Ashes and Asphalt: Secret Billionaire's unaway Princess

Heavy footsteps resounded behind her. Each one hitting the wet asphalt like a countdown to her inevitable capture. They sounded close. Too close. She didn’t dare look back. She continued down the narrow alleyway. She was exhausted—rightly so— and still, she pumped her legs harder drawing from what little energy she had left. The rain pouring from the sky mixed with her sweat, stinging her eyes and causing her vision to blur. Up ahead she could see the city lights, hues of pink and blue. “Get her!” One of her men barked behind her. Her heart quickened. Fear slowly crept through in form of cold shivers. She couldn’t return to the hell she’d escaped from. Not now when She kept her pace, her grip tightening on the small crossbag against her side. Her father’s men were relentless—sporting black suits and that cold silent purpose that said this wasn’t about love as her father liked to make her believe. It was about control. And Raven was done letting people control her. Just then, she turned a sharp corner, nearly slipping in a puddle. But she didn't fall, she collided into something else. A man. Or rather, a wall of muscle in leather. The impact knocked the air out of her. “Whoa, careful,” the stranger said. The slight annoyance in his tone was evident but his expression shifted slowly as he took in her disheveled state. “You okay?” Raven didn’t answer. Her heart was pounding too hard to hear him. She spotted the glint of a silver ring on his hand. Her nostrils picked up the faint scent of gasoline and smoke from the motorbike behind him. Then the gunshot rang out. She ducked instinctively, her flight responses kicking in. The stranger moved too, shielding her with his body without thinking. “What the hell is—” But she was already running again. Away from him. Away from all of it. >~> Raven gasped suddenly as she jerked upright. The rise and fall of her chest went from tumultuous to a steady flow. The sheets around her were twisted up around her legs and drenched in her own sweat. It took a full minute before she realized she was… safe? Just a dream. Just a memory. A nightmare from the night she escaped her father’s estate a year ago. She let out a shaky breath, “Just a dream,” she whispered. “It’s all in the past.” But it wasn’t. Not really. The shabby apartment she sat in was proof of that—The peeling paint, the cracked walls and zero ventilation. She’d survived that long off her own wits and the money she’d stolen from her father, just enough to keep her afloat. And tomorrow… Tomorrow was supposed to be her fresh start. Blackridge University. New name. New life. New appearance A chance to disappear. She glanced at the clock. 5:12 AM. Too early to be awake, too late to fall back asleep. She got out of bed with a groan, moving to sit in front of the cracked mirror hanging on a corner of the wall. Then she looked down at the tools laid out before her. Brown contacts to cover up her blue eyes, a hair straightener to get rid of her curls and make up to hide her freckles and a pair of wire frame glasses to seal it all together. College would be her fresh start. And she was Raven. The less she looked like Aveline, the better. She’d already dyed her hair blonde a few days prior. The red hair her father loved so much because it reminded him of her mother was gone. >~> By evening, Raven left her apartment, a different person. The city was a bustle of cars and people. Raven pulled her hood up and blended into the crowd. She didn’t like stealing. But hiding meant no ID, no job and no access to the bank accounts her father froze the moment she disappeared. And what she’d stolen could only get her so far. She'd survive first. She could reflect on her actions later. Her eyes scanned the crowd through her glasses, looking for easy targets. Rich men distracted by their phones, drunk couples, tourists flaunting their wallets stupidly— they were always easy prey. But Raven was looking for something different that night. Secretly, she loved the thrill. And on that night, she needed a challenge. Then she saw him. He was leaning against a red motorcycle parked by the streetlight. Leather jacket, chain hanging at his belt, tall, broad shouldered. She couldn’t see his face from where she stood, but something about him drew her in. He was busy on the phone call and from the way his back stiffened she could tell it wasn’t a pleasant conversation. Perfect distraction. She approached casually, pretending to scroll on her phone as she passed. Her fingers brushed the edge of his jacket pocket, slipped in and then suddenly— A firm hand grabbed her wrist. “Nice try.” Raven froze. Her victim turned, ending the call even as the person on the other line continued to speak, and she was met with the most piercing grey eyes she’d ever seen. Calm, sharp. And a little amused at her attempt to rob him. “Let go,” she hissed, trying to pull back. “You were the one digging in my pocket, sweetheart.” His tone was lazy but there was something dark underlying. “I—I wasn’t,” she lied. He smirked. “That wasn't very convincing.” Raven’s wheels were at work on how to escape her captor. Then she made her move. She twisted her hand whilst pulling away, and used her free hand to shove him. He wasn’t expecting it. None of them ever did, afterall she was ‘just a girl.’ Raven slipped free, the stolen wallet clenched in her fist. Her handsome victim still stunned. “Hey—!” She took off running, pushing past the crowd. He didn’t chase her. He just stood there, watching her vanish into the night, a smile playing on his lips. Most people would be furious after getting robbed, but not Axel. He was rather mesmerized by his pretty thief. “Damn,” he muttered, patting his now empty pocket. “She’s good.” >~> Back in her apartment, Raven tossed the wallet on the bed and collapsed next to it. She sat up after some seconds to open it, praying whatever was inside would be worth the trouble. ID, credit cards, some cash. She’d toss out what she didn't need later. She suddenly paused. The face on the ID, made her insides freeze over. The man from the street. Name—Axel Rothvale. She frowned. Rothvale. Why did that sound familiar? Then she remembered, one of the news articles she used to take from her fathers study. Rothvale Global, billion-dollar empire, CEO Damien Rothvale. And his son Axel Rothvale. “No way,” she whispered. She’d just pickpocketed a billionaire. So much for laying low. Her mind turned with possibilities. What if he decided to press charges? Or worse, what if her father found her because of that? She didn’t have the time to dwell because she blinked once and it was morning. Her first day of college. Her new beginning. Raven stood at the gates of Blackridge University, with a single suitcase. She felt the same as when she'd gotten her scholarship mail. Hopeful. The campus was for her, a dream of new opportunities. Students walked about, with coffee cups and heavy books, some serious, some cheerful. Normal people. Normal lives. She took a deep breath. “You belong here,” she told herself. “Just keep your head down.” She'd processed her transfer nearly a month into the second semester. It was Sophomore year. No orientation, she would figure it out on her own. She always did. As she navigated the campus, no one looked at her twice and that made her feel safe. She’d almost convinced herself this could actually work. Then her phone buzzed. Private number. Her throat went dry even before she opened the message, she knew ‘You can run as far as you want Raven, but you’ll never hide from blood. Father’ And just like that, all sense of safety vanished. She was instantly reminded of the truth— She wasn’t free from her father, and she might never be. Because when the king of the underworld was searching for you, he’d most definitely find you.