

Lucas sat upon his throne. Amethyst was astride him, bare-skinned and writhing. Their bodies moved in perfect sync.

She moaned his name, nails digging into his flesh. He groaned in return, gripping her hips with the same possessiveness I had once longed for. The sounds of their pleasure echoed through the dimly lit room, slicing through the air like a cruel symphony.

The betrayal crashed into me, stealing the breath from my lungs. My body convulsed. My lips cracked, my chest tightened, and I felt the warmth of blood trickling from my nose. I could withstand this—I had withstood so much already. But not now. Not when I carried our child.

Tears blurred my vision. My heart screamed inside my chest. I looked down at the goblet still in my hands. Without hesitation, I raised it to my lips and swallowed it.

The blood was not a tonic.

It never had been. It was a potion. A carefully crafted remedy designed to suppress the effects of my husband’s infidelity. To numb the agony of my breaking soul. To silence the pain inside me as he stoked the flames of his passion with another woman.

“What are you doing here, Amethyst?” I asked coldly, my voice void of patience.

I hadn’t expected her. She’d never sought me out before, and I had no reason to entertain her now. Did she think I was like Lucas—always at her disposal?

“You look ugly to me,” she mocked, ignoring my question.

My glare hardened. How could everyone see her as sweet and innocent when she was anything but? A liar. A schemer. A wolf in sheep’s clothing. And my husband, blinded by her spell, refused to see it.

“At least I’m carrying his child,” I said smoothly, making sure she felt every bit of the jealousy she tried to hide.

Her expression darkened. She came to push me and hurt me.

“How dare you!” she shrieked, shoving me hard.

I gasped, pain searing my stomach. Seven months pregnant, and she did that on purpose.

Her eyes burned with jealousy and rage.

“You’re just a pawn,” she sneered. “He will never love you—never see you as his equal.”

She slowly unbuttoned her blouse, revealing the marks on her skin. My heart nearly stopped.

Love bites. Territorial marks. Possessiveness.

Lucas had left those marks—he had claimed her in a way he never claimed me.

Amethyst smirked, shoving me again, her touch dripping with venom.

“Do you know how he worships me every night—how he never thinks of you?” Then her hand struck my swollen belly. I gasped, stumbling back. She laughed. “Or this child. He hates that his bloodline starts with you. He wishes I were the one carrying his heir—”

“But you can’t,” I snapped. “No matter what you do, you’ll never give him what I can.”

Her breath hitched, her composure cracking.

With a strangled sob, she lunged, claws bared. I sidestepped, and she crashed to the floor.

“Aghh!” she screeched.

The doors burst open. Lucas stormed in, his eyes locking onto Amethyst, concern immediate.

He didn’t even glance at me.

“Amethyst, what happened?” he asked, rushing to her side.

And that’s when she pointed at me. I barely had time to react before he was on me.

“Selene! You’re making me do this!” he roared.

His hand seized my arm, yanking me forward before striking me across the face. My world spun. My body slammed against the wall. A cry of pain tore from my lips.

“And she told me she wants me out of your life, baby,” Amethyst added, her voice trembling with fake distress.

Lucas’s fury erupted. He dragged me into the bathroom, shoving me toward the tub. Before I could brace myself, he forced my head under the water.

I panicked! I struggled, my lungs burning as I fought for air.

“You wanted power, huh? You wanted to hurt Amethyst?” he growled above me.

He yanked me up. I gasped for breath, only for him to grab my chin—forcing me to meet his gaze.

“Should I kill you now so I’ll never have to deal with your nonsense again?”

I had always convinced myself that he could never truly harm me. That deep down, he would come to his senses—that he’d one day see me. Love me. Accept our marriage.

That he’d realize Amethyst was the monster, not me.

But I was wrong.

Because he didn’t stop.

He left me there, gasping for breath, drowning in the ruins of my own suffering.

-

“I... I don’t want to live in pain anymore,” I whispered, tears mingling with the blood pooling around me.

The ground beneath me darkened with my lifeblood. The ruin had claimed me. From the shadows, black souls rose. I watched—helpless, as they reached for my unborn child.

“No,” I sobbed. My precious baby.

The souls devoured him ruthlessly.

I looked up, praying—praying that my child would not feel the pain.

I heard a voice.

“Selene...”

I gasped. My eyes darted through the darkness. A crimson glow flickered before me, and from its depths, a figure emerged. A towering shadow with horns, his presence felt dangerous to me.

“Your heart aches for vengeance, Selene,” the figure murmured.

A broken sob escaped me. I had no fight left. Nothing left to defend. All I wanted—all I needed—was for Lucas and Amethyst to suffer.

“But I can’t, can I?” My thoughts bled into the silence. “I’m dead.”

The shadow chuckled, its voice laced with echoes of the damned.

“You can,” it whispered. “I offer vengeful souls one last chance.”

My heart clenched with fragile hope. If I stayed here, I’d never be reborn—never be loved again.

The shadow leaned in.

“I will give you twenty days,” it murmured, “to make him regret, to make him suffer. If he mourns, loves, and begs for you within that time, your body will come back to life but only to—” the shadow’s voice darkened—“make him kill you willingly.”

I shuddered. It seemed impossible.

How could a mere soul break a man as heartless as Lucas?

