Sold as the Alpha King's Breeder-Chapter 1552 - 151 : Friendly Risks

*Keelana*

I had never felt such relief than when Auxureon entrusted my care to Isaac Black. The Alpha was obviously a powerful wolf shifter. It was clear in the way he carried himself. He looked me directly in the eye.

“You have no reason to fear any longer,” he said firmly. “You and your children are safe now. I vow to do everything in my power to ensure your well-being.”

I was shocked to discover that I fully believed him. Even after we narrowly escaped Pyroth, the firm demeanor of the Drogomor Alpha was impossible to doubt.

“Did you hear that, children?” I asked my offspring, who were staring up at me with large, frightened eyes. I gave them all a tender look. “We are safe now. There is no reason to fear.”

My children put on brave faces and nodded. Alpha Isaac was tender with them as well. It was easy to tell that he had children of his own by the way he easily comforted my children.

Alpha Isaac led the way through the trees. I kept my little ones close, feeling a bit sorry for them as they toddled alongside me. I had to constantly check to make sure they were following closely. I shouldn’t have been concerned.

They were young but seemed to understand the gravity of the situation. At least, they were frightened enough to not be out of my arm’s reach. They clung to each other as we walked.

“May I ask where we’re going?” I asked after several minutes of walking and trying to keep my children in tow.

“Yes, of course,” Alpha Isaac said gruffly. He turned his head slightly but didn’t quite look back at me as he answered. “There is a secluded section of Drogomor that has been prepared for your arrival. I believe it will suit your unique needs well.”

I wondered what unique needs he was referring to. After what felt like another hour of walking, we finally stepped out of the trees and were faced with a large dwelling that appeared to be made out of some kind of heat-resistant metal. It looked like a bunker, cold and unfriendly.

Alpha Isaac caught my look and actually looked a bit apologetic. “I will have someone come to provide more furnishings,” he said. “Due to your sudden arrival, I regret that we didn’t have more time to make the accommodations more comfortable.”

“Not at all,” I said quickly. “My children and I are forever in your debt, Alpha Isaac. We will make do with whatever your generosity has supplied us with.”

Alpha Isaac nodded once and pushed the heavy door open. I allowed my children to enter first, ushering them quickly inside the dark front room. Our night vision might have been impeccable, but it was still dimmer than I liked. It looked a bit warmer when the Alpha switched on a light, bathing the room in a hazy glow.

The children warmed up quickly and began to chase each other through the large room. The ceilings were high, and everything was made of a robust material. I figured it was in case we shifted into our dragon forms while inside.

“Isaac?”

I turned to look at the beautiful woman who had entered. She could only be the Luna with the way she carried herself. She had warm eyes and flowing long hair down her back. She had two young children with her, who stared in wonder at my children.

“Estella,” Isaac said, his low voice heavy with disapproval. “Did you come here on your own? It’s dark out.”

A part of me was touched by the Alpha’s obvious concern for his mate. His Luna just blinked before grinning. It was a fond grin that I had a feeling she used often when looking at her mate. She ignored him, and her eyes settled on me.

“I’m so glad that you and your children made it safely,” she said, rushing forward. She gestured to the little girl clinging to her skirt. “I’m Luna Estella. This is my daughter Angelica and...” she laughed, "and I see your children have already met my son, Brandon.”

The young boy named Brandon was already playing with my children. They were completely engrossed in some kind of chasing game. We all watched fondly.

I felt some of the tension leave my body. I smiled at Luna Estella. “We are forever grateful for your aid,” I said, my voice trembling slightly with emotion. “We’ve had quite a fright. We will rest easier tonight knowing that we are safe within your borders.”

“Of course,” Luna Estella said, her eyes shimmering with sincerity. “Please reach out if you need anything at all. We will see to it personally that you feel at home here in Drogomor.”

My heart warmed at the Luna’s kindness. I bowed my head slightly. “Thank you so much.”

Even though my heart was still very much integrated back home in the Dragon Realm, my children grew rapidly within the wolf-shifter community. I kept them sheltered for the first several weeks, feeling hesitant to even wander the nearby Drogomor communities, fearing that Pyroth would somehow track us down and tear my children away from me.

It became clear pretty quickly that I couldn’t keep the children contained. Even though the safe house we were provided with had plenty of land outside that I let my young ones roam on, it still wasn’t enough to keep them busy. They quickly grew bored of the miles of grass surrounding our new house. I was forced to venture further with them.

