The Enemy’s Mate

The Hunt

At dawn, the birds stopped singing. She woke up to silence.

Aurelia opened her eyes and found Ryker’s hand lingering over her mouth, her heart slamming against her chest.

“Don’t make any sound,” his eyes said.

She could hear the footsteps, the crunch of boots on dead leaves, voices low and sharp. They were her father’s men. They had tracked her down. They knew she was somewhere nearby.

The cave seemed smaller now. She thought of her father’s castle—the cold stone room. The way his men bowed without looking at him. She had been watched all her life; now she was being hunted.

Boots snapped twigs; a horse stamped somewhere beyond the tree line.

“What happens to you if they find us?” His silence was answer enough.

“Princess Aurelia!” they shouted.

“Oh no.” Her heart pounded so fast.

“Your father is merciful. Come home!”

Ryker’s hand was still hovering over her mouth. His hand was warm; she could feel the tension vibrating through him. His body was a shield between her and the cave entrance. His breathing became slow. He didn’t look at her; his eyes were fixed on the opening of the cave, staring as though he could see every man. She wanted to apologize for bringing him into this mess, but sorry wouldn’t stop arrows.

“Your father is a lot of things,” Ryker whispered, “but he’s not merciful.”

“I know.”

The footsteps drew closer. She knew one of the voices. It was Damien’s, one of her father’s best trackers—a man who would kill Ryker without a second thought. Her mind raced.

Ryker had his dagger drawn, his body braced. He was ready to fight; he’d die before letting anyone take her away from him.

She crawled to the entrance of the cave and peered through the moss. She saw a dozen of her father’s men. She ran back, terrified.

She pointed to a crevice, a small opening at the back of the cave. He stared at her but didn’t move. She crawled to meet him. “Trust me. I grew up here. I know this place.”

She could remember her first time alone in the forest. She was eleven, with bruises on her wrists. Her father had sent her mother away to a neighboring kingdom. Aurelia knew her mother was never coming back. On the night of the send-off, she ran into the forest. Her mother used to take her walking there.

He nodded and moved toward the crevice. The crevice was small, but he squeezed himself through, scraping skin and reopening wounds. She watched as he disappeared into the dark.

She gathered her courage and walked to the entrance of the cave. She stepped out, gasping.

“Princess, are you hurt? Where is he? Where is the warlord?”

She ran to hug Damien. “He left me.”

Damien blinked. “What? The warlord abandoned you?”

“Yes,” she replied. “He didn’t want me. I’m just a princess. What use am I to an enemy?”

Damien studied her; she held her breath. If Damien stared at her too long, he would see the truth.

Damien’s face softened. He could see a little princess inside her and not a woman who chose a warlord over her kingdom.

“We’ll have you back home by midday.” Damien gestured to all the men. “Form up. We’re moving out.”

Aurelia’s heart skipped. If they took her, Ryker would be left alone in the crevice, and he would die there slowly. She needed more time.

“I need a moment, Damien. I’ve been running through the forest all night. I’m covered in mud. I look like a swamp creature. Let me have five minutes of privacy before you parade me back to my father.”

Damien frowned. “Princess—”

“Please.” She let her voice crack. He relented, giving her just five minutes.

She walked toward the tree line. Her mind raced through every secret path, every hidden place she had memorized as a child. She knew this forest better than anyone. She’d grown up in it, escaped to it when the castle walls felt like a cage.

She was three steps from the tree line when his hands wrapped around her wrists and hauled her behind a tree.

Ryker.

He hissed, “You are the worst liar I’ve ever met.”

“I was doing great!”

“Let me have five minutes of privacy,” he mimicked her badly.

“It worked, didn’t it?”

“Don’t dare sacrifice yourself for me again,” Ryker said.

“But you were supposed to stay hidden—”

“I’ll never abandon you—ever.”

She opened her mouth to argue. He kissed her—hard, desperate, silencing her.

“They’ll come looking in eight seconds.”

“Then we should be gone in five.” She grabbed his hand. “Follow me.”

“I know this forest.” Behind them, Damien’s voice rose. “Princess? Princess, where are you?”

Ryker pulled back. “On my count, we run. There’s a ravine fifty yards ahead. Deep. They’ll lose us in the dark of it.”

She nodded, breathless.

“Three, two, one. Run.”

Behind them, Damien shouted. Arrows flew. One flew past her ear. She could feel the wind of it.

They reached the ravine. It was a steep drop, mossy and dark.

“Jump,” she said.

“That’s a cliff—”

“That’s a ravine. There’s a ledge. Trust me.”

He grabbed her hand and jumped.

The fall was short and brutal. They landed in a heap at the bottom, bruised and gasping.

For some time, she didn’t know which way was up. Pain ran through her whole body. Ryker was breathing heavily beside her.

“You told me to trust you.”

“I did.”

“You,” he panted, “are a terrible liar.”

“I wasn’t lying.” She turned to look at him. “I would have done it. I would have let them take me.”

He stared at her. His grey eyes softened in a way she didn’t expect.

“Don’t ever do that again. It’s either we live together or we die together. Understand?”

“Yes,” she said, nodding.

They didn’t stop until they hit a creek. He pulled her onto the bank and hovered his hands around her. She was shaking. The wet leather of his clothing was cold against her skin, but his body was warm underneath.

“Now let’s go somewhere warm before you catch your death. I can’t lose you, Aurelia.”

She raised her head and looked at him—exhausted, terrified. A warlord who slaughtered armies was falling apart in her arms.

“I’m not going anywhere.”

“Then let’s go home. My home. Our home.”

She nodded.

For the first time, the word home didn’t mean castle.