Rovers

Chapter 7

The carriage jostles along the cobblestone path, the rhythmic clatter of wooden wheels doing little to break the heavy silence inside.

“We’ll be home soon,” Anastasia says, offering me a soft, reassuring smile.

Before I can answer, her attention drifts back to Christian.

His head rests across her thighs, his eyes closed as her fingers gently weave through his hair. There’s something effortless about the tenderness between them—something familiar.

“I still can’t believe you’re here with me,” she murmurs, her voice barely above a whisper.

Christian slowly opens his eyes and tilts his face toward her.

“You’re still as beautiful as the day I left,” he says, a quiet smile touching his lips. “It’s as if time forgot you entirely.”

Their eyes lock.

For a moment, I feel like I’m not even in the carriage.

They’re somewhere else.

Somewhere I don’t belong.

Sitting opposite them, I press my hands into the velvet cushions, trying to ignore the uncomfortable ache tightening in my chest. I suddenly wish the carriage would take me anywhere else.

Anywhere but here.

“We’re here,” Anastasia says softly.

I seize the excuse to look away.

Turning toward the window, I press my palm against the cool glass.

Beyond the dark fringe of the forest, the trees suddenly part.

And I forget to breathe.

A magnificent estate stretches across the valley below.

High stone walls sweep across the landscape, framed by enormous arched gates that slowly swing open as we approach. Sunlight glints across winding waterways, threading through rich emerald vegetation and sprawling fields dotted with people.

The place is enormous.

Majestic.

Almost unreal.

A paradise hidden from the rest of the world.

The carriage rolls through the gates.

I watch the estate grow closer through the window, taking in its towering buildings and endless fields.

Everyone inside seems to belong here.

Everyone except me.

And as the gates close behind us, I realize something that makes my stomach twist.

I may have escaped the danger outside those walls.

But I have no idea what waits for me inside.

The carriage comes to a heavy, shuddering halt.

The doors are thrown open, and noise rushes in.

Servants, guards, and townspeople fill the courtyard, their voices blending into a restless hum. But the moment we step onto the stone path, their attention shifts.

Toward me.

Eyes follow my every movement.

Curiosity.

Suspicion.

I instinctively draw closer to Anastasia.

“Ana…” I whisper, glancing nervously at the crowd. “Who are all these people?”

She doesn’t answer.

She doesn’t even look at them.

Instead, she pushes through the gathering crowd, her voice cutting sharply through the commotion.

“I need healers! Immediately!”

“Yes—yes, ma’am!” a servant calls, hurrying toward the grand entrance.

Within moments, two tall men rush forward carrying a heavy wooden litter.

They carefully lift Christian from the carriage.

His face is pale, his eyes barely open, and exhaustion weighs heavily on his features.

As they raise him, his head turns.

His gaze finds mine.

“Kelsea…”

His voice is barely more than a rasp.

He reaches for me.

I step forward, and his cold fingers close around mine.

The squeeze is weak.

But deliberate.

“Ana will keep you safe,” he whispers. “I’ll be back.”

My throat tightens.

“Christian—”

Before I can say anything more, his fingers slip from mine.

The men carry him through the grand arched entrance, disappearing into the castle.

I stare after him.

For a moment, I can’t move.

Then—

THUNDER.

Hooves pound against the courtyard stones.

Every head turns toward the gates.

The massive oak doors swing open once again.

A line of riders enters through the archway, their horses kicking up clouds of dust beneath the afternoon sun.

The same riders who followed us from the orchard.

My stomach drops.

And at the front of them is the man I hoped I wouldn’t have to see again.

Xavier.

He dismounts in one fluid motion.

His boots strike the cobblestones with a heavy, deliberate thud.

The jagged scar across his cheek catches the sunlight.

His hazel eyes sweep across the courtyard.

Then they find me.

He stops.

For several seconds, neither of us speaks.

The crowd falls strangely quiet.

And suddenly, Christian’s promise echoes in my mind.

Ana will keep you safe.

I glance toward the castle doors.

Then back at Xavier.

I’m beginning to wonder exactly what kind of place I’ve been brought into.

Xavier dismounts, his heavy boots striking the cobblestones.

“Ana,” he says, his deep voice carrying a sharp edge. “We need to talk.”

Ana doesn’t answer him.

Instead, she reaches for my hand and pulls me along, marching through the castle doors without giving Xavier another glance.

