Sold as the Alpha King's Breeder novel Chapter 851

Chapter 57 : You’ll Face Far Worse

*Eliza*

I wasn't exactly sure what Abe was plotting. I was just along for the ride it seemed, especially when I got back to the room I shared with Scarlett and found a glittery fuchsia-colored dress laid out on my bed. It had cutouts along the waist and an extremely low back… very low.

There was a note that was obviously from Abe with nothing but a smiley face scribbled on the paper. I arched my brow, shaking my head as I held up the scrap of fabric and looked it over with a critical eye.

“Why?" I whispered, laying the dress back down and fumbling with the buttons on my shirt.

Abe had mentioned in passing that I dressed like a teenage boy, a gleam of disapproval in his eyes. Jared seemed to like me for who I was regardless of my pants and men's shirts… but he had broken things off and tried to send me home to my parents.

Maybe Abe was onto something.

I sighed heavily and dressed, which took a lot longer than I anticipated. Abe had mentioned all of us would be dining together tonight, that some kind of truce had been made when Scarlett and I had left to meet her son.

But the tension in the air was thick, even in the privacy of my room.

Did Jared even want to talk to me? He looked more angry that I'd drugged his friends and stolen into the night than happy to see me alive and well.

I glanced at myself in the mirror and fluffed my hair, separating my curls with my fingers. I looked… really good. I couldn't deny it. I'd have to ask Abe where he was even getting these clothes.

I swallowed back my anxiety and worked my face into a steely gaze. My eyes flamed a deep green against the pink of my dress. My curls were extra unruly, and my face was flushed with subdued emotion.

There was a knock on the door. I was expecting Scarlett, but a maid stepped inside instead. She gave me a huge smile as she looked me up and down.

“Can I escort you to the dining room?" she smiled.

I nodded, taking an achingly huge breath.

***

“He has warriors dappled through the western coast," Abe said, swirling his glass of wine. “Why? I don't know. But the information I've been fed has alluded to a possible conflict between Suncrest and Starfall Coast."

I had no idea where Starfall Coast was, or whether or not it was a pack name or the name of a territory, but the look on Jared's face across the table told me this was not good news.

“He's making moves then," Jared said, almost to himself.

Abe nodded, shrugging one shoulder. “He's trying to get on Alpha King Alexander's radar. That's all I know. Aeris won't make a move until the King does. He wants the King to be the aggressor."

Jared flexed his jaw as he contemplated what Abe was saying. I'd been sitting here for twenty minutes listening to the two men speak in monotone voices about business; what the Alphas of the surrounding territories were up to, who was fighting with who, who was encroaching on the “neutral" territories led by rogues like Jared and Abe.

It was kind of a trip watching the two of them converse–Jared, all ice and shadow and Abel, nothing but charm and sunshine… two morally gray men on opposite sides of the spectrum, each of them tethered to a moral compass that didn't know up from down.

Jared barely looked in my direction, and if he did, his gaze was firmly fixed on my dress with a look of marked disapproval, especially as his gaze slid down to the cutouts that had the curve of my hips on full display.

I ignored him, and the boring conversation, and focused on my food.

Brandt was sitting beside Jared, his eyes downcast on his plate. Archer and Scarlett weren't in attendance. I didn't expect Scarlett to be here, not after being introduced to her son. But Archer's absence was notable, especially since this was technically a dinner meeting with someone they believed to be an enemy. I looked around the room, half expecting Archer to be lingering in the shadows somewhere, waiting for his opportunity to lunge at Abe and snap his neck.

“What's next for you, Eliza?" Abe asked.

I nearly dropped my fork, having missed the last ten minutes or so of conversation as I pushed a roasted carrot around on my plate. My chest was tight and my heart was heavy sitting this close to Jared. That last time we'd spoken he'd just… left, meaning for us to never see each other again.

Now I was here, right in front of him, and his gaze was like ice as I met his eyes instead of turning my attention to Abe.

“I'm going north," I said, not daring to blink, “to investigate the ruins of the city of Myrel."

“Myrel? From the legends? I didn't realize it was found–"

“It wasn't," I breathed, giving Abe a look before turning back to Jared. “But it will be soon."

“Fascinating," Abe purred, his mouth curving into a smile as he looked between me and Jared.

Jared was glaring at me so intensely it sent a shiver of ice down my spine, but I dug in my heels and refused to look away from him.

“How do you know where it is?" asked Abe.

“Jared's tattoos," I said plainly, shrugging one shoulder and reaching for my glass of wine. “It's a map, and it matches the map I stole from Aeris."

I felt Jared's foot brush against mine in warning.

“I believe the key to breaking Jared's curse is in the city of Myrel," I continued, kicking him firmly in the shin.

He didn't so much as flinch.

“I'm hoping to find the forge where the Cryptex was made."

“Why?" Abe inquired with enthusiasm as Jared opened his mouth to say something, but nothing more than a growl came out.

