The Forsaken Luna's Return With the Alpha's Hidden Twins

Camille POV:

"Hold her down!"

A royal guard's bark cut through the ringing in my ears as my forehead smashed into freezing white marble.

Copper flooded my mouth. Two pairs of iron-clad hands crushed my shoulders to the floor.

"Sister... why did you push me into the frozen lake?"

The trembling voice came from the dais. Through tangled silver hair, I looked up.

Alyse Zimmerman stood in the arms of a towering, dark-haired man, a handkerchief pressed to her lips, tears rehearsed to perfection as she clutched her belly.

Sneers rippled through the court. Everyone knew Alyse was the favored consort-the frail beauty who'd supposedly saved the King's life. Me? The unwanted bride pawned off by a fallen house.

"Did you truly hate my unborn pup so much... that you would drown us both?"

I shook my head frantically, shackles clinking against stone.

Heavy boots echoed across the hall. Diego Byrd-Alpha King of the Western Wilds-descended the dais, power rolling off him in crushing waves.

He stopped before me. His leather-gloved hand seized my jaw, fingers digging in hard enough to crush bone.

"You venomous, wolfless creature." His voice was ice. "Alyse nearly froze to death saving my life. You owe her your existence. Yet you dared lay your filthy hands on her."

Pain lanced through my jaw. I forced my spine straight and met his golden-black glare head-on.

"I did not push her." I rasped. "She jumped into the shallows herself, you blind, arrogant fool."

A vicious flash sparked in his eyes. Without breaking eye contact, he held out his free hand. A servant placed a silver chalice into his palm.

Inside, a dark green liquid bubbled. The stench of concentrated wolfsbane and moon-nettle turned my stomach.

My healer's instincts screamed.

That was no ordinary poison. It was a sterilizing draught-blended to shred a female's reproductive meridians beyond repair.

"NO!"

I thrashed, kicking desperately at the chalice. Diego didn't flinch. His knee slammed across my thighs, crushing me into the marble.

"Since your heart is so black," he snarled, forcing my jaw open, "you are unworthy of ever carrying royal blood."

He tipped the chalice.

Scalding poison poured down my throat.

Liquid fire ripped down my esophagus. I choked, coughed, the vile concoction spilling past my lips onto my torn white gown. Agonizing heat tore through my lower abdomen, as though molten iron twisted through every organ.

I curled in on myself, clawing at the marble until my nails ripped clean off.

Diego stared down at me as if I were filth beneath his boot. He wiped his gloved hand clean, turned, and pulled the weeping Alyse into his chest.

"By my Alpha King's command," his voice rang out, glacial and absolute, "Camille is stripped of her Luna title. Drag this wolfless waste to the Abandoned Tower on the northern cliff. Let her rot there until the end of her days."

Guards seized my battered arms and hauled me backwards across the gleaming hall.

I bit down hard on the inside of my lip until I tasted blood. I refused-absolutely refused-to let a single whimper slip free.

Through the tangled mess of my hair, I glared daggers into Diego's broad, unrelenting back.

Laughter and jeers chased me down the colonnade.

The moment they tossed me through the rusted gates of the desolate tower, my knees scraped raw against broken stone. The iron door slammed shut with a boom that shook the walls. Chains rattled into place, swallowing the last sliver of moonlight.

In pitch blackness, I pressed trembling hands to my cramping stomach.

The poison was tearing me apart from the inside.

But just as darkness began to drag me under, a gentle white radiance surged to life within my consciousness.

My inner spiritual realm burst open.

There, the sacred healing spring of the Moon Goddess bubbled forth, flooding my meridians with pure, luminous water. It rushed through me, neutralizing every trace of toxin and knitting my broken body back together piece by piece.

And as the poison faded, something deeper stirred-a faint, white pulse buried in my core. My wolf. Not dead. Only sleeping.

From that night on, that sacred spring remained within me-a quiet sanctuary I could enter at will, where time slowed and my body and spirit could heal.

Five years later.

Golden morning light spilled through the narrow, high window, illuminating the spotlessly swept stone floor and bundles of dried herbs swaying from the rafters.

I stood before a cracked bronze mirror, running my fingers over my cheek.

The scars from that night had long since vanished.

Staring back at me was the face of a true White Wolf royal-porcelain skin, luminous ice-blue eyes, features striking enough to bring empires to their knees.

"Mommy! Look at the new weapon I made!"

I turned with a smile.

In the corner, four-year-old Juliette Byrd tugged proudly at the leather strap of a crudely-made slingshot, dark hair in two bouncy pigtails, obsidian eyes sparkling with mischief.

Behind her, clutching a comically oversized black iron soup pot like a shield, was her twin sister, Adell Byrd. Soft curls framed wide, worried eyes.

The sterilizing draught had failed miserably.

