Protect Me, Alpha King
60. Bastard

Master Henderson's eyes twinkled, watching the bag of gold. I smelt his greed, making me smirk. "Ah. This is getting heavy. I wonder who is the luckiest person who will hold this for me. I still had a lot stored under my clothes.”

I touched my shoulders and made circular motions while silently looking at him.

"Woman. You know how to make a bargain.”

"Money can move mountains, Master Henderson."

"We are on the same page, woman. Why don't we talk somewhere...private?" Master Henderson said in the end.

I beamed and motioned for him to lead the way. "That would be lovely."

His eyes narrowed, and he said, "Follow me. Hurry."

I ran after him. His steps were long and fast as if someone was hunting him.

When we reached his office, I was sweating like crazy, and the shawl wrapped around my shoulders was not helping. However, I could not take it off.

"That was a long walk. And sweaty."

I stifled a laugh when he faced him. He was sweating worse than me. His shirt was dripping with sweat. And without excusing himself, he yanked it off his body, threw it in the nearby chair, and slipped on another fresh shirt.

Wow. Talk about respect, and this bastard will not give it to you.

His back was free from any scars, which might mean he was not a former slave, just like what the rumors had said.

Lucky him.

Unlike me.

"That was rude."

"You're ruder. You watched me changing my clothes.”

My eyes flushed. "That makes us even then, Master Henderson."

Suddenly, something fell on the floor—a glass of water. I did not care about the glass. What caught my attention was a woman who looked like she was in her thirties.

I did not notice her presence when we stepped inside. She was scrawny as if she was barely eating anything, but her face told me she was beautiful despite her almost skeletal features.

"Bitch! You're not only useless, but you're now breaking my things?"

Our eyes met, and it watered when we stared at each other as if she was pleading with me to help him. However, as if realizing what she had done, she looked away, ashamed he once asked someone to help her.

I gasped when Master Henderson kicked her on her side, making her fall forward.

"I'm sorry, Master Henderson," the woman apologized. "I-it will not happen again.”

She tried to gather the shards and cut her fingers, drawing blood. Despite that, she continued collecting the broken pieces.

Look away, River. Pitying her is not the reason why you came here.

"It should never happen again!" he roared. "I better replace you. I don't want a skeleton serving me. You will scare them away!" he growled.

If this bastard only feeds her, she will not be skinny like this.

I clenched my fist at my sides while inhaling deeply. I must never meddle in a woman's problem. I came here for Zenith. Nothing else.

“I'm not scared of her. She is beautiful,” I muttered. The two looked at me as if I had given them a treasure gold chest.

“She was once beautiful. It was her beauty that forced me to buy her. But look at her now. She is hideous.”

“Master Henderson, let's not bother ourselves with that woman, okay? Let's focus on why I came here,” I said, changing the topic.

At the corner of my eyes, tiny droplets of blood dripped from the woman's wounds. I was tempted to heal her, but the bastard would know I had the ability to heal.

Damn. I felt useless seeing her, without doing anything to help her.

Finally, she was able to collect the shards and put them in the trash.

"Did you do what I asked you to do?" Master Henderson barked when the woman returned. Damn. She had to wash the wounds with soap. Her wolf would not be able to help her now because of her current situation. Could she even summon her wolf?

The woman's face quivered in reply. "I'm done sorting all the documents, Master."

"Who is she?" I asked, masking my pity.

He cocked an eyebrow. "Do you like her? I'm planning to sell her at the next auction. This bitch was once the luna of her fallen pack acquired by the alpha king.”

"The alpha king?" Maxxwell?

"The previous alpha king who was fond of conquering territories and other packs, making it his own."

"That was a long time ago, Master Henderson."

I sighed in relief when it was not Maxxwell. I heard about the stories of that ruthless alpha king. Many people died back then during his reign, and he was considered the worst ruler of all in the history of the Lycan Kingdom. A lot of werewolves became rogues in the hope of overthrowing him. But they never succeed. It was only appeased when Maxxwell seized the throne.

"This bitch had been transferring from one master to another master until she reached me.”

My eyes darted back to the woman. A previous luna became a slave? Horrible. I wonder when she gathered the strength to pursue it despite what happened. Something was telling me she was only waiting for an opportunity to pounce. But could she do that? Given her strength? A healthy child was more powerful compared to her right now.

"What is her name?"

Why do you want to know her name? To save her? River. You need to save yourself first before anyone else!