“Because a piece of it is broken and needs to be mended. Once that's done, I plan on going to the witches for help."

“No–" Jared cut in.

“Yes," I spat, narrowing my eyes at him.

Abe c****d a brow, chuckling under his breath as I leaned back in my seat with my arms crossed over my chest.

“How far away is Myrel?" Abe asked, ignoring the shadow now creeping over the table.

I swallowed back the prickling apprehension rolling over my skin as I held Jared's gaze. “My estimation is forty miles north of here–"

“In the mountains, then?"

“Yes."

“And you plan to go… alone?" Abe's voice wavered his words, his eyes shifting from me to Jared.

“Yes," I said with finality.

Jared's nostrils flared, but he said nothing. His shadow began to retreat, coiling like a snake across the table. I ran my tongue along the inside of my lip before I drained my wine.

I could barely breathe with the weight of the words unsaid between us settling on my shoulders with a pressure that had my back buckling under the strain. I didn't think I'd ever been truly scared of Jared… but now?

There was nothing but what looked like mingled hatred and fury behind his dark eyes.

And they were firmly settled on me.

“I believe the Alpha King might send… help, with this quest, if that's something you're interested in."

I blinked, meeting Abe's eyes.

“No, I can't involve him."

“Why not?"

“Because the Alpha King is married to my cousin, and I'm not involving my family in this."

“That's enough–" Jared growled.

Abe's jaw dropped open, his eyes shining as my revelation echoed through the room. “You're related to the Queen?"

“She's my cousin. Our grandparents are siblings–"

“Then you're not a White Queen–"

“No, I'm not part of that line. My parents–"

Jared rose from the table so swiftly I barely processed the movement until he was leaning over it, his hands flat on either side of my plate.

“I said," he raged, “that was enough."

I moved away from him, my chair hitting the ground in my haste to get up. Abe sipped his wine, glancing between us with an interested expression.

“What the f**k were you thinking?" Jared seethed, his hands curling into fists. “You could have died, or worse–"

“But I didn't. I'm here now, unscathed–"

“And sharing your secrets with him," Jared said through gritted teeth.

I reached down and righted my chair, taking a seat. My chair scraped across the tile, the sound echoing through the room. I didn't look him in the eyes as I laid my napkin back down in my lap.

“Eliza," Jared warned, the wooden table cracking beneath the pressure of his hands.

“Leave me alone. Abe hasn't been anything but nice to us and now you're here, ruining it. You made it clear that we couldn't be together, so why do you care what I do?" My eyes settled on him again, silently challenging him to argue the point.

Jared ran his tongue along his lower lip, his eyes narrowing into cat-like slits. Abe, on the other hand, was eating up every second of this very public argument.

I held my gaze on Jared as Brandt shifted uncomfortably in his seat, reaching for his wine.

“You're coming back to the village with me," Jared ground out, “and then you're going home."

“No," I said calmly, breaking from his gaze and picking up my fork as if the man wasn't trying to dominate me still by leaning over the table. I forked the carrot into my mouth, turning my gaze to Abe and giving him a smile. “Dinner was divine."

Abe nodded once, but then quickly looked back at Jared. Something snapped deep within Jared, something I could almost feel in my own heart–rage, jealousy…maybe even regret.

He rose to his full height, his gaze seering the side of my face as I poured myself another glass of wine.

Then he turned on his heel and left.

“Well done," Abe whispered, rising and throwing his napkin on the table.

“I still don't understand the rules of the game you're playing," I whispered, more to myself than to him.

Abe was gone in a flash, chasing after Jared.

A hush fell over the room, then Brandt cleared his throat. I flicked my gaze to him, noticing he was looking right at me.

“I'm sorry–"

“He regrets what he did," Brandt said, his blue eyes piercing my own. “I just want you to know that."

“It sure seems like it," I sniffled, wiping my nose as the emotions I'd been burying started to claw to the surface. “He hates me."

“He loves you." Brandt's voice was steady but strained as I looked up at him through tears. “I'm sorry, Eliza."

He didn't love me. He wanted to control me, to dominate me, to ensure every move I made was monitored.

Right?

“You have nothing to be sorry for," I whispered, wiping my eyes. “And just so you know, there's nothing going on between me and Abel. He–"

“I know," Brandt said with a soft smile. “Trust me."

I furrowed my brow, noticing the slightly pinkening of Brandt's cheeks.

“What do you mean?"

“I've known Abe for a long time," Brandt whispered, bringing his wine to his lips. “He's not like that."

The way he said it was odd, as was the somewhat forlorn expression on his face as he tilted his wine glass back and drained it.

“You… were clever, back at the village–drugging us, I mean."

“I'm sorry, I had to–"

“You'll face worse out there than us, Eliza. I need you to know that and remember it."

“I understand–"

Brandt rose from the table and walked around it, squeezing my shoulder before he left the room.

Then, I was alone.