Sold as the Alpha King’s Breeder by Alice Knightsky
Chapter 114 Punishing the Stepmother
**Soren’s POV**
Thomas was waiting for me, and I could tell by his expression that he had updates.
I walked into my office with him behind me. “What is it, Thomas?” I asked as I sat down at my desk.
“Two things,” he began. “First of all, Derek’s all taken care of,” he said. “I received word earlier today that he’s reached his final destination.”
I nodded. I expected nothing less from my people. “Good. What else?”
Thomas continued, “Secondly, we have confirmation that Ethan has arrived back in the capital.” Where Madalynn was.
I could certainly use this to my advantage.
Thomas sat down across from me and said, “I believe there may be some other loose ends we need to tie up, though?”
Knowing exactly what he was talking about, I agreed. It was time for me to address a previous ally, one who needed to make sure he stayed in his lane.
Letting out a sigh of annoyance, I opened a desk drawer and found a piece of stationary, pulling it out and grabbing a fountain pen off of my desk.
“You’re not going to call him on the burner phone?” Thomas asked, clearly surprised by my choice of communication method.
I shook my head. “This is safer. I know everyone who will handle this. No chance of anyone interfering.” With Thomas keeping his comments to himself, I began to write.
Once I was done, I folded the paper and gave it to Thomas. “You will see that this reaches him? I want to ensure that no one else has the opportunity to read it.”
“Of course, sir,” Thomas said, tucking the envelope into the inside pocket of his jacket.
“So it sounds like you also have a third piece of news?”
“Yes, regarding Miss Rosalie’s mother.”
Thomas’s last report greatly intrigued my interest. “I’m listening.”
“Based on the preliminary report, she might be the last survivor of the…” he leaned over and murmured the last name in my ear.
My eyes widened, and the room was silent for a few moments. Then I couldn’t help but start laughing.
The Moon Goddess was on my side this time.
“Thank you, Thomas. Great news! Let’s head back,” I suggested, slamming my hands down on the table in finality before I stood up.
It wasn’t a long drive to Rosalie’s. The whole way over, I anticipated seeing her face.
She had been very nice to me lately, and even though I was still fearful she might leave, I was also beginning to think that she might be able to see a future with me.
When we arrived, I headed to the door, but Thomas stayed outside with the guards. I knocked and waited, finding myself restless, shifting my weight from one foot to the other.
Rosalie opened the door, her skin slightly flushed, breathing a little hard like she’d been exercising or something.
I was immediately concerned.
“Hi, Ro. Are you okay?” I asked her.
“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine,” she said. “Just… moving around is getting harder,” she said, laughing, but it was clear that she was bothered.
I wasn’t sure if that was all that it was. Her eyes looked a bit red and puffy, like perhaps she had been crying.
I gently grabbed her arm to stabilize her. “Walk carefully, watch your step.”
“Thank you, Soren,” she grinned at me with appreciation.
Once we got inside, I helped her sit down in her chair and leaned forward to kiss her cheek. Before she could pull away, I crouched down so our eyes were at the same level, “I have something for you.”
I reached into my pocket and pulled out a golden bracelet with a wolf charm on it.
“Soren,” she wasn’t super excited, and I didn’t expect her to be, knowing how exhausted she had been lately. “You didn’t have to do that…”
I shrugged. I never came over without giving her something. “Can I put it on for you?”
“I am worried that I may lose it,” she shook her head. I was a little disappointed that she turned it down, but I wasn’t just going to give up. “Please, I insist. It’ll bring me lots of joy.”
She finally nodded and held up her wrist, and I clipped it on. Just being this close to her was distracting. She smelled so lovely, like a garden after a fresh rain shower. That dream I’d had was still in my mind, even all these days later.
Once the bracelet was hooked, I held up her hand and placed a kiss on the back of her hand. Her skin was warm on my lips, and the scent of her had me twitching against my pants.
She looked down at the ground, shyly, and then looked at me through her long eyelashes.
I could see it. I could absolutely see it. She looked like a princess. Even in her pregnant state, in casual clothing, standing here in her living room, she was regal and poised.
She had grace and beauty like no one I’d ever seen. Her eyes were bright and twinkled like starlight. Her hair gleamed even in the faintest light and hung around her shoulders like a robe. She held her shoulders like a statue.
When she sang, it was magical. The notes that floated from her lips touched the listener’s soul and moved them like nothing I’d ever heard before.
How could that be anything less than royalty?
I realized I was staring when Rosalie said, “Soren, are you going to sit down, or do you need something? Are you thirsty?”
“Oh, sorry,” I said, shaking my head to clear my thoughts. I left some space between us to try and keep my hands off of her.
