The Gold Queen (Prequel)

Emiliano

An uncomfortable silence fills the car as we arrive in Monterrey, all of us mentally preparing to go our separate ways. Valentina squeezes my hand as we pull up to a car lot where we would officially split up until we could reunite with Sofia.

Tears spill down Valentina’s cheeks as she sits frozen in her seat, unwilling to move. Celina and Aurora sleep beside us in their car seats, oblivious to the fact that they were about to be separated. Valentina and I have never been separated before and this would be the longest we would ever be apart. While she annoyed me in her sisterly ways, Valentina has been my partner in crime from the beginning of time.

“Vale, we have to move,” Danny pleads, collecting Diego and their luggage. “We have to go.”

I squeeze Valentina’s hand, letting her know that I was still here and that no matter how far we were, I would always be her brother.

“Can you give us a minute?” I ask, rubbing the back of Valentina’s hand with my thumb.

Danny closes the door and begins loading their new car for their trip.

“Vale-“

“I’m scared…” she whimpers, her hand shaking in mine. “I-I don’t think I can do this…. I-I don’t … I don’t want to be alone,” she cries. “Please don’t leave me…”

I look down at her and k**s her cheek. “You’re not alone. You will have Mateo’s daughter so hold her close whenever you feel alone,” I murmur, leaning over to k**s her temple. “We’ll see each other again soon.”

She bites her lips anxiously as she looks at Celina. “Do you promise?”

“You know I would never leave you, manita,” I smile. “Ever. We’re stuck with each other, remember?” I chuckle as I nudge her with my arm. “I promise… I’ll see you soon in Maine.”

She purses her lips, mustering up some courage to face the coming challenges on her own. I squeeze her hand one last time.

“Goodbye Vale,” I whisper.

“Goodbye Emi…”

Valentina climbs out of the car with Celina in her car seat, looking back as she walks towards her mate and pup waiting for her in their new car. Sighing to myself, I climb out with Aurora and meet Karina and Chava waiting for me in the car besides us.

Karina is already in the driver’s seat, a look of anger in her eyes as I sit in the back with Aurora . Not wanting to argue with her, I remain silent, the only thought in my mind being to protect my little girl.

Chava quickly falls fast asleep in the car, the endless traveling tiring him out. About an hour into the journey, Aurora grows hungry and we stop at a gas station for hot water so I can prepare her formula. I buy some canned soup for Chava and heat it up for him as well. He eats without a fuss and I carefully feed the crying baby.

“We should leave the girl in an orphanage…” Karina mutters after both Aurora and Chava fall asleep. My mouth hangs open in disbelief and she quickly defends herself. “Those witches will stop at nothing to hurt that little girl. We should do what’s best for Chava and protect him from any danger that follows that child.”

It takes everything in me not to scream at her. “This is my niece you are speaking of! I swore to Sofia and Mateo that I would always protect her! “

“Well you should have asked me before you made that stupid promise!” She screams, Aurora bursting into tears and Chava waking from his slumber.

Karina punches the steering and pulls over onto the side of the road, panting furiously as she stares ahead to avoid my eyes. Nothing but desert surrounds us, the sky growing dark as night falls.

“You didn’t ask me what I wanted! You never do!” She shouts, unbuckling her seat belt and storming out of the car.

I tuck Aurora into her car seat and rush after my wife who stomps into the empty desert with fury.

“I don’t understand what it is you want from me,” I snap. “Sofia-“

“Sofia, Sofia, Sofia!” Karina mocks me. “It’s always about Sofia. Oh, Sofia is scared. Oh, Sofia is hungry. Oh, Sofia needs me to heal her wounds. Sofia this, Sofia that! Well, I am sick and tired of Sofia!” She screams, her voice cutting me like tiny razor blades to my heart. “I am your mate. Chava is your son. We are all that should matter!”

“Y la niña qué? {what about the girl?},” I ask, unable to comprehend how she could be so cruel. “Who cares about her? Her dead father? Her mother who is currently fighting to keep her safe? WHO CARES ABOUT HER!?”

Karina’s glares at me with angry tears.

“We are all she has left in this world. She is but a week old and she has no one!” My body trembles with rage. “You of all people should understand what it’s like to have no one.”

Karina crosses her arms and stares at the ground. “That means nothing….She’s dangerous,” she mutters.

At my wits end, I storm over to the car and pull out a silver dagger, placing it in my pocket. I then gently pick up Aurora who was still crying and hold her close to my chest. My healing energy flows through her and in an instant, the little pup smiles up at me. Karina stares in bewilderment as I place the child on a flat rock and pull the dagger out of my pocket.

“What are you doing?” She gasps as I shove the dagger into her hand and drag her in front of the pup.

“You said she was dangerous,” I hiss, stepping away from her, Karina trembling with the dagger. “So look her in the eye and kill her! Kill her before she hurts you or Chava! DO IT! KILL HER!”

She stares down at the helpless pup, Aurora’s golden eyes blinking innocently up at Karina as she wields the dagger in her hand.

“I…I …” Tears fill Karina’s eyes, her hand shaking violently.

“What are you waiting for?” I scream. “Kill her! Kill her in cold b***d before she kills you!”

“AHHHHHH!” Karina screams, throwing the dagger away as if it were made of molten hot metal. “I can’t! I can’t!” She sobs, collapsing onto her knees. “I can’t do it, I can’t…. I-I’m sorry.”

