Sold To The Alpha
A Lost Princess Chapter 16

Rushing through the trees Daniel and Riley kept pace with each other, keeping to the shadows, their ears trained on the surrounding foliage for any trouble that may stumble upon them. The Silver Cross territory was far behind them and they knew that there was a good chance that any wolves they stumbled across now would be Rogue's who would be able to smell their pack link on them.

Each town they found, they would shift, enter any run down diner or bar they could replace, ask about Rowan and show the tattoo drawing, but each place drew a blank, no-one showing any recognition toward the crudely drawn dragon or the mysterious collector. Having been searching for a couple of days, they slowed as the trees of the latest forest they were traversing started to thin, both shifting into their human forms and quickly donning their clothing before walking out of the woods and gazing down at the small town that was laid out below them.

Making their way down the steep incline, the pair found their bearings before making their way toward a small bar that had a broken neon sign out the front that should have said 'Red's Place' but the R and P had both long since given up the ghost and it seemed it was not an establishment that the owner took pride in.

Pushing open the door, they were almost blown backwards by the obnoxiously loud music that was playing within, pushing their way inside, they walked over to the bar, Riley trying to contain his grimace as his shoes stuck to the sticky spilt alcohol that covered the floor.

A tall muscular bar tender walked over too them, his skin scarred and weathered, he gave the distinct impression he didn't take any trouble from the punters.

'ID' he grunted toward the two teens as he placed the glass he had been cleaning under the bar counter.

'Ugh, umm, we are not drinking' Riley replied trying to assert himself under the menacing gaze of the staff member.

'You come to a bar, and you don't wanna drink?' sneered the bartender bad temperedly, 'then clear out and make room for someone who's got some money' he grumbled before stomping away toward a leather clad man who was waving a ten in the air toward him. 'Maybe we should go' Daniel muttered looking around at the unwelcoming gazes of the patrons that surrounded them.

Shaking his head, Riley muttered back 'no, someone like this Rowan bloke isn't going to be frequenting little bistro's, it's going to be places like this, places where people can hire him without worry of being spotted'.

Nodding reluctantly, the pair weaved their way through the crowd, replaceing themselves a table that was covered in stains, near the back wall.

Taking a seat, the pair watched the other patrons trying to pick out someone who might talk to them rather than rip their heads off for even thinking of approaching them.

'Hey guys!' came a bubbly voice to their left, 'I'm Candy, just like the sweet and just as scrumptious' she giggled. Turning in surprise the two warriors were greeted with the sight of a short, rosy cheeked, blonde girl in her twenties, carrying an overfilled tray of empty glasses.

'So, you look a little out of place here' she continued with a grin, 'but don't worry, not everyone bites' she added with a wink. 'What would you two handsome men like to drink?' she asked cheerfully.

'Can we get a couple of Orange Soda's?' asked Daniel hesitantly.

Laughing Candy replied, 'sure you can sugar, though i'll admit, I've never been asked for a soda before, but first time for everything as they say.

Giving them both a warm smile, she hurried back to the bar, dropping her tray behind the counter before pouring their drinks and bringing them back.

'Umm Candy?' Riley asked hesitantly

'Yes baby cakes? What do you need?' she replied giving him her full attention as she leant against the table, eyeing him curiously.

'Umm, do you know of a man named Rowan?' Riley continued, keeping his voice low.

A look of surprised flitted across the waitress's face before she quickly smoothed it out and replaced it with her signature smile. 'Well I know a lot of people called Rowan sweet pea' she said with a small laugh.

'The one we need is a collector? We have been told he might be able to help us with something we need collecting' Riley replied, trying to keep his voice confident. 'He has this tattoo on his arm' he added pulling out the crumpled piece of paper from his pocket. Glancing down at the drawing, the young girl's face paled slightly as she cleared her throat uncomfortably.

'Well I don't know any collectors boys' she said airily, before leaning forward and dropping her tone 'but I would say that if someone wanted to replace someone who knew about that tattoo, well they would maybe need to go to the town further North, maybe visit the bar there called 'Jack's, maybe someone there would know who you were looking for.' she whispered, her eyes darting around the room as she remained close to the warriors raising her eyebrows, with that the waitress quickly turned on her heel and hurried away again, not returning back to their table until after they left the bar.