“Listen, I have some news,” I began, hoping to ease her mind. If I was right, and she had been crying, perhaps part of the reason she’d been upset had to do with her horrific stepbrother.
“What is it?” she asked, and I saw her entire body tense up.
Before I could respond, we heard a commotion outside.
A woman was shouting in the yard. “Come here, you filthy w”*e! You b*tch!” Rosalie and I both perked up, our eyes wide as we turned to the window.
“What the!?” I murmured. “Stay here,” I ordered her, my military commander voice taking over. But Rosalie didn’t listen.
As I moved to the front yard to see what in the world was happening, she was with me.
I knew that my guards were outside and that I could protect her if I needed to, but when we walked outside, the guards had their hands around a middle-aged woman who was struggling to get away from them.
“There she is! Murderer! You f*uc*king b*tch!”
“Isis?” Rosalie gasped, her voice a cold whisper next to me.
“You know this woman?” I asked her.
The woman began to cry as she said, “You caused all of this misery! You made them kill him! My boy! My boy!” Rosalie was shocked and didn’t respond.
I looked at the woman like the piece of filth I knew her to be, now that I had identified who she was. She was screaming and kicking, cursing the most filthy and horrible words at Rosalie.
Rosalie stood there without a word and I was worried. Was she too terrified?
“Ro, are you okay?” I checked on her, and then scolded Thomas, “What are you guys waiting for, get her out of here!”
The woman screamed, “You w***e! You don’t even dare to talk to me?”
She spit as she continued to scream out her filthy cursing, “You’re just a w”*e! You hide behind your filthy sugar daddy and sucking his-”
“Now!!” I roared.
“Wait a moment.” I heard Rosalie say.
I looked at Rosalie worriedly. Her face was pale and she was biting her lip. She was too quiet and I didn’t want her to get too close to that woman. “Ro, it’s okay. Don’t be afraid, let me handle it.”
Rosalie shook her head and said, “No, Soren, I’m not afraid. I need to speak with her. Please.”
“Wait, she’s dangerous!”
Rosalie replied calmly, “I have you and so many guards around me. There’s no way she would be able to hurt me.”
Seeing how determined she was, I sighed, “Just be careful, okay?”
Rosalie nodded her head and gestured for the guards to let go of Isis, who immediately was charging towards her.
“First of all, if I were you, I wouldn’t do anything reckless now. You wouldn’t be able to get to me before the guards get to you, you know that.” Rosalie’s voice was calm and a*s*sertive. “If you want revenge, you need to first make sure you don’t die.”
Isis obviously didn’t expect that, but it was effective enough to stop her in her tracks.
Rosalie continued, “Now, you said I made them kill him…. If what you said is true, I can have them do it to Derek, I can also have them do it to you.”
Isis’s eyes were filled with terror. Rosalie smiled, “However, I can tell you right now, I didn’t, whether you believe it or not.”
Isis stared at Rosalie viciously, but Rosalie didn’t move her gaze away from Isis. She looked back at Isis calmly and confidently, which seemingly surprised Isis.
Finally, Isis reevaluated her situation, and decided it probably was not in her own interest to continue being aggressive with Rosalie, so she decided to change how she should approach the whole thing.
She looked around, and when she realized who I was, her tears changed course. “I beg your forgiveness, sir. I’m so sorry, Miss Rosalie. Please forgive me,” she said. “It’s just… he’s gone. Derek is missing and I-”
I frowned and was disgusted by her. However, I didn’t say anything, because I was intrigued to see what Rosalie would say this time.
Rosalie looked Isis in the eye. Her voice wasn’t loud, but when she spoke, everyone quieted down. “Isis, everyone suffers through the consequences of their own deeds in this life. It’s not for me to take your life or Derek’s.”
I stared at Rosalie in awe. She was… amazing, standing there so calmly and confidently speaking to this horrid woman. I’d never seen this side of her. She had always been sweet, but I had forgotten that she was an Alpha’s daughter, after all.
“However, I also have no obligation to help you. You and Derek both caused me pain over the years. While I’ve learned to let go of my past, I haven’t forgotten about it. Now, I’ve told you that I do not know where Derek is, and I must ask you to leave.”
Isis didn’t move, and I heard Rosalie say firmly, “Leave, now, Isis. I’m no longer afraid of you, and you won’t get what you want from me.”
Then Rosalie turned around and walked back towards me without looking at Isis any more.
The guards didn’t take Isis away- they didn’t need to. After a few moments, Isis left the scene on her own. I could see resentment in Isis’s eyes, but I also saw shock and fear.
I had a feeling she would leave Rosalie alone after that.
I followed Rosalie back inside, and I told her, “I’m so proud of you, Rosalie.”
“Thank you,” she said, but she looked a bit apprehensive. “Soren, what did you do to Derek?”