Sold as the Alpha King’s Breeder

Chapter 34: Heading Home

*Lena*

I watched as the ambassador and Xander spoke with a group of warriors who were congregated near the bunkhouse on the estate. I hadn't wanted to come back here. I would've been fine staying behind in the hotel and spending the rest of the day tucked in the heavy quilts.

But I wanted to keep tabs on George.

I was leaning against the truck, tossing an apple up and down, over and over. Bethany wasn't around, not that I could tell. The bunkhouse was dark and empty, the front door wide open and swinging in the stiff breeze that was also rustling my hair and sending a chill over my skin.

It was the last week of November. It should have been the last full week of our field study. Next week we would have been sitting in the library on campus, sorting through our research and readying ourselves to present our senior thesis.

Instead, I'd watched it all burn to the ground. Our research was now evidence. Everything we'd found out about the flora of this Goddess-forsaken place would be packed up and sealed, sent away to the Alpha in Breles while Maxwell awaited a formal trail for who knows what in front of the supreme court of the West, overseen by the Alpha King of Findali himself.

My stomach tied into a knot as I thought through the weeks to come. It was unlikely I'd be called to testify-not with my connections.

I closed my eyes as another gust of wind touched my cheeks, reddening my skin. Ice crystals were drifting through the air, blanketing the ground and turning the grayish landscape an odd, glistening silver color. It would have been beautiful, had it not been for the visions of blood and anguish that stained this place.

I opened my eyes to Xander standing with his arms crossed, his body turned to George and his head thrown back in laughter. What could he possibly have to laugh about?

I caught the apple and tucked it in the pocket of my jacket, glaring in his direction. My anger was irrational, I realized, but I didn't really care. I was sore and riddled with mixed emotions from what we'd been up to earlier in our hotel room. I felt overwhelmed and anxious about George's presence. I felt embarrassed by how desperately I'd asked Xander to mark me knowing full well I was too young to know for sure that he was my mate. My heart was breaking into many pieces by the fact he didn't do it.

I scoffed, digging the toe of my boot into the dirt to distract myself from the prickle of heat nipping at my fingertips despite the cold. Greenery caught my eye as I glanced down at my boots, and I noticed little bursts of green grass beginning to poke through the frost-covered dirt. I swallowed, clamping my mouth shut and inhaling deeply through my nose until my lungs filled with air, and I held it, forcing my heart to slow its rapid beating.

I walked forward, unsure of where exactly I meant to go. I glanced at Xander and George, but they had their backs turned to me now, Xander pointing toward where the fire pit was settled against the boundary wall and the forest.

I found myself climbing the steps to Henry's cottage, my hand outstretched and wrapping around the ice-cold doorknob, giving it

a turn.

The door swung open with nothing more than a little shove.

Why I was there, I didn't know. Why I stepped inside the dank, empty cottage was a mystery. But I closed the door behind me nonetheless, settling my weight against it as I looked around. It was the same layout as the cottage Xander and I had lived in, with a single bedroom and a kitchenette. But Henry's cottage was lived in, the walls littered with dried and pressed flowers and herbs protected by glass frames.

A mug of tea sat on the kitchenette, and as I moved away from the door and walked toward it, I noticed the fine dusting of mold creeping up the inside of the mug. I ran my finger over the counter, drawing a line in the dust.

are you?" I whispered,

window panes in the bedroom. I could see his bed, unmade, through the door, which was ajar. I crossed the room and pushed it open, standing in the doorway and finding it almost impossible to cross the

in there, probably more than once. Henry was missing, after all. But there was no sign of a struggle, no bloodstains or knocked-over furniture. Everything was in its

picture sitting on top of the tall, lean dresser in the corner of the room.

younger version of himself. He had his arm wrapped around the shoulder of a strikingly beautiful woman with a thick head of dark, unruly

of my memories. The photo was in black and white, and the fine details had faded with age. The woman's beauty was matched by Henry, who had been exceedingly handsome in his

his mate. I remembered the hesitation in Bethany's voice when she alluded to the fact his mate had met her end like the rest of the young women who'd disappeared

Xander's voice rang out behind me as I set the picture down on

take me by the

going to find him," Xander said, but

walked me out onto the porch, where we stood for a moment,

asked, letting out the breath I hadn't realized

sighed deeply, leaning on the railing

here for another three

turned to him, trying to read the expression that

why, I just found out. We'll stay at the inn.

"I want to leave-"

shrug, the corner of his mouth twitching as he tried not to smile. "He's traveling by car, if you want a

wait for the train." I whispered, tearing my eyes away from him and settling my gaze on the field of grain, which

What were we supposed to do in Crimson Creek

me as I remained on the

"To do what?"

he

for a moment before I stopped

it completely, but there was a voice in the back of my mind nagging me about the fact I'd

moment, his eyes searching mine.

anything for certain, Lena. I don't know if I believe anything that-" he took a step toward me, his eyes narrowing as he took me by the chin, tilting my face towards the sky. "Your

him away,

step away from me, then another. My heart quickened and my chest squeezed painfully as he squared his shoulders

need to

didn't want the warriors to overhear our spat. "Tell me what you know! Tell me why we're

is not