The moment I step inside, everything changes.

The noise of the courtyard fades behind us.

High ceilings stretch overhead, arching above polished stone floors. Warm golden light spills from the walls, illuminating the grand corridors. The air is rich with the smell of roasted meat, freshly baked bread, and spices.

Servants glide past carrying silver trays stacked with polished cutlery and steaming dishes.

It feels impossible.

Out there, we had been fighting simply to survive.

In here, people were eating warm meals and walking beneath chandeliers as though the wilderness beyond the walls didn’t exist.

As Xavier follows us inside, several servants stop and bow their heads.

“Good evening, sir.”

Xavier gives them a faint nod.

“Bring us something to eat,” he orders over his shoulder.

“Yes, sir.”

He leads us into a grand chamber.

The room is enormous—nearly as large as the crowded dormitory back at our home base. Huge arched windows overlook the courtyard, while heavy velvet curtains frame the stone walls.

The doors close behind us.

Silence settles.

“Ana,” Xavier says again.

She turns toward him.

There’s something almost radiant about the fragile smile spreading across her face.

“Xavier…”

Her voice trembles.

“It’s him.”

Xavier’s expression tightens.

“Who?”

She takes a shaky breath.

“Christian.”

The room seems to go still.

“It’s the Christian I’ve been telling you about.”

Xavier freezes.

For the first time since I met him, genuine shock crosses his hardened features.

“You were sure he didn’t make it,” he says quietly. “I thought—”

“I thought so too,” Ana whispers.

My stomach twists.

I stand awkwardly near the doorway, watching them exchange looks that make absolutely no sense to me.

The Christian I’ve been telling you about.

What does that mean?

What happened to him?

Why did Ana think he was dead?

And why does Xavier know his name?

The questions pile up until I can’t take it anymore.

I clear my throat loudly.

The sound echoes across the enormous chamber.

Both of them turn toward me.

For a moment, they simply stare.

As if they had completely forgotten I was standing there.

“Oh!”

Ana’s expression immediately softens.

She steps toward me, extending her hand with a warm, polite smile.

“I’m Anastasia.”

“I’m Anastasia,” she repeats softly, her hand still outstretched.

I take it, but my mind is spinning.

“Kelsea,” I reply, keeping my voice steady despite the storm building inside me.

I look between her and Xavier.

His jaw is still tense, his expression unreadable.

“Someone needs to tell me what’s going on.” My voice hardens. “Who is Christian to you? What happened?”

Anastasia takes a slow, unsteady breath.

For the first time, the composure she’s been holding together begins to c***k.

She gestures toward the cushioned chairs nearby, but neither of us sits.

“When the world fell apart… when everything first began, Christian and I were together.”

Her eyes drift toward the grand windows.

“I was pregnant.”

The room seems to grow colder.

Beside her, Xavier shifts slightly, his gaze settling on her with quiet concern.

“We were trying to survive,” she continues. “Searching for somewhere safe. Somewhere we could build a life.”

Her voice trembles.

“Then we were ambushed.”

I remain completely still.

“A rogue faction found us in the ruins south of here. There were too many of them.”

She swallows.

“Christian knew we couldn’t both escape.”

My chest tightens.

“He traded himself for my freedom.”

Xavier’s expression darkens.

“He made sure I got away,” Anastasia whispers. “He knew the baby and I wouldn’t survive if we stayed.”

Her fingers curl tightly together.

“I watched them surround him.”

She pauses.

“I ran.”

Tears gather in her eyes.

“I never stopped thinking about that moment. I was certain they had killed him.”

She looks back at me.

“For years, I believed Christian was dead.”

Her voice breaks.

“I believed he gave everything so our child could live.”

Silence fills the room.

Then she lets out a shaky breath, almost disbelieving.

“And now…”

Her eyes shine.

“He’s alive.”

My stomach twists.

Alive.

The word echoes in my mind.

Xavier finally steps forward.

“If Christian survived that night,” he says, his voice low, “then the man lying in our infirmary isn’t simply another survivor.”

His eyes settle on me.

“He’s someone carrying years of unanswered questions.”

I think back to the carriage.

The way Christian looked at Anastasia.

The way his hands trembled when he held her.

The way he had reached for me before they carried him away.

And suddenly, everything feels different.

Christian had secrets.

Big ones.

And somehow, I had walked straight into the middle of them.