Sold as the Alpha King’s Breeder

Chapter 74: I'll Take That as a Yes.

Alright, Tallis and Theo might be two different people, but they both could be jerks!

Since the conversation with Tallis didn't go anywhere, I decided to call it a night.

But what I didn't expect was a group of thick, muscular thugs that appeared from nowhere, blocking my way back to my parents' house. They snickered and closed in around me.

"What do you want?" I asked harshly.

"They don't want anything. However, we have an unfinished score to settle," Hawke's angry, frustrated voice barked out from behind the thugs.

"I didn't do anything to you," I insisted, crossing my arms and trying to act more like a guy.

"Well, the last time we spoke, I ended up knocked out and face down in the dirt. You're telling me that you had nothing to do with that?" Hawke shouted viciously.

Apparently, he remembered more than I hoped. He wasn't drunk tonight, either.

"Grab this little twit!" Hawke ordered.

His thugs jumped at me. I jumped back, but they'd already closed in around me and one caught me from behind. All four of them grabbed my arms and legs and pinned me down to the ground.

I struggled against them, hissing and trying to bite whatever got close to my mouth. Hawke's thugs were too well trained and they were too strong!

"Hold that little swine down. I'm going to teach him a lesson for messing with me," Hawke chuckled, shoving the toe of his boot into the ground.

Now that I was eye level with his boots, I could see they were steel toed. If he kicked me with those, he'd break every bone in my body. I had to stall him.

"That's funny, seeing as the last time we met, you seemed to be interested in me, regardless of me being a boy," I hissed, still struggling against his cronies holding me down.

One of them nearly let me go as his head whipped around to Hawke.

Hawke sneered and shook his head. "Don't listen to this piece of crap. He's just trying to mess with you. Hold him steady."

Nothing I said now would turn their heads. Whether they were all loyal to Hawke or to Hawke's cunning dad, it wouldn't save me a good beating.

Hawke pulled his foot back, knee bent, ready to deliver a horrible kick to my side. I closed my eyes and held my breath, waiting for the heavy blow.

It never came.

"What the..."

I opened my eyes just as a pack of wild animals burst from the forest and attacked Hawke.

"Get them off, get them off!" Hawke screeched, flapping his partially broken arms around like he was fending off a swarm of bees.

cronies ran at him, trying to pull the beasts

got close, some of the smaller ones, the squirrels and rabbits, jumped on them and bit them. All of them were screaming and floundering around like

pathetic, trying to fight off a gaggle of wild animals with his near useless arms. His guys hardly

of wild animals pushed Hawke and his group further and further away from me.

to have been summoned by someone. I glanced around the forest and saw

trees. He could also organize an animal

believe

a minimum, there must be some sort of

Hawke's continued cries for help and I went after Tallis. As soon as I started approaching the woods, he vanished

trying to evade me, which made me think he didn't want me to see him and made it even more

to grab his arm before he could

pulled

think I am. How many

some other way to approach him.

wait a minute, please?"

face me but

my breath and moved closer to him. "It is different this time because I need your

turned to me, one eyebrow arched. "Is that

times now and I don't

Tallis asked sharply.

Can I stay with you? I can't go back to the pack

all the time. I almost thought he was more intolerable than the Dark

wrong with me?!

myself, but at this moment, I could tell myself that I had a valid reason

can I stay with you?" | asked again,

sighed heavily and started walking through the woods again. He hadn't confirmed I could stay with him but he hadn't flat out denied me, either.

to the carnival tent, it was quiet. It seemed like most of the performers had gone to bed for the night. Nelson was still up and he waved casually

course, Tallis just waved in

He couldn't even spare his friendly, charismatic brother a friendly

is with you, Tallis?" Nelson asked. "Ah, young sir, hello again!"

me," Tallis grumbled in a slightly

kill you to

and wiped a tear from his eye.

shook his head. I gave him

how did you two become... friends?" Nelson asked, motioning for us to follow

and I went into Nelson's curtain office. He had a hot plate going with a big

said, dipping a ladle into the steaming broth and lifting it to his nose to smell.

admitted, my

get some bowls," Nelson said, bustling around the

right behind me. I'd half expected him to run

soup and handed one to me and Tallis. He perched on the edge of his folding table desk to eat