But if I had to return to the one who destroyed me, I would.

For one reason.

“I want my son to be born again through me in my next life.”

The shadow chuckled darkly.

“As long as you make him regret. Love you. And beg for your forgiveness. Within twenty days.”

Then everything went black.

When the light returned, I was standing in front of Lucas’s chamber, where he slept peacefully—unbothered—unaware.

Tomorrow, he would wake to the news of my death.

And my ghost will lurk here to see him suffer.

"Alpha, you must see this!" The urgent voice—broke the silence in the meeting room.

Everyone was there—the Beta, the Delta, and Amethyst, clinging possessively to my husband. Those in power let her, knowing that as his wife and queen, I had no authority to stop it.

She acted as if she were his rightful wife, while I was just a pawn, necessary to keep the kingdom from crumbling. The Lycans were loyal to their own kind.

And I—I was a vampire, an outsider they believed would betray them the moment I had the chance.

Perhaps that was why my husband never cared to be close to me. He saw me as they did.

"Julio, what is so important that you had to disrupt this meeting?" Lucas asked, irritated.

Julio, the mediator between our races, looked pained. He hesitated before speaking.

"Are you not going to check on the queen at the ruins?"

Lucas scoffed. "Must I? This early? I’ll deal with her tonight."

Julio’s face darkened. "But Alpha, the ruins are cursed. You need to see what has happened."

Lucas' irritation flared, but his Beta, Leo, cleared his throat.

"Postpone this and go to her, Lucas. She carries your first heir," Leo urged.

My husband cursed under his breath. Amethyst tightened her grip on him, then spoke with feigned concern.

"Go to her, hon. Don’t be so harsh. I understand how she must feel," she said softly, even managing a smile.

Lucas sighed, then leaned down and kissed her. In front of everyone.

"I’ll be back," he promised her. "And I’ll make sure she learns her lesson this time."

He left with Julio. I followed, my chest heavy. Even as my death loomed, my husband felt nothing.

The ruins stood in a desolate part of the forest, a place no one dared enter.

"Alpha, the ruins are cursed," Julio said, his tone accusatory. "How could you leave the queen and your heir here?"

Lucas growled. "She’s tied up. She can’t hurt herself. But if she did something to the child just to spite me…" His voice turned lethal. "She’ll get what she deserves."

A ghost cannot cry, but the way my soul drifted between cold and warmth told me I had been destroyed—again.

When Lucas opened the door, he staggered back, coughing at the overwhelming stench. He covered his nose, looking up.

"Selene! What the hell did you do here?! Did you—" His words froze.

I stood before him, barely recognizable. My skin clung to my bones, my body hollowed out like a lifeless husk.

The ruins devoured those trapped within them.

"Selene?" Disbelief tinged his voice.

Then his gaze sharpened. "Is this an act? Where is Selene? I won’t fall for her tricks!"

I wrapped my arms around myself. I had once been strong, untouchable. And now? I was nothing. And still, he blamed me.

"Alpha, look at this…" Julio knelt beside the bloodstained floor.

The remains of my child. Frail—Empty—was there.

"I think the queen gave birth inside the ruins… and it killed both of them," Julio murmured.

Lucas turned quite—his eyes flickered between my corpse—the blood—and our lifeless child.

Was he angry? At me? At himself? Or… was he relieved? We’re dead.

"Alpha?" Julio’s voice broke the silence. "What do we do now? The queen is dead. You have no heir. The vampires will turn against us."

My jaw clenched. They wouldn’t. I had sacrificed everything for peace—even my life. They’d not waste it.

Lucas exhaled. "Gather the men," he ordered, calm. "Bury them properly. I will make the announcement myself."

Julio hesitated. "Alpha… are you not going to hold either of them before their funeral?"

Lucas glared.

"Selene was a headache," he muttered. "It’s better this way. And that child… would’ve been a burden. This is karma. She got what she deserved."

As he turned away, I felt a presence behind me.

"You still want to go through with our deal?" the demon’s voice slithered in my ear.

I met its gaze—exhausted.

"If the only way to make him regret my death is to use everything I did for him—every sacrifice I made—against him," I whispered, "then I will."

I would not let my child’s soul be trapped here. I would not let this be the end.

—

"The queen is dead. She did not survive childbirth," Lucas announced before the council.

Gasps filled the room. I saw Leo stiffen in shock. Even Amethyst knew the cause of my death—they all did.

The murmurs grew loud. But amid the chaos, my right-hand man stepped forward. The room fell silent.

Instead of spitting curses, he handed Lucas an envelope—one I had prepared long ago.

"I know of your cruelty toward the queen," he said coldly. "She wanted everything hidden beneath the terror of your marriage, but look at you—you seem pleased she’s dead."

Lucas sneered. "And so what?"

My right hand smirked. "Then see for yourself how your reign was never yours alone. It wasn’t just because of you." His gaze flickered to Amethyst. "Not even because of another woman."

He leaned in. "The queen made you. And her death… will cripple you."

Lucas stiffened. He studied my right hand, as if sensing something unnatural.

And then, without a word, I stepped out of my right hand’s body.

He inhaled sharply—acted confused now.

I smiled.

"I'm sorry," I whispered into the air. "But I had to possess someone—to make sure he’ll discover everything now."