Eero's Perspective
"It's the Lady Aelice, daughter of my trusted Beta Octavio." Hearing that, it felt like the world had stopped spinning. I pulled my hand from Claudius' hold of it, and I searched for Aelice.
I was hoping to see her shock as much as I was, but she looked somewhat more nervous than surprised. Aelice knew that this was going to happen.
"Congratulations, Lady Aelice," greeted by everyone, almost. Aelice would spare them a glare and smile, but she would nervously pan her eyes back to me.
I cleared my throat, "Is this the only announcement that you'll be making tonight?" I asked the Alpha King. The entirety of the Harren Hall went quiet, feeling the tension between me and the Alpha King.
"I plan to have the mating ceremony on the next full moon."
"That'll be next weekend," Claudius interfered with a mocking smirk on his lips.
"I'll be out of the country for the ocular visit of the construction of our hotel in Phuket. Pardon if I won't be able to attend your wedding ceremony, Alpha," I said, slightly tilting down my head.
I pushed my chair away from the table and excused myself from the festivity.
"Eero, you're being rude and disrespectful to me. Come back here!" The Alpha King demanded that I courageously ignore.
"Your grace, please!" Aelice followed up. My feet moved faster. I was already in the driveway waiting for my driver when Aelice caught me up.
"Eero, please listen to me," Alice pled, but I felt betrayed by her and by the Alpha.
Aelice gently reach for my arm, "Listen to me first."
"How did it happen? Codrus said that you're like his child, that he'd never pick you as his second chance mate and not even a week after he told me that he announced that he's marrying you!"
"Did you continue sneaking in to serve him tea at night? Or were you serving him anything else?!"
"Eero, do you really think I'd do that? Flash my flesh to him like an experienced whore in a brothel?" I stared deadpan in her eyes, scrutinising her.
"Then tell me what happened. What did Octavio make you do to make my father change his mind about taking you in as his second chance mate."
"Eero."
"I want an answer, the truth and not your tears, Alice."
"I don't know, but since the Alpha King asked me to stop coming to his room to help him sleep, it never happened again. We barely interacted with each other, and my father didn't ask me to do anything."
My forehead knotted as an idea swept away my confusion, "Are you telling me that in that week when you stopped coming to his room, the Alpha King realised that he was, in fact, falling for you? That your sudden absence in his life helped him reach that conclusion?" I taunted her.
"You said that you do not wish to be his second chance mate locked in the realm to be his breeder and squeeze out royal babies." Alice eagerly nods her head after she wipes her tears.
"Do you have anything in mind to get me out of this situation, Eero? I will do anything."
"Reject him; on the day of your mating ceremony, reject the Alpha King, and I will help you escape."
"What? Even if the Alpha King doesn't retaliate with my rejection, Octavio will."
"I'll send you to Thorne. That is Claudius' territory. Octavio won't be able to do anything to you in that place."
"Are you close with Claudius to be sure that he will help us with this escape plan, Eero?"
"I can talk to him to help us, and he isn't so bad, and I know that he'll agree to help you." Aelice gave it a quick thought.
"For now, you have to go back to Harren Hall. You must make them believe that you'll accept the bond with the Alpha King." Aelice jumped into my arm.
"Thank you, Eero. I know that by helping me, you're putting yourself at risk too, but don't worry, I'll find a way to pay off this debt," she said.
"Now, go back to the dinner party. Tell them that you tried to talk to me, but I didn't listen." Aelice nods. I snagged her hand to stop her from leaving me so soon.
"Don't give your father any hint about this plan, okay?"
"Okay."
"I'll let you know once I get an answer from Claudius."
*********
"I need your help, Claudius."
"I surmise that you do. Is this about your new best friend?"
"Yes." He walked straight to the small bar in his office in RGC. Claudius opened a whiskey that he quickly enjoyed.
"What about her? Don't tell me you plan to help her escape from the mating ceremony?" My silence confirms his assumption. Claudius rolled his eyes at me.
"Why are you going out of your way just to help her?"
"There is no literal money involved, but Aelice marrying the Alpha King was similar to Beta Octavio selling her off to my adoptive father."
"And you want to help her because you don't want her to experience what you went through before."
"I don't want her to be the Alpha King's breeder. It will slowly kill her on the inside, and someone as good as Aelice doesn't deserve that."
"Do you really believe that she's different from her father?" I moved my head once as the answer.
"When Ameo and Vera sold me to become your breeder, there was nothing I could do to help and defend myself, and I wish someone would have stepped up to save me. Alice wishes the same thing now, and we have the means to help her, so why shouldn't we?"
Claudius cupped my cheeks, "Perseus will be very proud of you."
"And to you too, Claudius." He only smiled like it was the funniest thing that he had heard.
"Because of what happened in the Harren Hall. No one would look for you. How about you stay with me on the howling island tonight?"
"To do what?"
"Whatever you want, baby," he replied.