Page 171 of His Sunshine Baby

I feel my heart beat a bit faster in my chest.

Gabriel. My father was Gabriel Bluemoon. I grab my necklace between my fingers. It was signed G. G for Gabriel… Daniel puts a hand on my knee while Reagan keeps talking, lost in her memories.

“He was the bravest fighter I’ve ever seen in my life. So strong, he could fight ten wolves by himself. His sister Lilyan was a gentle soul, so sweet. She used the healing power she had inherited from Queen Diane to help others, even injured people from other packs. Anyway, those two grew up happy and cherished, like blessed children. But Queen Diane knew their Royal power would make them targets for dark forces, like witches or necromancers.”

Sylviana said so, too, that Royals would be targets.

“So, Queen Diane sent her younger sister, Cynthia to find somewhere else to settle, somewhere safe. She wanted a place where werewolves could help each other against any threat, and our clan wouldn’t be by itself like it was at the time. Cynthiawasn’t filled with Royal power like Queen Diane was, but she was very smart, and a great leader too. So, she left, with a smaller portion of our pack. However, even after many years, she never returned. It broke Queen Diane’s heart.”

What happened to her younger sister? Did she get… killed? It doesn’t sound like Cynthia had Royal blood like Diane, though. Did she end up a victim anyway? Why would someone attack her?

I can’t even begin to imagine how heartbroken Queen Diane must have been. To lose her sister without knowing what happened to her… Or not even know if she was alive. How long did she wait for a sign, for anything?

“So, as it became clear Cynthia wasn’t coming back, Queen Diane was left alone to protect her children… She decided to confine our territory behind some magic barrier she made, with the help of a good witch, and forbade everyone from talking about their Royal blood.”

I exchange a look with Daniel. A good witch? Sylviana wasn’t even born at that time, but could she know which witch it was?

“It was to be kept a secret, to protect her children. We lived like that for many, many years. I kept going in and out to find Cynthia, without luck. Life went on, and your father, Gabriel, was betrothed to another warrior she-wolf in the pack, while Lilyan still dedicated her life to others. Things could have probably gone on like that forever, until one day, a young group of humans walked onto our territory by mere chance.”

“Wait, humans? How did they break the witch and Queen Diane’s barrier?” asks Danny, surprised.

“Because Queen Diane wanted to prevent any danger from intruding. But Lilyan had convinced her to have this magic allow people who proved themselves harmless in. Those humans weren’t a danger, they were totally harmless. Just a groupof travelers, gypsies. The kind that didn’t even know about werewolves' existence.”

“What happened?” I ask, a bit lost.

How could a mere group of humans, apparently harmless, cause trouble? Reagan looks down, and I feel like she’s holding back her tears. When she looks up again, she’s looking at me.

“You happened… Your birth mother, Elena. She was one of them.”

Moon Goddess…

“Wait. My mother was… a human?”

Reagan nods.

“A simple human woman… Her name was Althea.”

She points at the necklace around my neck.

“That necklace was hers… Your father gave it to her.”

“The Sunshine…” whispers Daniel. “Your mother was human, so she was…”

“A Daughter of the Sun,” I finish.

I take a while to think about it. With my hands shaking, I undo my necklace, looking at the engraving again. “To my Sunshine, G.”

For some reason, I always thought this memento and that nickname were meant for me. Yet it never made sense. I am a daughter of the Moon Goddess, a werewolf. I never imagined my mother could be any different.

“Damn, a lot of things make sense now,” says Daniel. “This is what Sylviana meant when she said you were shielding your baby and hiding her power. She-”

“What! Whose baby? What are you talking about?” asks Reagan.

Oh, right, she hadn’t heard yet. She was probably away from the pack, and unsociable as she is, there was no way she had heard the rumors.

“I’m pregnant, Reagan,” I simply admit.

She looks at me, completely stunned.

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