Sold as the Alpha King's Breeder novel Chapter 360

Chapter 18 Is It Really Warren?

I tried my best not to let my irritation show on my face as I digested the name the redheaded girl had just divulged.

She was under the impression that my brother might be the one person on the planet who could save the life of the woman I was meant to have a child with.

I needed to concentrate on the fact that the blood within the girl was the most vital part of the equation to me. I had no reason to want to see any harm befall Ciana. She was nice enough, I supposed, but to me, her true value lay in the blood coursing through her veins.

“Shall I send for Prince Warren, Your Highness?” Dottie asked me respectfully.

“No,” I said immediately, my voice stern enough that everyone in the room flinched. I took a deep breath to steel myself. “I will fetch him myself.”

The moment I walked into the hallway, my head cleared a bit, and I felt like I could pull a full breath of oxygen into my lungs. Something about being in that room with all of those concerned people had been like a weight on my shoulders. But now… my thoughts were sharper. I could sense reason.

Winding my way to the other side of the palace where my brother’s rooms were, I took my time.

He only needed to give it a try so we could see if it worked, but there was no need for him to know that Ciana was fond of

him….

Two guards stood here, neither saying anything to me but making a sign of respect. Unlike me, Warren was constantly surrounded by people. They knocked and opened the door for me.

My brother was clutching a book in his hand. “Oh, Theo,” he said, setting the book aside. Obviously, he was enjoying a leisurely evening. “What in the world brings you here?”

“I have a bit of an issue, and I was hoping you could help.” I tried to keep my tone as relaxed as possible.

Immediately, my overly helpful brother snapped to attention. “Of course. What is it?”

“One of the girls who is here as part of Father’s task was unconscious. Dottie thinks it may be a sleeping spell… a curse of some sort. There’s a possibility that you might be the one to wake her.”

“That sounds just awful!” he said, resting his palm against his heart. “The poor girl! Why does Dottie think I can be of

assistance?”

“I’m not exactly sure,” I lied. “I guess… perhaps… you know the girl… well?”

“Who is it?” he asked, leaning toward me slightly as he shook his head. “I haven’t spent much time with any of the girls. They are here for you, after all.”

Why did I feel relieved? Whether he knew Ciana well or not had nothing to do with me!

With a sharp nod, I tried to forget all of the times I had seen him with her myself. “She’s called… Ciana, I believe,” I said, forcing nonchalance into each word

“Ciana?” he repeated, his eyes widening. “Oh! Oh, no!”

“So you do know that one?” I asked, sarcasm dripping from the question even though I intended it not to.

“I do. I ran into her a few times. Such a sweet, intelligent young lady.”

“Is she?” I asked, folding my arms. “I guess you know her better than I do.”

“Isn’t she your personal attendant now?” Warren asked me.

Shrugging, I said, “You know, they all sort of look alike to me.”

“Well, I’d be happy to try and do what I can,” he said, putting on a jacket. “Although, I hardly doubt there’s much I can do. It’ s unfortunate that I didn’t get to know her better.”

The two of us were about to leave the room when we realized that he had another visitor who had been standing right outside the door.

She looked familiar to me… I wondered how much of our conversation she had overheard.

She wasn’t my concern at the moment, so I hardly spared her a glance and simply walked past her, signaling to Warren to follow me.

“Your Highness! Please!”

We both stopped.

“Is she here for me or you?” Warren whispered. “What’s her name again?”

I looked over at him. “No idea.”

“She is one of the eighty girls father got for you, right? I thought she used to be your personal attendant too.”

So this was the girl who’d withheld the food from Ciana and Brook, allegedly on my order.

“Prince Warren, Sir,” she said, dipping her head. Then, she turned to me. “I beg your forgiveness, Prince Theo.”

“Good evening, Miss-?” Warren replied.

“Sophia Chambers,” she said. “Please forgive me for interjecting, Sir, but I’ve been studying sleeping sicknesses like this one for many years, and I don’t believe one exists like your pack healer is describing.”

“You overheard our conversation?” Warren asked her.

