Sold To The Billionaire Alpha
Chapter 63

Orchid

I was not looking forward to this meeting but Talus insisted on it. He had not been officially discharged from the infirmary yet but he was the type to come and go as he pleased. His arm was in a sling and he had an IV pole that he was wheeling around with him as he walked the hallways.

“Your IV fluid line is closed, Dad,” I pointed out.

“What does that mean?” Asked Talus.

“That I can unhook you. The fluids aren’t running right now either way. You don’t really need those fluids anyway. You’re eating like a horse,” I said.

“I’m eating like a Hawthorne,” corrected Talus. “We have the best appetites!”

I unhooked my Dad from the IV line and he left his half-empty bag of IV fluids, the line and the pole in the middle of a random hallway a considerable distance from the infirmary.

“Now, where are they?” Grumbled Talus.

“In the dungeons,” I mumbled.

“Those bitches,” said Talus.

“Dad, I’m not so sure why this is necessary,” I said.

“You need to confront them,” said Talus. “They need to know you’re not afraid of them and you won.”

I sighed. I did not see the point in confronting the Marys.

“They tried to steal your man and then set you up to be kidnapped by a wolf hunter and you don’t want to confront them?” Said Talus incredulously.

He launched into a tirade on the way down to the dungeons.

“You’re a Hawthorne! You should kill them with your bare hands! You should watch the life fade from their eyes! You should end their bloodlines! Demolish their family home! Seize their assets!” Said Talus.

“Where are you taking my fiancee, Talus?” Asked Orion.

We stopped in out tracks and turned around slowly. We had been caught redhanded.

“Daddy Daughter Day,” lied Talus.

“You’re not discharged yet,” said Orion bluntly.

“My doctor is a hypochondriac. I’m fine. I’m ready to move on from this,” said Talus, attempting unsuccessfully to take off his sling.

Orion let out a heavy sigh.

“What are you two up to?” Said Orion. “The truth, please.”

“Talus thinks I should confront the Marys,” I revealed.

Orion raised his eyebrows.

“And what do you think?” He asked, carefully scrutinising my expression.

I shrugged.

“I don’t know,” I said. “I do want to ask them a few things for myself,” I admitted.

Orion looked pained. There was guilt in his eyes. He pulled me away from Talus who was still trying to escape his sling.

“Orchid,” said Orion gently. “If I have not said this to you before, I’m saying it now. I am so sorry about even bringing the Marys into our lives in the first place. I should’ve never tried to make you jealous and thrown you in the dungeon and made you serve drinks at that party. I’ve been a monster and I almost got you killed,” said Orion, his l*p quivering slightly.

“I don’t want to dwell on it anymore,” I said simply, putting my hands on his chest. “But thank you for apologising.”

Thinking about it just made me angry all over again and that wasn’t healthy. If I wanted to be with Orion, I had to let some things go as long as he never did anything of the sort ever again. I could not help myself. I had to ask.

“Why did you involve the Marys?” I asked. “Was it really just to make me jealous or did you genuinely like them on some level, even if just as friends?”

“It was all to make you jealous,” said Orion, looking forlorn. “I wanted to make you feel something for me…anything, anything at all besides indifference or…dislike. I knew I could make jealousy work in my favour if I managed to make you jealous. I wanted a reaction from you. I just felt like…you…hated me,” he said with a heavy sigh.

“Why would you think that?” I said sadly.

“You said you hated me,” said Orion simply.

“Oh,” I said.

I vaguely remembered saying something like that.

“I didn’t hate you, not even back then,” I clarified.

“And I didn’t want the Marys then and the only way I want them now is dead. You’re the only reason why they’re alive. It’s been all about you from the moment I first laid eyes on you,” said Orion, caressing my cheek.

I touched the hand he had on my cheek. I had not wanted anyone to be sentenced to death. It was too much for me. It would keep me awake at night. They had already disturbed me enough as it was. I didn’t want them disturbing my conscious and my peace.

“You and the Marys grew up together though, didn’t you?” I said.

I could not help but ask.

