Escape
1342 Words
Amara pov
The door closes.
Ad that's when I knew I had no time to waste I needed to escape. I needed to run far away
I cross the room barefoot, heart pounding, and pull the balcony doors open.
I climb.
My hands scrape against the wall. My dress tears but I don't stop.
When my feet hit the ground, I don’t look back.
I run. My lungs burn like fire, but I keep going because if I stop, I die.
The outer gates are close.
I reach them
And then I hear it.
Not footsteps.
Applause.
Slow and calmly
I freeze.
“Impressive,” a voice says behind me.Deadly familiar.
“You made it farther than most.”
I turn.
Prince Kael stands a few steps away, hands clasped behind his back like this is entertainment.
“You let me escape on purpose,” I whisper.
“Yes,” he agrees easily. “I wanted to see how far you’d run.”
My stomach drops.
“You tracked me,” I say.
He tilts his head. “No. I listened.”
He takes one step closer.
“Your heart has been screaming my name since you left the room.”
I back away. “Please. I won’t tell anyone. I swear it.”
He stops smiling.
In one blink, he’s in front of me.
His hand closes around my throat not crushing, not gentle.My feet lift slightly off the ground.
“You still think this is about you not saying anything” he says quietly.
Tears spill down my cheeks. I claw at his wrist. He doesn’t react.
“This is about ownership.”
He releases me suddenly. I collapse, gasping.
He crouches in front of me, forcing my chin up so I have to look at him.
“Do you know what happens to humans who defy lycan royalty?” he asks softly.
I shake my head.
“We erase their bloodlines,” he says. “Parents. Siblings. Anyone who ever shared their name.”
My breath shatters.
“But I won’t do that to you,” he continues, almost kindly. “Because you’re special.”
His thumb brushes away my tears.
“You’re mine.”
I sob. “You’re a monster.”
He smiles.
“Yes,” he agrees. “And you ran straight into my territory.”
He stands and snaps his fingers.
The guards appear instantly.
“Chain the gates,” he orders. “Double the watch. No one leaves tonight.”
Then he looks down at me one last time.
“You wanted to escape,” he says. “Now you understand something.”
I look up at him, shaking.
“There is no outside anymore.”
He turns away without another word.
And as they drag me back toward the palace, one truth settles deep in my bones:
He didn’t stop me because he was afraid I’d leave.
He stopped me because he wanted me to know I never could leave here..
They don’t take me back to my room.
They take me to his.
I realized it the moment the doors open.
The space is darker. Bigger. Colder. No softness. No silk. This room doesn’t feel like one that a person lives in.
It feels empty and cold
The guards release me and leave without a word.
The doors shut.
And he’s already in the room
Prince Kael stands near the window, back to me. He hasn’t removed his coat. He hasn’t loosened his posture.
He doesn’t look angry.
That’s worse.
“You ran,” he says calmly.
I don’t answer.
“You disobeyed me,” he continues, turning slowly. “And you embarrassed me.”
My hands curl into fists. “You murdered my fiancé and dragged me into this stupid nightmare.”
He went quiet just studying me with his silver eyes .
Then he walks toward me.
I back up instinctively until my legs hit the edge of his bed.
“Sit,” he orders.
“No.” I tried to sound not afraid even though I knew my heartbeat gave me away.
He stops right in front of me.
His gaze drops to my throat.
“You don’t refuse me twice,” he says quietly.
he takes a steps closer.
Until there is no space left between us.
My breath stutters.
I can feel the heat of him. The strength. The control. His presence presses into me like a wall, trapping me without a single hand raised.
“This,” he says softly, “is punishment.”
My pulse races. “You’re going to hurt me.”
“No.” His lips curve faintly. “I’m going to teach you.”
He lifts one hand and places it on the bed beside my hip, caging me in. The other comes up slowly and hooks under my chin.
I flinch.
He notices.
His thumb brushes my jaw, not gentle, not rough.
“You fear my hands,” he murmurs. “But you do not fear being close to me.”
“That’s not true,” I whisper.
“Liar.”
His face dips slightly. Not a kiss.
Just close enough that I could feel his breath across my mouth.
“You didn’t scream when I touched you in the garden,” he continues. “You didn’t scream when I dragged you from the ballroom. And you didn’t scream when I caught you running.”
My throat tightens.
“You froze,” he says. “Because some part of you understands what you are to me.”
I shake my head. “I don’t belong to you.”
His hand tightens under my chin.
“You ran,” he says again, voice low. “So now you stay.”
He presses his forehead to mine.
My body betrays me , my knees weaken, my heart races like it’s trying to escape my ribs.
He feels it all.
“Listen to yourself,” he murmurs. “Your body knows before your mind does.”
Tears sting my eyes. “I hate you.”
His lips brush the shell of my ear not a kiss. A warning.
“Good,” he says. “Hate keeps you alive.”
Then he does something worse than touching me.
He steps back.
He sits on the edge of the bed and pulls me down with him not onto his lap, not into his arms but between his knees, standing there, trapped by his presence.
“Stay,” he commands.
I tremble, every nerve screaming.
Minutes pass.
Nothing happens.
He doesn’t touch me again.
He doesn’t speak.
The power.
The helpless awareness of him.
Finally, he stands.
“You will sleep here tonight,” he says. “In my room.”
My eyes widen. “No”
“In the chair,” he adds coldly. “Where I can see you.”
He turns away, already done with me.
“If you run again,” he says without looking back, “I won’t chase you.”
Then he finishes calmly:
“I’ll break the part of you that believes escape is possible.”
He lies down.
The light goes out.
And I stand there in the dark, shaking, realizing the truth far more terrifying than any threat:
- Writer
