Mated to the Alpha: Sold to the King novel Chapter 49

Chapter 49: 0049

Lorelei POV

Skye sat perfectly still, her mouth slightly open as she processed my words. The shock from earlier was nothing compared to the confusion written all over her face now.

"Lorelei..." she whispered my name like she was trying it out for the first time before her eyes shot back up to mine. "Wait. If your real name is Lorelei, then why were you using a fake name?"

"I didn’t choose to," I replied quietly, lowering my gaze to my hands. "Mr. Hawke gave it to me along with a fake backstory about being from some small village. But the truth is... I was kidnapped by rogues and sold to him."

"What?" Skye’s eyes widened even more as she shook her head. "No. That’s not right."

"What do you mean?" I asked, more confused by her reaction than anything else.

"I mean, we’re all criminals in here," Skye explained, lowering her voice to an intense whisper. "That’s why we’re treated so poorly. Every female maid and every worker in the lower levels is either serving a sentence or paying off a debt to the empire. This place is supposed to be punishment." Her brows pulled together as she stared at me. "But if you were sold..."

"Then why am I here?" I finished.

It was a question neither of us could answer.

The realization settled over the room like a heavy weight as we simply stared at each other in silence. The servant quarters suddenly felt a lot darker than they had only a few minutes ago, and the walls that had once seemed ordinary now felt like they were hiding something far more sinister.

After several long moments, Skye finally spoke again, her eyes hardening with sudden determination.

"If you were really kidnapped and sold here..."

"I was," I cut in quietly as flashes of the car crash and those rough hands forcing me away flooded my mind all over again.

"You were," Skye corrected herself with a nod. "Then since you’re already close to the Alpha in some way, you need to report this to him. Alpha Kaelen might be ruthless, but he doesn’t tolerate human trafficking or illegal slave trading within his territory. He would tear Hawke’s entire operation apart in a heartbeat."

That made me pause, the thought freezing the blood in my veins as I slowly looked up at her, a terrifying doubt taking root in my chest.

"What if he’s involved in this too?" I asked quietly.

"What? No," Skye stammered, clearly caught off guard.

"How can you be so sure?" I pressed, trying my best to stay logical despite everything. "The Alpha King is one of the most powerful men in the empire. If he wanted to get away with something, who could possibly stop him?"

From my own experience, powerful men were never purely good. Power always came with blood on its hands and secrets buried where nobody could find them.

Even Jaxen had told me that countless times.

"And just because I slept with him doesn’t mean we’re close," I added, correcting her sharply.

Skye let out a heavy sigh before falling silent, her worried eyes staying fixed on me for several long seconds.

"Then what do you want to do?" she finally asked.

"I still want to escape," I admitted honestly.

That desire had never gone away. If anything, it had only grown stronger. More than anything else, I wanted to be free. I wanted to find Raven and be reunited with her.

"Ella... I mean, Lorelei..."

"It’s better if you still call me Ella," I interrupted softly. "The less that name is said out loud, the safer we’ll both be."

She sighed again before reaching over and gently squeezing my hand.

"You are a victim here," she said quietly. "If you try to escape and get caught, things will only become worse for you. But you’re also right. You can’t trust anyone yet. So if you want my advice, stay where you are for now and get used to this place before making any decisions."

I nodded slowly.

At the very least, that was something I could do much more easily now that I no longer had to worry about the brutal workload of an ordinary maid.

Kaelen’s strange obsession with me had unintentionally become a shield, protecting me from the worst parts of this place, even if it meant walking straight into the mouth of the beast every single time he called for me.

And if I was being completely honest with myself... it wasn’t as though he was the only one who enjoyed it.

The thought made heat rush into my face, and I quickly pressed my palms against my burning cheeks, hoping to cool them down.

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