Cornered
1072 Words
The fire crackled in the dimly lit cabin, but Selene felt none of its warmth. She sat on the wooden bench, arms wrapped around herself, her mind still reeling from what had happened.
Kieran had found her.
After five years of carefully constructing a life without him, he had shattered her illusion of safety with just a look, a touch.
I have been looking for you for five years, Selene. Do you really think I’d let you go now?
His words haunted her.
Across the room, Ronan tossed a wet cloth onto the table, rolling his sore shoulder. “You were reckless,” he muttered. “Going out in broad daylight like that.”
Selene exhaled sharply, rubbing her temples. “I had no choice. We needed food.”
“You should’ve let me go instead.” His blue eyes burned with frustration. “Now he knows where to look. And we both know he won’t stop until he gets what he wants.”
Her stomach clenched. What he wants is me.
Ronan had always been blunt, but now his voice carried something else—concern, laced with something bitter.
“Selene, you need to decide. Either you keep running, or you fight.”
Fight?
She scoffed at the thought. Kieran was an Alpha. His power alone was enough to crush her, and that was without considering the undeniable pull of their bond.
“I can’t fight him,” she said. “I just need to disappear again.”
Ronan let out a dry laugh. “Right. Because that worked so well the first time.”
Selene clenched her fists. “I managed for five years.”
“And now it’s over,” he countered, standing from his chair. “You think he’ll just sit back and let you go? That man will tear this entire village apart if it means getting you back.”
Her throat tightened. She knew he was right. Kieran wasn’t just an Alpha—he was a hunter.
And she was the prey that had slipped through his fingers.
Selene swallowed, her voice barely above a whisper. “I won’t go back to him.”
Ronan studied her, then exhaled. “Then we need to get you out of here. Now.”
She looked at him sharply. “Tonight?”
“The longer we wait, the more dangerous this gets. I’d bet my life that Kieran has already stationed his wolves at every exit out of this village.”
Selene’s pulse quickened. “So, what do we do?”
Ronan smirked, cracking his knuckles. “We outsmart him.”
…
Kieran sat in the back of the tavern, fingers curled around the rim of his untouched drink.
He could still smell her.
Even now, hours after she had escaped him, her scent clung to his skin like a ghost he couldn’t shake.
He had waited five years for this moment.
And he had let her slip through his grasp—again.
His jaw ticked as he stared at the flickering candle on the table. His wolves were already scouring the village, eyes on every road, every possible escape route.
Selene wasn’t getting away this time.
She was his.
She had always been his.
A low growl rumbled in his chest as he recalled the way she had looked at him today—defiance and fear tangled together in those storm-gray eyes.
She had changed.
Once, she had been soft in his arms, laughing as he nuzzled into her neck. She had trusted him, loved him.
And then she had run.
She had ripped his soul in half.
“Alpha,” a voice interrupted his thoughts.
Kieran lifted his gaze to see one of his men standing at attention.
“We’ve locked down all known exits, but she’s still inside the village.”
Good.
He wasn’t in the mood to play this game much longer.
His patience had limits.
And Selene had reached them.
Kieran stood, his presence towering over the others in the dimly lit tavern. He was done waiting.
“Then it’s time to go hunting.”
…
Selene’s heart pounded as she crouched behind the crates in the alleyway, watching as Kieran’s men patrolled the streets.
Ronan was right. Every exit was covered.
The only way out was through the forest—and even that was dangerous.
But she had no choice.
Ronan glanced at her from the shadows. “Are you ready?”
She nodded, tightening the straps of the small satchel slung over her shoulder. She had taken only what she needed—clothes, food, a dagger.
Everything else was replaceable.
Freedom was not.
Ronan took a deep breath. “We go on my mark. Stick close and don’t stop. No matter what happens.”
Selene swallowed and gripped the dagger beneath her cloak.
Then, with a silent nod, they moved.
The Hunter Strikes
Kieran had expected Selene to wait, to hide like a cornered animal.
What he hadn’t expected was for her to run straight into the lion’s den.
He caught the scent first—her scent, laced with adrenaline, moving fast through the marketplace.
Then he saw her.
A shadow slipping through the stalls, too quick, too desperate.
A growl rumbled deep in his chest.
She was trying to escape him again.
Not this time.
Kieran moved, swift and precise, cutting through the alleyways like a knife through silk. The hunt had begun.
He saw Ronan first.
The traitor was leading her toward the western gate—a route he had left unguarded on purpose.
His lips curled into a smirk. Clever, little mate.
But not clever enough.
With a silent signal, his men fanned out, closing in.
And just as Selene reached the gate—
Kieran stepped into her path.
The moment their eyes met, she froze.
For a second, the world stopped.
Then she spun on her heel and ran the other way.
Kieran cursed, lunging forward. “Selene—”
A blur of movement cut him off.
Ronan.
The bastard slammed into him, buying Selene the time she needed to disappear into the trees.
By the time Kieran shoved him off and got to his feet, she was gone.
Again.
His chest heaved, rage curling in his veins.
His golden eyes burned as he watched the darkness swallow her whole.
A slow, predatory smile tugged at his lips.
Run all you want, little wolf.
You’ll never outrun me.
- Writer
