Alaric's POV
My eyes scanned the crowd. My pulse was a drum of anxiety. I had lost sight of her.
I told myself she was safe with Thomas. Now the air felt thin. Every face in the market looked like a threat. Every shadow felt like an assassin.
I stood in the center of the square. I ignored the people pushing past me. I was the Alpha of Blackwood. Yet I felt like a child lost in a storm.
Then I saw her.
Sophie was running toward me. Her face was bright with a smile. She wanted me to stop worrying.
But behind her a figure moved. A man in a dark tunic lunged. He struck her from behind.
My wolf instincts took over. Time slowed. I did not think. I moved.
I bridged the distance in a blur of motion. Sophie was falling. Her body was inches from the ground. I reached out. I caught her.
I pulled her against me. One of my hands gripped her waist. The other went around her neck. To steady her head.
We stood frozen. The noise of the market vanished. I only heard the sound of her rapid breathing. The heat radiating between us.
I looked into her eyes. They were wide and dark. I saw my own reflection in them. I saw the intensity of my own hunger to keep her safe.
We stayed like that for a long moment. I did not want to let go. I felt a strange peace holding her.
It was a peace I had never known. My palace is a place of stone and secrets.
A sharp forced cough broke the silence.
I blinked. I looked up. Thomas and Roland were standing right in front of us.
Thomas had a smirk on his face. Roland looked at the sky. He pretended he was interested in the clouds.
Sophie gasped. She released herself from my grip. She stepped back. Her face turning a deep shade of red.
"Thank you." She whispered.
She looked down at the ground. Her flowers had fallen during the struggle.
She dropped to her knees. She tried to pick them up.
I did not stay standing. I bent down to help her. My large hands felt clumsy against the delicate petals. We gathered them together.
"I bought these for you." Sophie said.
She held the bundle out to me.
"You should put them in a vase. Nurture them well."
I took the flowers. I felt a smile tug at my lips. I am a King. People give me gold. They give me land. They give me blood. No one has ever given me a flower. Just to nurture it.
"You were thinking of me." I said.
It was not a question.
"I wanted to say thanks for the bag." she said.
"I also got something for you." I replied.
I gestured to Roland.
The Chief Guard stepped forward. He held a small polished wooden box. I had found a set of high quality knives. It was at a specialty forge in the market. They were balanced and sharp. They were tools fit for a master.
Sophie opened the box. Her eyes lit up. She thanked me. With genuine joy that made my heart full.
"Let us return." I commanded.
"The sun is high."
We started the walk back to the palace. We talked about the flowers. Sophie told me how to keep them alive.
She spoke of soil and water as if they were poetry. I listened to every word. I enjoyed the sound of her voice. Even more than the silence of my throne room.
We reached the palace gates. The atmosphere changed. The stone walls felt cold again. I turned to Sophie.
"Go have your rest." I said softly.
"You have done enough today."
I watched her walk toward her quarters. She was happy. She looked over her shoulder. She waved at me. I felt a sense of peace I could not explain.
"Your Majesty." A voice barked.
I turned. Cassian was rushing toward me. He looked frantic. His hair was messy. He was sweating.
"Finally you are back." Cassian said.
I gave him a hard look. I did not speak. I waited for him to explain his panic.
"The elders gathered for the morning assembly." Cassian panted.
"They were asking for you. They wanted to discuss the border taxes."
"And what did you tell them?" I asked.
"I told them you were sick." Cassian said.
I stared at him. "Sick?"
"Yes. It was the only thing I could think of."
"Cassian." I said.
My voice dropping.
"Of all excuses you could give. You chose to say I am sick? The royal healer checked me a few days ago. The elders know I am in perfect health. How can the Alpha King be sick?"
"At least I handled it." Cassian argued.
"They left. They were grumbling. But they left."
He reached into his tunic. He brought out a short note. It was sealed with heavy wax.
"Queen Mother Isolde sent this." Cassian said.
He handed it to me. I broke the seal. I recognized the sharp handwriting of my step mother. I read the letter quickly.
Young Prince Daemon wants to dine with the Alpha King tomorrow. He has heard much about the Ghost Chef. He wishes to see her for himself.
I folded the paper. My jaw tightened.
Daemon was my half brother. He was the son of my father's other woman. He was the one the council wanted on the throne. They saw me as a tyrant. They saw me as a monster that needed to be replaced.
Why would they want him to dine with me now? Why would they want him to see Sophie?
I looked at the palace spires. I felt the shadows closing in.
Is this a real request for family bonding? Or is this a trap set to catch the Chief Royal Chef in their web of poison?
