Betrayed Heiress: My Second Chance Mate is A Lycan King

Aira’s POV

The clock chimes once the hour hand strikes midnight.

I lay on my back in the maid’s chambers with my hand folded above my stomach. It has been lights out for us for the past three hours now, but I couldn’t sleep knowing what I was about to do tonight.

Quietly, I step out of bed, careful not to make a sound. My eyes take in the sight of everyone in the chamber sleeping soundly. My eyes land on Carla, and my heart clenches. She is sleeping so soundly and peacefully.

A part of me wants to take her with me. A part of me wants to get her out of this hell hole and give her the opportunity to start a new life without fear and slavery. And I would have if I were the only one involved in this, but I am not.

I cannot afford to risk my child.

With a pained heart, I make my way out of the chambers. As I head down the hall, I pass a few guards. They do not bother to ask me questions, probably thinking that I am one of the night shift maids. Good.

But once I step out of the palace, I conceal myself as much as I can. My eyes take in my surroundings as the cold night air hits my skin. Once I am certain that there are no guards in sight, I make a run towards the courtyard.

If my memory serves me correctly, there is a large oak tree by the fence in the backyard. Its branches stretch over the fence. If I can manage to get over it, then I should be free.

As I make my way to the oak tree, my heart skips a beat when I hear the sound of footsteps. But they are not just anyone’s footsteps.

I feel him long before I hear him.

Quickly, I shield myself behind a nearby tree. I press my back against the dirty wood when Alexander’s voice feels the night air. “Have you secured the new shipment?” I hear him ask one of the guards.

“Yes, alpha. The new supplies would be put into storage first thing in the morning,” the guard answers.

“You may leave,” he says coldly, and I hear the guards retreating footsteps.

My heart pounds wildly against my chest as I wait for Alexander to leave. The air is deathly still and quiet; I almost believed he wasn’t there anymore. But I can still very much feel his presence. Why was he just standing there?

What if he already knows I am here?

A bead of sweat trickles down my head as I try to calm myself down. I know Alexander is not one of the most feared alphas I have ever met for nothing. If he even heard the sound of my heartbeat out here, I would be as good as dead.Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

So I take in a few quiet breaths and wait.

My shoulders slouch as his retreating footsteps fill my ears. Peaking my head through the side of the tree, I find him heading back into the palace. I watch his tall, muscular figure until he is completely out of sight.

For a brief second, I want to go back in there. I do not know why, but something in me is screaming for him. I suppress it.

My life and baby are the most important. If I stay here, then I am not sure either of us will ever make it out of here alive.

With that conviction in my heart, I make my way towards the oak tree. I look around once again before climbing up the hard wood. My breaths become a bit more labored as I inch further and further out of the branch sticking over the fence.

My eyes fall on the little shrub on the other side; it would have to do to cushion my landing. Taking in another calming breath, I let myself fall.

The air in my lungs is knocked out as my back collides with the shrub. A few twigs of hard leaves poke my spine, and I groan. Getting to my feet, I dust the leaves and dirt on my clothes.

I did it.

I actually got out!

A little victory smile stretches my lips, but I do not let myself get too distracted. I need to get as far away from here as possible. So I run.

I run and do not look back.

Despite the growing hollowness in my chest as I got further and further from Alexander’s pack, I still did not look back. I do not know how long I have been running; I would say about thirty minutes. My legs begin to scream for rest, and I do just that.

My ass plants in the dirt, and I take the time to catch my breath. As I take in my surroundings, I notice a few claw marks on most of the trees. But that was not all that was on those trees; there was blood as well.

And it was still fresh.

As soon as I realize exactly where I am, I shoot back to my feet. I am at the border.

And wherever there is a border, there are border wolves.

Border wolves are a special kind of soldier wolf. They kill anything or anyone in sight, unless they are informed by their master not to. And that is only when one from the other side of the border has requested and been granted passage.

Which I have not.

