Sold as the Alpha King’s Breeder

Chapter 138 : He’s Dead

*Lena*

Two Weeks Later

Mom huffed out a breath, a garment clip clamped between her teeth as she fussed with the back of the fluffy white

dress I was wearing. I grunted in response, looking into the full-length mirror at my reflection.

The dress was only tight around my breasts and fluffed out over my body in a “baby-doll" style that suited the

growing swell of my belly to the point that it was hard to tell I was even pregnant. Silky puffy sleeves tapered off at

my wrists.

“I look like a cream puff," I laughed, glancing at Mom over my shoulder.

She rolled her eyes, shaking her head as she bent back down to her task of fitting my now incredibly large breasts

into the dress, once again.

“I like cream puffs," Elaine said from the sofa on the other side of the airy, brightly colored sitting room in Castle

Drogomor, her legs crossed on the coffee table.

Clare snorted with mirth as she flipped through Maeve's huge leather-bound spell book that was sitting on her lap.

Sasha was skipping from one side of the room to the other, humming a little song as she pranced. Clare and Sasha

were settled in Winter Forest but had come down for the wedding, which was taking place in three weeks. Clare

seemed happy to be here early, and she quickly fell in step with Elaine, the two of them becoming fast friends.

I was a little jealous of that, especially since Clare still seemed skeptical of me, for whatever reason.

I chalked it up to her personality, which was probably the truth. She was just a grumpy, somewhat cold person.

Elaine, on the other hand, was back to being a ray of sunshine. I still couldn't believe she was here. And I was glad

that she was because it was all hands on deck. The wedding preparations were in full swing, the date set for the

summer solstice itself.

Mom put the last garment clip in place and leaned back to examine her work, nodding at herself as she made me

turn in a circle.

“I'll have to take it out again before the wedding," she said, more to herself than to me.

“It's beautiful, Mom," I assured her as I raised my arms towards the ceiling on her command so she could see how

the fabric fell.

“Are you going to wear a veil?" Elaine asked, flipping through a wedding magazine.

Clare frowned at her, shaking her head. “She needs to wear a crown; she's a princess after all."

“I hadn't thought that far–"

“Well, you should have," Clare said leaning back into the couch cushions. “You have like, twenty days until the

wedding."

I waved my hand at her in dismissal as Mom turned me back toward the mirror.

“I think I'm going to wear my hair up," I told Mom, but then I noticed the tears glistening in her eyes. “Mom? What's

the matter?"

“You're just–oh, honey. You're so beautiful–"

“Please don't cry," I begged, tears beginning to well in my own eyes. I'd been a mess of emotions the past two

weeks since we returned from Crimson Creek. Reality was setting in, and I found myself crying over the smallest

things. Only this morning I'd cried over a pair of the tiniest socks I'd ever seen in my life while sorting through the

baby clothes I'd purchased. Xander had been so confused, and had resorted to patting the top of my head while I

dissolved into a puddle of tears on the carpet, the socks clutched in my hands.

“I'm just so happy–"

“Lena looks like a snow fairy!" Sasha shouted from the other side of the room, and we all turned around to look at

her.

“Sasha!" Clare exclaimed, rising from the couch.

I tried not to laugh as Clare stalked over to her daughter, who had climbed one of the bookshelves and was

reaching for a vase, her tiny fingers splayed in determination.

I heard male voices in the hallway, and suddenly the door to the sitting room began to open.

“STOP!" Mom cried, and whoever was behind the door halted their progress.

“Xander will stay in the hallway," Dad said quickly, and behind the door I heard Xander's muffled protest as Dad

pushed him away before he slid into the room.

Dad walked in, shutting the door firmly behind me, then his eyes landed on mine.

“Wow," he said, a wry smile touching his mouth.

I narrowed my eyes at him. “Wow? That's all you have to say?"

“You look like–"

“A cream puff?" Elaine snorted.

Dad let out his breath in a whoosh, shaking his head. “You look beautiful, Lena. You really do."

“If you're only here to tease me," I said firmly as Mom began to stick pins along the back of the dress to mark

where she needed to adjust the fit of the dress, “then go away!"

“I'm just here to deliver the RSVPs to your wedding coordinators," he said with a shrug, then tossed a pile of

envelopes on the couch next to Elaine. “I can take Sasha off your hands, as well," he said to Clare, who was red in

the face as she tried to pry Sasha off the bookshelf. Sasha, who had been whining and holding on to the bookcase

for dear life, immediately let go and fell back into her mother's arms, then squirmed to get away.

“I want to go outside!" she practically screamed.

“Well, that's perfect. Xander and I are going to have lunch in the front garden–"

“No climbing trees, Sasha. Those tights are new!" Clare protested, but Dad and Sasha were already at the door.

Sasha turned around and stuck her tongue out at her mom before slipping outside, and Dad gave her an apologetic

glance before he left as well, shutting the door behind him.

Clare ran her hands over her face as she rounded the couch, plopping down on top of the envelopes Elaine was

hurrying to gather. “She's been such a handful lately."

“She's only five," Mom smiled. “She'll grow out of it."

“I–I hope so," Clare replied, but something in her tone made my chest tighten with unease.

