Alone !!!
I swallowed the bitterness rising in my throat and forced myself to speak, though my voice trembled. “If you go through with this… if you allow them to take everything from me, then I will never forgive you. Any of you.”
Elder Baron sighed, as though exhausted by my resistance. “We are not taking everything from you, Queen Veronica. You will still hold a place in the royal court, albeit one more suited to the circumstances.”
“I won’t be sidelined!” I spat, rising from my chair. “You think you can just push me aside, that I’ll quietly fade into the background? No. I’ve fought too hard to be where I am. If you believe I’ll accept this without a fight, then you’ve grossly underestimated me.”
For a moment, a flicker of uncertainty passed through the room. Even the elders, so self-assured moments ago, hesitated. But it was Daniel, the elder who had confronted me earlier, who stepped forward.
“Queen Veronica,” he said, his voice cold and calculating. “You speak of fighting, but you are alone. The packs are against you, the council has made its decision, and the sons are ready to take the throne. If you continue down this path, you will only bring ruin upon yourself. Think carefully before you decide to defy us.”
I met his gaze, unblinking, fury surging through my veins. “I’d rather be ruined than live in shame.”
The room fell into an uneasy silence. Elder Baron exchanged glances with the other council members, his calm demeanor cracking slightly.
“We will give you time to consider your options,” he said slowly, clearly hoping to defuse the situation. “But the decision is final. The kingdom will move forward with or without your cooperation.”
Without another word, the elders filed out of the room, leaving me alone with Luke and Simeon. The weight of their betrayal hung heavy in the air, a bitter reminder of how quickly power could be stripped away.
Lucas stepped forward, his expression pained but resolute. “Veronica, listen… I don’t understand why you are choosing to make this harder than it has to be.”
I turned to him, my heart breaking. “Harder? Lucas, you have no idea what you’re asking of me. I have done nothing but support you and Simon as an obedient and loyal wife, but I never imagined you would make a decision such as this without considering my feelings. One by one, stepping over my broken body.”
Simon, who had been quietly watching, stood up and finally spoke. “I don’t care where you might be getting this idea from, but we’re not stepping over you. We just… we need to move forward. The kingdom needs stability.”
I stared at them both, my husbands, my heart. Once, I had dreamed of this day, of watching them thrive as kings alongside myself and our big and beautiful family. But not like this. Not at the cost of everything I had built.
“I will not stand in your way,” I said finally, my voice hollow. “But know this: you may have the throne, but you will lose something far greater. You will lose me.”
With that, I turned and walked out of the chamber, my head held high, but my heart shattered beyond repair. The halls of the palace felt colder than ever before, the walls that once echoed with my authority now foreign, hostile.
They thought they had won. They thought they could strip me of my power and reduce me to nothing. But they had forgotten one thing: a queen without a throne is still a queen.
And I would return. Stronger, fiercer, and ready to reclaim what was rightfully mine.
When I got to my bedroom, I couldn’t even tell what exactly I was supposed to be feeling, but all I knew was that I obviously didn’t feel good. The first thing I did was quietly sit in front of my mirror as I stared at myself for almost 10 minutes. The idea was to just help myself calm down better since I was already starting to lose my mind. I didn’t say anything nor did I look away from the mirror. I stayed for that long without saying a word until I couldn’t take it anymore. I shrieked out the rest of the pain lingering in my chest before getting up and slamming my fist on the vanity table.
I took my phone and dialed the exact person I knew I couldn’t help but tell everything to, and this was obviously none other than my mom.
The phone rang a few times, and it didn’t take long before she finally picked up the call.
“So what happened during the meeting? Did they decide in respect to your wishes?”
“Obviously not, Mother. Nothing went my way at all. In fact, it was disastrous.”
“What? Tell me everything that happened,” she said, and I took a deep breath, trying as hard as I possibly could not to let myself completely lose my cool just by reliving the moment again.
I took another deep breath, steadying myself before speaking. “They’ve stripped me of everything, Mother. They think I’m powerless now. They’ve handed the throne over to the sons, and I’m supposed to fade into the background as if I’ve never fought for this kingdom.”
There was a pause on the other end of the line, and then my mother’s voice came through, calm but firm. “Veronica, you’ve always known the cost of power. But tell me this-have they truly won? Or are you still standing?”
Her words cut through the fog of despair clouding my thoughts. I had lost something, yes-my official position, my throne-but I was still here, still breathing, still capable of so much more.
“I’m still standing,” I replied, my voice quiet but resolute. “But it feels like I’m alone in this, like there’s no one left to fight with me.”
“Then stand taller,” she said, her voice growing fiercer. “A queen doesn’t need a crowd at her back to reclaim what’s hers. She only needs her strength and the will to rise again.”
I stared at my reflection in the mirror, the face of someone who had once commanded armies, ruled over packs, and shaped the future of a kingdom. Now, all that remained was a woman stripped of her title, but my mother’s words stirred something deep inside me.
“I won’t let them break me, Mother,” I said, the fire in my chest rekindling. “They may have taken the throne, but they haven’t taken me.”
“Good,” she replied softly. “Now, you know what you must do. The throne is only a symbol, Veronica. True power lies in the hearts of those who follow you. Find them. Rally them. And remind them that a queen without a throne is still a queen.”