Rescued by The Enemy
1287 Words
Chapter 03
Rescued by The Enemy
Aurelia's POV
I ran until my lungs burned, until the sound of clapping and laughter was nothing but a ghost behind me.
Severally, I fell on the floor from the rejection pain and then crawled my way down the path.
I do not remember deciding to go home.
My feet simply carried me there, guided by habit and desperation, by the foolish hope that maybe, just maybe, there was still a corner of that house where I could curl up and break apart in peace.
My chest felt split open, grief pressing so hard it made my vision blur.
When I reached the house, I stumbled up the steps, my hands shaking as I pushed the door open.
And froze.
A man stood in the center of the room.
He was dressed richly, the kind of clothes only merchants or nobles wore, heavy fabric and polished boots, rings on his fingers that didn't look cheap at all.
His hair was gray and his face wrinkled with age.
“Who are you?" I asked shakily, stumbling back.
His smile was slow and assessing as he turned to me in a way that made my skin crawl.
He looked me up and down, his eyes lingering far too long at my breasts.
“You must be Aurelia,” he said pleasantly. “Your parents told me you were beautiful, but I never imagined it would be this much. Truly lovely, my dear.”
My stomach twisted.
“What do you want? My father isn't home."
He stepped closer and extended his hand. “My name is Tamos,” he said. “And I am your new husband.”
The words did not make sense at first. They floated past me, like it unreal, like a nightmare.
Then they finally made sense.
The conversation I overheard yesterday.
I shook my head violently as tears spilled down my face. “No,” I sobbed. “Please. I don’t want this. I don’t want to marry you. Please.”
He sighed. “Stop being a child,” he said sharply. “You are eighteen now. Old enough to make better decisions.”
“I said no,” I whispered, my voice breaking as I tried to step past him, reaching for the hallway.
He didn't let me get past him when he grabbed me.
Rough hands caught my arm and shoved me backward. I stumbled, barely catching myself before I fell.
Pain shot through my shoulder, adding to the emotional and physical pain of the rejection.
I looked to the side then and my heart dropped.
My things were outside.
My old bags all tossed carelessly onto the ground like trash.
“What is this?” I asked hoarsely.
Tamos rubbed his face. “I did not want our introduction to go like this,” he said. “But you are being difficult and rude.”
He reached into his coat and pulled out a folded paper, thrusting it toward me.
A receipt.
“They sold you,” he said plainly. “You belong to me now.”
The world tilted.
I shook so hard I thought I might collapse. Sold. Like an animal. Like nothing.
Before I could speak, three men stepped out from behind the house and moved toward me.
I couldn't just let this happen.
Without thinking, I turned and ran.
“Get her!" Tomas yelled, “bring that brat back!"
I did not look back. I ran straight for the forest, branches whipping at my face, my breath coming in sharp, painful gasps.
I could hear them behind me, boots pounding, voices shouting as they chased me through the trees.
Fear kept my legs moving even when what was left of my strength failed. My foot caught on a root and I fell hard, pain exploding through my knees and palms.
Immediately, a large hand grabbed at my hair, yanking me back.
“Gotta, b***h!"
But I struggled and kicked wildly, my heel connecting with his crotch.
The grip loosened just enough as he grunted in pain.
Taking that chance, I rolled, scrambled, pushed myself up and ran again.
This time, I didn't think before I crossed the Titanium Pack territory borders.
“Is she mad?” one of them shouted. “That’s the forbidden forest.”
“Come back here, girl! You won't survive in there."
“Even the strongest warriors don’t go in there,” another said.
That was exactly why I kept running.
I burst through the last line of trees and collapsed against a trunk, sliding down until I was sitting among dry leaves and dirt.
Finally, they stopped chasing and went back towards the pack.
My whole body shook as I pressed my face into my hands and cried.
I was so consumed by my grief and pain that I didn't hear the crunches of dry leaves when someone approached.
A hand clamped over my mouth suddenly, rough fingers digging into my skin as a voice whispered.
“Don’t make a sound,” he growled. “Or I’ll make this very painful.”
My heart slammed against my ribs.
Two more men stepped out of the shadows and all held me.
They dragged me down onto the forest floor as I struggled, sobbing helplessly.
“Please,” I begged. “Don’t hurt me. I just wanted to be far away. Someone was chasing me.”
One of them laughed. “You foolish little girl. You came into the Forest of Doom and thought you'd be safe?”
“Please, just let me go."
Another grabbed my dress, tearing the fabric swiftly. “We rule this place. And now we get to show you what it means to be f****d by rogues.”
Terror froze me. I knew then how much pain waited for me. How helpless I was.
But before they could act, there was a sudden loud growl that filled the forest.
All three men froze.
“Did you hear that?” one whispered.
“Show yourself, coward!” another shouted, forcing bravado into his voice.
Something dropped from the trees.
I saw a figure land on the floor right behind them. He was pale and his torso was naked, his long hair falling over broad shoulders. His face was beautiful in a terrifying way and he was finely muscled.
“Get away,” one of the rogues snarled. “The girl is ours.”
The stranger tilted his head slightly and smirked. “I don’t think the lady wants to belong to you.”
“We rule this forest,” the rogue spat. “Everything here belongs to us.”
“Let's teach this punk never to interrupt us!"
Then they all attacked.
I barely saw it happen. The strange pale moved faster than my eyes could follow, grabbing them, twisting, snapping bones like twigs.
Screams filled the air as bodies hit the ground.
The last man staggered back, shaking. “What are you?” he whispered. “You have the strength of ten thousand men.”
The stranger looked at him calmly and smirked. “They call me Prince of the Dark.”
Then he sank his teeth into the man’s neck.
Blood spilled and I screamed in terror.
I turned to run and tripped, falling straight into someone’s arms.
When I looked up, it was the same face from earlier.
But this one wore a dark singlet. He was just as tall, just as powerful. Just as pale.
The first one joined him and smiled down at me.
I could see his blood fangs as he purred.
“Hello, beautiful. You belong to us now.”
I screamed and the world went black.
- Writer