I lift her up by her wrist and force her to look at Aurora. “She is just a little girl,” I snarl through my clenched teeth. “She can’t hurt you!” I pick Aurora up and place her in Karina’s arms. Aurora looks at Karina and yawns before snuggling up to her chest. “She doesn’t even know you held a dagger over her head,” I scoff. “Are you done now?”

Tears roll down Karina’s cheeks and she nods. I take the keys from her pocket and start the car. We drive on for a while, a silence eating gnawing away at us.

“Emi,” Karina whimpers, reaching a hand to touch my arm but I flinch away from her touch, still furious with her.

She shuts her mouth and we arrive at a motel in a small town. My anger unwilling to relent, I sleep with Aurora by my side, my back turned to Karina. I hear her cry herself to sleep, my wolf whining to go comfort her. I almost do when a sudden pain spreads across my chest, my lungs feeling as though they are full of liquid. My mouth flies open to gasp for breath, Karina immediately sitting up and turning on the light.

“Emi?” She cries as she watches me turn red with pain.

She takes Aurora from me as I thrash about my limbs, my hands clawing at my throat.

“S-So-Sofia!” I scream, the air finally reaching my lungs and my body feeling limp and cold. A sob rolls through my body as I realize my bond with my Queen is breaking, Sofia having lost her battle with the witches. “Sofia!”

Karina places Aurora near Chava and cradles my head in her lap. “It’s okay Emi. Just breathe. You’re okay.”

She holds me as I wail at my loss, my eyes flickering to the defenseless pup completely oblivious to the parents she lost.

We’re all she has now…. Estevan whimpers. Our Queen is gone….

Karina remains by my side, doing her best to comfort me. It brings me a sense of relief knowing she was willing to soothe my pain despite her distaste for my Luna and I fall asleep in her arms, my anger finally fading away, replaced by a pain I had never known before.

In the morning, we travel to the border where we present ourselves as asylum seekers and pass off Aurora as our daughter. With new names, we enter the United States as rogues. We drive through countless cities with no destination in mind, just wanting to get far enough away from Tamaulipas.

After almost a week of driving, we find ourselves somewhere in northern California, stopping in a city with a large dense forest surrounding it. I can sense werewolves in the area and decide to check us into a motel to think.

“I think we should stay on our own,” Karina says as we eat our supper in bed. “We don’t know if the packs here will treat us well.”

I look at the pups sleeping in the bed beside us. “But a pack offers safety for the pups. We’ll blend in better too.”

She bites her nails nervously and sighs. “Okay, tomorrow we can ask to join a pack.”

The following day, we nervously drive into the woods, our eyes vigilant as we travel down a winding road. It’s not long before we are discovered and a group of five wolves block the road. I anxiously step out of the vehicle with my arms up in surrender. As I step closer, I realize the five men are all Alphas and my legs begin to shake.

Come Emi… Estevan scolds. Your family needs a home…

“We’ve been expecting you,” one of them says, relief taking over me when he speaks Spanish. “Our scouts caught your scent as you entered the city last night,” he shrugs when he sees the puzzled look on my face. “So what is it you seek?”

A cold sweat forms across my forehead but I keep my voice strong and steady. I point to the car and pick my words carefully. “My wife and kids have been traveling for a while now…. We are looking to join a pack…” I swallow hard. “I’m a silver wolf, a healer and my wife over there…. She’s a trained fighter…We could offer our services. We wouldn’t be a burden to a pack… I just want a place for my wife and kids to live peacefully.”

The Alpha turns to the others, speaking to them in English and I don’t understand a word they murmur among themselves. I take several deep breaths to calm my racing heart and look back at Karina who sits anxiously in the car with the pups. Finally, the Alpha clears his throat and I turn my head back to him. The other Alphas shift and disperse, leaving the Spanish speaking Alpha and I alone.

“My name is Miguel….Follow me,” he says, turning on his heel and walking down the road. “And welcome to Lluvia Blanca.”

Karina

…Four Years later…

Emiliano fusses over Aurora, drying her off carefully with a warm towel. They had gone for a walk and got rained on. I look over at my daughter Mia, who is sulking in her playpen after her father said she couldn’t join them on the walk. It takes everything in me not to explode at Emi for excluding his own pup from some alone time with him. Could he not see he was neglecting our pup for Sofia’s daughter?

Emiliano k****s Aurora on the nose and she giggles happily before skipping over to me and presenting me with a small yellow flower, two or three petals hanging on by a thread.

“For you, mami,” she smiles.

I force a smile on my lips, knowing the child was not to blame for Emi’s mistakes and place the flower in my hair.

“Oh it’s so pretty, mi amor,” I chirp, picking her up in my arms. “Thank you so much.”

Aurora pecks me on the nose like her father, my cheeks flushing at the innocent gesture and I resign from bringing the issue up to Emi. There was no point. He was stubborn when it came to Aurora.

“I love you mommy,” Aurora whispers, burying her face in my neck.

Seeing his pup not rushing to greet him, Emi climbs into the playpen and sits quietly beside Mia. It takes only a minute before he has her scrambling into his lap, smothering him with affection and love. My anger vanishes and I smooth back Aurora’s hair.

“I love you too.”