Sold as the Alpha King's Breeder

Chapter 1373 - 128 : The Clashing of Blades

*Noah*

It took me several moments to calm down enough to think after I watched Zara get dragged away from me with cuffs around her small wrists.

I gritted my teeth angrily as I thought of the serious paranoia that had clearly spread through Engoren and into its leadership. Zara was the most harmless and kind person I knew, yet they felt the need to bind her hands as if she was capable of killing anyone or anything.

The injustice caused me to rampage through the meeting room of the mansion, knocking over vases and shoving chairs.

I looked around, hating myself for letting my emotions get to me and then tossing things around like some kind of wild animal. Zara needed me. Briella needed me. I needed to get ahold of myself.

I clenched my teeth hard and forced myself to take a calming breath. The paranoid rulers of Engoren weren’t going to willingly help us. I would have to act on my own to rescue Zara and Niva.

“Naturally, I will do whatever it takes to help you save, Zara, Black.”

I nodded, shooting Eva a brief, grateful look. I had a better feeling about our odds of having her join our team. She was a powerful witch, and there were rumors that she was a ruthless fighter as well.

“What are you proposing we do, sir?”

I turned to look at my beta and close friend, Caleb. I knew that as soon as I stepped up as alpha, Caleb would always be by my side, ready to fight with me and for me. He had proven that on many occasions, including this one.

I looked from my beta to Eva. With these two behind me, we had a decent chance of this actually working.

“I have sent out a small, agile team of warriors to figure out the path Damascus will take to get back to Engoren,” I said gravely. “As soon as we receive word, we will plan to ambush the transport carrying Zara and Niva.”

Caleb and Eva glanced at each other but nodded, determination coloring their features.

Eva came up to me and took a little box out of the bag she carried. She opened it with her slim hands, revealing four small pure stones the color of moonlight.

I sucked in a breath when I realized what they were.

Moon stones.

Gingerly, I reached into the box to touch one of the pebble-sized stones. It almost felt warm to the touch, the edges glowing with unspeakable magic.

“They are yours,” Eva said, holding the box out to me. “I meant what I said that I would do whatever it took to ensure that Zara is rescued safely. I secured these years ago and am more than willing to part with them now.”

If this wasn’t a life-or-death situation for both my mate and my daughter, I might have refused to take the precious stones. It was obvious that they were one of Eva’s most valuable treasures.

I accepted the box gratefully. “Thank you,” I said. “I will see to it personally that we do not fail this mission.”

Eva seemed to believe me. Suddenly, her round gray eyes filled with warning. “Regretfully though, I’m afraid that these stones only hold enough power for a small group to cross into the Embervale Realm.”

I nodded, understanding her warning perfectly. That meant that as long as these were the only stones in our possession, we would have no choice but to enter the potentially deadly realm without any kind of army behind us. Not only that, but taking this renegade action would likely make us all wanted fugitives.

With the fate of my innocent daughter at stake, we were left with no other choice.

The three of us whipped our heads around when my cell phone started to shake violently, threatening to vibrate itself off of the desk. I snatched it up and pressed the small device to my ear.

“Sir, we were able to infiltrate the royal transport communication system,” one of our warriors said, his voice even but excitement shining through as well. “We just learned that the inquisitor plans to deliver Miss Zara and Miss Niva to a remote prison facility in Engoren.”

I bit back a curse, although part of me was relieved to at least know where my mate was being taken. “What have you found out about this prison?” I asked through my teeth.

“Not much, sir,” the warrior admitted. “Only that it is likely heavily guarded with state-of-the-art security systems.”

That went without saying, but I kept that unhelpful comment to myself. I thanked the warrior and ordered him to keep tabs on the prison transport and to contact me as soon as they retrieved any further information. After retrieving the coordinates detailing where the vehicle would end up over the next few hours, I hung up.

I turned to Caleb and Eva, who were watching me expectantly. My hesitation was brief as I realized that this could be our only chance to rescue Zara and Niva. “Assemble our best warriors,” I ordered Caleb, who immediately turned to comply. “We’re going after them.”

We quickly assembled a small team, consisting of me, Eva, Caleb, and about a dozen of our fiercest and quickest fighters. As soon as we were all gathered at the gate, we headed out, the sun setting quickly. I prayed to the Moon Goddess that it wasn’t a bad omen.

My heart was pounding furiously as we neared our destination, a canyon that the prison transport was set to pass through. We slinked out of our vehicles and hid among the trees, a few of us perched in the branches and the other half ducking low among the bushes.