The Moon Goddess' spring had protected the royal twins I'd already been carrying that cursed night.

I crouched down, tucking a loose curl behind Adell's ear.

"Tonight," I said quietly, "we leave. All three of us. We'll slip past the outer wall before the moon rises."

Juliette's eyes lit up. Adell clutched her pot tighter.

"Where will we go, Mommy?" Adell whispered.

"South. Past the river. Somewhere he'll never find us."

I turned back to the wash basin to rinse the morning herbs, my mind already mapping the escape route.

Less than ten minutes later, I glanced over my shoulder.

The room was empty.

My heart slammed into my throat.

The heavy back door hung slightly ajar, letting the frigid northern wind howl through the crack.

On the table sat a scrap of parchment. Juliette's messy drawing-a lopsided little wolf toy, with a crooked arrow pointing outside. Underneath, one wobbly word: BACK.

Adell's carved wooden wolf-the first toy I'd ever made her, the one she never slept without-was gone from her pillow.

I bolted outside, following two tiny sets of footprints through the mud-straight towards the ancient, moss-covered outer wall.

Before I could reach them, the unmistakable clink of steel plate and the menacing growl of a war wolf rang out from the other side.

Camille POV:

I skidded to a halt at the base of the ten-foot stone wall.

A curtain of dead ivy hung over the weathered rock-clearly the exact route my two reckless girls had used to scale it.

Beyond the barrier, armored boots crunched against stone. Mail clinked in perfect formation.

Not a casual patrol. The royal vanguard.

I hauled myself up a gnarled old oak leaning against the wall, ignoring the sting of scraped knuckles, and flattened against the ledge, peering through withered branches.

Below, a dozen silver-armored knights had formed a tight ring.

Trapped in the middle were my girls.

Juliette stood with tiny boots planted in front of Adell, slingshot pulled taut, dark eyes glaring up fearlessly at the towering warriors.

Behind her, Adell sniffled quietly, clutching her sister's tunic. Her little iron pot lay forgotten on the cobbles.

"Stay back!" Juliette barked, voice high but bristling with authority. "Don't you dare touch my sister!"

The circle parted.

Diego strode through the mist, draped in a heavy black fur mantle over broad, plated shoulders.

Even from fifteen yards, the suffocating weight of his Alpha presence crashed into me, locking my body up.

Diego narrowed his golden-black eyes, studying the two mud-caked children blocking his path. A deep furrow formed between his brows.

Juliette didn't flinch. She aimed the leather pouch dead center between his eyes.

My heart stopped.

She was aiming straight at the most ruthless warlord on the continent.

Yet Diego made no move to draw steel. He simply stared, a flicker of genuine bewilderment crossing his harsh features.

As though some unseen, primal thread was tugging him toward the tiny girl defying him.

"Insolence!" A guard strode forward, gauntleted hand outstretched. "Where did these rogue runts come from?! Lower your weapon before the Alpha King!"

Snap!

Juliette let loose.

The river stone cracked squarely against the guard's knuckles. He hissed, jerking his hand back.

Diego lifted a single hand, halting the guard mid-draw. His gaze remained locked on Juliette's fierce little face, something unreadable glinting in his eyes.

Then, with startling swiftness, he reached down.

Gripping each by the collar, he hoisted both girls clean off the ground like a pair of scrappy kittens.

"Bad man! Put me DOWN! I want my Mommy!" Adell wailed, kicking frantically.

The second the word 'Mommy' left her lips, the faint intrigue on Diego's face turned to glacial disgust.

He was absolutely convinced he'd watched me swallow that sterilizing draught five years ago. There was no possible way these children could be of royal blood.

"How in the blazes are there pups near the Abandoned Tower?" Diego demanded coldly. "Some filthy rogue must've snuck past the perimeter and bred in the ruins."

"You're the filthy one!" Juliette spat, thrashing wildly.

She twisted in midair, bared her tiny white teeth, and sank them deep into Diego's right wrist.

Diego grunted. The old scar on his wrist split open, a bead of crimson welling around her teeth.

But he didn't drop her.

Instead, a low, dark chuckle rumbled from his chest.

"Sharp teeth for a runt." He wiped the blood away with his thumb, a dangerous glint of amusement dancing in his golden eyes. "You've got the temper of a war wolf."

Up in the tree, my nails dug so deep into the bark they threatened to split.

I could NOT let him take them back to the keep. If they were dragged into the dungeons, they'd be interrogated, restrained, thrown in chains without hesitation.

I slid my hand into my sleeve, curling my fingers around three silver-tipped needles laced with potent paralytic venom. I was fully prepared to leap down.

But Diego suddenly froze.

His head snapped toward the withered oak, predator senses catching the faint rustle of fabric.

I sucked in a breath and went utterly still, pressing flat against the cold stone until my ribs screamed.