We were quite the sight. It was rather rare for wolf shifters to have more than one pup at a time. We got a lot of attention as the children walked in a line, hanging on to the sibling in front of them.

We definitely got stares, but no one was outwardly rude or mean. They offered my family smiles, many of them sympathetic. I imagined that they were well aware of our situation.

Time passed quickly. Every day that passed made me more homesick than before. I had my children, but I also lost everything else. I longed to be back with the other dragon shifters but was terrified of my children being captured by their father.

I couldn’t risk it.

I spent my time struggling to balance keeping my children safe while allowing them to acclimate to their new home.

This proved to be just as difficult as I feared it would be. I was aware of the importance of making connections in a new community, but while the vast majority of Drogomor pack members we interacted with were friendly, they didn’t seem to have an interest in getting to know us on a personal level. I was mostly content with that since I was still wary of exposing the children too much. Still, it was lonely not to know anyone.

There was one person who helped chip away at the loneliness surrounding my heart, and that was the Luna of Drogomor.

Estella Black was a busy woman, as was to be expected when one was the matriarch of what had to be the largest pack community in the Light Realm. Still, she made it a point to spend a couple of hours with me each week. She even brought a couple of her children along so that my children would have playmates during these visits.

“I wanted to thank you for accompanying me into town today, Keelana,” Estella said, smiling gently at me.

We were sitting on a bench together overlooking a beautiful gathering area. There were grassy areas for children to play and a large fountain with gorgeous mythical creatures embedded into the sides.

I gave my new friend a wry look. “You don’t need to pretend that I’m doing you a favor,” I said lightly, nudging her with my shoulder. “We both know that you’ve been wanting me to spend more time in town around your people since I arrived.”

Estella’s jaw dropped. She placed a slim hand over her heart. “While that may be true, rest assured that you are doing me a favor by providing my children with playmates. Brandon and Angelica adore your little ones.”

I couldn’t disagree with her there. Even soft-spoken Angelica was able to muster up the courage to ask if her new dragon friends could play. Before I knew it, I had several pairs of large, innocent eyes looking up at me.

I knew we would have to do this more often.

Estella and I both looked up in alarm when Angelica screamed.

My heart froze when I realized why. My youngest, Kael, had ice surrounding him. A big grin spread across his round face, but his expression faltered when he saw Angelica’s fear.

Estella and I leaped from our seats to check on the children. I was relieved to find that Brandon and Angelica were unharmed. Brandon was looking on curiously and was even reaching out to touch the icy spikes that surrounded my son. I picked Kael up before turning to face Esetella, ready to apologize.

The words died in my throat when a figure was striding purposefully toward us. He was clad in a light-colored mage’s coat.

Estella’s eyes narrowed at the figure. She deliberately stepped beside me, her gaze heavy with suspicion. She took her children by the hands and tugged them behind her.

The man had white hair but didn’t look very old. His eyes were such a light blue that they were a bit unsettling. He stopped in front of us and grinned widely. “Luna Estella,” he said with a bow. He then turned his calculating gaze to me. “I apologize for the intrusion, but I couldn’t help but notice the dragon boy’s fascinating abilities.”

“Yes, he is quite talented,” I said, trying not to allow the words to come out as a hiss. “But I’m afraid we will have to take our leave now.” My eyes darted around. I was well aware of the curious but fearful crowd that was forming and murmuring.

“If your children require help in controlling their abilities, I would be more than willing,” he said. He stuck his hand out. “I am Thalor Arcanus.”

I didn’t take his hand, moving Kael so he was hidden from the man’s view. “Thank you, but that won’t be necessary. He is just a child.”

“You’d best go, Thalor,” Luna Estella said tightly.

Thalor knew better than to argue and nodded, stepping away. “Good day to you both,” he said before turning and leaving, but not before shooting one more blissful glance at my children.

I was trembling with rage, protectiveness welling up inside of me.

Estella set a hand on my shoulder. “I’m so sorry about that,” she said, looking at me regretfully. “Thalor is a mage who used to be a mentor for magic wielders. We were forced to shut his school down when we found out some of his teaching practices were bordering on morally gray.”

I didn’t ask her to elaborate. I didn’t need to.

“Come, children,” I said tightly. “We’re going home.”

My children protested, but I gave them each a hard look, causing them to fall silent.

“I will ensure that Thalor is watched more closely from now on,” Estella said reassuringly.

My gaze softened for the only friend that I had. I nodded. “Thank you, Estella.”

My friend and her children watched sadly as I pulled my children away, intent on not leaving our cold bunker for quite some time.