Sold as the Alpha King's Breeder
Chapter 479

Chapter 137: A Ring in My Pocket

*Warren*

After Luther was dead, things settled down quickly. All of his former allies of Shadow vowed loyaltyto King Theo and the battlefields were cleaned up so fast that it was almost like it never happened.Any concerns or doubts they'd had about Theo being like Sebastian were put to rest.

Minimal loss of lives. They did it. Theo and Ciana did it.

Forthose whose homes and packs were destroyed by Sebastian, Theo sent a lot of aid to theirterritories to help them rebuild their packs. They were also given the option of joining other packs ifthey felt there were no homes for them to return to.

Theo offered all the rebuilding and relocation assistance he could.

A lot of the ex-Shadow members, aka victims of Sebastian's deeds over the years, had to re-replacetheir place in the world.

Just like me.

We'd held Maggie's funeral in the royal cemetery a couple of weeks ago. Theo had insisted, eventhough she wasn't blood related to the crown. I was grateful for the effort he put in, holding agrand funeral ceremony, worthy of a princess

It had been a gray, solemn day, though, and my heart still ached with her absence.

I'd wanted to help Theo with the funeral arrangements, but he'd insisted on doing it all. so that Icould have some time to mourn.

"Warren, leave this to me. This is the least I could do for Maggie. Also, it helps to take my mind offCiana as well,” he told me. He'd run himself ragged and there were a few days where I thought hemight actually reach his breaking point with how much he had going on.

Standing before Maggie's grave, I leaned down to place a fresh rose on her gravestone.

"I miss you every day. I don't think that will ever go away," I muttered. I traced the letters of hername with the rose petals.

Theo had planted white flowers on the grave mound and they were just starting to bloom. I thoughtit was a very thoughtful gesture toward her.

"We have a lot of work to do to make the kingdom safe and stable again. It is work we wouldn'teven be able to do without your sacrifice, so, thank you," I said. Sighing, I let the rose rest across hername. "I know I've been coming by every day, but things are going to get pretty busy now. I mightnot be by as often. Hopefully, you don't resent me forthat.”

I smiled and pressed my fingers to my lips, then placed them on the cold, gray stone. A last partingkiss for my beloved twin sister.

"At least, where you are, you can watch over me and Theo. Don't be afraid to tell us when we areacting like idiots," I said. I chuckled to myself.

"Prince Warren?" Someone called to me from across the cemetery.

Sighing heavily, I let my head fall back on my shoulders. I wasn't even a prince anymore. Why didthey keep calling me that?

I turned to see Beta Jake striding toward me. He looked very professional, all business.

"Prince Warren, the head of Internal Affairs, Alistair, has a meeting with you in ten minutes. There isalso a budget waiting for your approval. Simon, the head of Treasury, would also like to go over howthey plan to use that fund to rebuild the packs,” he explained.

"You know I'm not a prince anymore, right? I'm just a regular citizen. You can call me Warren," Ireminded him as we walked back to the palace.

"King Theo insists you are still his brother and he wishes you to keep your title. He says it is both anhonor and a burden,” Jake replied politely.

I sighed and nodded. "Yes, it is at that.”

"He's asked that you oversee the meetings with Alistair and Simon to make sure his wishes arecarried out," he told me.

I remembered I was struggling to replace my place or figure out what my life would be like afterMaggie's death and after everything ended when Theo told me to remain his brother and stay tohelp out.

I accepted it with appreciation but didn't expect that he also asked the court to keep my title, alongwith the responsibilities that came with it.

All I could say was that Theo's job description for a prince was very different from Sebastian's. I'dnever been busier in my whole life. Well, after he put me through a 24/7

therapy called "working nonstop”, I no longer could spare even a few seconds to be sentimental."I'll be right there,” I assured.

Simon and Alistair were waiting for me in Sebastian's old office. Theo kept his own office and I waslanded with the former, psychotic king's.

Already, I'd had the thing gutted and redecorated. I didn't want any reminders of Sebastian hangingaround.

"What can I do for Internal Affairs?" I asked Alistair.

"We have some documents that need final approval. There are a few Alphas and Luther loyalists thathave been reluctant to vow their loyalty. I'm asking for additional resources to investigate them andmake sure they aren't stirring up trouble now that one rebellion has been stopped,” Alistair said,placing the papers on my desk.

I scanned them quickly to make sure there was no mention of aggression, detainment, or otherwiseusing the power of the crown, or Theo's name, to harm them or force them into compliance.

"Have your investigators send regular reports back on their replaceings and wait for further instructionsafter we review their reports,” I told him firmly.

"Yes, of course, Prince Warren," Alistair agreed.

I signed the documents and handed them back. He left and Simon handed over the pack rebuildingbudget.

It was a very thick packet of papers that took longer than I wanted to scan through.

"The budget seems sound,” I said with a nod. I put my signature at the end of it and handed it back."Thank you. Is there any chance for some leeway?" Simon asked.

"If you need additional funds, clear it with me or King Theo first"

“I will.”

Afterward, I stared at the hill of other paperwork I needed to ground through before the end of theday. After a sigh, I picked up the one from the top. I gotta start from somewhere, right?

15 hours later, I was finally able to put away the last file. Before Jake could squeeze in anothermeeting before midnight, I headed to Theo and Ciana's room.

Since the day of the battle, Ciana had been unconscious. Whether it was because of the massiveamounts of blood she lost, or that Theo's power had sucked her life out, we didn't know.

