The Ivory Queen
Chapter 60

***Aurora’s POV***

I wake up to the sound of Oliver’s stupid alarm going off. I got very little sleep last night, the thought of forming my own Kingdom terrifying me to my core. I was not a Queen. I could not possible handle the pressure of leading a bunch of packs and their alphas. I still didn’t think I was good enough to be Luna of River Moon!

As we get dressed, Oliver notices my growing anxiety and tries to comfort me.

“You’re very cute when you frown but you’re ten times prettier when you smile,” he teases, cupping my cheeks in his hands and kissing the tip of my nose. His stupid comment brings a smile to my face and my cheeks tinge red. “Look at the smile!” he chuckles. “Beautiful.”

“I scrunch up my nose and try to pull away but he holds me in place and presses his lips against mine.

“We have to go,” I murmur.

“Just a few more seconds please,” he says, kissing me softly and I start to melt in his arms. “I can’t wait to see your wolf.”

“Me too,” I say giving him one last k**s before pulling away. “Now let’s go. Moon Goddess awaits.”

We meet Celina and my tia in the lobby of the hotel and drive deep into the woods. Luckily for us, it stopped snowing earlier in the morning and so the night is peaceful and quiet.

We pull over and walk into woods, replaceing a clearing nearby. My stomach is in knots and Celina takes my hand. Valentina orders Oliver to remain in his human form while she goes behind a tree to shift. Her silver wolf has gorgeous turquoise eyes just like Emiliano and I fight back tears as she comes closer. The silver fur on her body has a metallic gleam to it and I’m reminded just how beautiful silver wolves are. Her eyes begin to glow and she multiplies before our eyes. Soon there are at least 15 identical copies of herself and they encircle is, keeping guard while Oliver remains outside the circle, also on high alert.

“Ok, Aurora. It’s time,” Celina says, taking a huge gulp of air and releasing it.

We begin to undress, leaving only our medallions hanging on our necks and hold hands when we’re finished. Celina stares at the scars on my body for a second, her eyes glued to the target shaped scar on my stomach. Tears well up in her eyes.

“What did they do to you?” she whimpers.

I give her hand a squeeze, forcing her to look up at me and I give her a reassuring smile. “I’m ok,” I mouth and she nods her understanding. Despite the snow, I’m not cold at all.

Just relax, Reyna encourages. Focus on the earth to activate your element.

Taking a deep breath, I close my eyes to concentrate. I focus on the trees surrounding us and feel an overwhelming sense of peace wash over me. I feel the frozen ground beneath my feet, visualizing every grain of earth. Suddenly, a jolt of energy flows between Celina and I, forcing me to open my eyes.

The snow covered forest is replaced by a gorgeous green pasture and we see a forest out in the distance with a river flowing by it. Celina and I are still holding hands but are no longer nude. Our feet are bare while plain white dresses hang off our shoulders. Above our heads, the floating fire and water orbs dance in unison.

Where is Moon Goddess?” I ask, looking around tentatively.

“I don’t know,” Celina shrugs before pulling on my hand. “Let’s go to the stream. I don’t know why but I feel like that’s the way to go.”

We walk for a few minutes across the pasture, stopping at the edge of the forest next to the stream. A gentle breeze flows through the trees and a beautiful voice whispers our names.

“Aurora…. Celina…”

Suddenly a beautiful woman appears standing in the water. Her silky black hair flows freely in the wind and her creamy pale skin glistens in the moonlight. She wears a white dress with pretty blue designs on the hems and is also barefoot.

***Aurora’s POV***

I wake up to the sound of Oliver’s stupid alarm going off. I got very little sleep last night, the thought of forming my own Kingdom terrifying me to my core. I was not a Queen. I could not possible handle the pressure of leading a bunch of packs and their alphas. I still didn’t think I was good enough to be Luna of River Moon!

“Hello Aurora. Hello Celina,” She says, her voice smooth and velvety.

We instinctively kneel before her. “Hello Moon Goddess,” we reply in unison.

“You may stand,” she chuckles and we both jump to our feet. She smiles brilliantly at us and I can’t help but blush.

She’s so pretty.

“You have waited many years for this day,” she says with a sad smile on her face. “Unfortunately, evil has kept you apart.”

“It’s alright, Moon Goddess. We’re together now and that’s all that matters,” I reply quietly.

“Such kindness in your eyes, Aurora. I’m glad the pain could not take that from you,” she smiles, turning to Celina. “Your hope never faltered, Celina. You held onto hope that you’d see her again. That’s beautiful.

Your lives were plagued with hardships you should have never endured alone but I created you to be strong and resilient. Your kindness and your hope have kept you from growing bitter and cruel and I am truly proud of you. But your journey is not finished. You must both learn to face your past before you can take on your roles as guardians. So what better way to do it than together?”

I’m nervous now. There are a lot of things I would rather not face again.

Moon Goddess smiles at us. “It seems both of you are frightened but there is nothing to fear. The past has already happened. I only ask that you learn to deal with the things that have happened to you. We’ll start with Aurora.”

She grabs both of our hands and a large white flash blinds our eyes for a split second. When our vision returns, I start to cry with horror as I realize where we are.

