Sold as the Alpha King’s Breeder

Chapter 12: My Rescuer

*Mila*

All through the night, I stuck to the shadows and stayed close to buildings as much as I could. Every now and then, I

glanced back to see if Soren had sent anyone to follow me. So far, I was alone.

When I got to the edge of the village, I headed in the direction of Miltern pack territory.

In my dreams, Helen had given me a road map. At least, that's what I thought it was. She'd shown me the way over

and over again, but I'd never understood. Now that I could remember them more clearly.

She'd shown me that I needed to follow the desert north star until the white sands became paved roads and the

sun began to rise.

It was cryptic, but I felt like if I just went after the north star, the rest would make sense, eventually.

When the sun rose, though, it didn't show me white sands and paved roads. Instead, a thick, dense fog hung over

everything. I could barely see in front of my own face.

I stuck my arm out and swiped it side to side like I could push the fog away. It was hard to see far. There was no

going back.

I took a deep breath and stepped into it, but the deeper I went into the fog, the more my stomach gurgled

uncomfortably. Was this really the way I was supposed to be going?

I couldn't see anything. How could I tell where I was going?

I stumbled along until the sand beneath my feet felt funny. I glanced down and saw white sand under my shoes,

fine and soft like powder.

This was Miltern pack territory. I made it!

Almost as if the fog could feel my excitement, it started to thin and then lifted a little and the Miltern village came

to my sight.

There were people on the streets. They walked around like the fog hadn't even been an issue for them.

I waved to someone close by and he wandered past me like he didn't even see me.

“Hey there," I said cheerfully.

Still, he kept walking and didn't even turn his head.

I glanced around and saw that no one else was looking at me either.

Could they even see me or hear me?

I stood still and watched as they moved around. They practically drifted through the streets like they didn't see each

other either. It was like they were zombies or ghosts. I wondered if they were even alive or if they were just

shadows of themselves.

None of them smiled. They had no expressions at all. They weren't happy or sad and they didn't talk to each other.

I saw a woman in her front yard gardening with a blank look on her face.

A man walked down the street with a basket over his arm, completely deadpanned, shuffling his feet along.

Several of them were heading toward what looked like a market. I could see vendors selling food and clothes, but

none of them smiled at each other or shared any kind of greeting.

It was weird to watch them go through daily motions and not have any emotion about it or reaction to it. Based on

how silent it was, I didn't think any of them were talking to each other, either.

An eerie feeling crept over me and I couldn't help but think that the whole pack was under a curse or something. It

was like they all had a dark, gloomy cloud over themselves. But they didn't seem to be upset or sad. They weren't

happy, either.

Just apathetic, emotionless.

Maybe they were just really unhappy about their lives. Or the morning fog just made them seem gloomy. I

wondered if they'd perk up as the day went on and the sun warmed them up.

I walked up the street and bowed my head so I didn't have to look at these strange, gloomy people.

Turning a corner, suddenly I heard quick footsteps behind me. It didn't sound like the slow, sad shuffle of the people

of Miltern pack. These footsteps were deliberate and focused, and headed straight toward me.

Quickly, I ran down another corner, flew by a few blocks and turned again. I kept close to the buildings and did a

loop around one block before doubling back.

The more I tried to outrun them, the closer their footsteps got. They were definitely chasing after me.

I wove through the town and ducked behind different buildings. None of the pack members paid any attention to

me but I still tried to avoid running into them.

A guy opened the door to his house and I darted up the steps and rushed inside. He didn't call after me or try to

stop me but I kept going. There was a woman in the kitchen making coffee and she didn't make a sound as I ran out

the back door.

I got to another house and hopped through an open window. An entire family was eating breakfast. I landed right

next to the table and they didn't even look up.

“Oh, sorry," I muttered.

They looked up at me, acknowledged my invasion of their home and went back to their food.

I ran down into their basement and out the bulkhead. It put me in their backyard. The house had a crawl space

underneath. Dropping down on my hands and knees, I got into the crawl space and used my elbows to drag myself

under the house.

When I got under the front porch, I could see an alley across the street. I couldn't hear the quick footsteps

anymore.

It seemed like I lost my pursuer, but I wasn't taking any chances.

I crawled out from under the house and bolted across the street and straight through the alley. Out the other side, I

kept running until a forest could be seen in the distance, and that was where my dreams told me to go.

Would Hele be in the forest waiting for me?

Maybe she could even tell me what was going on with all the freaks in this pack.

When I got on the path to the forest, I stopped running. My heart hammered against my ribs and my calves ached.

My elbows were smudged with dirt and I had leaves in my hair.

It was the price of not getting caught. I could deal with it.

The path led me right to the forest's edge and I recognized the entrance point. Helen had given me very clear

directions.

