Sold To The Alpha
A Love spoken Chapter 41

Gabriella glared down at Vaughn suspiciously, 'what are you talking about, you literally just handed her over to the coven, why would you then try to rescue her?' she demanded angrily. 'Please Gabby, sit down and I will tell you everything' Vaughn replied wearily.

The princess scowled at the pair for a moment before reluctantly taking a seat, careful to keep space between herself and the two men, ignoring the pain in her mate's eyes. Once Rowan was sure that Vaughn was able to cope with the pain from the rejection, he let the hybrid go, sitting down beside him whilst Vaughn caught his breath.

'Yes, I planned to hand Olivia over to the Coven, but when I first got given the job I didn't know who she was or that she was my mate' Vaughn started, causing Gabriella to snort derisively.

'If you think that knowing you agreed to hand over a random she wolf to the Coven is going to make this any better, you are sadly mistaken' she bit back acidly.

Vaughn dropped his eyes, 'Gabby, please, just listen' he begged, raising his eyes and waiting until she nodded tersely, keeping her eyes averted from his.

Taking a deep breath, the prince started again, 'this all started with my father and grandfather' he began, 'did your mother ever tell you about the attack on my father?' he asked.

Gabriella furrowed her brow for a moment before nodding uncertainly, 'I once heard her talking to someone about a time King Vallance was injected with some sort of serum that made him nearly die..' she muttered. Vaughn nodded, 'he was injected with a serum that attacked the venom passed down from the first Vampire, it's soul purpose was to destroy the venom in our blood and in turn would wipe out every Vampire in existence. The princess nodded slowly, paying attention, 'but he was cured' she replied in confusion, 'so what does that have to do with Olivia.

Vaughn sighed, 'the only way to save my father was for my grand father to make a deal with the High Priestess, she forced him to create a blood oath with her, an unbreakable promise that could be called in at any time for any reason and was to pass down his blood line if he died.'

Gabriella's eyes widened as comprehension started to dawn, 'she came to you' she whispered.

Vaughn nodded, 'if I tried to break the oath it would reverse the help the High Priestess had given, killing my kind, wiping them out in their entirety. Even now I don't know why she wants Olivia but at the time all I knew was she was looking for a wolf who was marked by the Goddess with a crescent moon, she cast a spell on me that would draw me too that person as I got nearer. I swear, I never thought it would be my mate Gabby and I have looked for every and any angle to try not to hand her over. If it had been my own life, I would have gladly given it for her, I love her.' he whispered, tears forming in his eyes, 'but it was my dad and our entire species, I couldn't do it! Gabriella sat silently for a moment, 'why didn't you just tell us, we could have worked this out together' she asked, her anger still evident.

Vaughn met her gaze, 'I was scared, what if she ran? What if you both went to your mother? I didn't know what to do' he admitted.

The princess glared at the pair, 'at least if we had gone to my mother she could have helped us' she growled.

Vaughn gave a hollow laugh, 'we were going too, Rowan and I had already decided to ask her for help but I had a dream, a premonition almost, a child on a swing told me not to tell anyone, but to trust in my friends. If I told anyone, it could have serious repercussions!

'A child, in a dream told you to keep this secret accept to your friends' Gabriella repeated slowly.

'Yes' the hybrid replied desperately, 'and I did! I trusted Rowan!'

The teenager stared at the prince for a moment, her mouth opening and closing but no sound came out, clearing her throat, she visibly reined in her anger, 'Vaughn, did you at no point think that maybe your friends would include Olivia and myself?' she asked vehemently.

Vaughn's face stilled as if he had been slapped, 'no' he whispered, his face falling in horror.

'Friends not friend Vaughn!' Gabriella yelled, 'your damn friends! Rowan, Olivia and me! You absolute i***t! How the hell are you next in line to rule over the entire Vampire species? You can't even figure out the meaning of a word!'

The Vampire lowered his head as the princess continued to berate him, finally she swivelled her eyes to Rowan who had been watching her in awe, 'and you' she growled, pointing her finger accusingly at the warrior causing him to shrink back from her anger, 'you are damn lucky you can't talk because Vaughn wouldn't be the only one being told to accept a rejection right now'

Rowan's eyes flashed with pain again, as he dropped his gaze to his hands and fidgeted uncomfortably under Gabriella's deathly glare.

