Sold to the Dark Lord

10| I'll Hold You

Knocking after knocking did not make Arabelle open the door. Alex, who was already getting worried, had no other choice but to break down the door. Break it down? Yea, Arabelle definitely didn't want the door to her room to be broken because it would only make her feel more scared.

"I'm going to break down this door, do you hear me?" It was just a threat, Arabelle would feel even more scared if he actually broke down the door. "I'll count to three!"

One!

He started counting and, well, it worked. The doorknob turned. Alex breathed a sigh of relief, it turned out that Arabelle was fine, the proof was that she could walk to open the door.

"They're overreacting for no reason. Should I change the maid?" Alex held the doorknob and was about to open it.

"Arabelle, I'll- wait, why is it so hard to open?" Alex was confused, his attempt failed, as if something was holding it open from the inside. "Can you remove whatever it is from the door?"

No answer.

Alex knelt down, then put his left hand in to see what was holding the door from the inside.

His hand kept groping, but nothing hit his hand.

"Ra? Stop messing around and get rid of-" his breath hitched as his hand managed to grab hold of something underneath near the door. "No f*****g way! Arabelle!"

Frantically, Alex tried to figure out how to get Arabelle's unconscious body away from the doorstep so he could get in and carry her back to bed.

"Your Majesty, is everything alright?" A guard on night patrol came over.

Alex nodded, "Everything is fine, but..."

"Yes, Your Majesty?"

"Send someone to get a physician, quickly!"

"But, it's already past midnight, Your Majesty. The physician's house is quite far away."

"I don't care. Take him to his house if you have to," Alex ordered.

The guard nodded and immediately left to obediently carry out his king's orders.

In the end, Alex had no choice but to pull the door off its hinges. He couldn't bear to push Arabelle's weak body and make her roll over with her head, hitting anything in there.

"Ok, no problem. If you're afraid to sleep with a broken door later, you can use my room." Alex encouraged by holding the side of the door, "I just need to get rid of one side of the door,"

Aargh!

And with one pull, the right side of the door came off, leaving only the frame. Let alone doors, he could take down many enemies with his bare hands.

Alex threw the door into the hallway, "f**k!" He snapped as he found Arabelle lying with a bloody nose.

He rushed over to her.

Alex understood that it must be terrifying for humans to see werewolves shapeshifting. It wasn't easy for her to stay calm. But, was it really that scary that it made her this sick? Poor her.

***

Arabelle felt her head throbbing with pain, so she opened her eyes slowly.

"Where am I?" She softly asked, "This isn't my room."

"It's mine, you were here once," Alex said after locking the door. He walked over to Arabelle who was lying on the right side of the bed, then sat down next to her.

Arabelle reflexively moved away. She tried to get up with little energy left.

"Are you afraid of me? Suddenly?" Asked Alex to make sure.

"Wh-why was I brought here? Why didn't you just let me stay there quietly?" Arabelle's voice trembled with fear.

Alex gave a small nod, "Okay, you managed to open the door and passed out afterward. I had no choice but to break the door and, again, I'm sure, you don't want to sleep in a room with a broken door after what you experienced this afternoon." he said, explaining.

Arabelle was stunned for a while, "W-what happened?"

"I already know everything. So, welcome to our neighborhood." Alex said. "You know what, I have a reason for putting you in that room, the room for the queen. I have a reason for taking you here with my own hands. I have a reason for putting you near me. You know what it is? Because I wanted to make sure you were safe." He said with great affirmation.

Arabelle's tears just flowed, "I want to go home, please..."

What the hell?! Alex stood up and adjusted his hair in frustration. His good treatment so far didn't work at all, she still wanted to go.

"You want to go home? Where? Tell me. Do you have a place to go home to? Who's waiting for you out there?"

Arabelle was silent.

"This is your place. This is your home, do you understand?"

Arabelle cried even more, "I'm sure, Luke will-"

"I SAID DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!" Alex snapped by kicking the bed, making Arabelle flinch and get even more scared. "You're really testing my patience."

With watery eyes, Arabelle ventured to look into Alex's red eyes. "Wh-what did I do to test your patience, huh?"

Arabelle wiped away the tears that never stopped, her heart ached. She looked back at Alex, who stood where he was.

"Forgive me for my impoliteness, Your Majesty, but... It wasn't my intention to be frightened like this. I don't intend to be troublesome, but experiencing something that almost got me killed is too horrible." Arabelle's cry broke.

Alex's hands clenched into fists, he hated the sight of tears and the sound of crying, especially from the woman who was the answer to all his searches for the past 20 years.

Alex scrambled up to the bed and Arabelle was about to move away but he held her back.

"Don't be afraid." He said, "It's me, the same person who has spent days on the way here. You are safe. Safe with me." Alex wrapped his arms around Arabelle's shoulders gently and lay her back.

Arabelle gasped for a few moments, before finally calming down when Alex rubbed her head.

"You can tell me everything," Alex said.

Arabelle's crying intensified.

"Ssh... It's okay, come here. Let me hug you," Alex pulled Arabelle into his arms, "You can cry, I understand,"

Arabelle shook her head in there, "No, you don't understand..."

"I do, I do understand. I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I promise I'll tell you many things about my kind and my people here. A kingdom of werewolves." Alex tightened his embrace.

Slowly Arabelle began to calm down, her crying subsided while still in the king's arms.

Alex's hands were not stayed, he continued to give gentle strokes on her head.

"I'm tired..." Arabelle whispered.

"Just sleep."

"Wh-what if someone breaks in to look for me?"

"I'm here. I'll hold you like this." Alex said.

Arabelle looked up to make sure there was no sign of a lie on his face, "Promise?"

"Promise." Alex pulled the blanket up to Arabelle's neck, "Close your eyes and try to sleep."