Chapter Five
1087 Words
Lingering Scents and Dangerous Thoughts
Damian lingered in his father's council chamber long after the formalities with his parents had ended.
His mother had been her usual self…overly affectionate and worrying about the bruises on his face and his injured rib as if he was still a pup. His father on the other hand had been quieter, looking sternly at him with what Damian couldn't decide if it was concern, perhaps, or calculation. The formal welcome home was over now, and all the expectations were finally lifted for the evening. But still, he was feeling strangled by something else entirely.
By the time he stepped into his private quarters and closed the heavy door behind him, the composure he showed before his parents vanished completely. He dropped onto the bed in exasperation, staring at nothing in particular. His wolf was circling inside him like a caged animal.
That girl.
The one with fire in her eyes and the scent that still clung to him no matter how hard he tried to push it away.
Liam had been too quick to call her a rogue. The logical part of Damian’s mind told him that the chances of Liam being right were actually very high…She had been dressed almost like a rogue, fought like one, and had appeared right in the middle of rogue infested territory. But then again, logic couldn’t explain the rest. It couldn’t explain the way she had stepped in between him and death. It couldn’t explain the fierce defiance in her eyes, not aimed at him, but at her own kind.
It could not even explain why his wolf, usually active and full of confidence, had gone completely still the moment her scent reached him.
Why had she saved him? What reason could a rogue possibly have to fight her own kind to protect him…a Mistfall heir? Rogues hated wolves like them, they killed them on sight during any confrontation, and he had been in the perfect position for that to happen.
And why, out of all the scents he had ever encountered in his life, did hers refuse to fade? He had thoroughly washed himself twice since returning, changed clothes, but he could still smell her.
It was driving him insane.
The more he thought about it, the deeper the obsession seemed to burrow into his heart. Her face kept on flashing inside his mind, and he didn't even mind that he did not even see her properly. Her movements had been so quick, and almost too fluid to follow. Even if she was like the rogue's, she wasn’t just some reckless rogue.
Damian’s heart tightened with resolve. He wasn’t going to let her slip away just like shadows, like it had never happened.
“I’m not letting this go,” he muttered to himself inside the quiet room. “I will find you.”
And deep down, his wolf growled in agreement.
…
On the other side of the border, far from Mistfall’s towering gates, Aria was safely back in her own room, but peace was just as elusive for her.
Unlike Mistfall's comfortable structured and organized lives, the rogues had an entirely different way of life. The walls of their houses were thinner, and the sounds of the households were more chaotic. Loud voices were yelling on the other side of her room, with her father's heavy climbing higher than the others. Senior rogue members barked at orders aggressively, and a thousand footsteps patted about as the others went about their businesses. But Aria could barely hear any of the commotion.
She was lying on her bed, clutching her blanket and staring at the roof.
Why?
Why had she done it?
She could still see his face as clearly as if he was standing in front of her right now. The vivid lines of his features, the cold fire in his eyes that had softened for the briefest moment when he looked at her. She could still feel the weight of her choice…the split second when she had impulsively stepped in to shield him against her own kind.
It was madness.
He was an enemy. Not just any enemy, but a Mistfall wolf. The very people she had been raised to hate, to fight without hesitation. If her father knew what she had done… if any of them knew…
Aria closed her eyes and let out a shaky breath. Her wolf was moving restlessly inside her, not with guilt, but with something far more dangerous…curiosity. The moment they had locked eyes, her wolf had gone surprisingly calm. There had been no warning growls, no instinct to attack. Instead, there had only been that magnetic pull…soft, but impossible to ignore.
It was wrong. It was infuriating.
And yet…
She wanted to know more. She wanted to understand why she had felt like that, why her heart had not seen danger in him, why she had felt no fear, and why instead she felt a strange sense of recognition.
The questions kept on coming, harder each time, and just as frustrating.
Who was he really? Why was he in rogue territory? And why, when she looked at him, did it feel like her wolf recognized something she couldn’t understand or explain?
Her fingers tightened on the blanket. She hated this feeling…this burning need to see him again, to speak to him, to find answers. But the more she tried to push it away, the stronger it became.
No matter how dangerous it was, no matter how reckless it seemed, she knew she couldn’t just sit here and let the mystery consume her from the inside out.
She wanted to go back…she had to.
Even if it meant risking crossing into Mistfall’s lands. Even if it meant lying to her father about where she was going. She had to see him again, had to look into his eyes and demand the truth.
Her wolf hummed in agreement, a low, eager sound that made her pulse quicken yet again.
“I’ll find you,” she whispered in a trembling voice. It was trembling from fear however, but from the thrill of the decision.
Outside, the wind changed direction, rattling the shutters against the wall. It was almost as if the forest beyond the borders had heard her promise and was already preparing for their paths to cross again.
Neither of them knew it, but the vow had been made on both sides.
And soon, the forest would not be the only thing standing between them.
…
- Writer