“Yes,” said Orion hesitantly.

“Did they have reason to believe that you were going to marry one of them?” I asked.

I could not help but wonder.

Orion sighed.

“Orchid, I’m not proud of how I behaved before I met you to be honest…I’m not even proud of how I behaved when I first met you,” said Orion, shaking his head. “I had many frivolous encounters. Meaningless escapades.”

I felt my spirits sinking.

“You slept with the Marys at some point,” I said.

It was not a question. Orion stared at me, his eyes glassy.

“Neither of them meant anything to me,” he reiterated.

“So why bring someone…two girls you’d slept with in the past to make me jealous at Rose and Perseus’ engagement party?” I asked.

“Because I was being an a*****e,” said Orion.

I rolled my eyes. Yes, he was.

“Well, we agree on something,” I said, extricating myself from him.

“Are we in a fight?” Asked Orion, his blue eyes wide and fearful.

“No,” I said simply, looking back at him.

“So where are you going?” He asked.

“Talus is right,” I admitted.

Talus stopped trying to free himself from his sling at that. He smiled triumphantly.

“I need to confront them myself,” I said.

The detective in me needed to question them myself too.

Fox

“You haven’t told Orchid about us yet?” I said nonchalantly.

Bisa was in the gardens with me on a picnic blanket I had spread out. She fiddled with the stem of a hydrangea.

“Don’t you think hydrangeas and chrysanthemums look the same?” She asked, clearly competing in the most ridiculous topic change ever category.

I made her hydrangea turn into a humming bird and fly away from her. Instead of being annoyed she was delighted. She grabbed a fistful of other flowers from the bouquet I’d given her.

“Do these,” she squealed.

I sighed. I made them burst into a kaleidoscope of butterflies. I let them flutter around us for a bit so she could marvel at them before I set them free into the world.

“I will take that as a ‘No, Fox, I will never tell Orchid about us but feel free to entertain me with more magic tricks,’” I said, magically mimicking her voice perfectly.

“That was scary,” she whispered, her eyes wide.

I sighed and lay back down. She lay on my chest.

“I’m not good with confrontation,” she mumbled.

“Telling Orchid you’re moving isn’t confrontational,” I said.

“It is! She’s my employer!” Said Bisa indignantly. “She and Orion promoted me only a short time ago to her head lady’s maid.”

I did not want to hit below the belt but this was ridiculous. I gestured to the gardens.

“It’s the middle of the day on a week day and you’re on a picnic! It’s safe to say Orchid is not the strictest boss! Stop stalling!” I said.

The truth was Orchid already knew and was fine with it.

“Ok,” said Bisa, psyching herself up. “I’m going to let her know I’m respectfully resigning today! Unless she’s busy today, then I’ll let her know tomorrow!”

“Are you ready to tell her right now?” I asked.

“Don’t you dare teleport her here!” She warned.

“I would never do such a thing,” I said indignantly, quickly slipping one of Orchid’s hairs back into a vial in my coat pocket.

When summoning powerful werewolves, it was easier if you had something of theirs to help call them forth.

“We could walk to where she is right now,” I said.

“She’s busy,” said Bisa.

“Yeah right,” I said.

Bisa climbed on top of me and tried to tickle my sides but I clamped by arms down, protecting them. She giggled.

“I’m not lying. I just mind-linked her!” Insisted Bisa.

“What is she busy doing then?” I asked pointedly.

“She’s confronting the Marys,” said Bisa, making a face.

I grasped Bisa’s waist.

“Gross,” I said.

Bisa chuckled.

“Orchid is so forgiving. She’s the nicest boss ever,” said Bisa.

I nodded.

“I would never let those Marys off the hook if they set me up so they could steal my man,” revealed Bisa.

I raised my eyebrows at her.

“What would you do to them?” I wondered.

Bisa thought about it.

“I’d ask you to change them into frogs. They deserve a reverse fairytale ending,” decided Bisa.

I laughed.

“That’s not much of a punishment,” I said.

“It’s not?” Said Bisa incredulously.

“Frogs make some pretty powerful familiars, especially if they’re toads,” I explained.

