Sold AS The alpha King's Breeder

Chapter 797

Chapter 8 : A Witch is Near

*Jared*

I was watching two teenagers beat the s**t out of each other, both of them covered to their ears in mud. Archer was barking commands and encouragement as the youths sparred, working on their stealth and awareness. It didn’t feel that long ago that I had stepped into the ring for the first time, just as scrawny and full of confidence as these two boys were.

Now I leaned against the railing, watching my second-in-command lead the training sessions that used to be solely my responsibility. I flexed my hands, drawing them into fists. How much time did I have now, four months? Five, at the most.

Archer called the match to a halt, stepping between the two youths as they swayed and tried to steady themselves. He showed one of them how to strike without breaking his knuckles against his opponent’s flesh, which was something I wish I’d known before getting into my first real fight.

It was a tough world out there for young, packless men. It was especially harder for those who hadn’t yet come into their powers. Fighting with swords, daggers, and fists was their only option.

In two short years, the teens sparring in the ring would turn twenty-one and feel their wolves for the first time. There would be a celebration for them. The entire village would gather and shift and run into the woods beside them. These boys would be ready. They’d be strong and capable. And, if they were smart, they’d survive.

I wouldn’t be there to witness it.

I ran my fingers through my hair, squinting into the bright, midday sun. Archer appeared at my side, mud-soaked and sweating. He took a swig of water from a large clay jug, one finger outstretched.

“What is she doing?” he asked through a mouthful of water.

I followed his gaze and saw Eliza walking through the village, her eyes downcast. She was swinging a large basket, her steps somewhat uneven on the mud and ice. I squinted at her, seeing her mouth curved into a playful, somewhat mischievous smile.

“She’s daydreaming,” I said softly, chuckling to myself as she stubbed her booted toe on a rock. She grimaced, muttering to herself before starting forward again.

“Who let her out of the house?” Brandt asked as he came up beside us.

“Maybe she’s making a run for it–” Archer began, but I shook my head, still watching her with interest.

“She’s not,” I said under my breath. I found it highly likely she was coming to the sparring ring to fight with me again. I’d spent the entire night lying awake in bed, staring at the ceiling and going over every single word she’d said in my study.

I was more suspicious of her now than I had been when I rescued her from the breeder auction. She was far more educated than I’d realized, and in history, of all things.

I leaned against the railing as she continued toward the sparring ring, swinging her basket.

I wondered what she was going to fight with me about this time. She was going to flaunt the fact that she’d escaped the house–I was sure of that at least.

But she walked, and walked, and walked… right past the ring.

but I didn’t hear

and mud with a splat that soaked through

straight out of the village, toward the Dark

***

house!” I growled, grabbing

I dodged her blow, tugging her toward me and

digging her

in the distance danced and trembled, sending a chorus of bells through the air. My skin prickled with adrenaline as the

is dangerous,” I said firmly,

in her

sent me

the healer for that matter. Our healer, an ancient gentleman named Ramus, had been

nice to her,” it read. “You could use some company of equal intelligence and–”. I hadn’t bothered to read the rest before I had crushed the note

this direction because she knew Eliza would have to walk past the sparring ring. Eliza would see us here and be curious,

forest was whispering Eliza’s name, trying to draw her

by the shoulders. She glowered at me, but stood still, which was an improvement from trying to hit me. “There are things in those

“Like fairies and elves?”

blinked down at her, furrowing

told you there are fairies–never mind. No. That’s what we tell children to keep them out of the woods and so that they mind their

into the woods on

trees were sparse and backed by rolling hills. “This place is sheltered by two forests. The forest of Ortiz to the south, which leads to the sea,” I breathed, reluctantly giving this directional information away, “and to the north,

your village here if it’s so

would risk the trials of the Dark Forest. My village is safe here. My people are sheltered,” I said, and to my relief she nodded, the tension in her shoulders loosen as she took a

us at the Dark Forest once more before

“I didn’t know–”

I said softly. I was fighting off a smile, and not a smile meant for her, but one for me. Eliza was

didn’t break from my gaze. She was searching my eyes, a look crossing her face that

my hands

strange eyes,” she said casually, tilting her head to inspect me from a

“Uh, thanks–”

way,” she corrected, taking a step toward me, effectively closing the distance between us.

chest, a silent warning. Familiar? No one outside of my family had eyes like mine that I knew

me as clouds began to gather overhead, blocking the

going to rain,” I said, my eyes still locked on hers. “You