The Gold Queen (Prequel)

***Sofia***

“Happy birthday, my love,” Mateo whispers against my lips as he hands me a single sunflower.

He had brought me out on a breakfast picnic in the northern part of the territory and we were enjoying the morning quiet together. I lift the flower to my nose and inhale it’s delicious smell. Sunflowers were my favorite.

I k**s him back, cupping his cheeks and pulling him closer to me. Six years. It had been six years ago today when I realized Mateo belonged to me and I couldn’t believe there was once a time I had almost given him up. For six years, I have been in love with this man and I still couldn’t get enough of his lips, his taste, his smell. Him.

Teo lifts me up on his lap and spreads my thighs out wide so that I straddle him. He eagerly takes my mouth and deepens our k**s, his hands happily caressing my legs.

I’m about to unbutton his shirt when I hear tiny footsteps approach us, followed by a small giggle. We both look up to find little Chava trotting along happily on his own, dragging a small stuffed bear in his hands. He looks absolutely dashing in a button up shirt, suspenders and little bow tie.

I climb off my husband and race towards the little boy, looking around frantically for Karina or Emi.

“Hey, Chava,” I coo, picking up the boy in my arms. “Where’s momma and daddy?” I ask, searching across the field for any clue as to how he got here.

Seeing no sign of Chava’s parents, I hand my small nephew to Mateo and settle back down on the picnic blanket. As I prepare to mind-link Emi to inform him of his son’s whereabouts, Chava’s eyes begin to glow bright green.

Mateo looks directly into his nephew’s eyes before suddenly falling over onto his back and passing out. I open my mouth to scold Mateo to stop fooling around when I make eye contact with the boy. My vision morphs into strange swirls of color before the world goes completely dark.

…

I open my eyes to see a wavering blue sky and as I inhale, my lungs fill with water. My mouth opens to let out a scream, a flurry of bubbles escaping my throat.

Where am I?

Suddenly, a pair of strong arms wrap around my waist and I’m dragged up to the surface, choking violently as I gasp for air.

“Sofia!” Mateo snaps, pulling me towards him and wiping my eyes. “Hey, look at me! You’re okay. You’re okay, baby,” he soothes.

It takes me a minute to reorient myself as I frantically look around and realize I was back at the Lake. I search the shoreline for any sign of the Ivory wolves but they are nowhere to be found.

Mateo interrupts my search. “We have to find Chava,” he says, splashing around the lake. “Chava! Chava!” he calls out.

We stop moving for a moment, hoping to hear his little voice call back to us or the sound of his splashing. My heart drops when we hear nothing but silence. I look up at the sky, hoping perhaps to find his green eyes staring down at us, but the blue heavens were seamless, not even a cloud disrupting its endlessness.

“Come on. Let’s get to the shore,” Mateo says, dragging me out of the water.

The sand feels warm beneath my toes as I scramble to my feet and run along the shore with Mateo in hopes of finding Chava. After five minutes of screaming his name, the panic becomes overwhelming.

“Oh my goddess,” Mateo pants, placing his head in his hands. “We can’t …. We can’t find him.”

His breathing grows ragged with worry and I wrap my arms around him. “It’s okay. We’re going to find him,” I say, pushing back his hair so he can look at me. “We’ll bring him home. Just relax,” I sigh, looking around for any signs or clues of the little boy.

From the corner of my eye, I catch a glimpse of shadow moving in the trees just behind us.

“Did you see that?” I ask, pointing in the direction of where I saw the shadow moving.

“See what?”

Before I know it, I’m racing after the small shadow, something in my gut telling me this was the way to go. Mateo chases after me, calling my name and begging me to stop but I race on, determined to catch the shadow.

Something flies past me, the faint beating of wings drumming against my ears. I follow the sound until I stumble upon a clearing, a single hummingbird flying in the center of the space. He was a gorgeous little bird with iridescent violet wings containing hues of pinks, blues, and greens and gold speckles all around. It’s throat bears a vibrant red stripe with black spots while it’s head is bright yellow. He was a stunning creature.

I hear Mateo panting as he comes up behind me and he too stares at the beautiful bird. The little bird flies over to me and I stick my hand out for it to perch on my finger. I bring the hummingbird close to my face and he gently pecks my cheek before taking flight again.

“Come on,” I call out to Mateo as I sprint after the little bird.

After running for several minutes, we come to a large rowan tree beside a stream. Underneath the tree’s branches, a woman with a small child in her lap sits and stares into the water, their backs turned to us. A powerful aura radiates off of the woman and as I walk closer to the tree, I feel the urge to get on my knees and bow to her. Unable to fight my instincts, I get down on my knees, Mateo doing the same beside me.

