Claimed by the Enemy's Heir

Chapter Three: The Secret He Ran From

She woke up before he did which surprised her. She lay still for a moment watching him sleep with his back against the wall arms crossed. He looked like a future leader and more like a boy who used to fall asleep in the middle of a conversation. He would deny it the morning.

She stopped herself from thinking about it.

The fire had burned down to coals. Gray morning light peeked in around the edges of the shutter. For a second she forgot where she was. Then it all came back to her. The ravine, the smoke.

She remembered being twelve. He showed up at the edge of their training yard. He was very composed for a boy his age. Her father introduced him as someone sent to observe their packs defenses.

She didn't know what that meant back then. She just knew he was patient. He corrected her stance without making her feel stupid. He watched her run drills with attention that made her try harder.

She was thirteen when she beat him in a sparring match. He looked surprised.

She was sixteen when she went looking for him. Found an empty cabin.

"You're staring " Kieran said without opening his eyes.

"I'm assessing " she said using his term. "It's a family habit."

That got his eyes open. A small smile. Then disappeared. "Fair."

He checked the shutter, the door and the cold ash. He did it in a way that told her he wasn't used to sleeping

"They're close " he said quietly. "I can feel it in the air. The patrol moved through the ridge last night."

"How close?" she asked.

"Close enough that we don't light this fire again until dark."

Her stomach turned. It wasn't fear. It was the horror of being hunted.

"What happens if they find this cabin?" she asked.

"They don't know it exists " he said like it was a fact. "I built it off the registry. My father doesn't know it's here."

"Convenient " she said. "Having a hideout nobody knows about."

His jaw tightened. He looked at her like he'd finally decided something.

"I was sent to assess whether your bloodline was a threat " he said. "That's what the observation was. I was thirteen when my father told me what to watch for. I did it because thats what a Voss heir does."

She'd known this in a way. Hearing him say it was different.

". What did you report back?" she asked quietly.

"Nothing that should have gotten anyone killed " he said. His eyes didn't leave hers.

She didn't believe him.

"And what did you tell him?" she asked. "All those years. What did you tell him?"

His eyes didn't leave hers. "I told him you were dangerous. I never told him what the elders whispered about your bloodline. I never confirmed the prophecy was real."

A muscle worked in his jaw. "I was wrong about a lot of things."

She didn't let go. "That's not an answer " she said. Her hands curled into fists. "I asked why you left. Eleven days, Kieran. You don't get to tell me about thirteen-year- assignments and skip the part that actually matters."

He looked at her. Something in his face cracked. He looked like he had dread.

"Because the part that matters " he said slowly "is the part I still don't fully understand. I left because my father gave me an order I wouldn't follow. I know much. I know I refused it and I know I ran than do what he wanted."

The coals shifted. Outside a horn sounded across the ridge. A Voss patrol signal.

Kieran was on his feet. He reached for her. "Later. We need to move."

She wanted to argue.. The horn sounded again closer. Some old training instinct made the decision, for her.

She let him pull her up.