Sold as the Alpha King's Breeder
Chapter 1120 - 31 : Rescue and Escape

Chapter 1120: Chapter 31 : Rescue and Escape

*Daphne*

The sound of laughter and the smell of sizzling meat, creamy cheese, and warm bread woke me up the next morning. I blinked and looked up to see a blue morning sky and a circle of treetops.

I groaned and sat up to stretch as I looked around. The empty clearing from the night before was filled with Rion’s crew. They had managed to finally catch up with us. I saw Jasper and Rion talking over some food.

I greeted Rion with a soft smile and he returned it over a tin mug of coffee.

I got up and walked over to them.

“Hi,” I said, first to Jasper.

“Tell her what you were telling me,” Rion said to Jasper, gesturing toward a pot and bacon simmering on a hot plate.

“I was telling Rion we were attacked that night you two were captured. The pack must have sent two teams,” Jasper explained.

I scooped up some of the warm soupy mixture using a ladle and dumped it into one of the tin cups available.

I glanced at Katheryn, who sat at the far edge of the clearing with her own steaming bowl and cup, surrounded by several others. I didn’t recognize them, but judging by the comfort with which she talked and laughed around them, I assumed she knew them well.

She sat in the center of their circle and spoke the most. Her voice was the loudest, and she bounced off each comment with a joke that always elicited a burst of laughter from everyone in the circle.

“We were left bloody and bruised.”

Jasper’s voice caught my attention, and I turned to him and Rion again.

“They were merciless,” Rion agreed.

“We went to get help, so we asked Katheryn and she set us up with her crew. And then we found some shifters from the capital’s underbelly,” Jasper said.

Rion’s eyes widened. “Really?” he said.

“They knew you from back in the day. They explained they were from a neighboring borough in the capital and knew all about how you helped some of their people during the rough times. Now they want to help return the favor.”

Jasper continued after a bite of bread. “They came with us to search for you and the princess. But once we got to where our scouts tracked you, we realized you had already been freed.”

“Jasper knew we would be headed this way, so they all came to find us here,” Rion finished for Jasper, who made a wide sweeping gesture at the crowd that was much larger than just Rion’s crew.

“I’m surprised to find so many shifters have come to our aid,” Rion said, then he chewed contemplatively, his gaze wandering.

“Well, you’ve helped everyone at one point or another,” Jasper said. “People are just returning the favor.”

“We definitely have enough shifters to face off with Hestia’s followers and rescue Eva.”

Jasper nodded. “Absolutely. Even with magic, they’ll never have enough to win. They can hide in the foliage while we make the exchange. Once Eva is in the clear, we will all rescue Katheryn.”

“Sounds like a plan. Our crew should be ready to go. I’ll talk to the others and rally them up,” Jasper said. He finished up his bowl of soup before leaving Rion and me.

Anxiety washed over me. It was really happening.

“You should stay here while we rescue Eva,” he told me, then he paused as if to wait for my protest.

As much as I wanted to go with him and be by his side, I didn’t want to protest. It was his ordeal and it was his sister on the line. There wasn’t much I could do, especially since I didn’t have my wolf yet.

“Okay. I’ll stay behind.” I continued when he said nothing. “I will wait here for you.”

There was so much more to say... but now wasn’t the time.

He held my gaze for a moment, and I thought he might say something more. My throat tightened in anticipation but the moment passed, and I looked away.

I watched behind him as the shifters all gathered and awaited Rion’s signal to leave. I forced myself to look at Rion for perhaps the last time.

“I’ll come back, and then we will get you home,” he said.

He turned away without another word.

With every step he took, I felt my heart sink lower and lower. I watched him give instructions and then finally dash ahead of the shifters. They all shifted to their wolf forms and ran, disappearing into the gloom of the Dark Forest.

***

*Rion*

As I ran in my wolf form to Hestia’s Lair, I tried not to think about the way Daphne had looked at me. I didn’t want to think that it may be the last time I would see her again. Instead, I increased my pace.