Master Henderson scoffed. "A slave's name does not matter anymore. Where is your money? Let me know what you want, and let's get over this. You did not come here to have a chat about this bitch.” I pulled out the bag and offered it to him. "Zenith. Tell me anything about her.”

The woman stiffened and went to the corner towards the shelves which held the records of all the slaves Master Henderson had sold so far. She was still not doing anything to tend her wounds. However, the blood had already dried. But I was confident it hurt.

"Do you know the repercussions of your actions, woman? Do you know what will happen to you when the alpha king finds out you're sticking your nose into another person's business?"

The corner of my lips lifted as I leaned my hips on the chair. “Worried about me?”

"Worried for my life. Your money will be useless when I am already in the Underworld.”

“Master Henderson. You are powerful. You own all your people. They will not talk unless you tell them so. And if the alpha king knows about this, I will take responsibility.”

“Your blood is not on my hands.”

"I know.” What was there to be anxious about? The alpha king already knows. I was curious about Zenith. So far, he has done nothing to me. Not even any punishment. Perhaps it was because we were mates. "You said we look alike. Elaborate it."

Master Henderson turned around and went to his chair, folding his hands in front of the table.

"Of all the slaves who came here, she was the only one I did not forget.”

"Why?"

"Give me your money first, woman. My words are expensive.”

I know. Because you are one greedy bastard, I said in my mind.

I tossed the bag on his table. "That's all I have. I think it's enough to make you talk. Tell me everything about her. Did she have someone with her when she came here? Perhaps her family? Parents? Or siblings?"

"She was just a sixteen-year-old woman when she was brought here. They said she was with a baby, but I never saw it. I thought it was only a lie. At first glance, when I saw you, I thought she had come back here and asked for retribution for the cruelty this place had given her. But when I looked at your hair and how you looked, your eyes, I knew you were not that woman. She was timid. While you're the opposite.” He grabbed the bag, checked the contents, and smiled, satisfied.

A baby? Where could the baby be?

"Ask me two more questions. That's your money's worth. After that, we are done talking, and let's pretend we did not talk about the woman. I did not want my business to be closed down. So you better think your questions carefully, woman."

"Do you know her parents?”

"I asked her a couple of times, for record purposes, but she would not answer no matter how much we forced her. So no. I did not know her parents. Satisfied?"

"Are you sure? Perhaps she was lying. It could be that she was hiding something.”

"Is that your last question?"

I went silent and paced back and forth while glaring at the floor. I had to think carefully, or all the money would be wasted. If only I had a lot of money with me.

Looking at Master Henderson, I said, "No. No. Scratch that. May I look at her records instead?"

"Is that your last question?”

I bit my lower lip. I did not know what kind of record he held. What if it showed nothing but what we had discussed so far? But I have to try.

"Show me her records. That's what I want.”

Master Henderson clicked his fingers. "Bitch! Show me Zenith's record this instant!" He put the bag in his pocket and folded his arms in front of my chest, silently watching me...

"Are you her sister? Perhaps you are that baby they were talking about if it was true she was carrying a baby."

I had to verify that. "My sister? Why would that happen? I'm a free woman. Both my parents are free. Nobles serving the current alpha king. Besides, there are many people out there who resemble each other, who could pass as twins but were never related by blood."

"You have a point. But you should know I never tolerate any slaves entering this house without their master. I don't want to ruin my business. Nobles are bothersome. Angering them will only cause me a headache." He glanced at the shelves. "Bitch! Why are you taking so long to get her record? You're becoming more and more useless! A whipping will help you remember what I can do.”

I bit the inside of my cheeks, drawing some blood.

My hands trembled as I was reminded of my past, looking at the woman.

"She has a name."

"What?"

I gritted my teeth. Could I punch this jerk just for once? "Don't call her bitch. She has a name. What is your name?" She was once a luna, and it was degrading for her to be called that one.

The woman glanced at me and said, "D-Dawn, milady."

My eyes went back to Master Henderson. "See? She has a name. Dawn. You should call her that one."

"I don't care about her fucking name. Do I look like I wanted to know? She is nothing but a liability. An incompetent fool who relies on me to live. I will sell her or kill her. Depends on my mood right now. And believe me. You are not helping.”

As if my feet had a mind on them, I approached his table and slapped it.

Glaring at him, I said, "How much is she, bastard? Tell me!"

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