Sold as the Alpha King’s Breeder

Chapter 66 : A Life Without Him

*Xander*

I reached back and felt along the back of my head, looking for a bump or some sort of wound large

enough to knock me out.

That was the only explanation for this. I was not on the beach anymore; that was certain. Thick trees

dotted with waxy white blooms rustled over my head, and the ground beneath was soft, grassy, not the

powdered sugar sand of the stormy beach I'd been standing on only a moment before.

Maybe it had been more than a moment. It had to be. Someone had knocked me out and shipped me

off, dumping me here, wherever this was. Likely Lena's father, I thought with a bitter taste in my mouth.

I reached down and felt along my body, finding everything intact, including the velvet bag in the front

pocket of my trousers.

“What the f**k?" I groaned, sitting upright and running my hands over my face and through my hair.

Sand dusted my shoulders, coming loose from my jet-black strands of hair that were now long enough

to curl around my ears and the corner of my jaw.

“Lena?" I bellowed, but the only answer was the rustling of a soft breeze through the unfamiliar trees.

I stood, but then lost my balance and nearly fell back onto my knees. I braced myself on a tree,

pressing my full weight against it, which caused it to rattle and spill a cascade of fragrant blooms the

size of my fist all over my body. Magnolia? That's what it smelled like. I plucked one of the petals from

my shoulders and pitched it between my fingers.

“Hello?" I called out.

Nothing–no sound, no answer. I tried to mind-link with someone–anyone–but there was nothing but

radio silence. Even Adrien, with whom I shared the strongest bond, was absent.

I sighed, nodding my head as I looked around beneath my lashes.

Those bastards had definitely dumped me somewhere. I'd likely been out for days.

I began to walk through what happened to be a thick forest. Trees of every shape and size covered the

landscape, and the forest floor was unusually bare with nothing but perfect, emerald turf that felt more

like walking on carpet than grass. No roots stuck out of the ground to trip on, and no leaves scattered

the ground. It was beautiful–but too beautiful. The day after the wedding was the day before Winter

Solstice, and somewhere with trees like this? Their branches should have been bare, and the forest

floor should have been coated in decaying leaves.

“I haven't been out for that long," I reassured myself–at least I tried. Unease washed over me as I

continued forward with no clear direction. It was light out, possibly morning given the pinkish-violet

color of the sky. It was warm, the perfect temperature.

“What the f**k is going on?" I growled, then stood as still as possible, holding my breath as I scanned

my surroundings for any signs of life.

No birds. No small game rustling the patches of bushes dappled with pink and yellow buds–not a

sound, save for a soft wind that seemed to only touch the canopy above my head.

“You must be in trouble," came a voice from behind me.

I turned, crouching in a defensive position as the voice faded, and a strange chuckling sound filtered

through the trees all around me.

I waited, my blood rushing through my body as adrenaline prickled over my skin. I had no weapons. I

could only shift. But the second I closed my eyes and let my wolf begin to take over, the voice, both

near and far away, spoke again.

“You can't do that here," it said from wherever it was coming from, its voice both feminine and

masculine as if two people were talking at the same time. I straightened my back and opened my eyes,

looking around slowly to take every inch of my surroundings into account.

“Show yourself!"

“I am!" it replied, and a stiff breeze rustled the trees, bushes, and flowers around me, but didn't touch

my clothes, or hair.

I froze.

I'd heard stories of haunted woods, demons, and spirits. I'd heard tales of old, from the time before the

Moon Goddess walked the mortal realms, when the forgotten gods and their spirit-like familiars

tormented those who wandered into the pockets where the spirit realm was open to the realms of the

mortals.

But that was fantasy. I was dreaming, right? I was, most definitely, severely concussed.

“You're not injured," the voice laughed, a girlish laugh, as though it came from a child. “She put you

here."

“Who?"

“The Builder, of course. Who else could do it?"

“Who are you?"

“Oh, I am nothing."

“What?"

“I said, I am nothing–"

“I heard you!" I spun in a circle trying to chase the voice, but it was all around me. “Show yourself!"

A breeze rushed past me, then the entire area stilled. I looked up as little sparks of light cascaded

through the canopy of foliage, floating down around me in perfectly circular orbs of white.

I was dreaming. That's what this was.

“You're not dreaming," the voice whispered, followed by a snicker of mirth that danced through the

trees above my head. I glared up at the trees.

