Sold as the Alpha King's Breeder
Chapter 1044 - 107 : A New Lead

Chapter 1044: Chapter 107 : A New Lead

*Lucas*

Sasha waited at the curb as I pulled up to her work-study location. She had a bright gleam in her eyes, something I hadn’t seen in days.

“What has you so happy?” I asked, pushing the passenger door open for her.

“I ran into Jennie today. She says her mom might have answers for us and asked us to stop by tonight.”

“Jennie?” I creased my brow. “Oh, right, the witch. Her mom is Rochel, right?”

Sasha nodded. “How do you know them?”

I smirked. “In one of the other realities, they found me and told me they knew I didn’t belong. Without their help, I never would have gotten to you before you married Donovan.”

Sasha giggled and shook her head. “I’ll have to remember to thank them for that.”

“If you think it will help, then let’s go talk to them. Just tell me where they live.”

I drove to the address Sasha gave me. It was a small, modest house. Both Jennie and her mother were sitting on a rocking bench on the porch.

Rochel had a knitted blanket over her legs. Jennie stared hard at the book in her hands.

“Oh, Mom, they’re here.”

“What? I haven’t even put on the tea yet.”

Rochel sprang up and headed into the house. Beside me, Sasha shook her head and laughed.

“I guess some things don’t change.”

“We should give her a minute. She’ll be upset if we go in there and the tea isn’t already set on the table for us.” Jennie grinned at me. “You must be Lucas.”

“That’s me.” I nodded. I had to keep reminding myself that these two weren’t the same as the ones I met in another reality.

“Sasha tells me the two of you hit a bit of a snag when reality jumping.”

I laughed and glanced at Sasha. She bit her lower lip, eyes dancing nervously.

“It’s a long story.”

“Well, let’s go inside and hear it.” Jennie opened the door and ushered us in. She showed Sasha and me to the couch.

All the while, Rochel bustled around in the kitchen, muttering about not having time to properly prepare for guests and that there could be no conversation without tea.

Finally, Rochel joined us, carrying a tray with a steaming teapot and little matching cups, already filled with steeping tea.

As soon as she put the tray on the coffee table, I reached for a cup. I wanted to get to the conversation.

Rochel slapped my hand.

“Ow....”

“There is a proper etiquette to tea serving. You don’t just grab at the cups.”

I glanced Sasha and she smirked at me. What was I getting myself into?

Once Rochel “properly” served us tea, she sat down with Jennie on another couch across from Sasha and me.

“Alright, now we can talk. Tell me what trouble the two of you have gotten into.”

I arched and eyebrow at her. “How do you know we’re in trouble?”

“It rolls off of you in waves. And also, my daughter filled me in.”

“It all started with those orbs I was telling you about....”

Sasha launched into the story. I sat back and sipped my tea, watching the way Jennie sat on the edge of her seat like she was listening to the most exciting adventure story.

For Rochel, on the other hand, the crease in her brow got deeper and deeper as Sasha continued.

“So, now we are trying to get our bodies, our baby, and my powers back. It’s hard without my powers,” Sasha finished the long story.

I reached out and put a hand on her back, rubbing soothingly. It wasn’t easy for her to tell the same story over and over again, especially the part about our baby.

Sasha leaned back and I put my arm around her shoulders, comforting her.

Rochel hummed and stared into her steaming teacup. She sighed several times.

“Mom, what is it?”

“Let an old woman think, Jennie!” Rochel snapped.

She sighed again and swished her tea around before taking a long, slow sip. I could see the concern in her eyes. There was something that deeply disturbed her about our story.

I didn’t want to get slapped or snapped at, but I wanted her to tell me what was going on. My blood rushed in my ears as I stared at her, waiting for her to react. My arm unconsciously tightened around Sasha until she squirmed uncomfortably.

“This is most unfortunate,” she said finally.

“Why?” I blurted out.

Rochel snapped her eyes at me. Her features softened slightly and she slid forward on the couch. She topped up all our cups with fresh water. Leaves at the bottom re-steeped for fresh cups of tea.

“When a soul goes to a reality it doesn’t belong in, things can unravel. It is a slow process because that soul makes subtly different decisions than the soul that belongs there. None of you spent enough time in either reality to cause a catastrophic butterfly effect.”

“That’s encouraging,” I muttered. “But that’s not the issue we’re having. It is our bodies in the wrong reality.”

The older woman nodded. “Exactly. I fear that the unraveling will happen much faster with bodies being out of place. Their physical essence doesn’t belong. It is like a disease. The reality will get sick and die.”

Sasha gasped and I held her tighter. I glanced at her and saw the fear in her eyes.

