Chapter 117

Chapter 117: Chapter 117

Sally’s POV

I remembered seeing them stacked along the barge before the guards began loading the captives.

Each one carried a red wax seal stamped with the image of a blade. I had never seen that symbol before, and I couldn’t remember seeing it on any of the Hawthorne properties.

Whoever owned those crates had a mark of their own.

Perhaps it belonged to the people collecting the prisoners. Perhaps it was the symbol of an organisation behind the trade.

Whatever it represented, I needed to make sure I remembered it.

I looked around and noticed a row of shops farther down the street. Most of them were small establishments belonging to merchants who served the lower belt.

Some had already closed for the day, while others remained open despite the commotion.

I hurried toward the nearest one.

An old man stood behind a wooden counter, arranging a few items. His eyes widened when he saw my condition.

"Good heavens, girl! What happened to you?"

"I need parchment and a quill."

He stared at my wet clothes and muddy appearance. "You look like you’ve crawled out of the river."

"Because I have." I approached the counter. "Please, I need them quickly."

"Should I call someone? There are guards running through the streets."

"No!" I grabbed the edge of the counter. "Don’t call anyone. Just give me what I asked for."

The old man hesitated before reaching beneath the counter. He brought out a small piece of parchment and a quill, placing them in front of me.

I snatched them up. "Thank you."

"Girl, you should be careful. There are men searching the lower belt. I heard they’ve released hounds."

"I know."

I moved to the side of the shop and crouched beside a wooden crate. My hands were still shaking, but I forced myself to write.

I wrote down the destination of the barge, the names of the three regions, and everything I remembered about the red wax seals.

I described the blade stamped into the wax as carefully as I could, making sure I didn’t leave out any detail.

I wrote until I was certain I had recorded everything.

When I finished, I folded the parchment and tucked it securely inside my clothes.

For a long time, I had believed Alpha Kael was the person responsible for Celeste’s disappearance.

I had blamed him for selling my sister to the vampires. I had carried that anger into every conversation involving him, convinced that he was just another Alpha who cared more about power and money than the lives of ordinary people.

Even when Selena tried to explain things, I had refused to consider that I might have been wrong.

But everything I had discovered at House Hawthorne had changed that.

The trade was much bigger than I had imagined. It involved noble houses, influential families, and people from different regions.

There were probably others who had lost their loved ones without ever discovering where they had gone.

And if Alpha Kael was truly fighting against the Hawthornes, then he was the only person I could turn to.

The thought made me uncomfortable.

I had never wanted to ask him for help. My pride had always made it difficult to admit when I was wrong, especially to someone I had spent so much time accusing.

But this wasn’t about my pride anymore. It was about Celeste and Selena.

I couldn’t allow what happened at the slaughterhouse to become another secret buried beneath the affairs of powerful families.

I needed to get back to Blackbourne, find the others, and give them everything I had learned.

If Alpha Kael could help us, then I would put my pride aside and ask him.

I stepped out of the shop and pulled my wet clothes closer to my body.

The lower belt stretched ahead of me, with narrow streets winding between rows of small houses and shops. I kept my head lowered, trying to avoid attracting attention.

I had barely walked a short distance when I heard it... A bark which made me stop.

Another followed, louder this time. My stomach tightened.

Then came the unmistakable sound of heavy boots rushing along the narrow street behind me.

"She’s somewhere around here!"

"Check the shops!"

"Keep the hounds moving!"

I didn’t wait to hear anything else... I ran.

My legs were weak, and every movement sent a painful shiver through my body.

The cold had settled deep into my bones, making it difficult to run properly, but I pushed myself forward.

I turned into a narrow street, nearly slipping as my feet struck the wet ground.

The barking grew louder.

I looked over my shoulder and saw a dark shape moving rapidly between the buildings. A hound!

"Move, Sally!" I whispered to myself.

I increased my pace, but my body was beginning to give up. My lungs burned, and my legs felt heavier with every step.

I tried to turn another corner, hoping to lose the animal among the buildings, but the ground beneath my feet was too slippery.

A sudden impact struck my back. I screamed as I crashed into the mud.

Pain shot through my shoulder, and the parchment nearly slipped from where I had hidden it. Before I could turn around, the hound was already above me.

Its paws pressed against my back as it snarled close to my ear making me froze.

The animal’s breath was hot against my neck, and its teeth were close enough that I could feel them brushing my skin.

"Get off me!" I struggled beneath its weight while the hound growled louder.

I tried pushing against the ground, but it only pressed down harder. My heart pounded as I imagined its teeth sinking into my flesh.

Then a sharp whistle cut through the street. The hound immediately lifted its head.

It stepped away from me, lowering its body as though waiting for another command.

I remained on the ground, breathing heavily, unable to understand what had just happened.

Footsteps approached.

A lantern appeared first, its light spreading across the muddy street. Then a familiar figure emerged from the darkness, holding the lantern in one hand.

My blood ran cold on seeing Tadgh.

He stopped a few feet away and looked down at me. For a moment, neither of us spoke.

Then his mouth curved into an amused smile.

He crouched beside me, his expression growing even more pleased as he examined my muddy clothes and dishevelled appearance.

"Forty silvers, Sally," he said, grinning widely. "And now I’m getting Lord Hawthorne’s bounty too."