Sold as the Alpha King’s Breeder by Alice Knightsky
Chapter 83: Will She Ever Forgive Me?
**Ethan’s POV**
After my detour to the marketplace, I met up with my men at headquarters for a full report on the intelligence they had been able to gather.
We needed to execute the mission and get out of here.
However… after thinking I saw Rosalie in the market today, I was not ready to leave this island until I investigated some more.
Richard reported for his squad. “We saw a group of men near the docks, but we were unable to confirm for certain whether the target was one of them.”
I took that information in and nodded. “And whether they were arriving on the island or leaving may change our plan.”
“We believe he may have been leaving,” Richard continued.
“We’ll check out the situation tomorrow morning,” I told them. “As per the plan, we are scheduled to move forward and take out the target tomorrow. However, if he’s not on the island, we’ll have to wait for his return.”
I looked around the room, and all of my men nodded in understanding.
“We still haven’t been able to get close to the mansion,” Richard added, “but we believe it is possible, despite the heavy guards. There is a large area in the back of the property which is likely our best bet.”
I nodded, giving my approval for him to move forward with his plan.
The others reported, and I listened, but I was restless. The wolf within me wanted just as badly as I did to seek out our woman and our child.
Finally, evening had arrived, and I released my men to get ready for their tasks tonight. I found myself outside, walking around on the beach.
Suddenly, I felt that pull deep within me again. This time, it was even stronger than before, and I couldn’t ignore it.
I had to follow it.
Before I knew it, I’d already followed it through the town, between trees and over hills, along the outskirts of other properties and homes.
I found myself standing near the complex where the target lived.
But I wasn’t at the front, near the mansion. I was at the back, and the pull was stronger than it had ever been before. It was like an intense yank on my internal organs, urging me to climb the wall in front of me and find the missing pieces of my soul.
I took a deep breath. Richard did say the back of the property was our best bet- probably less security.
Since it was just me, I was confident that I could scale the wall without getting caught. Darkness was always helpful for a mission like this one.
I listened carefully for the patrol, and when I was certain the coast was clear, I made my way over the wall and found myself in a garden near a little cottage.
Whatever that was pulling me to this island was inside of that cottage.
Could it be her?
My fingers traced the necklace in my pocket.
Was it all just wishful thinking?
My heart called out to her, “Rosalie!”
It had done the same in the marketplace. It had called out to her so many times since that moment when I’d seen her standing on the cliffs and feared she’d fall, only to see her plummet over the edge a moment later.
But had she really?
And then… I heard it.
The familiar sound of her laughter hit my ear first. It was faint, muffled by the cottage walls, but I would’ve recognized it anywhere. I was certain it was Rosalie’s voice.
I felt like I’d been kicked in the stomach. All of the oxygen left my lungs, and my heart stopped beating as if it were encased in stone.
How could this be?
I stood perfectly still- waiting, listening.
A few minutes later, I heard footsteps at the cottage door and realized someone else was in Rosalie’s cottage, and that person was leaving.
Could it be the target?!
No wonder it had been difficult for Richard and the team to find him. He wasn’t in the mansion!
I strained with every single cell in my being to listen to their conversation. He was telling her goodnight—he was kissing her cheek.
My heart froze.
Why would Rosalie be with our enemy?
I couldn’t see her from where I was standing, but I could hear them.
When he stepped down off of the porch stairs, my mind was racing at a thousand miles an hour, computing the odds that I could strike, k*ill the target, and get Rosalie out of there with me safely.
I was about to mindlink Richard for reinforcements and prepare my attack-
But my feet were not moving. And it had nothing to do with Rosalie. My eyes were fixed firmly on the face of the target.
It was almost like I was staring back at my own reflection. Even in the dim light from the porch of the cottage, I could see who it was.
Soren?
My half-brother? But… What was he doing here? It didn’t make any sense.
I stood there, my mind trying to comprehend how I could be seeing him on this island.
We had confirmed intelligence that Soren was the one working with the rogue forces attacking us in the north. So how the f*ck was he also here?