We’re inside my house, my old house in Lluvia Blanca. On the night it all began. I hold back a sob as Emiliano appears into view, furiously looking through the drawers and cabinets for something. I’m startled when I hear Emiliano’s thoughts.

“We can hear his thoughts?” I ask Celina who looks equally confused.

“Where did Karina put it? I know she’s upset about this trip but she has no right taking Aurora’s medallion and her mother’s letter!” Emiliano thinks as he continues to search for it.

Karina took the box even before he died?

A very confused and sleepy 12 year old me comes tip toeing down the stairs carrying a suitcase. Just as I remember, he absentmindedly instructs me to go outside and wait in the car.

We follow my younger self out to the car but I steal one more glance at Emiliano as I know it’s the last time I’ll see him alive. Younger me grumbles about wanting to go back to sleep as she shoves her suitcase in the car when the all too familiar rustling sound of the trees startle her.

We watch as the rogues surround younger me. Emiliano comes running out, his thoughts full of fear.

“No, mi niña no!” He cries as he shifts quickly and jumps to my rescue.

I close my eyes, not wanting to see how he was killed but Celina shakes me. “You need to see it. She wants you to see it.”

I open my eyes and watch as Emiliano fights off the Rogues. Younger me is curled up on the floor, eyes tightly closed and mouth clamped shut.

I run up to her and scream. “Open you eyes! Scream! Call for help! Don’t just sit there! They’re going to kill him!”

Celina grabs my arms and pulls me back. “She can’t hear you, Aurora. Just watch.”

The rogues are highly skilled, narrowly avoiding Emiliano’s attacks. Finally, one manages to sneak up on him and pounces on top of him while two more tear into his front paws and knock him to the ground. A fourth Rogue sinks it’s canines into his throat. The other rogues step away, knowing he’ll bleed out on his own. Younger me opens her eyes and screams, effectively sending the rogues scrambling to avoid being caught. My younger self curls up next to Emiliano and weeps, staining herself in his b***d.

His mind is so clouded but we manage to her his last thoughts “I’m so sorry mija. I love you.”

I let out a scream when I realize his last thoughts were of me. I run up to younger Aurora and screech in her ear. “Why didn’t you scream? Why didn’t you save him?” I cry, falling to my knees and grabbing Emiliano’s fur.

“You couldn’t have saved him Aurora! This was not your fault. Look at me,” Celina says, kneeling beside me and cupping my cheeks. “You can’t blame yourself for this. This was not your fault!”

“It’s my fault,”I mutter, refusing to believe her and Celina k****s my cheek.

“No, it’s really not,” she reassures.

The nightmare is not over, however, and we hear Karina and Chava rush out of the house. Her b***d curdling screams send shivers down my spine and her thoughts become overwhelmingly loud.

“No! You were supposed to stay inside! I hid the box so you would stay inside! It should have been her, not you! You weren’t supposed to die, she was!” She thinks as she weeps over Emiliano’s corpse. “My babies… now what am I going to do? Oh Goddess, what have I done?”

As her thoughts register, Moon Goddess brings us back to the stream.

“She knew about the Rogues,” I say through gritted teeth, still kneeling on the ground. “She was … she was working for Tais…She-She killed him and she let me take the blame!”

My head is about to explode with anger and something else and I want to scream. My breathing becomes labored as I struggle to get air into my lungs.

“She knew…” I’m whimper. “Karina…. never loved me….s-she….didn’t want me….”

There’s a lump in my throat and I fight to contain my pain.

“Let it out, my child. Don’t hold back,” Moon Goddess reassures. “You have just learned that the only mother you ever knew was not only aware of the truth of that night but also helped orchestrate it. She tortured you willingly.”

A small sob escapes my throat as I struggle to breathe.

“She took Emiliano from you. Your brother, your sister, your pack. Everything. She betrayed you. She betrayed Emiliano.”

I scream at the water.

“What do you feel?” Moon goddess asks.

“I-I don’t know ! I don’t know!” I scream. “I’m angry!”

“Why?”

“Because I still love her!” I reply truthfully. “Because I thought it was my fault that he’s dead! Because I’m just angry at…. everything!”

Another sob rolls through me and I wrap my arms around myself, rocking back and forth.

“Commit to this moment, Aurora. You are coming to terms with your past. You were just a child and yet your pack painted you as the villain. For years, they called you a murderer and while you adamantly denied it, a part of you believed it to be true. You thought the only thing you deserved was pain and you took it willingly from them. You grew up in that basement, forgetting what it felt like to be loved. But my child, the night you’ve spent the past five years blaming yourself for … happened through no fault of your own. You could do nothing to change the outcome. Karina may not have loved you but you were loved nonetheless. Emiliano never left you. He gave you his strength and his courage to forgive and live in his absence. Never forget what he taught you. You could do nothing to save him. You were not his killer, you were just his little girl.”

I let out a sorrowful wail that rumbles through the trees, pain pouring out of my heart. I weep for what seems like an eternity until I have not more tears left to shed. I heave and pant, sucking in air until my lungs feel content. An sense of peace slowly starts to wash over me and I muster up the strength to look Moon Goddess in the eyes. She smiles at me.

“I’m free,” I whisper.