I turned to her as Mom helped me out of my sleeves so I could step out of the dress, wearing nothing but a silken

white shift.

“What's wrong, Clare?" I asked as I pulled a robe over my shoulders and tied it on top of my belly.

Clare raised her eyebrows, her eyes downcast in her lap.

“I worry she'll be like her father," she answered honestly. Clare had been a word away from telling my mom and me

the name of Sasha's father, but we'd been interrupted by a warrior coming up to us to tell us Breles had fallen to

the vampires. The memory of the moment fluttered through my chest, leaving behind nothing but pain.

“Who was he?" I asked, but Mom interrupted me, her face cast in a shadow of unease.

“You had an older brother, right? Was Carl also his father?" Mom asked.

Clare shifted uncomfortably, reaching beneath her to grab the envelopes she was sitting on and giving them to

Elaine.

“No, just me and Hale. I don't think my dad ever knew, and my mom was long gone by the time I found out the

truth from… from Sasha's father."

“Who was he?" I asked again, trying and failing to hide the unease on my face.

Something hadn't been sitting right ever since I found out about Clare's past. Something that chipped away at me

every time I looked at Sasha, a familiarity of some kind, like I'd seen her features before, features so different from

Clare's.

“His name is Slate–"

I had to steady myself against the wall, my stomach tying into a knot. Mom looked from Clare to me, then rushed to

me.

“I'm fine–"

Clare was looking right at me, her face flushing as she watched my reaction. “Lena, do you know him?"

“Slate–Slate Tamlin?" I said on an exhale, meeting her eyes.

“You know him?" Clare rose from the couch, her eyes narrowed into a deathly glare. “How the f**k do you know

him?"

“He's dead," I said, shaking my head. “I killed him. I killed him in the vampire realm."

A hush fell over the room, all eyes on me as they waited for me to continue. I kept my gaze on Clare, watching as a

wave of relief rushed across her face, blurring the heavy lines of suspicion.

“He's dead," I said with conviction. “I made sure of it."

“How?" she asked, taking a step toward me. “How are you so sure?"

“Because he was turned into one of them, one of the vampire guards. He was working for the king. He was the

reason I was sent to Crimson Creek in the first place. Everything he did to me, everything was… was to get me to

Crimson Creek, and then to the vampire realm. I stabbed him in the chest with a wooden blade, and he turned to

ash. He's gone, forever. He's gone, and Sasha is safe."

Clare didn't blink. She didn't move, either. After a few long moments of silence, she inhaled sharply, shrugging her

shoulders as she walked back to the couch and sat down, snatching several envelopes out of Elaine's hands and

ripping them open.

“The Alpha and Luna of Sapphire River will attend, as well as their adult daughter," she said nonchalantly as the rest

of us stared.

“Are you okay?" I asked.

Her face was totally blank as she met my eye. She stared at me for a moment, blinking, then looked back down at

the letter in her hands. “Never been better," she said casually, as if I hadn't just dropped a truth bomb in her lap.

I opened my mouth to reply, but thought better of it, snapping my mouth shut as I turned to look at my mom with a

pleading expression.

“I'm going to order a lunch service," Mom said, her eyes darting toward Clare with a look of marked concern.

Elaine had her brow furrowed at Clare, who was ripping each envelope open with vigor.

I saw a single tear roll down Clare's cheek, and her hands began to tremble.

“Clare," I said, just as she dissolved into sobs.

Elaine and I wrapped our arms around her, holding onto her for dear life.

“Fuck–him–" she choked, her entire body shaking. “I'm glad he's dead. I've never been more glad about anything in

my entire f*****g life!"

Anger was evident in every word as she struggled to take a breath.

“He deserved it! I hope it was f*****g painful! I hope it hurt him as much as it–as much as he hurt–me!"

I sucked in a sob, meeting Elaine's eyes as she rocked Clare between us. Mom returned to the sitting room, running

toward us with a cup of tea in her hands. I smelled the bourbon she'd laced the tea with before she thrust it into

Clare's hands. Clare drank deeply, the tea likely burning her throat on the way down, but her body began to still, her

breaths becoming more regular as her sobs subsided.

“Thank you Lena," she croaked, reaching up to cup my cheek. “Thank you. Thank you–" she kissed me on the

mouth, a single peck.

I leaned my forehead against hers as she dissolved in tears again.

I felt a tinge of pain in my side all of the sudden, and a practice contraction rippled over my belly. I slowly let go of

her, then turned to Mom, who was watching me closely.

“Go lay down for a while, Lena," Mom coaxed, her hand coming around my back as I rose from the couch. “I'll stay

with them."

“Okay," I said, wiping tears from my eyes as I walked toward the door. I glanced back at Clare one last time before I

left the room, shutting the door behind me.

I turned to the sound of footsteps in the hallway and met eyes with Xander as he stopped and turned to face me.

“I'm going to take a nap," I said, exhaustion gripping me just as another contraction tightened around me, painless

but tight.

“I'll go with you," he said, extending his hand to me.

I took it, but I struggled to exhale as I looked up at him.

“Slate was Sasha's father," I said, blinking away tears.