My hands flew to my head as I tried to connect all the dots. He couldn’t be leading the rogue forces and also be in charge of supplies for the West King, could he? That was what our intel told us was happening on these islands. I took a deep breath and ran my hand along my jaw, thinking through the situation.
Yes, he could be doing both. Overseeing the weapons and supplies for the West King while simultaneously giving those supplies to the rogues.
He would clearly stop at nothing to defeat the East.
As I watched him walk away, one thing was certain- my half-brother Soren was definitely the target. Anger seethed through every pore of my being. I wanted to lunge at him, to rip him limb from limb without even shifting into my wolf form. The idea that he could do this to my people, that he was the one responsible for so many senseless deaths, so many innocent lives cut short- and for what? Because he hated me?
I was so full of rage that I saw red. What the f*ck was he doing? The East continent was also his homeland. How could he do this?
That was to say nothing of the fact that he had also stolen my woman and child from me- my own flesh and blood.
I would most definitely k*ill Soren. There was no doubt in my mind this mission would be completed, one way or another.
But I realized that, if I acted at that moment, I would be doing so when I was out of control- and my attack most likely wouldn’t be successful.
I needed to wait until the time was right, when I could think things through instead of acting out of anger. Otherwise, things could go badly. I owed it to my squad to stay rational.
Through the window, I saw her sit back down at the piano and play a few keys. Then she seemed to sighed and got up from the piano, walking towards the window.
My heart was beating faster with every step she took towards my direction.
She opened the window.
Thankfully, I hadn’t been taking a breath at that moment, because the wind would’ve been knocked out of me. I saw her face clearly.
She looked so stunning, standing there with the starlight catching her hair. I had to wonder what she was looking for, gazing out the window in the middle of the night.
Could she have been looking for me? Or maybe she was looking for him.
Once again, anger boiled up inside of me as I thought about Rosalie together with Soren. The two of them together, sheets between them, twisted and tangled, their bodies glistening as she called out his name—
I almost shouted, “No!” as I stared at her from my hiding place in the rose bushes. But I said nothing.
I needed to think, and at the moment, my head wasn’t clear enough to know what I needed to do.
I was simply glad to see her- to know that she was alive.
How many times had I died, knowing that she was gone? How many times had I watched her die in my mind and died right along with her, only to be revived just to do it all again? Over and over…
And here she was- alive and well. And living on an island with the last person I would have ever imagined.
She had no idea what she’d gotten herself into, either. Soren might have appeared handsome and charming, but he was dangerous.
And as painful as the thought was, it seemed quite clear to me that Rosalie had fallen for him.
Rosalie closed the window and disappeared.
I found myself stunned and couldn’t move at all. My brain was a mess at that moment, and I took a few breaths as I tried to sort through everything that had happened that night.
Then, from inside the house, I heard the familiar voice of hers- the voice I had thought I’d never hear again. It soothed my tense nerves immediately.
I closed my eyes, letting myself indulge in the angelic melody.
It was a nursery rhyme. The melody carried to me on the island breeze like a haunting dirge, despite the sweet lyrics, and from deep within my soul, I felt a pull, a longing to enter that house and to be with those people – both of them – Rosalie and our baby.
It was as if my very core was charged with a magnetism that sought out the other piece of its whole.
The only way I’d ever feel like a complete being again was to reconnect what had been taken from me- my child. It all made sense now.
It had been my baby, our child, pulling me closer, beckoning me to come near.
The closer I got to the baby, the larger and stronger the child grew, the stronger the pull became. A calming sensation spread throughout my body, and I felt a wave of happiness settle over me.
As much as I wanted to burst through the door and confront her- and to save her from this awful mistake- I knew I had to be shrewd about this. I would have to take my time and make careful choices.
For now, I just stood there still, looking at the dark window, imagining how she was singing in the room. Knowing she was alive was a blessing already.
It would be too greedy to ask for any more at this moment. Impatience would lead to my destruction.
And then there was how badly I had treated her. Was there any way that she could ever forgive me? And if not… What should I do?
“What a coward!” I sneered at myself.
I was the Alpha of Drogomor, but I didn’t have the courage to show my face in front of this woman again.