"Something wrong, Your Majesty?" the captain asked, hand tightening around his pommel.

Diego stared intently at the swaying branches, jaw clenching tight.

"Change of plans." His voice dropped to a menacing growl. "Carry them straight into the Abandoned Tower. And bring that pot-the little one seems fond of it."

A guard scooped up the iron soup pot from the cobbles, looking faintly ridiculous as he tucked it under one arm alongside his spear.

Ice flooded my veins.

He wasn't taking them to the keep. He was bringing them straight into my sanctuary.

I could not let him see my restored face. I could not let him learn the truth of their birth. Not now.

Slipping down the old oak as fast and silently as I could, I gathered my skirts and sprinted through the overgrown courtyard toward the tower's heavy front entrance.

The second I slipped inside and slammed the inner door shut behind me, panting harshly, the rusted outer gate groaned open with an earsplitting screech.

Camille POV:

I snatched the oldest, most threadbare gray cloak off its peg and threw it over my head, yanking the hood down to shroud every inch of my face in shadow. My hands were still trembling.

Then the tower doors were shoved open with brutal force, sending decades of dust billowing into the entry hall.

Steel-plated boots thundered in. Torchlight ripped through the quiet I'd known for five years.

I pressed my back to the inner archway, fingers wrapping tight around the three venom-coated needles in my sleeve.

Diego strode in, swatting cobwebs aside with one hand while still holding the girls by their collars. He set them down none-too-gently onto the worn rug.

"Let us GO, you stinking monster!" Juliette shrieked, kicking at his greaves.

Diego ignored her, golden eyes sweeping over the clean shelves and neatly stacked dried lavender.

"Seems you've been living quite comfortably in this rat hole, Camille." His deep voice dripped disdain.

I took a slow breath and stepped from the shadows, head bowed low.

"To what do I owe the honor of the Alpha King invading my exile?"

The moment Adell heard my voice, she bolted across the floor and threw her arms around my legs, burying her tear-streaked face in my skirts.

"Mommy... he's scary..."

Juliette darted to my side, puffing out her chest like an enraged little wolf pup, glaring up at the giant with every ounce of loathing she could muster.

Diego's entire demeanor shifted at the word 'Mommy'. His jaw locked, eyes narrowing to razor-sharp slits, his suffocating Alpha aura bearing down on me.

"Look at me." Authority rang in every syllable.

I kept my gaze fixed on the mud-caked toes of his boots.

"A ruined, disfigured woman has no desire to offend Your Majesty's delicate eyes."

"I SAID. Look. At. Me."

His gloved hand shot out, snatching the edge of my hood and ripping it backwards.

The heavy fabric fell away.

A waterfall of luminous silver-white hair spilled over my shoulders, gleaming like liquid moonlight beneath the torchlight.

Diego froze.

All the fury drained from his face, replaced by sheer shock. His pupils blew wide, the gold nearly swallowed whole.

No rotting sores. No twisted scars. No ruin whatsoever.

Before him stood a woman of ethereally flawless beauty. Porcelain skin, high sculpted cheekbones, ice-blue eyes blazing with frigid defiance.

He stumbled back half a step, breath catching audibly in his throat.

"Your face..." he rasped. "That's... impossible."

A cold, mirthless smirk tugged at my lips. I met his stunned gaze unflinchingly.

"I apologize for disappointing you, Your Majesty. Not only did I survive your poison... my face healed quite nicely."

His gaze dropped from my face to the two little girls clinging to my skirts. The shock morphed into volcanic rage.

"Five years ago, I poured wolfsbane down your throat myself!" he snarled, jabbing a finger toward Juliette. "You could NEVER bear young! Your womb is dead!"

My heart thundered, but I kept my expression carved from ice. Let him cling to his arrogance. It would blind him all the more.

"The facts are standing right in front of you." I shifted to shield my daughters behind me. "They are my flesh and blood."

"WHOSE are they?!"

Diego lunged, massive hands clamping onto my shoulders with bruising force. He shook me hard, face inches from mine.

"Tell me, you shameless creature!" he roared, making the rafters rattle. "Which filthy wanderer did you spread your legs for in this ruin?! Whose BASTARDS are these?!"

Every ounce of pain from that night came roaring back tenfold. The cold chalice. His sneer. Five years of isolation.

"Let. Go. Of. ME!"

He only tightened his grip.

I didn't hesitate.

I drew back my right hand and slapped him. Hard.

The crack of palm against cheek echoed through the stone tower like a whip.

Diego's head whipped to the side.

The two guards by the doorway froze in absolute horror.

Not once in the history of the Western Wilds had anyone dared strike the Alpha King and lived to speak of it.

Slowly, Diego turned his head back to me. A vivid red handprint blazed across his chiseled jaw, his golden eyes igniting with murderous intent.