Sold as the Alpha King’s Breeder

Chapter 24 : She Came Back

*Soren*

As Mila hurried off, I tilted my head and watched her backside as she went. I had no intention of following her but I

wasn't above enjoying the way she looked as she left.

She was so… cute. I couldn't think of a better way to describe it. She tried to be feisty and fierce, which I admired,

but instead, it was like getting nipped at by an overly zealous puppy.

I had a puppy once. We'd play together and the more rambunctious I got, the more worked up he got. He'd start

yipping and nip at me with his sharp little puppy teeth.

If he did nip at me, I'd yelp, purposefully, and it would startle him. He'd shy away and get really sad. Then he'd try

to lick me to make me feel better.

That's what Mila had done last night, though her form of making me feel better went far beyond playful licks.

I smirked to myself and took a moment to reflect on last night. Based on that, she was definitely not a puppy.

Though, I couldn't help but compare her to my old pet.

No… she wasn't a pet. She was adorable and feisty and right now, she was mine. Her determination, despite the

helplessness to achieve her own goals, made me feel protective over her and watchful.

I knew she was lying through her teeth. I doubted anything she'd told me was real. She probably hadn't looked in

the box yet and I seriously doubted it was that dangerous of an artifact that would stop working if she was dead.

It frustrated me that she thought she had to lie to me and manipulate me in order to gain my cooperation. We'd

made our deal and I had already agreed to help, so why was she still playing games?

Last night… I smirked and closed my eyes, remembering how open and unguarded she was under me on the bed.

She'd surrendered completely and didn't hold back.

Part of me wished she'd remain open and trusting when she woke up but I hadn't counted on it. No, she'd reverted

back to her same old ways. I couldn't be mad at her for that.

First of all, I knew she was lying so I didn't feel like she was actually manipulating me to do anything I wouldn't

already have done. Secondly, I knew it was how she survived. It would take a lot more than one epic night to get

her to relax around me.

Sighing, I grabbed a t-shirt and threw it on. I picked up the hotel room phone and called to Payne's room one floor

down.

“Payne, come to my room," I ordered.

“Be right there…" he mumbled.

When Payne arrived he looked… deflated. His shoulders sagged and he had big, purple bags under his eyes. His hair

was mussed and he was wearing the same wrinkled clothes from last night.

“Did you not sleep?" I asked arching an eyebrow.

Payne grunted, yawned slightly, and then shrugged. “I did not rest well."

“I see that," I added with a scoff.

“The woman who sent Mila the flowers yesterday vanished into the fog. I tracked her to the forest and lost her trail.

I couldn't find anything else about her," Payne reported.

I creased my brow and pursed my lips. “Yeah… you told me that last night."

Payne's eyes widened and he pinched the bridge of his nose. “I… sorry… my mind is… I didn't sleep well," he

stammered.

He bowed his head and sighed heavily.

“I'm sorry, Soren. I'm a little out of it," he admitted.

“Hmm."

Payne had always been trustworthy. He had no reason to lie to me or hide things from me. If he said he was over

tired, then he was over tired. I couldn't remember ever seeing him this exhausted.

Perhaps I'd been working him too hard recently. I'd been relying on him a lot while I dealt with Mila. Normally, he

and I would be out there together.

I held my hand up and shook my head.

“No need to apologize, it isn't a big deal. Get some rest," I ordered.

“Thank you. I am sorry…" Payne muttered. “Do you need anything from me, since you called me here?"

“I'd rather you rest first," I admitted.

“Tell me what you need and I'll get on it after I rest," he said. “Then you won't have to call me back here."

I nodded. “Alright. If you could call Dr. Lee and ask him to meet us here ASAP. I need his medical expertise."

Payne nodded in agreement. “Are you injured, or…"

“No. Mila is still weak from the Black Fire poison and I think Dr. Lee can help," I explained.

“Mila!?" Payne asked. “Didn't she leave?"

“She came back," I said with a chuckle.

“Man, I am out of it," Payne muttered. He ran a hand down his face.

If anyone could help Mila detox, it would be Dr. Lee. That was the first request she'd made of me and I wanted to

see it happen soon. Who knew what that poison was doing to her?

“Anything else?" Payne asked.

“Yes. When you're feeling rested, I want you to start investigating Helen," I said. I watched Payne carefully for his

reaction.

