**LAYLA'S POINT OF VIEW
My eyes fluttered open, grogginess clouding my mind as my stomach is now empty. I felt light on the bed. The sterile smell of the hospital assaulted my senses, and the beeping of machines echoed through my ears.
A somber expression greeted me.
"Welcome back, Sheila."Dr. Adam said with his voice, gentle but serious.
I tried to speak, but my parched throat protested. The doctor handed me a glass of water, and I sipped gently and gratefully.
''Where... am I?'' I croaked on the bed.
''You're in the royal hospital,'' Dr. Adam replied.
"You've been here for two days. You were brought in unconscious and accompanied by the King."
My memories flooded back very quickly—the palace, the king, my identity.
''The King!'' I exclaimed, struggling to sit up.
Dr. Adam gently pressed me back onto the bed.
''He's been by your side constantly, especially when I told him you lost your child. I had to sedate him to get him to leave for a few hours."
My heart swelled with emotion on hearing that, but I can't seem to comprehend the feelings I felt inside me.
Then, after a few seconds, Dr. Adam communicated the bad news to me gently, making sure he avoided causing another havoc disaster.
"Sheila, I don't know if you are aware that you've been pregnant for almost five months now; I am so sorry to inform you that you were pregnant and you eventually lost the pregnancy like a sharp object went through your womb and it affected the baby; hadn't been you are not pregnant then you could have died." Dr. Adam frankly said.
"Dr. Adam, I actually felt like I was emptied and destroyed when I woke up." I acknowledged his observations.
I didn't believe whatever I heard from the moon goddes earlier.
"Is it a dream or I'm starting to have visions?" I said yo myself.
But now it's making a lot of senses, especially when the awaited tears rolled down my eyes and I felt a strange surge of energy running through my body.
Meanwhile, I got relieved when my eyes saw King David in front of me; my blue eyes could see his under the black, which I hurriedly put on before the doctor came in.
"How are you doing today, Sheila?" He asked happily.
I lobbied in my head before I replied to him. I waited for Dr. Adam to leave the room before I started saying anything.
"I am fine now, my lord." I responded and relaxed back to my bed.
"I am so glad you are doing great now. Dr. Adam informed me of your current situation, and I want you to know that I'm not in any way interested in your past life experience; if you are not willing to share it with me yet, just know that I'd be ready to help you anytime, just like you have agreed to help me too." King David said and stretched his hand on my shoulder.
I nodded in response to every single word that came out of his mouth, and then after a few seconds the room atmosphere went off; the only sound in the room was only the silent and fast rotation of the fan.
"Sheila, I need you to be on a safer side right now, as you will be my queen immediately you are discharged from here. I'll be meeting with the elders of Moonshine, and I'd better tell them I have my mate." Kind David said and unexpectedly blessed me with a beautiful hug before he went outside the room.
My mind was restless at first, but now all I could see vividly is a tremendous positivity in his little negativity.
He thinks he's going to use me for his own selfish interest, whereas I'm a step ahead of him on that.
He sent one of his Calebs, his trusted friend and personal bodyguard, to coke get me after Dr. Adam had discharged me.
"Sheila, it's time to go back to the palace. There is a car outside waiting to take us to the Royal Mansion." Caleb confidently informed me.
"Alright sir." I replied before I stood up.
I was paddled by his Majesty himself with his right hand by my 8-shaped side all the way to the car.
I kept my silence throughout the 20-minute trip to the palace; none of us could face each other with a single conversation.
"Screech"
The car stopped, and King David tapped me.
"Wake up, my queen; we are back, Sheila; come down slowly, dear; don't stress yourself." King David woke me up, and he gently stretched his left hand to open the door for himself while Caleb opened the door from my side of the car."
I still find it so difficult and strange to get used to the title of being referred to as the queen. I was never granted the opportunity to successfully become a princess, talkless of being a queen to the Alpha King of Moonshine.
Every second, every minute, and every hour in the royal house became small to me, especially when Kind David annouced me as his mate.
King David made sure every servant took care of me properly and warned that anyone with unruly behavior would be dealt with.