“Toads are a type of frog?” She wondered.

“Yep,” I said, kissing her nose as she leant towards me.

“What would you change them into?” She asked conspiratorially.

“Something truly frustrating! Something inanimate!” Said Fox. “Or less animated than what they’re used to.”

I thought about it as Bisa listened intently. She really seemed to love magic.

“If I were Orchid. I’d ask me to turn the Marys into orchids. Remind them who’s boss,” I said mischievously. “Then I’d let them wilt in a vase on my dressing table so they have a view of her and Orion together while they’re wilting!”

“That’s inspired!” Chuckled Bisa.

“I’m inspirational,” I said with a modest shrug.

The shrug gave her access to my sides and she tackled me and tickled me before I disappeared and reappeared standing nearby.

“That’s unfair!” She said, pouting. “You have a big advantage over me!”

Her pouty lips were calling to me. I walked up to her and pressed my lips to hers, pulling her to me.

“You have a big advantage over me,” I said pointedly. “So it’s pretty even.”

Orchid

The Marys were placed in a dungeon cell together. When they saw me and Talus, they stiffened. They were both sitting at a table facing the bars in matching jumpsuits.

“Come to gloat, Orchid,” said Mary-Beth snidely.

“That’s Luna Orchid to you, riff-raff,” said Talus.

Mary-Beth rolled her eyes.

“You’ll earn yourself a day in solitary away from your bosom buddy if you keep this rudeness up, Mary-Sue!” Barked Cerberus.

“I’m Mary-Beth,” said Mary-Beth indignantly.

Mary-Sue nodded.

“Nobody cares,” said Cerberus with a dismissive shrug.

He gave me and Talus some privacy but stayed within shouting distance. I sat on the chair Cerberus had placed in front of the guard’s table for me. I felt like I was in a mafia stand-off, facing the Marys this way.

“This is like a stand-off,” I whispered to Talus.

“We’re sitting down,” he whispered back, confused.

The Hawthorne men were lucky they were all so good-looking. They were also pretty naturally endearing.

“Look, you might as well be honest with me,” I said. “I’m the reason you’re still alive.”

“Oh really?” Said Mary-Beth.

Mary-Sue folded her arms.

“Don’t you two have mates?” I wondered.

“We haven’t met them yet,” said Mary-Sue.

“Well, we’ll never meet them now, thanks to you,” snapped Mary-Beth.

“You have only yourself to thank for that!” Snarled Talus. “If you hadn’t been so obsessed with someone else’s mate, you’d still be on the market for yours, then, wouldn’t you?” He growled. “The covetous will always remain wanting!”

I glanced at Talus, impressed. I had spoken too soon with regards to Hawthorne men.

“Just so you know, the same Orion you were pining over wanted you dead. It’s Orchid, the girl you hate, who let you live,” said Talus.

If any of this was news to the Marys, they showed no indication of that.

“What did Orion say to you when he invited you to Rose’s engagement party as his dates?” I asked.

“That’s your first question,” hissed Talus incredulously under his breath.

The Marys exchanged a glance.

“We weren’t invited as his dates,” blurted out Mary-Sue.

Mary-Beth nudged her in the ribs. Mary-Sue nudged Mary-Beth back. Mary-Beth looked at her friend in shock.

“You’re not in charge anymore, Mary-Beth!” Snapped Mary-Sue. “We’re in a jail cell because of you!”

“Oh please! You did just as much as me! Who put the silver bangle on her?” Said Mary-Beth.

“This is pointless. Orchid, I’m sorry. Forget I even said to come here,” grumbled Talus, getting up to leave.

“Wait!” Said Mary-Sue, her voice shrill.

Ha! That had been a bluff! Said Talus in my mind. Your old man still has it!

“We were invited to that party like everyone else,” mumbled Mary-Sue.

“We were shocked when we saw you serving drinks,” snickered Mary-Beth. “Can’t say we weren’t pleasantly surprised by that.”

“Orion had been boasting all week about his beautiful mate. We expected to see you on his arm that night,” said Mary-Sue.

