Chapter 28
Apr 30, 2025
Lyra (Seraphina)
The sound of my signature sealing yet another royal decree echoed through the polished chamber.
“Next,” I said, sliding the scroll aside.
The next document was placed before me by a trembling advisor. He no longer asked questions. They all had learned: I didn’t stall, I didn’t hesitate. I decided, and things got done.
My court, my council, and my kingdom now stood firm under my rule. I didn’t need to raise my voice to be heard. I didn’t need to bare fangs to command respect. I was Alpha Queen now.
And my wolf? She walked with her head high, fierce but composed. No longer hidden. No longer broken.
It had been four days since Lucien showed up at my gates in the middle of a thunderstorm, soaked and desperate. I’d heard he didn’t leave. Not once. He’d camped outside the gates, refusing food, speaking to no one.
I didn’t go to him. Let him feel what silence tastes like. Let him stand in the rain like I once stood in shame. But now… my guards came forward, unsure.
“My Queen,” one of them said quietly. “Lucien Asher is here. . Under armed watch.”
I didn’t flinch. I simply nodded.
“Bring him in.”
The doors to my grand office creaked open, and the sound of his footsteps hit like a drum in my chest.
I didn’t raise my eyes at first. I finished signing the decree in front of me with one final flick of my pen, then looked up.
He stood at the threshold, soaked clothes exchanged for clean ones, but his face looked worn. Haunted.
Lucien Asher.
The male who used to rule rooms with his silence. Now stood still like a ghost.
I sat behind my desk, crown tilted slightly, shoulders square. My navy robes fell around me like midnight. My fingers were steepled on the desk as I stared at him with the eyes of a ruler—not the heart of a girl.
“You have one minute, Lucien,” I said.
He didn’t speak right away. He swallowed once, then stepped forward. “You’re everything I didn’t deserve,” he said softly.
The sentence fell between us like a stone in water. And I didn’t hesitate.
“Then don’t come back,” I replied sharply.
He flinched, just a little. But he held my gaze. “I’m not here to get you back,” he said. “I’m here to earn you.”
My breath caught. But I didn’t let it show. My wolf shifted behind my eyes, calm but alert.
“Words mean nothing now,” I said.
“I know.”
I stood slowly, walking around the desk until I was only a breath away from him. He smelled like rain and regret. The same male who once spat cold truths now stood waiting for mine.
I didn’t soften.
I stepped past him and pushed open the doors. “Come.”
He followed in silence as I led him through the palace corridors—walls lined with banners of my house, the scent of history thick in the air.
Every step I took, I felt the weight of who I’d become. Every step he took, I wondered if he realized it.
When we reached the outer steps of the palace, I stopped. The sun peeked through gray clouds above, casting light on the cobbled courtyard below.
I turned to him, eyes locked on his.
“You want me?” I said.
He nodded once. “Yes.”
“Then prove it,” I said. “With actions. With effort. Not just apologies whispered in my halls. I am not the girl you left behind, Lucien. I am not yours by law or arrangement anymore.”
“I know that,” he said quietly.
I stepped closer. “Then show me. Show me who you are without the Alpha title. Show me you want me, not the role beside me.”
