Sold as the Alpha King’s Breeder

Chapter 226

Chapter 6: Double the Breeders, Double the Fun  

Rowan

Mist was rolling over the muddy gray water of the inlet, the waves crashing into the rocky, seaweed-covered beach as I pulled on my socks and boots. The air was heavy with salt and an earthy smell of minerals and fish. The mountains beyond the inlet were cast in a soft pink glow as the sun began to rise, the soft violet-blue sky giving way to streaks of fuchsia and gold.

My feet were sore as I walked up the beach toward the village. Running on the sharp, rock-laden sand always cut into my paws, but the snow was still too thick and rotten to run my wolf in the nearby mountain valleys.

I reached the rock where I had left my backpack and shifted back to my human form, then pulled my sweatshirt over my head, the thick fabric a welcome warmth against my chilled skin. I finished getting dressed and, slinging the backpack over my shoulder, 1 climbed up the embankment and across the long field of brush, the village twinkling in the sunrise in the distance.

“Morning, Rowan!”

“Good Morning, Rowan. Out for a run?” 

“Can you bring this up to the house for me, darling? It‘s for your mother.” 

The village was bursting into life as I made my way through the narrow streets, passing countless villagers.. Everyone always said hello, or waved, as I passed by. I passed a woman hanging laundry and another tending to a smoker, the smell of honeyed smoked salmon blanketing the stretch of street as I walked.

The house was beckoning to me as I approached, a large A-frame fortress tucked into an enclave of thick spruce trees that towered over the three-story building with ease. The village continued on into the woods, small cabins dappled here and there, their chimneys puffing smoke into the cloudless, violet sky.

I could remember a time when the village was hidden amongst the spruce. Only recently had it spread to the coast, new gravel covered streets leading toward the dock my father had designed, the breakwater towering over the boats rocking in the low tide.

The breakwater had made it possible for boats to reach the shore, as well as small seaplanes when the water was calm. Ethan may not have been the leader of the pack, but his tedious improvements to the village and his relentless pursuit of allies and trade had secured Winter Forest’s status as a powerful pack, and the village soon became the capital of the Northeast territory. 

“Hey!” I said as I entered the house, pulling my boots off and setting them on the mat next to the door. “I’m home. Mom! Someone gave me a package for you.”

“Is it mail?” I could hear her footsteps on the floor above, and she nearly lost her balance as she thundered down the stairs. Her white hair was pulled back into a braid, but several long strands came loose as she slid to a stop in front of me.

“What’s with all the racket?” my dad said as he stepped out of his office, which was situated off the entryway. I shrugged, turning my attention to Mom as she ripped open the package, her face falling as she pulled out a jar of blueberry jam.

“Don’t worry about it, Rosalie—”

“This isn‘t like her, Ethan! We haven’t received any letters from her in four weeks. Before that we had dozens of them every time the postal plane came in-”

Dad turned on his heel and disappeared into his office. He returned holding a piece of paper above his head, handing it to her and pointing to a paragraph handwritten in neat scrawl. “Aaron made it to Mirage, see? His father says all is well there. There is nothing to worry about.” 

Mom looked defeated as she tucked the jam back into the box, giving me a sober, yet genuine smile. Please tell Mrs. Kratt thank you for this, Rowan,” she said softly, turning away from us as she walked toward the kitchen.

Dad sighed, looking down at the letter before folding it up, giving me a knowing glance. “This is harder on her than I thought it would be.” 

“I thought she‘d appreciate the quiet around here, with Maeve away,” I replied, pulling my arms out of my jacket and hanging it on the hook near the door. I frowned at the empty hook that should have held my favorite flannel jacket. I‘d been looking for it 

000%

6: Double the Breeders,

everywhere, with no luck.

nodding in agreement. “I think it‘s too quiet. That‘s the problem.”

in the house without Maeve here to cause her usual chaos. Dad wasn‘t constantly pleading with her to get out of his office, and Mom wasn’t scolding her endlessly in

hadn’t thought much about her absence at first. She was Maeve’s best friend, but Gemma also meant a great deal to me. We‘d grown up together, though she was several years older than me. There was never really a

missed them, truthfully. Winter Forest felt very small without

his office. I sat in one of the wide leather chairs next to his desk. He kept his small

leaning forward

chair

excitement rushing through my veins. “When?”

weeks from now, if the weather holds.

blood draining from my

in Red Lakes you‘ll stay for roughly

i‘d heard about the Gilahanda Sea. We were protected from its

panels,” Dad

waiting for him to continue. When he

to start a trade route directly across the sea, bypassing the need to ship goods by plane. We will still ship goods out of Mirage by train, like usual. Gene finally has an access road built from Red Lakes to the outskirts of the Finaldi but it‘ll be some time before it‘s built all the way down to Breles. He’ll eventually be able

“You’re joking, right?” 

his eyes narrowing. “Is there something funny about

I just… you‘ve heard the

very different from the wooden ships still used around Avondale and Breles. Plus, if

of Winter Forest, but Dad was the reason why the pack’s strong economy was what it is today. He talked on, explaining how more efficient trade would speed up communication between the packs. He held up his hand, tracing a circle on his palm as he showed me how it would work. We’d ship oil and timber down to Valoria, and Valoria would use it to strengthen their cities and power their homes to make up for their depleted wind turbine farms. Valoria, the most populous of the territories, traded back and forth with Avondale and Breles since the tropical, warm-water sea between the cities less dangerous and

Breles, but not anymore. Not

is level. Solar farms are more than doable around their village for now, but wind turbines are the future. We just need a way to get parts and engineers from Valoria there without spending

onto his desk. I stood, peering over his shoulder as he traced the route he had

I‘m taking the solar panels to Red

14:47 L 

Breeders,

the construction and implementation of the solar farm in my

“What about cellular communication?”

think we need reliable power restored

large as Valoria but with a quarter of the population. Finaldi had radio towers, several of

my voice bubbling with excitement. And, if we built a few towers here, and convinced Ernest to invest in a dozen or so

my face. I looked down at him, meeting his eye. His expression was blank but I could

we could do more than get electricity to

consider it,

gravitated toward engineering. I had even begged to be

Alpha. I was meant to lead, to conquer, not pour over blueprints and build radios.

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