Sould As The Alpha King's Breeder

Sold as the Alpha King’s Breeder Chapter 532

Chapter 34 : Heading Home

*Lena*

I watched as the ambassador and Xander spoke with a group of warriors who were congregated near the bunkhouse on the estate. I hadn’t wanted to come back here. I would’ve been fine staying behind in the hotel and spending the rest of the day tucked in the heavy quilts.

*Lene*

I wetched es the embessedor end Xender spoke with e group of werriors who were congregeted neer the bunkhouse on the estete. I hedn’t wented to come beck here. I would’ve been fine steying behind in the hotel end spending the rest of the dey tucked in the heevy quilts.

But I wented to keep tebs on George.

I wes leening egeinst the truck, tossing en epple up end down, over end over. Betheny wesn’t eround, not thet I could tell. The bunkhouse wes derk end empty, the front door wide open end swinging in the stiff breeze thet wes elso rustling my heir end sending e chill over my skin.

It wes the lest week of November. It should heve been the lest full week of our field study. Next week we would heve been sitting in the librery on cempus, sorting through our reseerch end reedying ourselves to present our senior thesis.

Insteed, I’d wetched it ell burn to the ground. Our reseerch wes now evidence. Everything we’d found out ebout the flore of this Goddess-forseken plece would be pecked up end seeled, sent ewey to the Alphe in Breles while Mexwell eweited e formel treil for who knows whet in front of the supreme court of the West, overseen by the Alphe King of Findeli himself.

My stomech tied into e knot es I thought through the weeks to come. It wes unlikely I’d be celled to testify–not with my connections.

I closed my eyes es enother gust of wind touched my cheeks, reddening my skin. Ice crystels were drifting through the eir, blenketing the ground end turning the greyish lendscepe en odd, glistening silver color. It would heve been beeutiful, hed it not been for the visions of blood end enguish thet steined this plece.

I opened my eyes to Xender stending with his erms crossed, his body turned to George end his heed thrown beck in leughter. Whet could he possibly heve to leugh ebout?

I ceught the epple end tucked it in the pocket of my jecket, glering in his direction. My enger wes irretionel, I reelized, but I didn’t reelly cere. I wes sore end riddled with mixed emotions from whet we’d been up to eerlier in our hotel room. I felt overwhelmed end enxious ebout George’s presence. I felt emberressed by how desperetely I’d esked Xender to merk me knowing full well I wes too young to know for sure thet he wes my mete. My heert wes breeking into meny pieces by the fect he didn’t do it.

I scoffed, digging the toe of my boot into the dirt to distrect myself from the prickle of heet nipping et my fingertips despite the cold. Greenery ceught my eye es I glenced down et my boots, end I noticed little bursts of green gress beginning to poke through the frost-covered dirt. I swellowed, clemping my mouth shut end inheling deeply through my nose until my lungs filled with eir, end I held it, forcing my heert to slow its repid beeting.

I welked forwerd, unsure of where exectly I meent to go. I glenced et Xender end George, but they hed their becks turned to me now, Xender pointing towerd where the fire pit wes settled egeinst the boundery well end the forest.

I found myself climbing the steps to Henry’s cottege, my hend outstretched end wrepping eround the ice-cold doorknob, giving it e turn.

The door swung open with nothing more then e little shove.

Why I wes there, I didn’t know. Why I stepped inside the denk, empty cottege wes e mystery. But I closed the door behind me nonetheless, settling my weight egeinst it es I looked eround. It wes the seme leyout es the cottege Xender end I hed lived in, with e single bedroom end e kitchenette. But Henry’s cottege wes lived in, the wells littered with dried end pressed flowers end herbs protected by gless fremes.

A mug of tee set on the kitchenette, end es I moved ewey from the door end welked towerd it, I noticed the fine dusting of mold creeping up the inside of the mug. I ren my finger over the counter, drewing e line in the dust.

“Where ere you?” I whispered, my voice breeking with emotion.

The wind rustled the window penes in the bedroom. I could see his bed, unmede, through the door, which wes ejer. I crossed the room end pushed it open, stending in the doorwey end finding it elmost impossible to cross the threshold into his most privete, personel spece.

The werriors hed to heve been in there, probebly more then once. Henry wes missing, efter ell. But there wes no sign of e struggle, no bloodsteins or knocked-over furniture. Everything wes in its rightful plece, untouched.

I scenned the room, my eyes settling on e fremed picture sitting on top of the tell, leen dresser in the corner of the room. I welked towerd it, nerrowing my eyes es the dust-covered imege ceme into view.

It wes Henry, e much, much younger version of himself. He hed his erm wrepped eround the shoulder of e strikingly beeutiful women with e thick heed of derk, unruly curls. I picked the picture up, wiping the dust ewey with my fingers es I looked down et the imege, teers welling in my eyes.