I dived into a new pool of life full of treacherous roads, and my hands are so clean without a map to navigate through the roads.
Sheila forgot to inform me of the challenges she's facing with Gina.
Gina is a 30-year-old beautiful lady and one of the oldest servants of the Royal family, and she feels nothing but hatred for the love and trust the King bestows on Sheila.
She once confronted me in the alley on a beautiful evening.
"Queen Sheila, you have successfully succeeded in your evil witchcraft, because the King couldn't have fallen for a mere whore like you." Her thoughts and words were so harsh.
"Who the hell are you?" I asked angrily.
"Oh great, so you are playing lose of memory now. Very good, a new act. I like the way you act, bitch. Your days are numbered, I promise that." She was pissed with me.
"I see the reason why the Kind had chosen me instead of you; he wouldn't last a day with your bad character. Ugly, stupid, Gina." I transferred aggression at her.
Then she left my sight, murmuring without saying any words, but I know the rivalry won't end anytime soon.
Ever since I got to the royal mansion, all I see is boiling anger. Sheila's friends became my friends, and I also inherited her enemies too.
Shorter days and longer nights brought another beautiful day to us.
I decided to act along with King David's plans, and I also act as thought by Sheila.
I was wondering around the dimly lit room along the royal hall when a slight distress noise suddenly met my ears, and I stopped to confirm where it was coming from.
The anguish sound increased the more as I got closer to the room, then I raced my boiling soul to the room.
"Squeak."
I quickly opened the door to find a mask man on top of Ashina, trying to rape her. She tried to control the situation, but the culprit was too powerful for her to handle alone.
Ashina, shaken and traumatized, lay on the ground as the rapist loomed over her. But my soul activated quickly in anger that coursed through my veins.
I begin to shed tears, and the more my tears fell, the more powerful I became.
At first, a warm, comforting glow enveloped Ashina, calming her fears as she hurriedly stood up and raced to hide behind me.
With each tear, the soul's power intensified.
NINA, as I've named it after my unborn child, fueling my strength and resolve, the rapist, sensing my transformation, hesitated.
"Who the hell are you, lady? Show your face." The rapist eagerly said and drew his gun towards me.
With a fierce cry, I struck the rapist with all my might. The soul's energy amplified my blows; each punch landed with super werewolf force.
Surprisingly, my wolfless life changed suddenly, and I became stronger; now I'm a wolf.
For every blow I threw at him, I felt I'm seeing those that killed my family.
"So the moon goddess words were real all this while." I said to myself as I continued to charge towards him.
He tried to escape, but I pursued him outside the house and nailed him with my speed and agility, which increased to their maximum.
I was about to strike him hard to death when I heard King David's deep voice coming from behind.
"Sheila, please stop." Kind David shouted so loud, and he placed his left hand in my back. This calmed my power.
Then he ordered the guards to arrest the culprit for questioning.
Ever since that day, King David has been throwing a shiny light at me, especially when he stood confidently in front of the whole people of Moonshine.
"Sheila is now my mate, and she will be my queen." He confronted them happily, even though he tried to hide the feelings behind our agreement.
All the neighboring cities had been informed about the great power the Sheila, the new queen of Moonshine, bestowed, but none of them—no, it was me, Layla.
The news traveled through the air from Moonshine, and finally it hit Craftanwood.
Alpha King Malakai and his now Beta, Alpha Karl, wanted to sustain a good relationship with the King of Moonshine in order to gain connection and also obtain the power of his queen for their evil leader of Soul Hall, 'Alpha Audolf'.
In an attempt to get closer to King David, Alpha Malakai sent an invitation to King David to grace his hall for his grand coronation and a wedding ceremony of his Beta, Alpha Karl.
I was with him in the room with my two beautiful eyes fixed on the television screen when Caleb brought in the letter.
"I have a letter for you, my king," Caleb conveyed the message.
"Where is it from Caleb?" King David asked while being careful.
"It's from Craftanwood, my king; it's an invite to a wedding ceremony." Caleb briefly explained.