All that was clear was that she wasn't waking up.

She hadn't moved, hadn't uttered a sound. Dottie was tending to her every day but she didn't haveany answers either.

When I got to the room, Dottie was leaning over Ciana, checking her pulse, while Theo was pacingagainst the wall.

He looked like he hadn't slept in days, and he probably hadn't. Between worrying over Ciana andtrying to handle at least equal amounts of work as mine, if not more, it was a miracle he was stillable to keep his eyes open and function like a person.

He hadn't risked touching her since she'd passed out. Brook had been taking care of her primarilysince Theo couldn't. However, he hadn't left her side and hovered over her.

Again, I couldn't blame him.

"How is she?" I asked, moving to Ciana’s side. I sat on the edge of the bed and took her hand. Herskin felt so cold and clammy.

Dottie stared at us, eyes wide, as if she couldn't believe what she found. My heart sank.

The last thing any of us wanted to hear was bad news about Ciana.

"Speak, Dottie!" Theo demanded. "Is everything okay? Is she okay?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. She is okay,” Dottie replied patiently, not offended by her king's rushed tone,"Now that she's recovered from the worst of it and her injuries are healing, I am confident that sheis going to wake up. I've been monitoring her blood pressure, her pulse, and her blood cell counts.Everything is stabilizing.”

Both Theo and Brook let out a sigh of relief. Then Brook suggested, "Your Majesty, since Ciana’ssituation is stable, why don't you get some rest? You haven't slept in three days.”

I glanced at Theo, who shook his head. "I'm fine."

I noticed that he could barely look at Ciana. He was probably driving himself crazy with guilt overwhat had happened. It wasn't his fault. How could he know that at that exact moment, Ciana wouldstart being affected by his power?

I backed Brook up. "Come on, Theo. If you look all insane when she wakes up, you're going to scareher. Besides, how do you plan to take care of her if you're exhausted? It is better to sleep now whileshe is also sleeping.”

"Ciana's body is recovering for sure," Dottie also assured Theo, "And I agreed with Brook andWarren that you need some rest. Your Majes-"

"If that's the case, why isn't she awake, then?" Theo interrupted her. With minimal rest, Theodefinitely wasn't as composed as he usually was.

"Sometimes, the mind needs time to come back on its own. Rest assured, King Theo, Ciana will wakeup. It is only a matter of time. And I-"

"Then why did you look so surprised earlier?"

Dottie let out a heavy sigh, and said in her soothing tone and well-paced speed again, "YourMajesty, I have been trying to tell you but you kept interrupting me and distracting me."

This time none of us interrupted the conversation, and we waited for Dottie to continue.

She took her time and turned to Theo, looking him straight in the eye. She held his gaze and I couldsee how uncomfortable he was.

"What is it?" he asked, wouldn't wait any longer.

Then a smile crept up Dottie's face and she grinned warmly, a twinkle in her eye.

She revealed, “King Theo, you're going to be a father. Miss Black is pregnant. Congratulations!"*Theo*

Pregnant?

I stared at Dottie, who packed up and left after confirming the news again, leaving the rest of us stilldumbfounded.

Had I heard her right?

Pregnant?

I glanced at Ciana, pale and unconscious on the bed. I couldn't help but think that I was the culpritwho caused her misery, at least partially. What if I could never touch her again? What kind of futurewould we have? Ciana would never be safe with me again.

And a baby? A child would definitely not be safe with me! Would I even be able to hold my ownchild without putting him or her at risk?

I looked down at my hands, which were gloved, and wondered what having a child would mean.

If I couldn't touch her, would Ciana even want to be with me? I liked to think that our connectionwent beyond just physical and that we had real feelings for each other.

She was still a person and most people required physical closeness when they needed to becomforted or supported, when they were sad or upset. Would it be selfish of me to stay with herknowing that I'd never be able to fulfill that need?

Could we even be a family? I thought about any child I might have. If they inherited my power,they'd be condemned to the same lonely, terrifying existence I'd suffered. My father had the power,he'd passed it to me. There was no denying that it was in all of our blood.

Would Ciana resent me if our child had that power? She'd never be able to hug or hold her ownchild without worrying she'd get the life sucked out of her. And it would be my fault.

Ciana wasn't even awake yet and I was already considering all the reasons we couldn't be togetheranymore. The best way to handle this was to wait for her to recover. We could talk about what it allmeant for us and our child.

As worried as I was about her and our future together, underneath it all, there was something elsefluttering in my chest. It was the smallest sliver of hope, but I was almost overwhelmed by thehappiness it brought.

I was going to be a father!

If it wasn't because of our undefined future and the fact that the woman of my life was still lyingunconsciously next to me, I could totally bounce off the ground and scream to the world about thenews!

When Sebastian was alive, I hated the idea of giving him what he wanted. Now that he was out ofthe picture, I was realizing for the first time that being a father could be so joyful yet terrifying at thesame time!

Then the dark cloud of our uncertain future re-entered my mind.

I stuffed my hand in my pocket and there was the smooth, metal ring I'd been carrying around. Myplan was to propose to Ciana once Luther was defeated. I would ask her to be my queen.

Now, it felt like it was weighing a million pounds and I didn't even know whether I had the courageto touch it.

Despite the fact that she was pregnant with my child, if I couldn't be what she needed, if I couldn'ttouch her or protect her from myself, was it the right thing to propose to her?

Suddenly, movement on the bed caught my eye.

Ciana's finger wiggled. She let out a deep sigh and muttered, "Water..."