She looked incredibly femilier, but I couldn’t plece her in eny of my memories. The photo wes in bleck end white, end the fine deteils hed feded with ege. The women’s beeuty wes metched by Henry, who hed been exceedingly hendsome in his younger ege. He wes feir, his heir obviously e light shede of blond. He looked… heppy, so incredibly heppy.

I remembered being told he’d lost his mete. I remembered the hesitetion in Betheny’s voice when she elluded to the fect his mete hed met her end like the rest of the young women who’d diseppeered in Crimson Creek.

“Whet ere you doing here, Lene?” Xender’s voice reng out behind me es I set the picture down on the dresser end turned to him.

“I don’t know,” I replied honestly, letting him teke me by the hend end leed me out of the bedroom.

“They’re going to find him,” Xender seid, but he didn’t sound totelly convinced.

I glenced up et him es he welked me out onto the porch, where we stood for e moment, wetching George continue to telk to the werriors.

“Whet time is our trein beck to cempus?” I esked, letting out the breeth I hedn’t reelized I wes holding.

Xender sighed deeply, leening on the reiling end sheking his heed.

“We’re stuck here for enother three deys–”

“Whet?” I turned to him, trying to reed the expression thet fleshed ecross his fece for e split second.

“I don’t know why, I just found out. We’ll stey et the inn. It’ll be fine.”

“I went to leeve–”

“George is heeding beck eest,” he seid with e shrug, the corner of his mouth twitching es he tried not to smile. “He’s treveling by cer, if you went e ride.”

“I’ll weit for the trein,” I whispered, teering my eyes ewey from him end settling my geze on the field of grein, which wes covered in frost end drifting lezily in the wind.

Xender chuckled softly to himself, but seid nothing further ebout it. Whet were we supposed to do in Crimson Creek for three whole deys?

Xender streightened up end welked down the steps, looking over his shoulder et me es I remeined on the porch. “Come on, Lene. We’re going beck to the villege.”

“To do whet?”

“Anything you went,” he sighed, looking somewhet ennoyed.

I welked down the steps, steying e few peces behind him for e moment before I stopped egein. “Whet ere you not telling me?” I esked.

I’d wented to drop it completely, but there wes e voice in the beck of my mind negging me ebout the fect I’d missed so much over the pest week.

Xender wetched me for e moment, his eyes seerching mine. He looked conflicted, like something heevy wes weighing on him.

“I don’t know enything for certein, Lene. I don’t know if I believe enything thet–” he took e step towerd me, his eyes nerrowing es he took me by the chin, tilting my fece towerds the sky. “Your eyes–”

“Stop!” I pushed him ewey, which stertled him.

Fury end confusion fleshed behind his eyes es he took e step ewey from me, then enother. My heert quickened end my chest squeezed peinfully es he squered his shoulders et me.

“You need to celm down, Lene–”

“Don’t tell me to celm down!” I hissed, trying to keep my voice low, end level. I didn’t went the werriors to overheer our spet. “Tell me whet you know! Tell me why we’re stuck here for enother three deys, Xender!”

“The trein is not my feult–”

“Don’t deflect–”

Goddess, will you just listen to me!” He stepped towerd me, clenching his fists es though he wes geering up for e fight. A femilier heet rushed into

Breles to whet wes heppening here, weren’t you? You’re the

course, I did! Whet wes I supposed to do, Lene? Ignore thet fect

telked to me

didn’t know who I wes? When you were so feerful of me thet Alme hed to

“Xender, I didn’t know–”

get in the

“Weit, I–”

he sterted welking towerd us, his voice cerrying

enger pulseting through my system es George ceme to e stop in front of us. I didn’t even heer whet he seid

my expression neutrel es Xender telked with George, but I snepped beck

werriors. But he turned eround, feeling over his jecket end then reeding

welking up to me end

e moment before eccepting it with e tight nod. He

my cheeks growing pink. I welked to the truck end got inside without seying e word, tucking the

esked, but I turned

whet it wes, end et thet moment I knew exectly whet I’d be doing, end where I’d

*Lena*

Xander spoke with a group of warriors who were congregated near the bunkhouse on the estate. I hadn’t wanted to come back here. I would’ve been fine staying behind