“He even showed us the jewels he’d picked out for you for that night,” said Mary-Beth, looking at me with unbridled envy.

“Sapphires?” I wondered.

The Marys looked at each other in surprise.

“Yes, sapphires,” said Mary-Sue.

Those had been the jewels he had given me after we had made up.

“We figured you must have really pissed him off,” said Mary-Sue.

“We figured you were done for,” said Mary-Beth with a cold laugh.

“Orion motioned for us to come sit with him when we arrived,” said Mary-Sue. “We thought you’d make an entrance later or something. Fashionably late. We figured you were some diva.”

“We were floored when we saw you serving drinks!” Snickered Mary-Beth. “How the mighty have fallen!”

I laughed humourlessly. Contrary to what they might think, they were actually making me feel better. I had thought them much more significant romantic threats than this when I first laid eyes on them. It turned out they were much more inconsequential than I had realised, a fact which put me at ease. Talus fidgeted uncomfortably.

What do they mean serving drinks? He asked.

I’ll explain after, ok, I said to Talus.

“So how did you end up staying a few days then?” I asked.

“Well after you went and made a fiasco of that soiree, Mary-Beth had a migraine and fainted while the pack doctors were fussing over you in the infirmary,” explained Mary-Sue.

I snorted with laughter. I had tried to stifle it but it had been too late. I could just picture Mary-Beth and her ridiculous acting as she feigned a faint.

“Did Orion tend to you?” I wondered innocently.

They glared at me.

“The doctor said you just needed to warm up. You were almost hypothermic,” said Mary-Beth as though she did not see what the big deal was all about.

“Come to think, back then, we thought you were human,” said Mary-Sue.

“That was probably what the big fuss was all about,” muttered Mary-Beth.

“Orion probably thought she would die,” said Mary-Sue, her large brown eyes wide.

Mary-Beth narrowed her almond-shaped blue eyes.

“That would be a tragedy, wouldn’t it?” Said Mary-Beth.

“Orion disappeared for a long while. He re-emerged with you by his side. No longer a server. You had been reinstated to your former glory,” continued Mary-Beth.

The Marys glared daggers at me. I smirked.

“Where does the plot to falsify the paternity results come in?” I said, growing tired of this long a*s Marys saga.

Talus growled lowly.

“We approached Orla,” said Mary-Beth.

“You approached Orla?” I said.

I had expected it to be the other way around. I did not think the Marys had an original thought in their shared brain.

“Yes,” hissed Mary-Beth. “I did,” she said.

I looked at Mary-Sue who shifted uncomfortably.

“Bad association,” I said softly.

“Spoils useful habits,” muttered Talus, finishing my sentence.

“Don’t assume Mary-Sue is all innocent. You forget your silver bangle?” Said Mary-Beth.

I looked at my wrist. There was still a thin pink line there where Mary-Sue had clasped the silver around me to stop my shifting during my kidnapping. Rage boiled up inside me.

“I approached Orla with Mary-Sue present and put forth the idea to put darling Orion’s DNA in place of Talus’ so the paternity test would be negative and you would not get to prance around with the Hawthornes like some long-lost Heiress and Princess,” muttered Mary-Beth.

“Am I an heiress?” I wondered, looking at Talus.

“Well, we didn’t know you existed but all Hawthornes usually get a lump sum to help them get their start when they turn twenty-one,” revealed Talus. “Grand-Dad did well for himself.”

“Your grandfather is still alive?” I asked.

“Of course,” said Talus. “You’ll get the usual startup amount as soon as Grandpa deposits it.”

“What’s the usual startup amount?” I asked, feeling curious, even though money was no longer a big worry of mine.

“Two hundred and fifty million dollars,” said Talus casually.

I gasped. The Marys did not react. They were used to riches. I could not fathom that amount. I could have paid my own ransom many times over.

“It used to five hundred million but Grandpa halved it saying Timbre and I turned out spoil because of the guaranteed half billion,” said Talus apologetically.

“Did you squander yours?” I asked, lowering my voice.

