Sold As The Alpha King’s Breeder Chapter 269


    Chapter 49: The Sacred


    Maeve


    Troy and I walked through the building, surprised by the amount of noiseing from the corridors as


    we headed down the many, many stairs to the lower-level courtyard.


    The buildings are where everyone lives, stacked on top of each other,” Troy said, smiling as a little girl


    ran past us, chasing after what must have been her older sister.


    *This ce is ancient, Troy. How old do you think this ce is?”


    Troy exhaled, looking around as we walked towards the courtyard, reaching up to run his hand along


    the wall.


    “A thousand years, maybe more?”


    “More?” I sucked in my breath, unable to process it.


    “Well, how many White Queens have there been over time? Count back and that’s likely as old as this


    ce, and even Winter Forest, should


    be.”


    “Mom said Winter Forest wasn’t the original settlement of the White Queens. There’s a ruin on an


    ind across from the inlet. That’s where the pack used to live, but everyone believes it was taken over


    by the water hundreds of years ago.”


    “See? This is very, very old stuff.”


    I nodded, swallowing against the anxiety tightening my chest and throat. This was an old ce. A


    strange ce. And I had the oddest “out of body feeling as we walked the halls. We finally turned the


    corner and passed through the archway leading to the courtyard, stopping short of the entrance as


    Duck came bounding towards us, followed by M and Pete.


    “Where’s Robbie?” Troy asked, furrowing his brow.


    “He’s out chasin’ tail,M said with augh. Pete blushed deeply, lowering his gaze to his feet.


    “Still?” Troy snorted, shaking his head.


    “So, you saw him? And he was alright?” I asked hurriedly. M nodded her head, wiggling her


    eyebrows at me and Troy.


    “Oh, he’s more than alright, I’ll say that much. He told me all about it,” M said.


    “Why?” Troy asked, looking from M to Pete, who was looking more and more ufortable with the


    conversation.


    “Why not?” M said with a soft chuckle, “What else were we supposed to do while we were waiting for


    you guys toe down? What were you up to, anyway?”


    Troy cleared his throat, and I stifled a blush. M arched her brow, puffing out her cheeks as she tried


    not tough.


    “Alright!” Pete said, annoyed, “Please, can we talk about something else?”


    “Pete is a little jealous-” M began.


    “I am not!” Pete was blushing. And I had the opportunity to, you know, do what Robbie is doing…”


    “Why didn’t you take it?” Troyughed, crossing his arms over his chest.


    “Petey here is saving himself for his mate.” M teased.


    “Leave him alone, M. I think that’s very gant of you, Pete.” I said, smiling at Pete, who gave me a


    small smile of gratitude.


    “Dinner is starting, if you will follow me,” came a voice from behind us. We turned around, finding a


    young girl standing still as a rod in the archway, her eyes wide with nerves as she spoke. She was


    young, very young, likely no more than ten or eleven years old. She turned on her heel, and the group


    of us followed her through the corridor and out into the square, but we didn’t stop there.


    We followed her through the market and across one of the narrow bridges rising up over the river.


    People were swimming in the slowly moving, shallow water. It looked like a refreshing activity in this


    unforgiving heat. I made a mental note to do the same before leaving this strange ce


    After a few minutes of walking, we entered a narrow gravel pathway leading downhill into another


    shallow valley through a thicket of trees. Stepping out of the trees, we stopped, all of us looking out


    over a massive, turquoise coloredke that was sparkling in the light of the


    setting sun.


    At thekes edge were several buildings made of the same red stone as the towers at the city’s


    entrance. Music was wafting up from theke, and voices lifted in gaiety andughter rang out as we


    walked along the path, nearing the party.


    “Wow!” i said beneath my breath, inadvertently taking Troy’s hand as we passed beneath several rows


    of papernterns that were strung through the trees. It was beautiful, and quite romantic, and I felt a


    sudden urge to find a dark corner and rip Troy’s clothes from his body.


    I blushed deeply, clearing my throat. Troy looked down at me, squeezing my hand. “What’s wrong?” he


    asked.


    “Nothing. I’m just losing my mind,” I murmured, feeling a little hot. What was wrong with me?


    “Oh, I wish Keaton were here to see this!” M eximed, looking up at the sea of papernterns


    above our heads.


    “Hey, M!” Troy called out, “Have you been able to mind-link with him since getting here?”


    She pursed her lips, shaking her head, “No, I tried but I couldn’t get through. Do you think we’re out of


    range?”


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    Troy shook his head, sighing deeply. He bent his head close to mine as we walked, “Something is


    weird about this ce. Do you feel it too?”


    “Yeah, definitely.” I replied. “But I don’t think these people are going to hurt us.”


    “Neither do 1,” he said firmly, but his eyes were still hyper focused on the area around us.


    The girl led us out onto a wide dock. Flowerpots lined the dock, and sprays of flowers I couldn’t name


    were in full bloom. The deep floral smell was intoxicating.


