Reclaimed By My Alpha (Natalia and Andrei) novel Chapter 429

The ruby pulsed in my palm, black veins dancing within the crimson stone. It felt warm in my fingers, hungrier than my knife had ever been, like it had a sentience of its own. Just holding it made me uneasy, but it also made me feel powerful, untouchable.

The Winter King stared at the stone. I supposed I expected to see shock on his face, perhaps even horror or fear. That was wishful thinking.

He lifted his brows in a way that was too much like Andrei for comfort.

“You wouldn’t do that,” he said slowly, calmly, in a voice that was my husband’s and yet… not.

I tightened my fingers around the stone. “I would. And I will.”

He cocked his head, first to one side, then the other. The way he studied me, like a bird of prey inspecting a terrified rabbit before going in for the kill, made my blood run colder than I wanted to admit. I prayed he couldn’t see the fear in my eyes, couldn’t hear the way my heart was pounding like a war drum in my chest.

The temperature in the room seemed to drop by several degrees as he took a step toward me. I stepped back, putting some more space between us.

“I know you, Natalia.”

“You don’t know me at all.”

“I know you more than you think.” He calmly gestured to the case where the twins were still sleeping peacefully, completely unaware of everything. “Your children have always been the top priority in your life. Everything you have done over the past six years—it has been for them. You wouldn’t risk their lives. Nor would you risk that of the baby that still resides in your belly.”

“I’d be risking them all the same by marrying you,” I spat out. “I’d rather take us all down than marry the monster wearing my real husband’s face like a cheap costume.”

The King pressed his hand to his chest. “Love, you wound me.” His upper lip curled to reveal something that may have been a weak attempt at a smile, but it was really just an ugly sneer. He could wear Andrei’s appearance, but he could never truly emulate my mate’s mannerisms.

“But even so,” he went on, taking another step closer–I backed away again, but my spine hit cool glass, forcing me to sidestep around the case. “You’re bluffing. I can tell. Even now, with that ruby in your little hand, you’re looking around for escape routes. You’re formulating a plan–you’ve always been good at that, haven’t you? Planning. Plotting.”

I bit my tongue to keep myself from having to respond. He was right, of course. The fucker was right.

I would never actually jeopardize the twins‘ lives or my unborn child. He saw right through my facade like turning the page in an open book. How he knew me so well was beyond me, but it didn’t matter.

I needed to think. And quickly.

But what was I supposed to do? I was surrounded by enemies, my husband and his army were gone, and the twins were unconscious in a glass cage. Even if I did smash the ruby, I would only have thirty seconds to get out, and 1 couldn’t move the twins all on my own. I didn’t even know how to get into one of those cases; someone likely held the key.

The King, noticing the realization on his face, chuckled. “My offer still stands, darling. Marry me, and your children will be safe. I won’t age them. I will let your current pregnancy progress normally.”

Chapter 429

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“And yet all my future children will suffer by your hand.” I glanced over at the crippled servants, at their hunched spines and hairless scalps. The agony in their eyes was palpable, now that I got a really good look at them. My throat bobbed at the very thought of anyone winding up like that, let alone my own children.

But I noticed something else behind the agony in their eyes, then. Something that looked like… shock.

They weren’t looking at me. They were looking past me, at their master.

When I turned, I saw it, too. The Winter King’s face–Andre’s face. It was… changing. Shifting. Like a reflection on the surface of a puddle after a pebble dropping beneath the surface. It rippled like water, like his mask was failing. Green eyes shifted to black. Tanned skin turned pale and clammy. Dark hair faded, stringy gray strands dotting a scarred and flaking scalp.

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