Auctioned to the Cruel King - Chapter 28: Chapter 28

Kayla’s POV
His face was held tight under the chandelier, like a beast coiled too long in a cage. I could’ve avoided him and walked away before the other two men did, but I knew he would search for me if we didn't talk now, so why not get over it already?
Not to mention that he would’ve been snarling and growling were it to be back in our pack.
“What do you want?” I asked, voice flat.
His jaw ticked. “Don’t use that tone on me.”
That old edge, that deep voice once capable of melting my defenses—now it only scratched at old wounds.
“You might be here, Kayla, but I’m still an Alpha. And you will—”
“I will what?” I folded my arms, urging him to answer. “Bow to you? Obey you? Wake up, Landon. I’m not yours to command anymore. There's no need to pretend otherwise."
I watched him squeeze his fists—once, twice. Then loosen them again. A slow, forced breath escaped him before a cold smile stretched across his lips.
“I see. You’ve changed.”
I held his stare.
“In just a few weeks, you’ve become someone new. It’s strange. I heard the Lycan King bought you at the auction. Thought he was throwing you a bone. But it seems... you’re doing better than I expected.”
My skin prickled, the words were sharp but not unexpected.
He tilted his head while his eyes raked over my dress. “Still, no matter how you try to cover it, you’re still what you’ve always been. A worthless omega. The daughter of a whore.”
There it was—the truth as he saw it. As he’d always seen me. Not a person, not a partner. A thing.
I raised my chin. “Is that supposed to hurt me?”
He hadn’t expected that. It was clear in his face before he sealed it away.
“What did you do to earn the Lycan King's favor, huh? You must have done something since you're not special. Did you spread your legs the moment you arrived? Play the broken little victim until he takes pity on you?"
Fire roared through my veins then.
It was what he wanted.
“Whatever I did, the result still comes clear. It’s funny, how you're now groveling to the same King who I’m Luna to.”
He narrowed his eyes.
“From where I sat tonight, it looked like you needed this alliance far more than he does. You’ve fallen, haven’t you? Since I left. You’re weaker.”
Landon's jaw twitched further. "Careful, Kayla."
"What's the matter?" I stepped closer, emboldened by something reckless and desperate inside me. "Truth sting a little? Your pack must be in shambles if you're willing to come here, hat in hand, begging for scraps."
"You think you're so clever now," he snarled. "So protected."
"And what if I am?” I shot back. “It’s not like there is anything you can do about it.”
His control snapped.
Landon's hands slammed against my shoulders, shoving me back until my lower back hit the table.
“You forget yourself,” he growled, breathing hot and furious.
“No,” I told him. “I remember everything.”
Every slap. Every command. Every night I lay awake praying the bond would answer me, and give me the strength to keep going. That he’d look at me the way he once did.
“I remember how you’d silence me. How you’d twist every truth until I started believing I deserved it. But I’m not that girl anymore.”
His eyes flickered, something uneasy there.
He stepped back, but not far. “So this is it? You think the Lycan King doting on you means you’ve found your happy ending?”
I didn’t answer.
He laughed. “Does he know?”
My stomach twisted.
“Does the big, bad Lycan King know that his precious Luna can’t carry his legacy? That you’re... barren…a damaged goods?”
I wanted to lie. To spit something back. But the fear, the shame—it curled like smoke in my chest.
He smiled wider, watching the color drain from my face. “Oh yes. This is rich. The Lycan King's plaything, keeping such a vital secret. What do you think he'll do when he finds out you can never give him children?"
"You know nothing.”
His face hardened. “I know enough. Because if that secret matters… if his loyalty hinges on a future heir…”
I knew where this was going.
“If you want that little detail to stay buried, you’ll convince him to go through with the alliance,” Landon continued, inching so close I could smell his cologne. “Whatever you told him before, Kayla, you’ll find a way to untell it.”
I wanted so much to scream at him that I wasn't barren, that I could…I may be—
“Because if this alliance fails, if he backs out, you’ll wish the auction was the worst thing that happened to you.”
“Get your hand off me or find out what happens when he hears of it,” I warned and he froze.
“Now.”
He grunted and moved away, raising his hands in surrender.
I rubbed my dress. “I think we are done here.”
“Think about it, Kayla," he called after me as I reached toward the doors. "How long do you think his favor will last once he knows the truth?"
‘Don’t fall apart. Not yet. You did great, you didn't—’
The moment I stepped into the corridor, I nearly collided with Vivian.
Our eyes locked.
My heart skipped.
Had she heard?
I didn’t wait to find out though.
“Luna!” Moira called behind me.
I didn’t slow.
Not until I rounded the corner did I break into a run.
“Please, wait!”
She ran after me. I heard the slap of her flats against stone as she followed me through the corridor, out the nearest door, and into the garden path.
I ran.
Twisting past hedges and flowering arches, until we reached the garden’s center—the fountain shaped like a Lycan’s head, stone eyes glowing faintly from beneath the water’s surface.
I collapsed at the base, the cold seeping through my dress.
Moira caught up seconds later, breathless. “My Luna—”
“Why did you follow me?” I rasped, tears hot and falling now. “You owe me nothing.”
She blinked at me, then dropped to her knees without hesitation.
“And you owe me nothing either. But that’s not relevant.”
Her voice was fierce, soft only in tone.
“You are my Luna. And I will follow you through a hailstorm if I must.”
Why? But I couldn't ask that out loud.
I pressed my fists into my eyes. It’s not supposed to be like this. I never did cry when he sold me, so why now? I was supposed to move on. Be free of him. But tonight—tonight he reminded me—
Moira wrapped her arms around me, grounding me.
Later, I stood before the Lycan King’s office, hands trembling despite the calm mask I tried to wear. I still wore the same dress, though my makeup had been partially destroyed by my earlier tears.
The guards at the hall had informed me he was here with Alaric.
I wanted to turn away.
What if Landon was right? I'd thought about it during my walk here, about what would happen when Lance discovered my secret. The doctor here had mentioned possibilities, and chances for conception, but what if those chances failed? What if I truly was damaged beyond repair?
I wasn't sure I was ready to find out. And the last thing I would ever agree to do was help my former mate. I'd rather have my head chopped off.
I wanted to beg, tell him the truth, and hope that I live.
So I knocked.
“Come in.”
Lance looked up the moment I entered. “Is there a problem?”
I didn't answer. I didn’t move further either.
He straightened. “Give us the room, Ric.”
Alaric did so and the Lycan King rose from his seat and rounded the table. He had rolled up his sleeves, several buttons of his shirt undone to reveal the strong column of his throat and a good glimpse of his chest.
“Go on, why have you come?”
I had to say it.
Even if it meant breaking whatever fragile thing he was trying to build.