    A pallet of nkets and plush pillows had beenid out around a huge, circr table that was low to


    the ground, and Una was sitting there, waiting for us, nked by nine unfamiliar faces.


    Troy stiffened suddenly, then rxed, nodding to one of the two men sitting on the cushions. The older


    man must have been Ismir, Una’s husband. The younger one couldn’t have been older than sixteen.


    “Come, friends, sit with us!” Una said, excitement evident behind her eyes. We sat around the table, as


    did the young girl, who elbowed her brother before taking a seat next to him. “This is my family,” Una


    said, beaming with delight, “My mate, Ismir, and our children.”


    “You have eight children?” M said, her eyes wide, and a look of sheer longing on her face.


    “Poor Keaton,” Troy whispered, leaning his head close to mine as we sat down.


    “Mhmm,” I replied, watching M gush over Una’s brood. “M will have ten children, I’d bet my life on


    it.”


    “And how many will we have?” Troy asked, his voice low and filled with yearning. I hadn’t expected it. I


    looked at him, seeing the confusion sh behind his eyes, his tanned face blushing deeply the same


    way mine had when I imagined ravaging him in public. He hadn’t meant to say it aloud


    What is it about this ce that is making us act, and think, the way we were?


    “Four,” I answered, looking directly into his eyes, my heart quickening as he knitted his fingers in mine


    underneath the table, “All boys.”


    “All boys?” Heughed, his eyes creasing with what I can only describe as pure, unadulterated joy.


    I opened my mouth to say something, but the words were lost, hanging on the tip of my tongue, just out


    of reach.


    I love you, I thought, unable to say it..


    Severalrge tters of the most delicious food I had ever tasted were brought out over the course of


    three hours. Hot, spiced tea was poured in a constant stream despite the warmth of the night.


    On several asions, my eyes met Una’s, who was watching me closely, a look of mingled hope, and


    maybe even fear, etched across her face.


    Una’s eldest daughter, Tasia, was seated next to Robbie, who had joined the tablete, his face pink,


    and his eyes unable to hide the fact that he was having the best day of his entire life.


    Tasia was a true beauty, curvy and strong, with an angr face and thick, glossy ck hair that fell


    over her shoulder in tight ringlets. Her eyes were a strange color, however, a shade of gray that


    reminded me of the color of the inlet back home. Gray like cier silt, the y left behind as the


    ciers moved across thend over the millennia. Neither of her parents had the same color eyes as


    she did, nor did any of her many, many siblings.


    “Tomorrow is the full moon ceremony.” Tasia said, her mouth stretched into a wide smile. “We celebrate


    it the entire day and into the night.”


    * That sounds wonderful!” M said excitedly.


    nced at Troy, an unspoken question passing between us. Are we staying?


    Why not? He seemed to reply, his eyes shining in the light of the papernterns.


    Whatever was happening between us was being exasperated by whatever was in the air of this ce.


    Mutually, we weren’t ready for it to end


    Tasia was chatting away with M, who seemed at home in this ce. I wondered briefly if Keaton


    would ever put down roots somewhere, especially now that he had a mate. I couldn’t imagine M


    spending the rest of her life aboard the Persephone, ten or more kids in tow.


    Troy’s hand was on my thigh, his fingers inching down to pull up the hem of the dress and run his


    hands against my bare skin. I shivered, a warmth spreading over my body.


    Oh, how I wished we were back in the apartment right now, alone.


    Eventually Una rose, and we were ushered to the shore of theke, where more cushions wereid


    out, and we sat under the stairs.


    M, Robbie, and Troy were loose and lighthearted with drink, and Pete was curled up on one of the


    cushions, fast asleep.


    I was sitting next to Troy, his arm wrapped around my shoulder as he contributed to a spirited


    conversation with Ismir and Robbie about what had happened during the storm.


    But suddenly, I was nked by Tasia and Una, who appeared as though out of thin air. They didn’t


    speak to me, not out loud, but a silent conversation was passing between us as we looked out over the


    lake, then up to the stars.


    I felt dizzy as though I had been drinking, even though I had not.


    “What is it about this ce?” I asked aloud, looking to Una for a reply.


    She smiled at me, then looked at Tasia, who was grinning broadly.


    “You feel it, too?” Tasia said, her voice soothing to my ears.


    “What’s happening here?” I asked, trying to make sense of it all.


    “This is a sacred ce, Maeve. We walk on sacred ground, drink the sacred water, and eat the food


    grown from sacred soil. She’s all around us, here.”


    “Who?” | asked, feeling suddenly overwhelmed.


    *The Moon Goddess, of course,” Tasiaughed, touching me gently on the shoulder. “Don’t you know


    why you’re here?”


    “What? |—” I looked over at Troy, finding him staring back at me with a look so intense it sent a shiver


    up my spine. I felt like rising, like going to him, cing my hands on him just to feel the electricity pass


    between us. “Why am I here?” I asked, but the words were carried away in the gentle breeze,