King Novel novel Chapter 6

Chapter 6

I don’t believe it.

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“Are you sure?” I ask, barely above a whisper. My pulse is clawing out of my chest, trying to get out and confirm it myself.

She holds up the newspaper, her expression grim. “It’s front–page news. Take a look yourself.”

I don’t. I can’t. My legs move before I even realize it.

Dr. Lisa’s voice still echoes in my head, even as I rush back to my room. The hallway feels longer than usual, with each of my step heavy with a million thoughts slamming into me at once.

Missing? The Alpha King? How?

my parent’s

My dream–the one thing I’ve been clinging to, the reason I’ve been digging through every lead I can find to my death–it’s slipping away.

I shove the door open and slam it shut behind me, my chest tightening as I try to catch my breath. I don’t waste time–I go

notebook. straight to the dresser, yanking open the bottom drawer where I’ve hidden my

It’s old and battered, the corners of the pages curling from years of flipping through them. Inside are notes, maps, and fragments of information I’ve gathered over the years about the Imperial Pack. About the Alpha King.

And about my family.

I flip through the pages, my eyes scanning the scribbled handwriting. The pieces don’t connect, but I know–I know–there‘ something here. Something I’ve missed.

My brother’s voice plays in my head, rough and quiet as we sat huddled together in the unclaimed lands back then, looking for food, only a few days before his death when we were attacked.

“The Imperial Pack did this. They killed him. They killed Dad.”

I shake my head, squeezing my eyes shut. It’s been years, but I still can’t remember everything. Just fragments–too broken to make sense of, too sharp to ignore.

This notebook was supposed to be my way forward. My ticket to finding answers. And the Alpha King was supposed to be my lead.

But now he’s gone.

I sink to the floor, clutching the notebook to my chest as tears spill over. All of it crashes down on me–years of chasing shadows, of hoping for something more than dead ends. And now, it feels like it’s all slipping through my fingers.

I let myself cry, for once not caring if anyone hears me.

When I finally look up from my soaked arms, wiping at my face, I see him.

Enoch is standing in the doorway, his broad frame leaning against the doorframe it almost looks like he wouldn’t fit. He doesn’t say anything but simply watches me with that unreadable expression of his.

I sniff, wiping at my face with the back of my hand. “How long have you been standing there?”

He doesn’t answer. Instead, he tilts his head slightly, like he’s trying to figure me out.

He looks like a kid. Are all people with amnesia like this?

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Chapter 6

A shaky laugh escapes me as 1 push myself off the floor “Well, this is embarrassing,” I mumble, wiping at my face again. “You can’t just sneak up on people like that, you kriose

He all doesn’t say anything, and for some reason, that makes me feel calmer. Like I don’t have to explain myself

For an entire moment, I forget everything I cried over for simply with him–a stranger–being here

Enoch steps into the room, his gaze locked on me as I walk toward him. His face is still bruised, the marks from the kicks he received earlier standing out against his olive skin. I reach up without thinking, brushing my thumb over a cut on his cheekbone.

“You’re a mess,” I say softly.

He doesn’t move. He doesn’t flinch. He just stares at me, his emerald eyes following every movement of my hand.

“I should clean this up,” I mutter, but my voice sounds far away even to me.

The air is suffocating, thick with something I don’t want to name. His breathing is uneven, shallow, each rise and fall of his chest pulling me closer. My hand is still on his face, my fingers brushing the rough scrape of his jaw. He hasn’t moved, hasn’t looked away.

What am I doing?

Those emerald eyes are a trap, it’s dark and unyielding, and I know I should pull back, but I can’t. He doesn’t blink, doesn’t

break

My pulse slams against my ribs, and I force a step back, feeling his gaze burning into me. “I’ll, uh, grab the-

Before I can finish, his hand shoots up, grabbing mine.

“Don’t stop.” he murmurs, his voice low and almost… pleading.

He pulls my hand back to his face, pressing my palm to his cheek. His eyes flutter shut, and for a moment, he looks… peaceful.

My heart stutters in my chest, and I feel like I’ve forgotten how to breathe.

“Enoch..”

“Taryn!”

snaps me out of it.

The sound of my name snaps me out

1 pull my hand back, stumbling a step away from him. “I–I have to go work!” I stammer, turning toward the door. “The head maid needs me.”

I take a step back, shaking my head to clear it. “That’s… that’s work. I have to go.”

As I turn to leave, I catch it–the flicker of red in his eyes. It’s fast, like a flash of lightning fast, but unmistakable.

It’s the same color I’ve seen on his wolf when I first saw him back in the woods. When he killed my pet deer.

“Should I kill her?” he asks, tilting his head. His voice is calm, like he’s asking me if I want tea or coffee.

I freeze. “What?”

“The one calling you,” he says simply. “She’s taking you away.”

My stomach drops.

2/5

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the toward

“What “ay prickly, a fork how in the way ing paw to prot

For some revim, he does has head to the

“Vene ewect pre–re killing way! Home Zen Yay for your dirty call me femr

I grab his face with both bots foring him to let me. His in the

for accent, he leaks at

me”

“Promise me way, thy de form

He noduslovely, like a scolded child “Okay”

Taryn the muairt calls again, this time fonder

1 hands L

thing home in TEAM LAMINAN BERAs aut

I sigh, stepping bark and dregging my honte “Stay in the Indurmurry with the When share menn hast ten to mygtung and definitely don’t go killing her or anything I’ll be back sent

Enoch doesn’t say anything. He just watches me, his gave henry in hours and the s

When 1 finally turn the corner, my legs feel like jelly & prestry has to my chew texting the transit my b

What the hell just happened.