I took a deep breath and headed into the old, thick trees. The path got narrow but it was easy enough to see it

winding through the trees and underbrush. It didn't look like anyone had walked on that path in a long time.

As I headed deeper into the woods, I noticed that it was getting darker and darker.

The sun had just risen! This wasn't right.

I tried looking through the treetops to check if the sun was still shining, but the canopies were so thick I couldn't see

the sky at all.

I shivered and rubbed my arms as the darkness closed in around me.

The path was also getting thinner. I looked ahead as it narrowed more and more and suddenly, I couldn't see a path

anymore.

What kind of path just ends in the middle of the forest?

Thinking I could just keep going in a straight line, I started walking around the trees, acting like I was still on a path.

However, before long, when I stopped and turned around, I couldn't see the road behind me anymore.

I was lost.

Fog closed in on me through the darkness and started to get thicker.

I wondered if I should go back while I could still remember which direction I came from and wait until the sun was

higher in the sky and maybe the forest wouldn't be so creepy, dark, and foggy.

The way the fog was thickening, I wouldn't be able to get back if I waited around too long. Mind made up, I turned

around and headed back to the path.

Click. Clack.

Gibber. Gibber.

I froze. What the hell made that kind of sound?

Click. Clack. Gibber. Gibber.

Curiosity got the better of me and I abandoned my search for the path. I carefully followed the sounds to a little

clearing and stayed hidden behind a tree.

The fog was light enough here that I could see what was going on.

There was a group of people moving through the woods. Based on their clothes, they looked like they'd come from

the Miltern pack village.

Something was off about them, though. They were moving strangely. It was like their joints were locked and they

couldn't bend or twist at all.

With stiff legs and arms, they tottered through the woods.

I wondered how they moved so well through the trees despite how awful their bodies looked.

It was just so weird!

They were moving away from me and I wanted to get closer to investigate. I wanted to follow them and see where

they were going. I wondered if it would give me an idea as to why all the pack members were acting so strangely.

A gust of wind blew against my back and my hair whipped around my face. I grabbed the tree trunk in front of me

and slowly turned around.

A man stood behind me. His eyes were fixated on me like I was a target and he was an arrow shot in my direction.

He snarled and pointed at me with a long, gnarled fingernail.

“You're coming with me!" he insisted. He spoke, so he couldn't be from Miltern.

He was one of those who were after me!

Before I could react, he jumped at me. Growling and snarling, he thrust his hands at my face. His sharp fingernails

aimed at my eyes!

I couldn't dodge fast enough and his nail scratched my cheek.

Gasping, I pushed my shoulder into his chest, knocking him back. He hissed and spit furiously, regrouping for

another attack.

This time, I was ready for him. I kicked him straight in the groin.

He grunted, his eyes rolling back. His legs wobbled and he fell to his knees.

I punched him in the face.

“You attacked the wrong girl," I snarled.

The guy was weak. He might have been wild and crazed out of his mind but he was weaker than me.

While he writhed in pain, I headed back toward the path.

My legs ached and my arms were sore. I still wasn't back up to my full strength since the poison.

As I walked toward the path, my legs trembled and my head swam.

“Ugh…" I leaned against a tree and held my hand to my temple.

There was still poison in my system. Evading that guy's attacks took a lot out of me.

Something moved in the fog and I froze again. I looked around but saw nothing.

Then, I heard footsteps in the forest. They were the same footsteps, the same pattern as the person chasing me.

They were faster now, my pursuer closing in quicker than I had time to react. I tried to run back to the path but my

legs wouldn't move fast enough to get me away from this guy. I forced myself to move faster because I knew I

wouldn't be able to fight him if he caught up to me.

Panic raced in my chest as I tried to hurry back to the path. I felt a hand grab at my arm.

“Ack!"

I pitched forward and fell on my hands and knees. The wind was knocked out of me and I began to panic knowing

that I was in real trouble. I rolled over onto my back, scooting away as best I could. I could see the greedy glint in

my assailant's eyes as he walked toward me tauntingly, step by step.

I tried to get up but pain from the poison and exhaustion from the day gripped me. I swallowed into a dry throat

unable to call out for help as I anticipated being pounced on.

Suddenly I felt a cooling breeze as the fog shifted, and my assailant's eyes widened in fear looking just beyond me. I

turned to see what pulled his attention from me. Just in time, my eyes landed on a large, beautiful, black wolf

running at full speed.

My breath caught in my throat before he jumped through the fog, his gorgeous body stretching over me as he

pushed my attacker away.

The wolf held a protective stance in front of me as the attacker staggered backwards.

My breath escaped my lungs slowly as the wolf turned to me, and my eyes became transfixed with the big, gray-

blue orbs that locked onto them.