Protect Me, Alpha King

Clara and Flare rubbed their chins together. They couldn't look me in the eyes, showing how guilty they were for their past sins.

"What did the two of you do, huh? Why did you say you were also the reason Zenith died? Did the two of you push her to her death?”

Their long silence told me they were not ready to answer, but I wouldn't say I liked their closed lips. I wanted to know more about Zenith.

"Clara! Flare!" I exclaimed, grabbing their attention, held them both in their arms, and shook them They gulped.

"Were you her murderer?"

Their eyes kept darting back and forth.

Oh, Moon Goddess. I did not know how I would react if they were indeed murderers. That would be too much to handle.

"Please don't make me overthink any longer. You're only making it worse."

As if they were sharing a mind link, they nodded and faced me.

"It's not like that." Gathering courage together, they said, "We also were against their relationship, just like anyone here. We bullied Zenith. We told her hateful things, which resulted in her crying every night. Because we believed the alpha king deserved a noblewoman like Lady Juliana, not an enslaved person like her. Like us. River. You know for a fact how difficult it is as a slave. Everyone will trample us. But believe us. We did not kill her. Another person planned to kill her that fateful night, driving her to the cliff.”

My knees lost their strength, and I sat on the nearest chair.

Someone finally had the courage to do the last push. Who could that be? Someone who hated her most?

"If you were against them, why are you two good to me? Or are you only lying? Are you pretending to like me but will hurt me in the end? Now that you know I am his mate, what will you do now?" The two went right in front of me and kneeled. "We already repented our sins, River. Whatever happened in the past will not happen again. That's a vow. We have changed for the better. We carried our guilt towards what happened to Zenith every day, and when we saw you two resemble each other, we wanted to redeem ourselves and show how sorry we were."

Their eyes watered as they looked at me, pleading.

I sighed. "Do you believe she died?"

They nodded together. "Without a doubt. She fell off a cliff. And that cliff was narrow and steep. No one could survive that fall, especially with a human like her."

"Human?"

"Zenith is a human. A human enslaved person. His Majesty found her in a slave auction and brought her to the palace. Her being human was also the reason why we did not like her. We needed someone who would role longer beside the alpha king. Someone powerful. The human lifespan is only short, so if she died earlier than the alpha king, he would be devastated.”

"Do you know the slave auction? Bring me to that place.”

Slave auction was legal in the kingdom. But only operated every twice a month—every fifteen and thirty. I knew about that since Alpha Wade had brought me once and scared me that he would sell me if I continued to be a pain in his ass.

I saw how unfortunate the situation of others was there. The slaves waited for someone who would buy them, and if no one dared take them, they would be brought somewhere else, where they would be forced to work every single day without barely eating anything.

I knew it was cruel, which was the type of brutality Alpha Wade wanted to show me.

Clara and Flare looked at each other, sharing the same worried expression.

"I don't think that is a good idea, River," Flare said. "That's too dangerous.”

I pursed my lips and glanced at the door and back to them

"Why?"

"There may be rogues around the corner waiting to kill us. The three of us don't know how to fight. And if the alpha king knew about us going there, he would be furious. He will punish us for endangering your life."

I smiled bitterly. As if the alpha king will worry for my safety. He was busy looking for Zenith, and I would be his last priority. He did not even bother about my safety.

Damn.

And why did it sting just thinking of those words, huh? I did not like the alpha king. Period. I was merely using him.

"That will never happen. He may punish us for going out without his permission, but never because you put my life at risk. He did not care about me. He never saw me as his mate but as his personal attendant only.”

The twins' expressions softened as if they pitied me.

"He is still grieving for Zenith's death, River. Perhaps you can wait for him when he is ready?” Flare suggested.

"I don't give a fuck, Flare. He could love Zenith as long as he wants.”

Begging someone else's love was not my forte. I long accepted that no one would take me for who I was after Alpha Erik's rejection. I did not welcome anymore the idea of loving someone or being loved by someone.

"River."

I held both of their hands. "Could you do it for me?”

They stood and paced, glaring at the floor.

I crossed my arms in front of my chest, waiting when they were ready.

"Why will you go there, huh?"

"To check something?”

"About Zenith. River? Why are you becoming obsessed with her? Can we let her die peacefully? She already left this world.”

"I want to check something. I wanted to meet her parents. If they were alive or not." During the slave auctions, the slaves were usually sold as families if they had their families. I wanted to know if Zenith had another lost sibling. What if my birth parents were slaves, and they were forced to let me go and hide me in the river to keep me safe?

I knew it was only my hyperactive imagination, but it would be worth checking.

"Are you thinking you may be siblings?"

I shrugged. "Perhaps. Perhaps not. There is no harm in checking, okay? Fine. If you don't come with me, prepare a carriage for me to ride, and I will go there alone.”

They throw me a worried expression.

In the end, Flare stepped forward. "I will do that. Clara. Ask some available driver and carriage.” Clara looked at her sister. "But Flare. The alpha king will kill us for this.”

"Don't worry. I'll own the mistake and be responsible for my actions. Just help me have my carriage. I'll be back before the alpha king is here,” I declared.

"We don't know when he came back."

"Usually dawn. I am certain because we are sharing a room. So..will you help me?"

The twins glanced at each other and said, "Okay. But you have to be back before dark. From here to the palace, the journey would only take two hours. Don't stay there longer, okay?"

I nodded.

"That's settled then. We will have to prepare the carriage and be back later. But promise that you will take care of yourself, River. We don't want to die in the hands of the alpha king if something bad happens to you."

I scoffed secretly. I doubted the alpha king would do anything if something happened to me.