Auctioned to the Cruel King - Chapter 12: Chapter 12

Kayla's POV
Time froze as Lance's glacial gaze settled on Alpha Kane and me standing so close together in the dimly lit corridor. My heart hammered against my ribs, even as I tried to tame it.
He would sniff that out, eventually.
Kane, however, remained the picture of nonchalance.
"Ah, Alpha," he purred, his voice relaxed. "I seem to have lost my way to the washroom. Your castle is quite…extensive, thankfully I happened to come across your lovely bride who was just so pointing me in the right direction.”
Lies. One that Lance probably knows.
I could almost taste it—the air around us.
But Lance tilted his head slightly and sensually. "The dining hall is the other way.”
Kane nodded even when none of that was related. "So it is. My mistake." He turned to me with a slight bow. "Thank you for your assistance, Lady Kayla. Your hospitality will not be forgotten."
His emphasis on hospitality made me swallow hard. If Lance detected the double meaning, he gave no indication.
"I'll find my own way back then."
I waited for the explosion, for Lance to confront me about what had transpired, to demand answers, or perhaps even punish me on the spot. Alaric had warned so, and I’d so failed. However, considering the situation, I can’t be faulted. Can I?
Instead, the Lycan King's fingers clamped around my elbow, and he wordlessly pulled me back toward the dining hall. His face remained impassive, what feared me more was that I could not feel any fury radiating from him. Then was everything good?
"Alpha Lance, I—"
"Not. Now." Each syllable was clipped, that it somehow screamed Landon even though my ex-husband would have bared his teeth at me the second I went against him.
I was definitely going to be humiliated and punished even.
I sank into my chair, keenly aware of that fury even without it leaking out. When I dared to glance at him, he was reaching for a drink.
“I—”
“Shut it.”
I did.
Alpha Kane returned minutes later, then went on about the chef having outdone themselves and all that. But I could only count the series of my ex’s deeds to narrow down to one I may possibly get tonight.
My eyes caught as the blonde Alpha signaled to one of the guards, his men precisely who came up with a small rectangular box wrapped in dark leather and tied with a red cord. He gave it to Kane who placed it before Lance.
"A token of appreciation for your hospitality," Kane explained. "And a reminder of my invitation."
Invitation? My attention snapped back to their conversation.
Lance lifted the glass to his lips, but instead of drinking, the crystal suddenly shattered in his grip. Wine splashed across the white tablecloth.
The nearest server paled visibly, scurrying forward with napkins. Lance didn't even flinch, though tiny fragments of glass had embedded themselves in his palm. He simply opened his hand, letting the remnants fall as the wounds closed before my eyes.
"Forgive me," he said with deadly calm. "I don't know my own strength sometimes."
My heart hammered against my ribs. What was going on?
Kane bowed slightly.
"Leave it," Lance commanded before the servant could touch him. And then to Kane, he said, “I'll consider it."
"Please do," Kane insisted. "And if you'll excuse me," he said, rising from his seat. "I should retire for the evening. I have a long journey ahead tomorrow."
Lance nodded. "Of course."
"Lady Kayla." Kane turned to me with a small bow. "It was a pleasure making your acquaintance."
I curtsied, careful to keep my expression neutral. "Likewise, Alpha Kane."
“See that he’s shown to his room.” The Lycan King ordered one of his servants who bowed immediately and fell into step.
And then Kane was gone, his entourage falling in behind him. After that, I braced myself again. The bite on my neck pricked and I inhaled. I waited but Lance stared at the box Kane had left. Then without a word, he snatched it up and turned on his heel, stalking out of the dining hall without a backward glance.
I sat there, stunned. That was it? No interrogation? No punishment for my transgression?
"Would you like to be escorted back to your chambers, my lady?" a servant asked timidly.
I nodded, still watching the doorway where Lance had disappeared. He wasn't coming after me. Not now, at least, which frightened me he might be planning something worse.
Once alone in my chamber, I locked the door and pulled in front of the mirror, dragging my fingers over the makeup on my neck to reveal the bite mark. It doesn't hurt anymore, not in the past days at least, even the graze had nearly faded, so why did it…?
Not a mark. Was that even true?
I pulled out Kane's card from its hiding place. The silver wolf's head embossed on the thick paper caught the lamplight, almost seeming to glow. I turned it over. On the back, in elegant script: The Eastern Territories.
“What the hell are you thinking, Kayla?" I muttered to myself, falling back onto the bed with a sigh. "Urghh..this is such a pain in the ass."
This wasn't part of my plan. I'd intended to find my own way out, not become meshed with another alpha. But what can I say?
Not long, the clock on my bedside table inched toward midnight. I'd been staring at the ceiling for hours, turning possibilities over in my mind. No summons had come from Lance.
Whatever.
I scrubbed myself in a quick bath and mounted a plain pants and brown sweater before reaching down to the corner of my room where I'd been slowly, carefully preparing over the past two days. Knotted bedsheets, tucked away beneath loose floorboards.
It wouldn't hurt to try, would it? Just to test if my escape route was viable?
Lance was likely occupied with whatever Kane's little box contained. The guards had been distracted by the visiting Alpha's entourage. If there was ever a perfect moment to test my plan, it was now.
I scanned the grounds below—empty, just as I'd observed during my careful watches of the guard rotations.
I tossed the rope out, watching it uncoil down the castle wall. Taking a deep breath, I climbed onto the windowsill, gripped the knotted sheets, and began my descent.
The rough fabric burned my palms as I lowered myself, inch by careful inch. Twenty feet had never seemed so far. By the time my feet touched the ground, my arms trembled with the strain.
Step one was complete.
I pressed myself against the wall, listening for any sign I'd been detected.
I mentally reviewed the route I'd memorized from my window observations. The eastern path would have the fewest guards—they concentrated their patrols on the main entrance and western approach. If I kept to the tree line, I could make it to the main road without being spotted.
So I did. And after what felt like forever, I busted out to the main road.
Hic.
“Holy shit, I made it.”
I hesitated only briefly before turning in the direction I knew led away from Lance's territory. The border couldn't be that far—could it?
After perhaps half an hour of walking, lights flickered in the distance. I slowed, crouching lower as I approached. A checkpoint of some kind, a small encampment with uniformed men moving about.
Border guards? But this didn't seem like the border. Maybe a first checkpoint?
I crept closer, using the trees as cover, straining to see details. Fuck. Even with no vehicle at this hour, there was no chance of simply walking past them unnoticed. If Kane hadn't left yet, I could potentially hide in one of their vehicles. But even as I considered it, I recognized the flaw in that plan. I'd be trading one captor for another, one territory for another that was equally unfamiliar. Kane might have seemed charming, but that didn't make him safe.
This was valuable intelligence, though. Knowing the location of the checkpoint, and understanding their procedures—this could be useful for my real escape attempt, in which I need money to actually make it work after leaving. And live in a pack where nothing connects me to an Alpha.
Reluctantly, I turned back toward the castle.
I skirted the perimeter, making my way back to the rope hopefully still dangling from my window. But froze when I heard something close to the sound of flesh striking flesh, followed by a muffled groan.