Chapter 4:Run Away
866 Words
Chapter 4: Run Away
My body is the first to betray me.
The tangle of soft linen around my legs, the warm weight pressed against my side, the weird, steady breathing next to me—it all hits before my eyes even c***k open.
Then… the memory slams into me.
His lips. His hands. That fire in his eyes when he looked at me—not like I’m some broken thing, but like he wanted me. Not just tolerated or pitied. Wanted.
I jerk upright in the bed with my heart hammering out of my chest.
What the hell did I just do?
The cabin is quiet now. Outside, morning has begun to creep in. Cool light filters through the half-drawn curtains and birds chirp in the distance. It almost feels peaceful.
But inside me?
A storm.
I glance to my right. He's still asleep.
One arm flung lazy across where I was, bare chest rising slow under the blankets. Tattoos twist across his skin, mixing with scars on his chest and forearms that blend into something… striking. Beautiful, even.
My eyes stick a second too long.
No. Snap out of it.
I slide out of bed, wincing as pain buzzes through me. I don’t know what last night was, I don’t know what came over me, but I know one thing for sure:
It was a mistake.
A mistake that tasted like sweet salvation.
I spot my dress draped over a chair, still wrinkled from the night before. I start looking for my mask, only to remember I’d crushed it at the party last night.
…meaning Kade saw me. All of me. And still wanted me.
God, I've gotta stop thinking about it.
I get dressed in silence, every movement stiff and mechanical. My body aches even more, not just from the burden of pain, but from him. From how gently he’d held me. How fiercely he’d kissed me. How safe I felt.
Stop it, Elena.
It's not real. It was comfort… desperation. I needed something to hold onto last night, and I chose… him.
A complete stranger.
I reach the door and hesitate, glancing back one last time.
He’s still asleep, though a part of me thinks he knows I’m leaving and is letting me go anyway. There's something in his stillness that doesn't feel unconscious. It feels... aware.
I slip out the door and into the chill of the early morning air.
The forest’s damp, mist hanging like lazy fog between the trees. My senses kick in, scanning for trouble.
Just pine, wet earth—and then…
“Who the hell are you!”
Shit!
A very specific scent that doesn’t belong here.
Elite guards. They're the Lycan King's!
Footsteps pound from the north. I bolt into the trees, dodging trunks, crashing through brush.
“Stop right there!”
A male voice bellows harsh and commanding.
I sprint harder.
Branches slap my face, lungs screaming, but I’ve run worse. They’re not faster, but they know this path better than I do.
“She’s heading for the boundary. Corner her!”
“I see her. Cut her off!”
Do I have enough strength to shift? If I can, I'm sure I'll outrun them!
“Close in on her. Now!”
No time to think about it. I'll just have to risk it. My wolf claws at the edge of my skin, desperate to break free… and Iet her.
Bones shift, my muscles snap and realign, and pitch black fur tears through my skin like wildfire.
I hit the ground on four legs with my paws slamming into the dirt, and leap over a fallen log, snarling as I hear them close behind.
But barely four strides in, a dart whistles past my shoulder. Damn it. They’re trying to capture me, not kill me.
That makes it even worse! Because it means someone sent them.
My limbs are starting burn… my vision’s narrowing as well. I'm still reeling in pain, but in the midst of all of it, I push harder, breaking through the final tree line and into the clearing near the southern ridge…
…only for my paws to falter.
I didn't escape all of them!
Two more figures wait at the edge of the forest.
My vision tightens for a minute and rests on
… familiar faces?
Jason? Ava?
“Look who finally crawled out of her hole,” Ava says sweetly.
My body gives out, and I fall to the ground, collapsing underneath the pain and pressure. I've pushed myself to my very limit, and my body's finally given up.
But I'd rather pick these demons than the ones that chased me up here.
Jason stands beside Ava, arms folded and flanked by two White Lotus guards.
His gaze drags over me… disheveled, shaking, covered in bruises.
His lips curl.
“Didn’t take you long to move on, did it?”
I open my mouth, but nothing comes out.
Ava tilts her head. “You smell like him, you know. Whoever he was. It’s all over you.”
Ja
son doesn’t flinch. Just steps closer.
And the last thing I see before blacking out… is the jealousy flashing in his eyes.
- Writer