“I… I happened to walk by…” The girl’s cheeks reddened, but she didn’t answer him directly, only continued, “Sir, I believe it’ s a curse that’s been cast on her, and if you are to touch her, you could also become a victim of the same curse. You mustn’ t allow yourself to be harmed for someone as lowly and

inconsequential as her!”

My eyes narrowed. I should have already dealt with her, but this wasn’t the right time. I was about to step forward and pull Warren away when I heard him say, “Miss Chambers!” His tone was sharp. “I will decide for myself what is a risk for me and

what is not. Besides, you shouldn’t keep speaking about your peer that way! You made fun of her for feeding the animals and made demands of her while she was cleaning, neither of which was acceptable.”

Tears glistened in the girl’s eyes as she looked up at him. “Forgive me, My Prince. I was only trying to help.”

“You may leave,” he said to her, and with that, he turned around, a more determined look on his face than ever, and he began walking toward my chambers with me.

I was glad to see that he had put the other girl in her place and was resolved to help Ciana, but I didn’t particularly like that he was so protective of Ciana. She was my attendant, not his.

When we arrived at my chambers, Brook was still there, sitting on a settee across the room from where Ciana slumbered.

Ciana looked like she was just lying there asleep. For a moment, I let myself imagine she was resting, dreaming, and I wasn’t able to peel my eyes away from her. But then I forced those thoughts from my mind. She was a means to an end, nothing more.

Warren sat down on the bed next to her, concern marring his handsome face as he studied her. He picked up her delicate hand in his and stroked it gently. “How long has she been this way?” he asked.

I hadn’t asked him to touch her hand, had I? I pulled her hand out from his and tucked it under the blanket.

“A couple hours,” I answered.

“Poor girl,” he sighed.

“I believe, Your Highness, if you simply press your fingers to her forehead, if you are truly the one she wants most in this world, she will awaken,” Dottie explained to him.

Warren turned to look at the healer. I hadn’t quite told him all of that, and I could see he was surprised. “But why would she -” He stopped talking, his shock not allowing him to finish the

sentence.

“She is awfully fond of you,” Brook said from her seat across the room. “She often spoke of how kind you were to her.”

Warren looked at Brook, and the two of them smiled at one another for a moment before he returned his attention to

Ciana.

My stomach twisted into a knot. I felt like I was going to be sick. It must have been because I was so worried about not being able to use her blood to grow the berry.

What other reason could it possibly be?

Warren lifted a hand and carefully placed his fingertips on Ciana’s forehead. We all took a deep breath and held it,

collectively.

Nothing happened.

He closed his eyes and scrunched up his face, as if he were trying to will the curse out of her and into him.

Still… nothing happened.

“Ciana?” he whispered. “Ciana, can you hear me?”

A minute went by, two. Still, she slept on. And Warren was completely unaffected.

Eventually, my brother gave up, and for some unknown reason, I wanted to smile. I had no idea why. It didn’t make

sense.

We all turned to face the healer. She was shaking her head. “I don’t understand it. I thought for certain that would work, because Prince Warren is her…”

“Enough!” I interrupted Dottie.

I wanted to say, ‘Turns out Ciana doesn’t care for Warren after all.’ But instead, I kept my mouth quiet.

The healer turned to me. “Your Highness, I will do some research. There must be something that can be done to help her.”

I nodded. “Yes, do that.” Then I looked at Warren. “Warren, thanks for coming.”

My brother got up off of the bed, his shoulder slumped as he approached me. “I’m so sorry, Theo. I tried my best.”

“It’s all right. Perhaps she has a sweetheart back home. Or only her mother can break the spell. Or knowing her… maybe she has a pet dog.”

His eyebrows lifted suspiciously. “I thought you said you didn’ t know her well?”

“Um… let’s call it a night,” I changed the subject.

Luckily, he didn’t say anything else.

Everyone left my room, including Brook. I sent Jake to walk her back.

Once they were all gone, I turned to look at the woman sleeping in my bed. “Well,” I said, strolling over and sitting down next to her. “This is a fine mess you’ve created now, isn’t it?”

Of course, she said nothing.

For once in my life, I would’ve been happy to hear her voice- even if we were just arguing.

How could I wake you up, Ciana?