Stepping out in to the brisk night air, the warriors pulled their coats tighter around their bodies to keep out the chill wind that was blowing through the town. A quick discussion found the pair unanimous in turning their back on the elements and replaceing a motel to sleep in that night. Hurrying down the half empty streets, the lamps hung overhead flickering into life as the sun sunk lower in the sky, they found a small guest house on the outskirts of the town, overlooking the rolling hills that surrounded the borough like a protective barrier, separating them from the outside world.

Hurrying up the steps, Daniel pushed open the Mint green painted door, that was adorned with antique iron brackets, stepping inside, a small bell placed above the door rang as they were immersed in the warmth that flowed from the open fire that burned in the reception area.

One of the side doors opened and an Aged gentleman stepped out, looking over the warriors appraisingly before walking behind the counter and lifting the pen that rest between the pages of the ledger that lay open on top.

'You boys looking for a room?' he asked gruffly

'Yes sir' replied Daniel, 'A twin or two singles, what ever you have'

Checking the ledger carefully, the gentleman looked up and snapped, 'Name?'

'Davies' Riley interjected, cutting his Beta off.

Nodding, the old man wrote the name down next to a number before turning around and lifting a key off of one of the hooks that were screwed into a board behind him.

'Room 34, up the stairs, turn right, keep walking' he grouched, 'Breakfast is at 8am, shuts at 10am, if you're late, you're out of luck'.

Nodding their understanding, Daniel grabbed the key and led the way upstairs in search of their room.

'He's a barrel of laughs isn't he' he muttered under his breath as they stepped off the stairs and turned right to follow the hallway.

Traipsing down the floral carpeted corridor they passed closed doors on either side of them until they finally reached the one marked 34, slipping the key into the lock, Daniel unlocked the door and pushed it open, the pair spilling into the room as their tired bodies finally decided they had had enough.

Slinging his bag onto one of the single beds, Riley grabbed a towel off a stool that was positioned next to the TV and headed into the bathroom, setting the water as hot as it would go as he stripped out of his dirty clothes and stepped underneath the steaming stream of water, groaning in satisfaction as the droplets hit his tired muscles, allowing them to ease his joints before starting to wash the grime of the last few days off of his body. Once finished, he turned off the shower and stepped out, rubbing his hair dry before tying the towel around his waist and opening the bathroom door to replace Daniel on the other side holding a towel of his own.

As the pair swapped places, Daniel shut the door and the shower started to run again as Riley rummaged in the various drawers around the room until he found a small hair dryer which he lay on the dressing table before drying himself off, grabbing some shorts and a t shirt to sleep in and then sat on the padded seat of the desk chair and turned the hair dryer on, giving his wavy brown hair a quick blast of heat.

Hearing the door open behind him, Riley swiveled round as Daniel stepped out, his hair clinging to his forehead, the towel wrapped around his waist as he grinned over at his Alpha.

'Hey Casanova, there are no girls here to impress, you don't need to be primping yourself' he said chuckling.

Rolling his eyes, Riley replied, 'Just because you are happy to look like you got dragged through a hedge backwards doesn't mean we all are, who knows when we might meet our mates? We need to be ready to make a good impression.. well some of us do, others of us are just naturally attractive.' he added.

'True mate, true, I am indeed a natural beauty' Daniel replied flicking his imaginary hair over his shoulder and giving Riley a pouty seductive face and turning round to shake his bottom toward his friend while the Alpha covered his eyes in mock horror. 'Oh my Goddess, I can never unsee that! Someone wash my eyes!' he yelled before laughing.

Walking over to his bed, Riley pulled out the remainder of the rations they had packed up from Silver Cross, laying it out on the bed whilst Daniel got dressed and made them each a cup of tea using the small kettle and complimentary teabags that were sat on a tray on the desk.

Munching their way through the food, the pair discussed the information that the waitress, Candy, had given them.

'Mate, I think we need to be careful when we go to this next place, that bar maid was nervous of the picture of that tat, I get the feeling it's not just some body art this bloke is sporting' Daniel mused seriously.

'I had that feeling too, if it is some sort of gang tattoo or something, then Bella could be in even more trouble than we thought' Riley replied worriedly.

Looking at each other, an uncomfortable silence fell between the two Warriors, each lost in their own thoughts.

'I think we should hit the hay Riles' Daniel said finally, standing up from Riley's bed and bending down to pick up the packets that littered the blanket, disposing of them into the waste paper bin that was tucked in the corner of the room.

The men each clambered into their beds, pulling the blankets over themselves as Daniel reached over the table that separated the beds, flicking the light switch and plunging the room into darkness, the only light visible was coming through the c***k left between the drawn curtains.