“It’s not going to come to that,” I promised. I kissed her temple.

Rochel scoffed. “I’m afraid you don’t have control over it, not this time. Sasha’s powers were left in another reality. Then her body, with those powers, ended up in that same reality. Two times the amount of her power is in one timeline....”

“Is that bad?” Sasha squeaked.

“I was afraid of what you could do before. I didn’t know the limit of your dream dancer powers, and I doubt anyone truly did,” Rochel continued. “Who knows what will happen with double that power in one place, especially if it ends up in the wrong hands?”

Sasha shrank against me. “This is all my fault. I couldn’t control the power in the staff.”

“It isn’t your fault, Sasha.”

“I know the two of you have a lot on your minds. I must warn you that it is beyond important that you get your bodies and powers back. This reality may not survive such a loss. Other realities might be affected as well.”

“We get it,” I hissed at Rochel.

She gave me a look. “You wanted answers, young man. I can’t be held responsible if they aren’t the answers you want to hear.”

“She’s right, Lucas. She’s just the messenger. There’s no point in getting mad at her. There’s nothing she can do. This is a mess we created and we need to fix it. So many people are counting on us.” Sasha pressed her hand to my chest.

I sighed and nodded. “King Xander and Queen Lena have been helping us but so far, we haven’t made much progress.”

“What are you trying to do?” Rochel looked between us.

“We’re trying to locate one of the orbs. We have one of them, but so far, Lena has been unable to locate the other,” Sasha reported.

“And we’re looking for Morianne.”

Rochel’s eyes narrowed immediately. She looked at Sasha. “You’re sure she’s the best option? Didn’t you tell me once that she frightened you and you didn’t think you could trust her?”

“I still don’t trust her, but she knows more about my power than anyone else we’ve encountered. If there’s anyone who can make sense of this, it is her,” Sasha insisted.

“But at what cost?” Rochel asked. “Jennie, can you put another pot of water on the stove?”

Jennie’s mouth dropped open. She sighed, but got up and went to the kitchen.

“Banished, like I’m some kid who doesn’t understand,” she muttered as she walked by.

“We haven’t been able to find Morianne yet. She doesn’t seem to want to be found,” I said, turning back to Rochel.

“I’m not surprised. Someone with her plans, powers, and reputation–it’s no wonder she doesn’t want the two of you catching up to her.”

“If you have anything that could help us, we’d appreciate it.” I grinned at Rochel.

She ignored me.

Jennie returned from the kitchen with more hot water. She topped up all our cups and poured the rest of the steaming water into the porcelain teapot on the coffee table.

“You know, the two of you helped me in another reality. You knew I didn’t belong and you found me. Without your help, I might have lost Sasha forever.”

I smiled warmly and looked at Sasha. Her cheeks reddened and she leaned against me more.

“Is that so?” Rochel asked.

I nodded. “I can’t thank the versions of the two of you who helped me, but I’d like to think that I can offer my gratitude in this reality.”

Rochel gave me a suspicious look. I should have known she’d pick up on my ulterior motive.

“Since you two were so helpful before, I figured you’d want to help out again. This is your reality, too.” I gave them both my most innocent, pleading look.

“Lucas Black, if I didn’t know the kind of man you were, you’d be walking a fine line.”

“What does that mean?”

Sasha cleared her throat. “Rochel is really good at reading people’s energy.”

“Oh. Thank you, I guess.”

“The only way Morianne can stay so well hidden is if someone is helping her. She can remain in a secluded place while she has people loyal to her interacting with the world and community outside. It’s why she’s untraceable–because no one is looking at her followers.”

“Who would be willing to help someone in that way? I mean, that takes a lot of dedication and loyalty,” I pointed out.

Rochel nodded. “She is a highly revered figure in the Lycaon Church. If anyone is offering her help, it is them.”

I groaned. Those freaks were the last people I wanted to deal with.

“Morianne doesn’t have the best friend-making skills, as the two of you know. She’s a priestess though, and she’d turn to the church for help.”

Sasha sat up straight, a smile spreading on her lips.

“I can’t believe we didn’t think of that! We are so dumb! We should have been looking at the church the whole time instead of following leads. For all we know, the church planted those dead ends to keep her hidden.”

Sasha’s exuberance filled the room. My stomach sank. The last time we encountered the church, they were being treasonous in another reality. I hated to think what else they were capable of, especially if they were hiding Morianne and planting misleading rumors.

“Lucas, we need to go to the church and find out where they’re hiding her.” Sasha grabbed my hand and gave me a pleading look.

My heart melted a little. I didn’t like it, but I couldn’t deny her this hope.

“Alright.”