Payne shuddered and looked away from me. Quickly, he shook his head and met my eyes again. “Yes. I'll get into

it."

“Thank you."

For a long moment, Payne just stood there. He probably expected more details for the investigation I was sending

him on but I didn't have more details. Mila wanted to know about Helen and how to find her.

That was about all I knew about the situation as well.

“Get some sleep before you do any of those things," I instructed, nodding to the door.

Payne slowly turned to leave. He shuffled to the door and pulled it open.

On the floor outside I saw a stray petal from the bouquet Mila had received.

“Payne, wait a moment," I blurted.

If I wanted to gain Mila's trust, I'd have to show her that what had happened between us was meaningful. The petal

gave me an idea.

“Yeah, boss, what is it?" Payne asked, perking up slightly.

“Do you know of any flower shops in town? You did a pretty thorough investigation of the town, are there any

florists in business?" I asked.

Payne creased his brow for a moment. “I'm not sure that woman would leave an obvious trail like that."

Of course, he assumed that I was referring to the mysterious woman who left the bouquet for Mila. It was a good

thought, tracking her down from where she bought the flowers, but not what I was thinking of.

“Those flowers weren't from around here. The woman had to have purchased them from somewhere else. Besides,

with the foggy climate here… I don't think there are a lot of flowers blooming these days. Even if someone was

selling flowers, they wouldn't be the type anyone would want to buy," he concluded.

I nodded and bowed my head. “All right then. Go get some rest now. And I mean that."

Payne agreed and closed the door behind him.

Tapping my lips, I paced back and forth. What would a woman Mila's age like?

There were the obvious options like flowers, jewelry, and chocolates of some kind. That seemed a little… like I was

trying too hard.

She'd probably see gifts like those as a bribe or some other way to gain her affection so I could use her. That's how

she viewed all kind gestures.

I'd have to come up with a gift idea that was personal and meaningful and that would help her realize I wasn't just

trying to use her for my own gain.

Flowers were out of the question, anyway, given what Payne said. Besides, some mystery woman had already left

her flowers. I wanted to find something more original than that.

I could replace the ring she gave me… or…

I still had the ring. Striding over to the bedside table, I opened the drawer and looked at the ring. Should I give it

back to her? Would she see that as a kind gesture?

It wasn't just her ring, though. This same ring had been on Helen's finger on a “wanted" poster.

Payne made it sound like she was a seer or a mystic. If she was, why would she be on a wanted list? Seers were

rare. They were rare in the Realm of Light and in the Realm of Shadows. Most of them were seen as special and

their talents honored.

What could Helen have done to get herself on a wanted list over a decade ago?

Seers were treated as guests, practically as royalty, especially by alphas. Why had this realm condemned her as a

criminal?

I'd heard stories of seers and mystics doing some awful things with their powers. Had Helen been one of them? If

so, would helping Mila track her down be beneficial? What if she wanted to hurt Mila too?

Well, I'd have to protect her if it came to that.

I stared at the ring in my drawer.

Based on what Payne said, Helen was connected to his pack. His father had explicitly told him that she was

dangerous and he wanted to know if Helen was ever sighted or found.

And if Mila was looking for her, somehow, Mila had gotten it into her head that Helen was going to help her.

So, Helen was connected to both Mila and Payne. And the two of them were connected to me.

Who on earth was Helen?

And the ones that were after Mila, Alpha Chandler and Norwind, did they know about Helen too? Was she part of

the bigger threat coming after Mila?

Or were they after Mila because of her connection to Helen?

Was Helen working with them or was she their real target?

I had to determine if Helen was a friend or a foe, and with what I knew, I wasn't willing to gamble in either direction.

Singing, I stroked my chin and closed the drawer. Now, I wanted to find Helen. It was possible she could tie

everything together. She was the missing piece that could answer all the questions.

I worried about Payne. The prospect of investigating her and tracking her down seemed to unnerve him. I'd need

him focused and at the top of his game in order to track her down.

My thoughts raced. No matter how hard I tried to prevent it, almost every thought and question circled back around

to Mila. Had she really become that big of a priority to me?

Yes, she had, because I wasn't going to let her life go to waste after I'd saved her multiple times… but was there

something more?

BANG!

My entire room shook and I stumbled slightly. The sound came from across the hall.

“Oh s**t! Mila!" I cursed and rushed across the hall, practically ripping the door off its hinges.