Sould As The Alpha King's Breeder

Chapter 25: Back to Finish the Job

Ernest

“Ernest? Ernest, hey.** Wake up. I’m so sorry,”

I opened my eyes, Gemma’s voice filling the dark, empty space around me. I blinked, somewhat startled, although pleasantly surprised to hear her so nearby

She always left after we had sex. Always. And I had never been man enough to stop her.

I wanted her, needed her, but I couldn’t let go of the notion that I would lose her. Part of me thought, you know, why the hell not? She was my mate. We were meant for each other. I was hurting both of us by pushing her away.

But another part of me knew with every fiber of my being that I would lose her.

I could live in agony and break her heart over and over if it meant saving her life.

We’d kept it a secret, even from Maeve. Maeve would push, and push, and push us to make it official if she knew. The only person I had ever confided in was Aaron.

And all the sudden he was at the foot of my bed.

“Aaron?” I sat up, the sheets falling over my bare chest. I realized quite quickly that I was as naked as the day I was born. I moved my foot beneath the covers, my boxers dragging under the sheets because they were still wrapped around one ankle. And I noticed, as I scrunched my toes, that the lacey blue pair of underwear Gemma had been wearing, briefly, was stuffed in the sheets near the end of the mattress as well.

I blushed, then Gemma blushed, and Aaron quickly turned away as I gingerly reached far beneath the covers to retrieve the evidence of what we had been up to only an hour before.

But there was no smug smile on his face. Gemma’s blush faded as I quickly, and discreetly, tossed her her underwear, which she shimmied into without even blinking.

Gemma looked up at me as she smoothed the fabric of her skirt, her neck moving as she swallowed. She looked scared to death.

“What’s going on? Is someone hurt?” I looked from Gemma to Aaron, adrenaline prickling my fingertips as I threw the sheets back and stood, not caring that I was flashing everyone as I hastily pulled my boxers up to my waist.

“Ernest, I-“Gemma was in tears. She was trembling. She looked at Aaron, a silent plea etched all over her face. I looked at the clock on the far wall, the hands barely visible in the darkened room.

“What time is it? For the love of the Goddess, will someone turn on a light?”

“No, it stays dark,” Aaron said with grave conviction, his face totally expressionless.

“Why?” I replied, pulling my shirt over my head and bending to fish for the pair of trousers I had been wearing. I pulled them from underneath the bed in time to see the fretful glance Gemma gave Aaron, something serious passing between them.

“No one is hurt. Not yet.”

“Not yet? Aaron-”

“It’s not Aaron. I’m not Aaron.”

I had only been in the tower a handful of times during my time as Alpha. I had seen Romero, heard his deranged, slightly senile ramblings before. He was just an old man, an ancient one, really. And he was serving a life sentence for war crimes that took place before I was even born.

well fed. Horace took care of everything. He had insisted. And

real Aaron was set to arrive, spending the first few days

working for the previously disbanded pack of Poldesse, the pack ruled

after he arrived. He hadn’t known of Poldesse’s impending invasion. He hadn’t known of Damian’ s desire to conquer Valoria. He hadn’t known of Romero’s sinister plans

a man desperate to free the only living relative

Romero, his grandfather.

his mate wasn’t the same woman caught in the crosshairs of the entire

to Finish the

Maeve

me out of my abject, yet personally inflicted loneliness. I kept

trusted him. And

I followed him to the tower, Gemma following close behind as we crept through the castle in the pitch black of night. It was 2:00 in the morning, and despite Troy and Gemma’s

course, being a spy and all, and together we climbed up the staircase to the top

opened the door to the circular room that had been Romero’s home for two

Troy shouted as he lunged forward, pushing through the cell door that was unlocked and left ajar. The cell itself was a mess, the sparse furniture toppled over, and books scattered across the floor. Romero laid in a heap on the floor, naked, his body half-covered by a

before casting a glance at Gemma,

Romero, reaching down to take the man’s

three of us jumped, Troy leaping backward away from the withered form

bloodied mouth dribbling as it stretched

said, looking

spit a tooth fragment onto the stone floor, spraying blood. But

Troy leaned back over Romero, who pointed a shaky

see you told

going to

idiot.” Romero closed his eyes, wheezing. “That bistard Damian wants what I have. Horace was meant to get it -to get the-” He coughed, blood spraying across Troy’s shirt. Troy leaned back, glancing over at me before looking back down at the man,

growled, growing impatient with obvious hatred in

coughed, “there’s a stone loose. Pull it out of the

me. We

know that, boy. Do as I

glanced at me again as if asking permission, and I nodded, not taking my eyes off Romero as Troy stood and pulled the little wooden cot away from the wall and reached behind it. A full minute passed before he pulled a stone the size of my head from the wall, placing it on the bed and glancing down at Romero before dramatically pulling the bed further

full height, turning around with a yellowed, rolled up piece of paper in his hands. “This is what Horace was looking for? What is it, an

laugh Gemma jabbed me hard in

it and see,” Romero breathed, blood trickling from his

down at Romero as he did so. But as he looked over the worn, frayed document his face began to change, his eyes widening into

“Doesn’t matter.”

“This is

this can’t be…”

is it?” I said, taking a step toward the cell door. Gemma pulled

map,” Troy swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing in his throat. He looked down at Romero, who had a wide smile plastered on his

her head from behind