“You may rise,” the woman says with a voice of velvet, her back still to us. “Come closer.”

We do as we’re told, inching our way towards her cautiously. Finally the child turns to acknowledge us, relief filling my heart as I realize it was none other than little Chava, his bright green eyes unmistakable.

“Chava!” Mateo cries out in relief.

The woman laughs as she turns to look at us and my jaw drops to the floor. She was by far the most beautiful woman I had ever seen, long black hair flowing down her back and radiant pale skin that seemed to shimmer in the light of the sun. She wears a gorgeous white gown with blue designs and no shoes on her bare feet. There was no doubt in my mind the woman in front of me was none other than our creator, the Goddess of the Moon.

“Hello Sofia,” she smiles, my heart beating frantically as she looks at me. “Hello Mateo.”

My mouth opens to greet her but my voice dries up.

“H-hello your Grace,” Mateo whispers, once again getting on his knees.

“There’s no need for that, your Majesty,” she chuckles, the sound making Mateo blush. “I’m glad you both made it in one piece.”

“Where are we?” I ask, the hummingbird perching on Chava’s head as Chava bursts into laughter.

“We’re in Salvador’s mind,” Moon Goddess replies, gesturing to the forest around us. “This is the place where all of His creations will live.”

“Creations?” Mateo asks.

“Why yes,” she smiles, smoothing back Chava’s hair. “The Keeper is a creator like myself. His mind will be more powerful than that of any wolf; for from his mind, all his thoughts will come to life. He will have the power of projection, manifesting his ideas into real form in the real world.”

I stare at the small child, wondering how the hell I was brought here the first time. I was nowhere near Chava when I first found myself here.

“I brought you here the first time, my child,” Moon Goddess responds as if she read my thoughts. “I felt you would be safe here from your own inner turmoil and guilt while you healed. Salvador pulled you out when you were ready to come home.”

“And the white wolves?” I ask, looking around for them.

“They are not here for they were not Salvador’s creation. I placed them here to watch over you while you slept,” she smiles.

Tears fill my eyes to know Moon Goddess did in fact watch over me, even when I felt she had abandoned us and left us to fight this war on our own.

“I have never left you, my child,” the Goddess says. “I simply cannot interfere in matters of life or death. It is not my place to do so,” she adds solemnly. “But I can provide you the tools to survive and I have given you Mateo to help you endure your pain.”

Mateo interlocks our hands, a warmth spreading throughout my body.

“And yet,” Moon Goddess interrupts, a stern look on her face. “A part of you regrets accepting my gift.”

I feel Mateo’s stare on me, my body stiffening with guilt.

“S-Sofia?” He whispers, hurt laced in his voice. “I-is this true? D-do regret me? Do you regret being mine?” His voice breaks, my heart shattering at the pain in his words.

“N-no,” I shake my head. “N-no that’s not it! I love you!” I plead, gripping his hand tightly. “I love you more than anything in the world! Please, you have to believe me!”

Anger swirls in his eyes. “Then why do you regret me?”

“I don’t…I’m-I’m just scared!” I scream as I burst into tears and finally tell my truth. “I’m scared of losing you…So many people have suffered because of us…”

“We are not to blame for this war!” He snaps, ripping his hand out of my grip. “Julian is! He did this to us! He killed my parents! He killed yours! He is the source of all our pain, not us!”

“But is he the reason the vampires killed Karina’s family?” I whimper, hoping a part of him would understand my fears. “Is he the one who started this war?”

His face softens as he reaches over to cup my face.

“Karina thinks I killed her family by choosing you…” I sob.

“But she’s wrong!” he cries, wiping away my tears with his thumbs. “She’s wrong, Sofia. How could you think choosing Julian would have made things any different? Your kingdom would have suffered with a King like him,” he says, leaning his forehead against mine. “You were meant for me, baby. You were always meant to choose me. I am your King.” He tilts my head up with his fingers, forcing me to look at his pools of silver. “I’m your King.”

He presses his lips to mine as if to convince me of his love.

“You’re mine, baby. You’re mine,” he whispers against my lips. “I lost my parents…I’ve watched soldiers die protecting our Kingdom, the Kingdom we chose to lead together…And I have never once regretted having you as my wife. Not once,” he murmurs, brushing my hair. “I’ve loved every minute of being your husband, my love. These past few years have been a blessing and I know now I could have never given you up. Never.”

Tears spill onto my cheeks as I bury my face in his chest, the overwhelming guilt building up in my heart. He was the greatest gift I had ever received…and I was ashamed I could have ever doubted our union.

“Do you love me?” he asks.