Shit.

My heart drops to the pit of my stomach as I hear the rustling of leaves from afar. It grew closer and closer; they were coming.

Panic courses through my veins, and the wheels in my head spin faster than they ever have before. From what I know about border wolves, they are partially blind. They rely mostly on their sense of humor to track down invaders.

That is how they know when someone who doesn’t belong to their pack tries to infiltrate their territory.

I have to think of a way to get rid of my scent.

An idea clicks in my head, and I instantly spring into action. I get back on my knees and start to cover myself in mud and dirt. I put it on every corner of my body until I am certain that my scent can no longer be traced.

And then I made a run for it.

Again.

I hear the wolves getting closer and closer. Fear grips my heart, and I start to wonder if they can still smell me. but then they stop.

Ah, thank the goddess.

I cannot believe it; I am actually going to get out of here! I am actually:

“Oof!”

I am knocked down on my ass when my body collides with something hard. Or should I say someone?

“Well, if it isn’t my lucky day.”

No.

It can’t be. This cannot be possible.

My blood runs cold when my eyes meet a familiar pair. The men standing before me have only met me once, but there is nothing that will ever make me forget them.

Nothing will ever make me forget the faces of the men my own mate sent to kill me.

They are the three who managed to escape the night Alexander’s men saved me. This cannot be happening right now. How the hell did I wind up in their hands again?!

Hurriedly, I scurry to my feet, but I am knocked back down. Tears brim my eyes as my body trembles. No, no, no!

This has to be some sort of nightmare; this can’t be real. How are they here? Why are they here?

A scream leaves my lips when one of them grabs my hair roughly, forcing me to my knees. I feel something cold on my neck, and I instantly recognize it as a knife.

“You have no idea what you have put us through these past few days, have you?” The one holding the knife against my throat sneers.

“Jace swore to kill us if we didn’t find you and put an end to your pathetic life. We haven’t slept or eaten properly in days because of you,” the other says, closing the distance between us with a sadistic grin on his face.

Shaking my head in refusal, tears stream down my eyes as I start to beg for my life. “No, please do not do this. Have mercy.”

They laugh at my begging. The third one with a scar running down his left eye speaks next: “Mercy on you? Oh no, sweetheart, I think it is a little bit late for that. My brother is dead because of you, you know? I watched those wolves that came to save you tear them to pieces. Where are they now anyway?”

“Please, just let me go. I swear, Jace will never know that I am alive. I won’t come back, I swear.

“Shut up!” The one holding my hair snaps, tightening his grip on my hair.

“We promised to bring your head to him, and that is exactly what we will do. Finally, we can go home,” the one standing directly in front of me says. My eyes widen with horror as he lifts a dagger directly above my heart.

The scarred and sadistic one stops him. “Wait a minute; I don’t want this to end this easily. Why don’t we have a little fun with her? It could be a little reward for all the trouble she has caused us.”

“W-wait, what?”

The man holding my hair lets go and pushes me roughly to the ground. My hands shoot out to stop my head from hitting the floor. Spinning around, I find all three men standing before me with sadistic grins on their faces.

The scarred one starts to undo his jeans, and I back away.

“No, please don’t do this,” I plead, but they clearly fall on deaf ears.

Once again, I try to make a run for it, but I am grabbed by my ankles and pulled back. “No! Let go of me! stop!”

I scream at the top of my lungs as two of them pin my hands to the ground. He gets on top of me and starts to raise my dress. Sobs break through my throat as I shut my eyes and await my fate.

But it never comes.

The snapping of bones fills the air, and I feel the two men holding my hands grow rigid. Huh?

Slowly, I peel my eyes open, and I really wish I did not. The scream that leaves my lips is a horrifying one.

The sight before me will haunt my dreams for years to come.

The scarred man’s body kneels before me, but what terrifies me is that his head is no longer attached to it.

Rather, it is in the hands of a demon.

Alexander.