Semua Bab Traded to the Ruthless Alpha: Bab 31 - Bab 40

ReyaI never left Blackwood to simply enjoy the day. I haven’t left Blackwood at all since I was sent here. At this point, I’m not sure what to expect. Every journey I’ve taken has been because someone else decided where I needed to belong.When I left my father’s estate, it’s because I had been rejected. Because my father didn’t want me around anymore. I was just a disgrace in his eyes and he needed to be rid of me.When I came to Blackwood, it’s because the Council demanded it.Today, Killian asked me if I wanted to come with him.He cares about what I want.The thought stays with me as we ride through the northern forest. This makes me

SkylarThe forest has never felt so cold. It’s not because of the snow. The cold comes from the simple truth that every step I take away from Blackwood reminds me of the failure that I’ve been trying not to acknowledge.Bernice struggles beside me, her expensive cloak catching on branches every few yard. Every time the fabric sags, she mutters curses beneath her breath, clearly regretting every decision that had dragged her into this mess. I don’t regret anything. Regret belongs to people who intend to surrender.I intend to win.“We should rest,” Bernice says through uneven pants as she pushes aside a branch. She continues to pant, “We’ve been walking for hours! Us being exhausted won’t help anyone, Skylar!”

ReyaSomething is wrong.I feel it before I even understand what’s going on around me. It’s a tightening that’s low in my stomach and it’s made the morning air feel heavier than usual.Nothing in Blackwood looks any different from when I stepped out of the keep. Snow still blankets the rooftops, servants still cross the courtyard carrying their baskets of supplies, even the warriors still train in their normal formations beyond the walls. Everything appears normal.Yet, my shadows refuse to leave my side. It seems like they know and understand that something is wrong and yet, neither of us can confirm what it is.The past week, my shadows have become kind of playful. They chase children through the cou

ReyaI wasn’t planning to run. That’s the part I can’t stop replaying as the forest blurs around me and my lungs burn with every breath. I didn’t wake up this morning intending to leave Blackwood. I hadn’t packed anything, did not plan a route, didn’t even think about where I would go once I crossed the borders. I just went outside because I needed air, I needed to breathe and calm myself, because all of a sudden the walls felt way too close, and because every whisper I heard throughout the day seemed to follow me around no matter where I went. Then I just kept walking, by the time I realized how far I had gone, fear had already grasped me and taken control of my actions. I can still hear everyone’s voices in my head, sharp and familiar in the worst ways.Cursed. Dangerous. Death followed wherever she went.There is gold for my head now. Gold! Someone had decided that my life has a price and there are people out there that are willing to collect it.My shadows race through the fores

ReyaI last less than an hour up in this tower before the walls feel like they’re closing in on me.At first, I try to sit still and convince myself that this nothing more than a room, that this locked door only exists because Killian believes that I’m safer inside, and that the guards stationed outside the door are not there because everyone around me suddenly decided I am too dangerous.These thoughts haven’t helped.Every time my gaze drifts towards the door, I remember the forest, the dart, and the way my body stopped answering to me, it stopped belonging to me. Consciousness slipped away from me all the while Killian whispered that he was sorry.His apology doesn’t change what happened. It hasn&rs