Talus burst into laughter.

“I’d be dead if I drank that much, Orchid, alpha lineage or not,” said Talus. “I spent a few million on a house, a car and an open bar. I have a live-in bartender. I don’t do much. I don’t shop or vacation. I’m a homebody.”

“I think we should go on vacation together,” I suggested.

“And leave Orion home,” whispered Talus.

I giggled.

“Are we done here?” Spat Mary-Beth.

“No. And whose idea was the kidnapping?” I asked.

The Marys looked at each other.

“Your ex,” they said in unison.

“And Orla?” I asked.

“She wanted to get rid of you but…she thought we were framing you. Like making Orion think you were cheating on him with your ex,” said Mary-Sue.

“None of us knew he was a wolf hunter okay!” Said Mary-Beth. “We would never help someone lure Orion into harm’s way.”

“We love our Alpha,” said Mary-Sue.

“So Orla didn’t know anything about the kidnapping?” Asked Talus, not buying it.

“She knew Orchid’s ex was obsessed with her though none of us could fathom why! She knew you were not interested in rekindling the romance with him. She was willing to let him carry you off. Orion kidnapped you in the first place. What’s the difference?” Said Mary-Beth, throwing her hands up in the air.

I stiffened.

“What is she talking about?” Demanded Talus.

I sighed. It was time to tell him about my really rocky start with Orion and my plans to reform Cold Moon into a modern pack. They needed to leave this tradition of carrying-off brides in the past.

“One last question,” I said, taking a deep breath. “How many times have you each slept with Orion and Perseus?”

Mary-Beth rolled her eyes.

“Too many to count,” she said curtly.

“Once each,” said Mary-Sue.

Mary-Beth nudged Mary-Sue in the ribs again.

“Ow!” Squeaked Mary-Sue.

“You’ve both slept with Orion once each and with Perseus once each,” I said, feeling incredibly awkward but I needed to know.

“Oh Perseus. No, she slept with Perseus twice,” said Mary-Sue, glaring at Mary-Beth. “Even though Perseus was supposed to be mine,” muttered Mary-Sue.

“You slept with Orion!” Hissed Mary-Beth. “We’re even.”

“Was this…together?” I wondered, thinking of Friday’s love life. “Did you share?”

“No,” they barked in unison.

“Ok, thanks,” I said, getting up.

“Don’t thank them!” Said Talus. “She takes that back!”

I linked arms with Talus and we returned to the ground floor while I gently explained how I came to know Orion. I told him everything: Boris, the kidnapping, the dungeon and the serving stint. It was difficult telling him about jumping from the balcony but I did. Then I explained how Orion had redeemed himself. Talus did not look pleased.

“If I had known all of this, I wouldn’t have given my blessing,” said Talus, taking my left hand and gesturing towards my ring.

“We’ve been looking all over for you!” Squealed a familiar voice.

I turned around. Rose. She was flanked by Perseus and Orion himself.

“Speak of the devil and he shall appear,” said Talus ominously, glaring at a confused Orion.

I knew Talus would get over it eventually the same way I had. He just needed time.

“Everyone is here!” Announced Orion, taking my hand and kissing my forehead.

“Everyone?” I wondered.

“They’re all around the two biggest lunch tables in the mansion. We actually had to push two huge tables together,” chuckled Perseus.

“Heath is here?” I said.

Orion nodded.

“The Hawthornes and the extended family they came with, Heath, Heath’s children and their mates so those Alpha Quadruplets are here!” Said Orion, leading me through the maze-like mansion.

Even after all this time, I still got lost now and then. Orion tried to make small talk of the way but Talus gave Orion one-word answers and sometimes pretended like he had not even heard him. We reached the dining hall soon enough and two members of staff flung the double doors open for us.

I was greeted by the sight of a room filled with Alphas and their mates. Everyone craned their necks to look at me. I half-hid behind Orion and Talus. My eyes went immediately to Orla and Heath who were in the midst of an emotional reunion.

“Let’s make a lap and meet everyone. They’ve all been asking for you!” Chuckled Orion.