Mated to the Alpha: Sold to the King

Chapter 11: 0011

Lorelei POV

"I swear to the Moon Goddess I’ll—"

But then he cut himself off and roughly shoved my arm away.

"I should have rejected you the moment I felt the bond," he said as my weakened body fell sideways against the bed with a soft cry. "It would have saved everyone a lot of pain."

I wanted to ask him if he really meant that, even as he turned his back on me.

Surely he was just saying all this because he was stressed from almost losing his child.

The two years we spent together couldn’t really mean nothing.

Those moments had been real.

They had to be.

But I couldn’t get a single word out.

The examination room door suddenly opened again, and the doctor stepped inside before immediately freezing at the sight of Jaxen standing over me.

"She can still speak, so she’s fine," Jaxen said flatly to the doctor. "Take it. Take more of it. I need to make sure my wife has more ready in case of complications."

The doctor finally hesitated.

"Alpha, she’s already lost nearly forty percent of her blood volume. Any more could be—"

"I don’t care," Jaxen growled. "And I wasn’t asking for your opinion. That was an order."

The air in the room instantly turned suffocating.

"Take more blood from her," he continued coldly. "As much as Callista needs. And have the guards take her to the cell when it’s finished."

My heart practically stopped beating at that moment.

The cell?

I stared at him in disbelief, but he never looked at me again.

I watched Jaxen storm out with so much rage that the door rattled violently on its hinges after slamming shut behind him.

The silence he left behind was deafening.

For several long seconds, nobody moved.

Then the nurse slowly pulled another needle from the tray.

Her eyes flickered toward me with something that almost looked like pity.

Ah.

At least for the first time in a while, someone felt sorry for me.

I could only smile weakly at her and let her do what she had to do.

The needle slid into my arm again.

I barely even flinched this time.

My head felt light as more of my blood left my body, like I was floating somewhere above myself, watching all of this happen to someone else.

And it was at that moment I finally accepted the truth I had been running from.

The man I loved...

The man who once loved me...

No longer existed.

Maybe he hadn’t for a long time.

Once again, I was completely on my own.

And if I died right now, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad.

No one would miss me.

I slowly closed my eyes and listened to the sound of my blood flowing out of me.

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

Each drop felt like a goodbye.

Tears slid silently from the corners of my eyes and disappeared into my hair.

Goodbye to Jaxen.

Goodbye to Callista.

Goodbye to my parents.

Goodbye to the life I had spent years begging to be loved in.

"You win again, Callista," I whispered weakly to myself.

You can have him.

****

How I survived that night surprised even me.

It took two days for me to regain consciousness, and when I did, I was immediately thrown into the pack cell.

I lay there for hours, maybe longer, cursing the Moon Goddess for sparing my life once again.

I looked pale like a corpse and had lost so much weight in just two days. My arms were bruised from the needles. My lips were cracked from dehydration. My entire body ached like I had been beaten in my sleep from the inside out.

Why let me live if it’s only going to be in misery?

While I was still spiraling through my thoughts, my wolf suddenly stirred at a familiar presence.

But this time, I didn’t move.

Even when the guard slid the cell door open and Jaxen stepped inside, leaving just the two of us alone, I still didn’t move.

I didn’t want to see his face.

He was just like the rest of them now.

And somehow, his presence disgusted me more than anyone else’s.

"Callista and the baby are alive," he announced.

Of course they are.

That’s the only reason I’m still breathing. freewēbnoveℓ.com

"Because of this incident, my coronation was postponed. I hope you understand how this is affecting everyone."

I said nothing.

The silence seemed to irritate him because his fist slowly clenched at his side.

"What you did was unforgivable," he growled, his voice rising with each word. "A crime punishable by death."

Those words should have terrified me.

Any sane person would have been terrified.

But whatever fear I once had left inside me had already been drained out alongside my blood.

"So kill me," I said flatly, and Jaxen’s eyes widened slightly.

"What?"

"You heard me." I slowly turned my head against the cold stone floor to look at him. "If you truly believe I tried to kill your wife and unborn child, then punish me. Execute me. Put an end to the curse once and for all."

"Do you really think I wouldn’t?" he snapped, stepping closer.

I let out a weak laugh that barely sounded human anymore.

"I think you’re a selfish bastard who’s also a weak coward."

Fury instantly flashed across his face.

In seconds, he crouched beside me and grabbed my chin harshly, forcing my face upward until I was looking directly at him.

The movement sent pain shooting through my weak body, but I didn’t react.

"You’ve got a lot of nerve speaking to me like that after what you did," he snarled, tightening his grip while I still stared back at him quietly. "You really want to die that badly?"

"That’s how desperate I am to be away from you," I said calmly, staring directly into his blue eyes. "I used to think the worst thing that ever happened to me was being born cursed."

His jaw tightened, but something uneasy flickered in his expression.

"But I was wrong," I whispered. "You were."

And before he could react, I spat directly into his face.

The saliva landed on his cheek, and his grip loosened instantly.

He stared at me in shock, his mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water.

"You disgust me," I added quietly, watching his expression darken, and he abruptly shoved me backward as he rose to his feet.

Pain exploded through my body the second I slammed against the cold stone floor, but I refused to make a sound.

I wouldn’t give him that satisfaction.

"You should really think carefully about what you’re asking for," Jaxen said as he wiped his cheek with the back of his hand, his eyes never leaving mine.

"I know you are desperate for affection, but multiple lines have been crossed. And as the future Alpha, I must be just. Even if you are my mate."

"Why don’t I make it easier for you then?" I said softly.

The moment those words left my mouth, something inside his expression shifted.

Like instinct had already sensed what I was about to do before his mind caught up.

I slowly pushed myself upright despite the pain tearing through my body.

My voice barely rose above a whisper, but every single word landed like a blade between us.

"I, Lorelei Vance of the Silver Fang Pack, reject you, Jaxen Reed, as my mate."

His eyes widened in disbelief, but it was too late.

The bond we had shared for only two years began to snap.