Dishes, dishes, and more dishes. With the size of the Kiverstone Park, this is endle

de

I stack another plate on the drying rack, wiping my hands on my apron when podes echo from the karben doorway

“He’s really out there, isn’t he? Kallias, running after some roque wolf,” one of the girl wys, her tone wyngy with fabr

pirhug

admiration

“Oh, I heard he’s furious, another chimes in. “How did a rogue even get past the border

1 stiffen, my ears pricking at their conversation. Kallias Rogue.

Another rogue aside from Enoch has entered the borders?

“Probably looking for Taryn,” the first one whispers, and they both burst into laughter.

I glance over my shoulder, and sure enough, their eyes dart to me before rolling dramatically. They walk off, still giggling

I mutter under my breath, “Yeah, laugh it up. At least I’m not the one drooling over a guy who doesn’t know I exist”

Laundry Fucking laundry. If there’s a hell for Omegas, it’s this–chores that never end, a hierarchy that doesn’t even let you breathe, and Seraphina’s groupies circling like vultures

1 stack a pile of clothes in my arms, balancing the basket on one hip as I move to the dryer.

Before Leven get there, one of Seraphina’s minions blocks my way, her fake–smile plastered across her face like it’s glued

there.

“We need the dryer for Seraphina’s clothes,” she says, snatching the basket from me without waiting for an answer

I clench my teeth so hard I’m surprised my jaw doesn’t snap. “Of course you do,” I mutter under my breath, rolling my eyes as I grab another basket.

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Chapter 6

“What? No,” I say quickly, stepping back toward him. “Is killing the only rthing in your head! Are you a thug?

For some reason, he shakes his head to answer me.

“You can’t just–no killing, okay? None. Zero, You can’t say things like that. And you definitely can’t mean them”

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I grab his face with both hands, forcing him to look at me. His eyes soften, the red fading back to their beautiful green, and for a second, he looks almost

guilty

“Promise me.” I say, my voice firm.

He nods slowly, like a scolded child. “Okay.”

“Taryn the maid calls again, this time louder.

I sigh, stepping back and dropping my hands. “Stay in the Infirmary with Dr. Lisa. Don’t move. Don’t–don’t do anything and definitely don’t go killing her or anything. I’ll be back soon.”

Enoch doesn’t say anything. He just watches me, his gaze heavy as I back out of the room.

When I finally turn the corner, my legs feel like jelly. I press my hand to my chest, feeling the frantic beat of my heart.

What the hell just happened?

Dishes, dishes, and more dishes. With the size of the Riverstone Pack, this is endless.

I stack another plate on the drying rack, wiping my hands on my apron when giggles echo from the kitchen doorway.

“He’s really out there, isn’t he? Kallias, running after some rogue wolf,” one of the girls says, her tone syrupy admiration.

“Oh, I heard he’s furious,” another chimes in. “How did a rogue even get past the borders?”

I stiffen, my ears pricking at their conversation. Kallias. Rogue.

Another rogue aside from Enoch has entered the borders?

“Probably looking for Taryn,” the first one whispers, and they both burst into laughter.

with fake

I glance over my shoulder, and sure enough, their eyes dart to me before rolling dramatically. They walk off, still giggling.

I mutter under my breath, “Yeah, laugh it up. At least I’m not the one drooling over a guy who doesn’t know I exist.”

Laundry. Fucking laundry. If there’s a hell for Omegas, it’s this–chores that never end, a hierarchy that doesn’t even let you breathe, and Seraphina’s groupies circling like vultures.

I stack a pile of clothes in my arms, balancing the basket on one hip as I move to the dryer.

Before I even get there, one of Seraphina’s minions blocks my way, her fake–smile plastered across her face like it’s glued

there.

“We need the dryer for Seraphina’s clothes,” she says, snatching the basket from me without waiting for an answer.

I clench my teeth so hard I’m surprised my jaw doesn’t snap. “Of course you do,” I mutter under my breath, rolling my eyes as I grab another basket.

1:39 Sat, 15 Mar

Chapter 6

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The girl glares, but I don’t wait for her response. I grab the wet clothes from the basket and head for the backyard. Hanging them to dry in the sun isn’t ideal, but it’s better than dealing with Seraphina’s worshippers

The backyard is quiet, the sum already high and blazing against my skin as I step onto the grass. The only available clothesline is at the far edge of the yard, right by the forest, Great. Because being close to potential rogue territory is exactly

where I want to be

The pack house sits close to the treeline, which is both convenient and creepy as hell when you’re out here alone. I glance around no other Omegas out here. Just me and the laundry.

The first shin goes up, then another, and another. My hands work on autopilot, but my mind is anywhere but here. The Alpha King, my parents, the Imperial Pack–everything’s tangled together like a mess I can’t seem to unravel.

The Imperial Pack isn’t just a pack; it’s an empire. Ten thousand wolves, practically a city–state hidden behind its borders. Getting in was already impossible, and now with the Alpha King missing, it feels like the door’s been slammed shut in my

face.

1 sigh, pinning the last shirt to the line when movement catches my eye.

Enoch

He’s standing at the infirmary window on the second floor, his shadowed figure watching me.

His bed must be close to the window because I can see him clearly.

I wave, a small smile tugging at my lips, his lights up at the sight of me… until it doesn’t.