Standing up suddenly, she beckoned to them both, 'come on then!' she grumbled angrily

'Where are we going?' Vaughn asked worriedly.

Tapping her foot impatiently, Gabriella gestured to the field behind them, 'over there to plan how to get my friend back' she spat, 'I don't know how far this witch's powers can reach but I'd rather not plan an attack on her coven right next to her damn minions! Now get your asses up and lets move' she ordered.

Scrambling to their feet, the two warriors fell in to step behind the still seething she wolf, neither having the courage to look at her let along try and interact with her.

Once they reached the next field and Gabriella felt they had sufficient distance between themselves and any spies that the High Priestess may have watching them, she found a flat area near some bushes that would keep them from the sight of others and flopped down onto the hard earth.

Pointing at Vaughn she growled, 'wood for a fire, now' before turning to Rowan, 'shift, hunt, go' she ordered. Both men immediately dropped their ruck sacks, Rowan stripping and shifting whilst Gabriella averted her gaze stubbornly, the pair hurrying off to complete their given chores.

Once a fire was burning merrily and the rabbit Rowan had returned with was cooking nicely in the flames, Gabriella leaned back on her hands, crossing her legs that were stretched out in front of her.

'Right what do we know about the Coven? Why do they want Olivia?' she started, musing out loud to herself.

Vaughn shrugged, 'she never told me why she wanted Olivia though she did say if she was not handled properly she could cause devastation' he mumbled, a small hollow laugh escaping him as he added, 'which is what they normally say about me! Gabriella's eyes snapped to Vaughn's at his words, 'that's true, you are supposed to be the strongest creature ever created, Olivia is the destined wolf marked by the Goddess, is it connected?' she asked. 'It's not an accident that you are fated mates, the Goddess pairs all for a reason' she muttered, her eyes moving to Rowan automatically as she spoke.

Vaughn shook his head, 'I don't know Gabby, but I do know that my wolf is getting restless, he doesn't like this at all, the longer we are away from Olivia and the more time she is held captive by those bitches, the more anxious he becomes.

Gabriella c****d her head to one side, 'I'm surprised your wolf is speaking to you still' she muttered as Vaughn's cheeks flushed.

'He's not other than to call me an a*s hole and tell me that if he could live without me he would kill me himself' he replied softly.

The princess smiled, 'I always liked your wolf better than you' she said archly, 'so much more sensible than the spoilt vampire prince!

'Thanks, now he's smirking at me and calling me a second cla's loser' Vaughn replied with a groan of frustration.

'Just let him know that he is still friends with me and my wolf, you and this i***t you call your best friend, not so much any more' Gabriella replied as she jerked her thumb toward her mate, still not looking in his direction.

Looking over at Rowan, Vaughn could see the pain in his friend's features as he watched Gabriella hungrily, 'he is sorry Gabby' Vaughn said in a low voice, 'we both are, we never wanted to hurt you or Olivia, we just didn't know what else to do' he whispered sadly. Sighing heavily Gabriella rolled her eyes, 'I know Vaughny, I really do, but I can't even begin to start making up with you until my friend is out of danger' she replied.

The corner of Vaughn's mouth quirked up at the use of her nickname for him but he refrained from saying anything, scared that she would return to her anger if he made the slightest miss step around her.

Picking up the meat, Rowan checked it before holding it out to Vaughn who took it, tearing a bit off and holding it out to Gabriella who did the same. Handing it back to the warrior, he watched him silently rip his own piece off, lifting it to his lips and chewing slowly, keeping his eyes down toward the ground.

As they ate, the trio listened to the sounds of the wind blowing around them, the swishing of the leaves on the bushes and the soft rustling of nearby creatures who were hesitantly heading out of their hiding spots as the day became cooler. 'When do you want to head into the forest again?' Vaughn asked quietly, flicking his eyes up to the teenager before quickly averting them again.

'Tomorrow' Gabriella replied decisively, 'we have no idea what we will face in there but you can guarantee that they have some serious defences around their coven, I want to be able to see what is sneaking up behind me to try and kill me' she growled. Vaughn nodded in agreement, as he sent a silent prayer up to the Moon Goddess, 'Please' he thought as he gazed upward, 'please, I don't care about myself, but she doesn't deserve this, please keep her safe until I can get to her.'