Chapter 6 Shivana's Secret

📖 Moonblooded: The Alpha's Cursed Mate

Chapter 4: Shivana's Secret (Part 1)

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The mirror didn't lie.

Shivana stood in Kade's bathroom, a silk robe draped around her shoulders, her damp hair clinging to her skin. Moonlight spilled through the high window, bathing her in silver. She turned slowly, baring her shoulder to the glass.

The mark was still there - faint but glowing - like it had soaked into her very soul.

Her fingers brushed the edge of it.

It wasn't just a curse. Not anymore.

It felt like... a warning.

A door in her memory had cracked open since the ritual. Little flashes, like broken film reels, haunted her every time she closed her eyes.

> A woman screaming. A voice whispering her name in a language she didn't know. A bloodstained letter with a royal seal she'd never seen before.

And then, the most vivid image of all - a pair of glowing silver eyes staring at her as she was hidden beneath floorboards, too young to even remember her own name.

She pressed her palms flat against the counter, trying to breathe. The air was thick with heat, and her heart was hammering in her chest. This wasn't just about the mark anymore. Something had been buried inside her.

Something powerful.

Something forbidden.

A knock interrupted her spiral.

"Are you decent?" Kade's voice came through the door - low, careful.

She rolled her eyes. "Define decent."

The door opened a sliver. He stepped in, eyes sweeping over her once - then quickly away.

"I didn't mean to interrupt."

"You never do," she said dryly, pulling the robe tighter around her. "Is this another lecture, Alpha?"

"No." He walked toward the window, keeping his back to her. "This is a warning."

"Oh?" She tilted her head. "Do enlighten me."

Kade exhaled slowly. "The Elders know you've awakened. They've sent word to the other Packs."

Shivana's stomach dropped. "So now I'm public enemy number one?"

"Not yet." He turned toward her. "But they're scared of you."

"They should be," she said before she could stop herself. "I'm scared of me."

His eyes narrowed. "What did you see?"

She hesitated. "Memories. Flashes of something I shouldn't remember. And a symbol... carved into a stone altar. A crown made of bone. My name... written in blood."

Kade's expression shifted.

"You've seen the Crest of the Lost House," he said, his voice rough. "That symbol was erased from all records centuries ago."

"Why?" she whispered.

"Because the Lost House was cursed by the Moon Goddess herself. They were accused of treason... of practicing dark magic. The prophecy of the Final Flame began with their fall."

Shivana stepped forward. "And what if I'm their descendant?"

He didn't answer. He didn't need to.

The silence told her everything.

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📖 Moonblooded: The Alpha's Cursed Mate

Chapter 4: Shivana's Secret (Part 2)

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Kade didn't speak for a long time. He stood at the window, fists clenched so tightly his knuckles turned white. The silence between them was heavy - but not empty.

It carried fear.

It carried truth.

It carried memories neither of them fully understood.

Shivana crossed the room and stood beside him. "What aren't you telling me?"

He looked at her finally. Really looked. And something flickered in his eyes - a mix of recognition and warning.

"You said you remember silver eyes," he said slowly. "Did they glow?"

"Yes," she whispered.

He stepped closer, lowering his voice. "Then it wasn't a vision."

She frowned. "What do you mean?"

"That wasn't your memory," he said. "It was someone else's. A psychic echo. The mark... it connects you to more than just me. It connects you to the bloodline that bore it first. To their pain. Their power. Their... enemies."

Shivana's chest tightened. "So I'm not just cursed. I'm haunted."

"More than that." He paused, voice dropping to a rasp. "You might be... the last heir of the Lost House."

Her breath caught.

"The one the prophecy speaks of," he continued. "The Final Flame, meant to awaken when the moon is closest to death. When the Alpha's bond to his mate is forged in blood and pain."

"But I wasn't born in a royal house," she argued. "I was raised in the dirt. Alone. Forgotten."

"Exactly," Kade said. "You were hidden."

A sick feeling twisted in her stomach. "By who?"

"Someone who knew what you were. Someone who wanted to keep the packs from finding you."

She stepped back, trying to breathe, but the room felt too small now.

"I don't want this," she said. "I don't want to be some cursed heir or prophecy girl."

"I didn't want to be mated to a woman who might burn down the entire kingdom," Kade said flatly. "But here we are."

Their eyes met - anger meeting understanding, resistance clashing with reluctant acceptance.

Then... a crack.

Not in the walls.

In her.

A tremor ran through her spine, and the mark on her shoulder flared, brighter than ever before.

"No," Kade said sharply. "Don't move."

"What's happening-?" she gasped.

Magic surged through her body - hot, ancient, and untamed. The room darkened. The fire dimmed.

And suddenly, a figure formed in the shadows - feminine, cloaked in mist, her voice a whisper.

> "Child of flame... daughter of betrayal... the time has come."

Shivana's heart stopped.

Kade stepped between her and the phantom, growling low. "She's not ready. Stay back."

But the spirit laughed - soft, mournful. "She is more ready than you ever were."

Then - it vanished.

The light returned.

Shivana sank to the floor, shaking.

"What the hell was that?" she breathed.

Kade dropped to one knee beside her. "Your blood. It's starting to call the dead."

She looked at him, eyes wide, lips trembling. "I'm not strong enough for this."

"You don't have a choice anymore," he said softly. "But you're not alone."

She blinked.

And for the first time, she believed him.