I sucked in a sharp breath as Caleb and I hunkered down together behind a dense set of shrubs. We waited, keeping as silent as possible, the only sound coming from the gentle but somehow foreboding breeze in the trees.

Caleb and I glanced at one another when the unmistakable sound of a group of large and powerful vehicles came toward us.

This was it. It was time to put our straightforward but delicate plan into action. I waited for the signal from one of our warriors perched in the trees. I locked eyes with the young man, and he swiped his hand firmly through the air in front of him, confirming that it was Damascus and his men approaching.

I lifted my head and locked eyes with Eva, who was hiding in the bushes across the road. She lifted her chin in question. I sent her the same hand signal, giving her the order to put our plan into action.

Eva nodded before standing, backing up slightly so her lithe figure was hidden in the shadows of the trees. Right as a vehicle raced in between us, she raised her hands. They glowed briefly before tiny orbs surrounded the black, armored vehicle.

As the tiny blue orbs hovered around the car, the large transport stopped in its tracks. I shielded my eyes briefly when Eva activated the orbs, causing them to explode. Smoke rose in harsh, dark waves, and we sprung into action.

I sprinted toward the dark car. It was huge. Despite the explosions, there wasn’t a scratch on it. My heart leaped into my throat when the doors opened briefly, releasing about a dozen of the royal guards.

Battle cries were heard as well as the ear-splitting sound of a scuffle. Chaos immediately ensued as my men collided with Damascus’ forces. It was dark, but I could see the ribbons of blood flowing through the air as the fighting raged.

I swung my blade like a madman. All I could really see was Zara’s wide, frightened eyes in my mind. She must have been shaking with fear when she was taken but also when the explosions sounded around her. Hopefully, she realized that it was me coming to rescue her, but it was very possible she didn’t consider that and thought a malicious force was trying to kidnap her.

I didn’t even flinch when I sliced through the chest of one of Damascus’ men. He cried out in a guttural voice before collapsing to the ground. Eva suddenly jumped down from a tree overhead, her wide gray eyes wild but somehow focused as well.

“Duck, Black!” she shrieked. I barely had time to obey before a bright light flew from her palm. I whirled around just in time to watch the ball of fire collide with another royal guard member.

Eva lifted her chin as the man fell to the hard, canyon ground. She didn’t even pause before whirling around to fend off another man who had to be more than three times her size.

“Noah!”

I shoved another guy off of me with difficulty before looking toward the voice.

Amid the chaos of flailing bodies and blood, I was able to make out Caleb’s burly form across the clearing from me. He gave me a hard, serious look before gesturing toward the convoy. I looked back at him, feeling my eyebrows furrowing with confusion before I saw him throw something between us.

Another explosion erupted through the space. Several deep voices cried out in alarm as smoke filled the clearing. It was then that I understood. Caleb was creating a cover for me to break into the vehicle. I thanked him through our mind link and bolted for the armored car.

I jumped over bodies sprawled out on the dirt, taking full advantage of the thick smoke that permeated the clearing. Although I could no longer see the battle, it sounded like the brawl was continuing. Pained cries rang in my ears along with the clashing of blades.

I jumped when a figure appeared in my peripheral. I automatically raised my weapon, prepared to take the enemy out.

“Black, it’s me.”

I lowered my blade but kept running when I realized it was Eva, who had settled into step beside me. Despite our situation, she looked amused by the fact that I almost sliced her head off.

“I can use my magic to blast through the door,” Eva told me as we approached the car.

“Are you sure it’s safe to do that?” I asked. “What if Zara and Niva are harmed?”

“I can control the extent of the explosive,” she said, mildly irritated. She didn’t wait for me to reply, even though I was already on board with the idea.

Eva, with the sureness and grace of a wildcat, sprung forward, a glowing blue orb forming in her palm. She pressed it to the door attached to the back of the carriage. She jumped back, grabbing my arm and yanking me away and down to the ground as it exploded.

I tore through the new plume of smoke that rose in front of us. I heard Eva warning me to proceed with caution, but I ignored her, jumping into the back of the vehicle.

I gasp fell from my lips.

The convoy was empty.

Eva came up behind me, and I heard her gasp as well. “It was a trick,” she said in dismay, though there was more resignation than shock in her tone.

I cursed. This vehicle had been a decoy all along, which meant that somehow our plan was discovered, and that bastard Damascus anticipated our ambush.

This was bad. Zara wasn’t here, so where was she?

“Noah!” Eva shrieked, grabbing my arm and yanking me to the side right as another explosion filled the air above us.

We coughed and sputtered and barely were able to raise our weapons as a contingency force sprung up to unleash their surprise counter-trap upon us.