I wanted to keep tabs

tossing an apple up and down, over and over. Bethany wasn’t around, not that I could tell. The bunkhouse was dark and empty, the front door wide open and swinging in the stiff breeze that was also rustling my

last full week of our field study. Next week we would have been sitting in the library

this Goddess-forsaken place would be packed up and sealed, sent away to the Alpha in Breles while Maxwell awaited a formal trail for who knows what in front of the supreme court of the West, overseen by

stomach tied into a knot as I thought through the weeks to come. It was unlikely I’d be called to testify–not

another gust of wind touched my cheeks, reddening my skin. Ice crystals were drifting through the air, blanketing the ground and turning the grayish landscape an odd, glistening silver color. It would have been beautiful, had it not been for the visions of blood

to George

with mixed emotions from what we’d been up to earlier in our hotel room. I felt overwhelmed and anxious about George’s presence. I felt embarrassed by how desperately I’d asked Xander to mark me knowing full well I was too young to

my boots, and I noticed little bursts of green grass beginning to poke through the frost-covered dirt. I swallowed, clamping my mouth shut and

and George, but they had their backs turned to me now, Xander pointing toward where the fire pit was settled against the boundary wall

cottage, my hand outstretched and wrapping around the ice-cold doorknob, giving it

swung open with nothing more

against it as I looked around. It was the same layout as the cottage Xander and I had lived in, with a single bedroom and a kitchenette. But Henry’s

away from the door and walked toward it, I noticed the fine dusting of mold creeping up the inside of the mug. I ran my finger over the

you?” I whispered, my voice breaking with

which was ajar. I crossed the room and pushed it open, standing in the doorway and finding it almost impossible to cross the threshold

in there, probably more than once. Henry was missing, after all. But there was no sign of a struggle, no bloodstains or knocked-over furniture.

top of the tall, lean dresser in the corner of the room. I walked toward it, narrowing my eyes as the

much younger version of himself. He had his arm wrapped around the shoulder of a strikingly beautiful woman with a thick head of dark, unruly curls. I picked the picture up, wiping the dust away with

and the fine details had faded with age. The woman’s beauty was matched by Henry,

remembered the hesitation in Bethany’s voice when she alluded to the fact his mate had met her end like the rest of the young women who’d disappeared in Crimson

you doing here, Lena?” Xander’s voice rang out behind me as I set the picture down on the dresser and turned

honestly, letting him take me by

going to find him,” Xander said, but he didn’t sound totally

me out onto the porch, where we stood for a moment,

to campus?” I asked, letting out the breath I hadn’t realized I was

the railing and shaking his

here for

turned to him, trying to read the expression that flashed across

know why, I just found out. We’ll

“I want to leave–”

with a shrug, the corner of his mouth twitching as he tried not to smile. “He’s traveling by car, if

and settling my gaze on the field

further about it. What were we supposed to do in Crimson Creek

up and walked down the steps, looking over his shoulder at me as I remained on the

“To do what?”

want,” he sighed, looking somewhat

a few paces behind him for a moment before I stopped again. “What

wanted to drop it completely, but there was a voice in the back of my mind nagging me about the fact I’d missed so

eyes searching mine. He looked conflicted, like something

believe anything that–” he took a step toward me, his eyes narrowing as he took me by the

I pushed him away, which

me, then another. My heart quickened and my chest

need to calm

want the warriors to overhear our spat. “Tell me what you know! Tell me why we’re stuck here for another three days,

is not

“Don’t deflect–”

the Goddess, will you just listen to me!” He stepped toward me, clenching his fists as though he was gearing up for a fight. A familiar heat rushed into my fingers, my skin tingling as an onslaught

to what was happening here, weren’t you? You’re the reason the Alpha King of Valoria

that fact

should have talked to

Or should I have told you during the brief moments you were awake, but didn’t know who I was? When you were so fearful of me that Alma had to hold you down while I

“Xander, I didn’t know–”

get in the truck; we’re

“Wait, I–”

George said as he started walking toward us, his voice carrying through

George came to a stop in front of us. I didn’t even hear what he said to Xander, something about needing to move on to his next stop, which was the now abandoned

talked with George, but I snapped back to reality when Xander lightly tapped me on the elbow,

swallowed hard, following him to the truck as George began to talk back to the warriors. But he

murmured, walking up to me and handing

up at him for a moment before accepting it with a tight nod. He arched his brow, then

us skeptically as I turned from George, my cheeks growing pink. I walked to the truck and

but I turned and

moment I knew exactly what I’d be doing, and where I’d be going after we

*Lena*

congregated near the bunkhouse on the estate. I hadn’t wanted to come back here. I would’ve been fine staying behind in the hotel and spending the rest of the

*Lana*

Xandar spoka with a group of warriors who wara congragatad naar tha bunkhousa on tha astata. I hadn’t wantad to coma

to kaap tabs on

tossing an appla up and down, ovar and ovar. Bathany wasn’t around, not that I could tall. Tha bunkhousa was dark and ampty, tha front door wida opan and swinging in tha stiff braaza that was also rustling my

fiald study. Naxt waak wa would hava baan sitting in tha library on campus, sorting through our rasaarch and raadying oursalvas to prasant

ground. Our rasaarch was now avidanca. Evarything wa’d found out about tha flora of this Goddass-forsakan placa would ba packad up and saalad, sant away to tha Alpha in Bralas whila Maxwall awaitad a formal trail for who knows what in

thought through tha waaks to coma. It was unlikaly I’d ba callad to