I ran as fast as I could go, twisting and turning through the short burst of woods between the clearing and the lair.

We arrived.

There was a layer of fog coming up from the ground. It was still morning, with just enough coolness in the air to keep the mist up.

We stopped where the barren yard ended at the edge of the forest and shifted back, quickly donning the clothes that some of the warriors had carried in backpacks for me, Jasper, and Katheryn. Katheryn put on a wig and contacts that were the same color as Daphne’s eyes.

I looked around and reassured myself that there were plenty of us.

“Here’s how we’re going to do it,” I said.

Everyone gathered around me. Katheryn and Jasper were right by my side. Katheryn gave me a determined nod, and I knew she was ready.

“I’m going to go in with Jasper and Katheryn to make the exchange. Once we get Eva and she is in the clear, you,” I pointed to a group of shifters, “will go in and make sure Katheryn gets out.”

They nodded.

I headed with Katheryn and Jasper toward the front gate. Jasper pushed it open, and its loud creaking echoed through the air.

We walked down the long path that split the lawn in half. The enormous door opened with a groan as we approached, and we stepped inside to see one of Hestia’s followers.

She was the witch in the red dress that Jasper and I had met in the park.

“You made it on time, I see,” she said with an impressed grin before looking at Kathryn disguised as Daphne.

“Where’s Eva?” I demanded.

The witch glanced back at Katheryn with an unreadable expression. Her eyes went from head to toe in silence, then she grinned and turned to me.

“Follow me.”

We walked into the dusty foyer.

“You may wait here. I will return with your sister,” the witch said.

I clenched my teeth in irritation but waited with Jasper and Katheryn for the witch to return. When she did, she had a larger woman trailing her. The woman had long dark brown hair and red and pink eyes like the color of fresh meat.

Eva was nowhere to be found. It made my adrenaline spike, but I made no mention of it... not yet, at least.

“I see you’ve fulfilled your end of the bargain.” The other witch spoke in a booming voice that matched her ample frame.

“And now you need to fulfill yours,” I replied tersely. “Where is Eva?”

The large woman snapped her fingers, and I saw a figure emerge through the door. I took in a pair of familiar eyes that matched mine–steely gray.

I had to contain myself as Eva walked closer and stopped when she stood close enough for me to reach out and touch her. It had been so long, but I had never forgotten her face.

She had a few scars across her cheeks and one right above her left eyebrow. Her eyes no longer had the childish gleam in them. She had grown up so much. It sent a twinge of pain and regret that I had not been able to find her sooner.

“Are we ready for the exchange?” the larger witch said.

“Yes,” I answered, trying to overcome the strong emotions coursing through me. Within seconds, Eva would be safe with me again.

“The princess first,” she insisted.

There was a tense pause as Katheryn hesitated. I nudged her, and she walked forward, exchanging places with Eva and giving me a pointed look.

I pulled Eva close to me. Her eyes were wide and she seemed a bit shaken.

I held her close to me, unable to control myself, and embraced her as if I needed to hold onto her before something ripped her from my grasp again. I pulled back just to look at her again and assured myself that I held her and not some apparition or dream.

“The exchange has been made,” the woman said.

I barely heard her. I was too busy pushing strands of Eva’s hair from her face to see more of it.

“We’ll be going now,” I said, and I began walking back toward the door.

I made sure to hold Eva’s hand as we walked out with Jasper. I was tempted to run while I had Eva by the hand, but I didn’t want angry witches rushing out after me.

Besides, it wasn’t time to enact the plan just yet.

I walked toward the door and stopped just outside the bottom steps leading up to the veranda. As the minutes passed, my heart pounded in my chest. Within a few moments, the rest of the crew emerged from the forest and gathered around me.

“We’ve got to do this quick,” I told them. “I’ll grab Katheryn. The rest of you cover me.”

Everyone nodded. I turned to Eva.

