Sold as the Alpha King's Breeder

Chapter 1426 - 25 : Secret Sanctuary

*Rhys*

I was in bed but unable to sleep.

Visions of fire still plagued me, blocking a peaceful night’s rest, but there was something else keeping me awake now. The racing of my heart and my rapid breathing were much the same as when I had my nightmares.

But this wasn’t a nightmare.

She had refused. I heard it with my own ears as Saoirse refused her father’s demand to prepare to leave with Conall.

I had a weak moment and kissed her, and it was bliss. Yet I had avoided her since, unable to deal with the conversation that she couldn’t be with me and that it wouldn’t work. Even the thought of the conversation sent a shiver down my spine.

Combined with the stress of excavating the portal stones, I was on high alert. While I knew I should have been more worried about the portal and the new dragon shifter that had threatened me, my mind stayed on Saoirse.

This new declaration had given me hope.

I followed her when she stormed to her room but halted when I saw her mother entering. Even with her declaration against Conall, I wasn’t entirely sure of her feelings toward me. Declaring myself in front of her mother was not the best option.

Sneaking into her room in the middle of the night was also not the best idea. Not to mention that if I gave her time to cool down, my odds were better at having a positive outcome. Even in the short amount of time I spent with her, I knew she had a temper.

So I lay there in bed, sleep eluding me as I waited for the first light.

As soon as there was even a hint of light, I left my room. Lucky for me, I was staying in the same house as Saoirse. It didn’t take me but a few steps to reach her door. I moved slowly and silently, trying not to wake anyone else.

I wanted the conversation we were about to have to be between us anyway, at least to begin with. Her father made it clear what he wished for his daughter, and I wasn’t sure how he would receive me. I might have been a prince, but he was against outsiders.

In his eyes, Conall was the better match. I hoped Saoirse didn’t believe that as well. With a sigh, I reached out and knocked lightly.

I waited, not so patiently, for her to open the door, but I didn’t hear any sound of movement on the other side. I frowned and knocked lightly again, loud enough that she should hear it but not loud enough that it would wake anyone else.

There was still nothing.

My frown deepened as my hand reached for her doorknob. I hesitated, debating on what to do. In the end, I knew I wasn’t able to wait any longer and walked into her room, excited to see her beautiful face.

Except, it wasn’t there. Saoirse’s bedroom was empty. My chest tightened as I realized that she was missing. Panic set in.

Within an hour, I managed to organize half the soldiers and villagers into search parties to find her. It was all a blur. I wasn’t quite sure how I did it, but I was impressed with the amount of people who were ready to look.

It didn’t make my panic any less. The only thing that would get rid of the nausea was finding Saoirse. I wasn’t even thinking straight. I just had to find her.

Sunshine and strawberries were easy for me to discern now. As soon as I caught her scent in the woods, I called the search party to me. I was sure that I would be able to track her from there.

“What’s that smell?” Daxton mind-linked me as we started following her scent, the rest of the search party trailing just slightly behind us. I didn’t want their scents to overpower the faint trace of Saoirse’s, so I was taking the lead.

“It’s Saoirse’s scent,” I answered back without stopping.

“No, I smell that. I recognize her scent,” Daxton replied. “There’s something else mingling with hers, and I don’t recognize it. It doesn’t smell like a wolf.”

At his mental words, I paused and took a long, slow, deep breath, trying to take in every smell my nose could detect. Daxton was right. There was another scent mixing with Saoirse’s. Her scent was so intoxicating to me that I hadn’t noticed it at first. Now that I was focusing, it was obvious.

"Fuck," I growled and started walking again at a faster pace than before.

"What is it?" Daxton asked out loud, matching my pace.

"I recognize the scent," I forced through clenched teeth, moving as fast as I could while still tracing the trail. "You probably didn’t smell it because you weren’t close enough."

"Who..." Daxton’s voice trailed off as he put two and two together.

Axureon...

Daxton sped up as well, understanding my sudden pressure to find Saoirse. The dragon shifter’s final words to me played over and over again in my head as we hiked through the woods.

“You will regret this decision here today, Prince Rhys.”

Even at that time, the words seemed ominous, but now I felt the fear that was intended by them. If Saoirse suffered for a choice I made, I would never forgive myself.

The image of Saoirse burning alive in a dragon’s flame chose to reappear in my head, making me want to puke. I didn’t have time to dwell on the possibilities. I had to find her. If I believed it was too late, I was sure I would fall apart.

We stopped for a minute at the bottom of one of the mountain cliffs. I looked up, searching for something, anything.