When he opened it, he frowned at the letter and threw it away, and it landed on the soft chair beside me.
"How dare he invite me to his coronation after he couldn't even protect the former king who was his blood brother from death, Evil Malakai? Now Layla, who was said to have killed her own families,, is out there living a goodlife,e, and he didn't do anything about it." Kind David expantiate is grief for him.
"Do you believe Layla could I have the audacity to kill her own family?" I tried to get the side his on.
"Although I doubt it too, her pictures were posted as the killer, and someone needs to find her and ask her own part of the story," King David said.
Meanwhile, I quickly scanned through the letter, and I was shocked and surprised to see the seal of my father on the surface of the letter. I know this is my time to begin my revenge plans.
"Your majesty, I know you aren't interested in going to any ceremony with me at the moment, but I'll love it if we can attend this together; at least it will be our first outing as a couple." I emotionally requested for his permission.
"Sheila, even though I've promised not to have sex with you or remove your covered face, I still find you beautiful anytime you speak, so I find it so difficult to reject your words. Okay, we shall attend." Kind David complied, and my heart was filled with excitement.
As promised, we graced the city of Craftanwood earlier with our presence at the ceremony. We walked majestically in the midst of a crowd.
We appeared in front of different people from different kingdoms and tribes.
My beautiful gold royal attire gracing the floor of the hall as I walk side by side with Kind David, who matched peacefully in his throne attire and shoes.
We approached the seat reserved for us calmly.
The Coronation kicked off first before they went ahead to the second main event.
Alpha Malakai announced a few minutes of silence for my father and the rest of my family that died in the attack.
A long-waited tear dropped from my eyes under the black cover when the whole hall went silent, giving honor to the dead ones.
Then he went ahead, announcing the holy matrimony of Alpha Karl, his Beta, and his mate Camara.
At first, my body was hot when he mentioned Camara, but I relaxed to see where it's heading.
Then, after a few seconds of the announcement, both of them came out from different directions to grace the stage with the priest in the middle.
Their smile makes NINA's soul rise, and I almost cause chaos in the middle of a large crowd, but King David's eyes and the hand he placed on mine make me calmed.
Eventually the door to my revenge opened when the priest asked a very important and last question.
"Who among the crowd isn't interested in this beautiful union? Stand up and now or remain silent." This question of the priest echoed in my ears, and I didn't even know when I stood up when they least expected it."
I stepped forward, my presence commanding attention. The crowd quiets, awaiting my words. I ignored King David's eye contact to sit down.
"Ladies and gentlemen, noble guests, and fellow citizens of our beloved kingdom, I stand before you today with a heavy heart yet unwavering resolve. We gather to honor the new king and also mourn the untimely passing of our revered King George. His sudden departure has left us shaken, but we must not let grief consume us.
For I stand here today to tell you that the King's death was not of natural causes. The truth, though shrouded in mystery, will not be silenced. I vow to uncover the truth, no matter how daunting the task may seem," King David signaled to cut me short, but I continued.
"To King George''s memory, I pledge to investigate the circumstances surrounding his demise and the whereabouts of his only daughter and her unborn child within 120 days. After that, another ceremony will be held in the same hall, but till then, I want today's event to be held."
Alpha Malakai nodded in pretense to the whole crowd, showing his assurance of the investigation.
"We owe it to him, to ourselves, and to our kingdom to ensure that justice is served. Let us honor his legacy by seeking the truth rather than accepting the shadows of doubt. Let us demonstrate our loyalty to the crown and to the principles of righteousness."
"I cleared my throat! For a second." Then I continue talking.
"I ask for your support and cooperation in this noble endeavor. Together, we shall shine light upon the darkness and ensure that King George's sacrifice is not in vain. May his soul rest in peace, and may our resolve guide us toward the truth." I ended up my speech and dropped and stepped down from the stage.
The crowd erupts in applause, murmurs of agreement, and determined nods. My words ignite a fire of purpose within the hearts of the kingdom's citizens.
Alpha Malakai plastered displeasure on his face, and Alpha Karl and Camara left the stage angrily back into their dark world.