“I do love you, Mateo,” I whisper back. “With all my heart.”

“You may rise,” the woman says with a voice of velvet, her back still to us. “Come closer.”

“Then don’t you ever doubt us again,” he huffs, a smile spreading across my lips. “You’re mine.”

He gently k****s my forehead, my body instantly filling with warmth. I wrap my arms around my husband, relaxing against his body.

“It seems Sofia is not the only one with guilt in her heart,” Moon Goddess says.

I look up at Mateo, wondering what guilt he could possibly harbor in his heart.

He refuses to look at me, staring down at his feet. I turn his head towards me.

“What is it, baby?” I ask, gently stroking his cheeks.

“Nothing…” he smiles.

Moon Goddess clears her throat and stares at him sternly.

“Teo, whatever it is…It’s okay,” I reassure him.

He takes my hand and k****s it. “I…I have failed you…I have failed you so many times.”

I do not understand what he meant. He had never failed me before.

“I have failed to protect you…Over and over again…” He adds.

I don’t like the sadness in his voice. “Teo, I-I don’t understand…”

“Julian is still alive…After everything he’s done to you, that son of a b***h still breathes!” he growls.

My heart sinks as I realize Teo had been blaming himself for what Julian did to me and my parents.

“I should have killed him!” He snaps, his breathing growing ragged. “If I had just been stronger, if I had just killed him when I had the chance, you would have never felt any guilt for us being together. Your parents would still be here…We would have our pups…”

“Teo, no,” I shake my head. “You can’t blame yourself for Julian…”

“But he’s still out there!” he shouts, fear clouding his eyes. “He’s out there right now plotting his next move!”

“And I have you to protect me,” I reply without hesitation. I cup his face and stare into his beautiful grey eyes. “You are my hero, Teo. You have never failed me. Ever. You have come to my rescue more times than I care to admit,” I laugh, wiping the guilty tears streaming down his cheeks. “I am so blessed to have a mate who always fights for me…even when I beg him not too,” I smile, thinking back to the day he challenged Julian for my hand in marriage.

“I don’t blame you for Julian’s crimes,” I add, pressing my lips against his. “I’m just grateful to have you help me piece myself back together should I ever fall apart.”

I deepen our k**s, pouring every ounce of my being into him.

Behind us, Moon Goddess rises to her feet and we pull apart to acknowledge her.

“You have loved each for the past six years and yet you let your guilt and fear cloud your bond,” she sighs. “With every passing year, your fears have grown just as strong as your love, and it has slowly damaged your peace of mind. You cannot live in fear for you have never been alone. I gifted you to each other so that you could take on the coming battles. Do not attempt to face them on your own.”

Mateo wraps his arm around my waist and pulls me close to him, placing a k**s on my head.

“Sofia, you had kept your guilt a secret from your mate. But all you need to remember is that guilt serves no other purpose than to keep you from enjoying your decision. This war has been waging long before you existed. Don’t let guilt keep you from loving your mate.”

I nod and bury my face in Mateo’s chest, inhaling his soothing scent.

No more guilt, I think to myself.

“And Mateo. Your mate has never given you reason to believe you have failed her in any way. Trust that she believes in you and trust in your own abilities. I gifted you them for a reason. You will be stronger if you remember who it is that you are fighting to protect.”

“Yes, your grace,” Mateo replies.

“You are now ready to be the Fated Pair,” Moon Goddess smiles, placing Chava on the ground. “From your love, two special wolves will be born and together, they will protect the fate of all werewolves.” She walks closer to me, placing her hand on my stomach. “Within a few months, you will carry the Ivory Twins and you will do so for a total of 8 months, much longer than a typical pregnancy. It will take these pups a bit longer to develop and during this time, you will be unable to activate your wolf or your gift. You must prepare yourselves,” She adds. “It will not be an easy 8 months. Can you two handle that?”

I feel Mateo interlock our fingers, a boost of strength flowing through me. He would never leave me alone. This much, I knew.

“Yes, your Grace,” we reply in unison, leaving no doubt that we were on this journey together.

She smiles and taps Chava on his shoulder. “Go ahead, my child,” She says to him before turning to us once more. “When you awaken, you will have what you need to protect your future pups and yourselves. Good luck to you both.”

Chava’s eyes begin to glow and as his eyes connect with mine, my vision once again blurs, the colors of his incredible world blending into darkness.

…

My eyes flutter open and I find myself curled up beside Mateo, Chava wedged between us both, snoring slightly in his sleep. There’s a wooden box in my hand, a similar one in Mateo’s.

Mateo g****s as he sits up, rubbing his head as we hear footsteps approach us.

“Chava!” Karina cries as she runs towards us.