"There," Daxton said, and I quickly followed his finger to where it was pointing.

About halfway up the mountain was a small opening that appeared to be a fairly decent-sized cave. The rock face blended in well. Unless you were looking right at it, the opening blended in with the shadows around it.

"Circle the cliff," I told Daxton, not taking my eyes off the spot. "See if her trail picks up anywhere else."

"Yes, Alpha," Daxton nodded and disappeared.

I didn’t wait for his confirmation. I turned toward the large group behind me. "While he checks the area, I’ll start climbing. Wait for his return to follow."

Without another word, I turned and started to climb up the mountain face. It wasn’t easy on two feet, but I needed to stay human until I knew for sure what was happening. Opposable thumbs came in useful a lot of times.

When I was only about a quarter of the way, screams echoed out from inside the cave. My heart dropped as I recognized the voice.

"Saoirse!" I yelled, going as fast as I could, not caring if I fell.

The only answer I got was another scream. I wasn’t sure if she had heard me or not, but I didn’t want to waste my time or energy trying to scream again. I could hear the people below me trying to follow me now, but I had a decent lead on them.

My hands slid on the rocks, slicing them open, but I didn’t even notice. I couldn’t drag my eyes away from my destination. A faint glow illuminated the cavern entrance, and I was able to see it better.

I was so close.

Fire suddenly spewed from the cave. I was close enough that I could feel the heat that accompanied it, but I still didn’t stop, even as the golden dragon I recognized from a couple of days ago made an appearance.

His large, leathery wings spread as I reached the ledge. His head whipped around, and I saw his large, intelligent eyes stare into mine. With what I was sure was a smug smile, he took off.

Saoirse screamed again, and I saw that Axureon had her clutched in his talons.

Without hesitation, I ran forward and leaped off the cliff. My aim was true. My arms wrapped tightly around the long tail of the dragon taking off. I slipped a millimeter before tightening my grip and securing my legs around the beast as well.

Wind whipped by me as the dragon soared further up and faster than I could have imagined. There was a faint scream of my name from Daxton through the mind link, but then we were too far. Despite the pain it caused me, I kept my eyes open as wide as I could in hopes that I would see where the dragon was taking Saoirse.

I needed to know how to leave.

We flew further into the mountains and high into the peaks. The air started to thin. I was sure that we were at a much higher altitude. Cold stung my cheeks as much as the air. My hands started to go numb where they were wrapped around the tail.

I refused to let go.

Axureon’s wings straightened. Instead of flapping, we began to drift down. A valley appeared, nestled between two steep mountain peaks, and we changed our course to aim right at it.

Another memory of Axureon’s words came to mind. He asked for the dragon eggs so that he could take them to a secure mountain camp. This had to be the place he was speaking of.

I tensed as we got closer to the ground, preparing to defend myself as soon as we landed. I could not have been prepared for the number of other people who stood around, staring up at me with those glowing silver eyes.

They were all dragon shifters.

Still, I wouldn’t go down without a fight. As soon as Axureon landed, I rolled off the tail and took out the first two that rushed me before the rest could fall in and pin me to the ground. I thought about shifting, but then I was sure they would all just shift as well. The simple truth was that I was outnumbered.

I also needed to stay in my human form so that I could communicate.

"I, Prince Rhys, demand that you release Saoirse at once, Axureon!" I yelled from under the five pairs of hands that held me down.

There were murmurs around me of shock and outrage at my intrusion into their sacred valley. I was not welcome. I wanted to assess the people around me to get an exact number of the vast amount of dragons that I did not expect, but I couldn’t take my eyes off Axureon and Saoirse, who lay limp beside him.

My heart pounded uncomfortably.

"Calm, my people," Axureon spoke loud and clear as he transformed back into a man right in front of my eyes.

"Why have you brought outsiders into our valley?" a voice yelled from the crowd.

"I have brought this young woman to our valley because her newly awakened powers make her integral in the coming battle against the tyrannical Dragon Lord Pyroth," Axureon said. "She is our hope."

Newly awakened powers? Dragon Lord? The majority of Axureon’s words made no sense to me, but I still knew what I came for regardless.

"That doesn’t mean you can take a woman against her will!" I yelled out again, trying to be heard from the ground. "Whatever your motives are, this is wrong!"

Axureon turned his attention to me.

"Him, however, I did not invite here," Axureon said cooly.

I watched as all the eyes fell on me and stilled under the threat in the air. Saoirse might have been important or indispensable...

But I was not.