“You wait for us here, out of sight.”

“What’s going on?” she asked.

“I’ll explain later. For now, just wait for me,” I cupped her face in my hands and kissed her forehead. “I’ll be back for you, I promise.”

I blew one short, quick breath.

“Let’s do this.”

I shifted and, along with the rest of my crew, we burst through the door. The hinges whined and the enormous door fell flat and crashed to the floor. We rushed in at full speed at the witches, who remained at the couches, their faces contorted with surprise.

But that didn’t last long. My crew members who covered the front of me rushed forward and met headlong with the witches, who created magical shields of protection.

My crew bashed into the shields and yelped in pain as the shields fired electric snaps. The crew from behind rushed ahead and around the shields, as they closed a circle around the witches and attacked them.

I scouted for Katheryn in the chaos and spotted her being led down a separate hallway. I dashed for her. As I approached her, she pretended to be startled by my presence. The witch holding her turned around.

I dove for her just as she pivoted to face me, but Katheryn made a swift kick to the back of her thighs as I closed in on her. Katheryn’s claws slashed down her face and chest, and her blood splashed across me.

“Took you long enough,” Katheryn said.

“Let’s get back before we get trapped in here.”

We turned back and I found my crew at the mercy of the witches. They held some of the wolves within a glittering orb that floated up into the ceiling. A handful of witches had come to their aid in the short time it had taken me to get Katheryn.

I rushed forward to help my men, but Katheryn’s arm stopped me.

“There’s too many of them. We need to retreat.”

I agreed, but not completely. “Let’s get as many as we can and get out of here.”

We ran toward the door. I whistled a high pitched signal, and soon the house was flooded with shifters, who took down the witches.

When those that had been captured were free, we all fell back and escaped through the door. As I rushed onto the veranda, I looked for Eva.

She was nowhere to be found. In a flight of panic, I rushed up and down the veranda. The screams of more witches followed me and my crew.

I scoured the hedges along the veranda’s underside until I saw a familiar plume of dark hair and silvery gray eyes peering at me from the dark. I dove in and grabbed Eva by her sleeve with my teeth. She took the hint and shifted with us.

We all ran away from the house, and it didn’t take long for the witches to cease their pursuit. It was a faster run back to camp. When we arrived, I quickly changed back into my clothes and looked around for Daphne. Once I was dressed, I found her emerging from a cluster of trees.

I rushed across the clearing into her open arms.

“I’m so glad you made it back,” her voice sounded like she was trying to hold back tears and when she pulled away from me, I noticed the rims of her lower eyelids moistened. I pushed back strands of her hair behind her ear.

“I finally got Eva back,” I said. “After all these years, I finally have her back.”

“I’m so happy for you,” she said and embraced me again, holding me tighter than before.

We pulled apart and she had tears welling up in her eyes. There was so much unspoken.

“Is that Eva?” she asked, breaking her gaze and pointing over my shoulder.

I turned around and Eva stood there, wearing clothes that looked like Katheryn’s. She seemed more than a little bewildered by everything around her, but I gestured for her to come forward.

“This is Daphne,” I told Eva.

Eva seemed reluctant, her brows knit together, but she put her hand forward to shake Daphne’s.

“Nice to meet you,” Eva said softly.

“Are you alright?” Daphne asked.

“I... I will be.”

I smiled at them both.

“Hey, Rion.” It was Katheryn calling me.

I turned around and found her in her human form.

“Let’s head back to my inn,” she said, walking toward the car.

“What about the rest of the pack?” I said. “We can’t all fit in there.”

“We’ll meet you there,” Jasper said.

He had shifted back to his human form briefly, just long enough to tell me that, before he took off running with the rest of the shifters.

“Come on in before more of Hestia’s followers decide to come after us,” Katheryn said as she headed to the front of the car.

I got in, and Eva and Daphne climbed into the back. For the first time in a long time, I felt relieved.

I felt hopeful.

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