“You're reading my mind?"

“Why did she send you here? What purpose do you serve?"

“I have no idea what you're talking about," I replied, pinching the skin on my forearm to try to wake

myself up. But I felt the pain of it. I smacked myself several times, hard enough for the impact to sting.

The voice laughed again.

“You must be the man."

“Who?"

“The man," it repeated.

I furrowed my brow, scowling up at the bright orbs as they danced around the tree branches above my

head.

“I don't know what you're talking about–"

“Follow me," it said, and I watched as the orbs began to flutter away, creating a trail of light through the

canopy.

I turned and watched them fly away.

***

*Lena*

Abigail turned around the small sitting room on the third floor of the palace, running her fingers over the

windowsill as she passed it by. She sighed, tucking a lock of her red hair behind her ear as she turned

to face me with her arms crossed over her chest.

“Do you think he might have just… left?"

“Of course he did," I replied, picking at the decorative pillow I was holding in my lap. Little blue

seahorses fanned out over the pillow, tiny blue beads sparkling in the gray light coming through the

windows. It was raining hard, and Abigail had been helping clear the flower arrangements out of the

ballroom when she saw me cross the foyer.

I'd spent the better part of two hours telling her everything, and I mean everything–about me, about

Xander, about Crimson Creek.

“Your parents gave him their blessing–"

“My dad didn't. He said no. But I…" I didn't have the words to explain how I felt. I was just as angry as I

was heartbroken. He'd lied to me in the worst way. He'd hidden something from me that wasn't his right

to keep from me.

I couldn't have children.

How could he do this to me?

“f**k him," Abigail sneered, pulling a random book off a shelf and turning it over in her hands. “You

need to get out of here for a while, Lena. Take some time to yourself."

“I can't. They're sending me to Winter Forest–"

“You're a grown woman. You don't have to do anything you don't want to do."

“It's not that simple–"

“But it is! You're not a child! You could get on a plane right now and go anywhere you want. You have

your own money, right?"

“I guess–"

“Then let's go to the airport! Where do you want to go?"

“I have nowhere to go, Abi. I have no connections, no job. I can't go back to Morhan. My family will

come looking for me there."

Abigail clicked her tongue, shrugging one shoulder as she dug into the center pocket of the apron she

was wearing. She pulled out a piece of paper and tossed it to me. I unfolded it, read it, then looked up

at her with arched brows.

“What is this?"

“A job, if you want it. It's not going to pay much at all, but it comes with room and board. It's also about

as far away as you can get–"

“Where?" I said, rising to my feet.

She gave me a sideways smile, a gleam of mischief in her eyes. “A place called Cedar Hollow. It's

about seventy miles west of Red Lakes, over the mountains. It's a cute place, from what I've been told.

Lots of those big trees you like–"

“When? When can I go?"

“Now, if you want. Just call the number–"

I was gone from the room in an instant, leaving Abigail gaping behind me as the door swung shut, and I

padded down the hallway toward my room.

Winter Solstice was tomorrow. Everyone would be busy at the parade and market in downtown

Avondale. I could sneak away from the festivities and catch the next flight west to Breles, and take the

train north to Moon Haven, or even Red Lakes. My mind was spinning as I hastily packed my duffle bag

with anything I could get my hands on.

A job–I'd have a job. I'd be so far away no one could find me.

But Xander drifted back into my mind. I braced myself with my hands on either side of the dufflebag,

pushing my palms into the mattress as I stifled a sob.

Be done with these games, I told myself. He was never going to tell you the truth. He was never going

to tell you about Crimson Creek. He was toying with you, stringing you along....

The mark on my chest didn't twinge or burn at the thought of him. He was gone… really, truly gone.

I zipped up my dufflebag and looked around the room.

I walked to the vanity and fished through the drawers for a pen and piece of paper. I poured my heart

out onto the page, staining it with tears.

“I'm sorry," I wrote, over and over again. “I love you. And I'm sorry."

I folded the paper and wrote my parent's names on the top.

This time tomorrow, I'd be gone. I'd be on my way to a new life.

A life without powers. A life without rank. A life without the crushing expectations of my birthright, or the

prophecy that pressed down like weights on my shoulders.

A life without Xander.

I wiped my tears and put on my best smile, then turned to the door.