All Chapters of The Forgotten Heiress: Rise of The Lycan Queen: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

The first thing Elara noticed when she reached the edge of the forest was the sound.Or rather, the absence of it.No birdsong. No wind. Not even the hum of faraway traffic. Just silence—thick and waiting, like the woods themselves were holding their breath.Branches tangled overhead like the fingers of ancient gods, blotting out the last shred of sky. Beneath her feet, the earth was soft and spongy, littered with damp leaves and the bones of fallen twigs.She didn’t know why she’d come here.Only that she couldn’t stay in the house—not with Mrs. Harrow banging on the door, Garrett’s sneers echoing in her mind, and the mark glowing on her shoulder like it had a pulse of its own.She’d tried scrubbing it raw.She’d tried denial.But the crescent moon cut through her skin like it had always been there, just waiting to be seen.And now… now everything felt wrong.The forest had never frightened her before. It had been the only place she could disappear. Where no Harrow followed. Where no

Elara didn’t sleep that night.Not because she couldn't, but because something within her had been broken and remade at once. The burn on her shoulder had ceased to throb, but its echo pulsed with a second heart that beat in time with something deep within her chest.He stood on the cabin's porch, his figure silhouetted by moonlight. The cold night air produced a subtle billowing of his coat, and he gripped in his hand something small and metallic, glinting.A ring.“Couldn’t sleep?” he asked, not looking back.She stepped out beside him, arms crossed against the chill. Didn’t want to close my eyes. Not after what I saw.”“The visions?”She nodded. “A woman was screaming. Fire. A throne made of bone. And me. But not me.”Kael turned, his silver eyes softer than she expected. “You saw echoes of who you might become. The mark is your bloodline stirring awake. You’re not just remembering. You’re being remembered.”“What does that even mean?”“It means you’re being called home.”She didn’

Eldoria smelled like moonlight and old magic.Elara followed Kael in silence as they entered the grand hall of the Moonstone palace. She could feel eyes on her. Not the kind of fleeting glances she’d grown used to back in the mortal world, but the kind that stripped her bare, digging for something hidden beneath her skin.Guards in obsidian armor flanked either side of the arched entryway. Their eyes followed her, but did not question Kael’s presence. That alone made her nervous.“Where are we?” she asked quietly.Kael didn’t slow. “This was your parents’ ancestral home. Moonstone Keep. Built from enchanted volcanic stone. Every inch of it holds memory.”Elara’s steps faltered. “My parents… lived here?”He nodded. “Ruled here. Until the council turned on them.”A chill sank into her bones. “They were royalty?”Kael finally stopped. The corridor opened into a massive atrium with a domed ceiling made of woven starlight. At its center stood a statue, two figures carved from pale stone. A

They gave her one night.Just one night to prepare for a ritual that could expose her as heir—or destroy her completely.Elara stood barefoot in the gardens behind Moonstone Keep, the cold stone beneath her feet grounding her. The stars above Eldoria were closer than any she had ever known, and the moon felt... sentient. Like it was watching her.Kael stood behind her, quiet. He hadn't spoken much since the Council meeting.“Do you think I’ll survive it?” she asked softly.His voice was low. “That test wasn’t about survival. It was about acceptance. This one is different.”She turned to him. “How?”“This one doesn’t care if the Council believes in you,” he said. “It cares if the blood in your veins matches the oath sealed in stone.”“And if it doesn’t?”Kael met her gaze. “Then the stone will take what it needs.”At dawn, she was led down a winding staircase, deeper into the roots of Moonstone Keep. The air grew heavy, thick with age and old magic. The corridor ended at a massive circ

The morning broke wrapped in mist and cold, a hush of frost cloaking the stones of Moonstone Keep. Elara stood alone in the eastern garden, her breath drifting in soft clouds through the biting air. The roses, once crimson, bloomed silver, touched by old magic and the remnants of moonlight. Once, she had drawn comfort from their grace. Now, even they seemed fragile, dulled by the weight pressing on her chest.Peace had always been a lie. She felt it now more than ever—like a splinter lodged beneath the skin, too deep to pull free. Whispers slid through the corridors, curling around her name like smoke. Conversations faltered as she neared. Every bow from the court felt forced—too slow, too measured.Kael came through the eastern gate, his cloak drawn tight. He hadn't slept. She saw it in the faint bruises under his eyes, in the tension that clenched his jaw like a trap waiting to spring.“Something’s wrong,” he murmured, barely louder than the wind sifting through bare branches.“I kn