Her Rise From The Ashes

CH4

ARIA'S POV.

I turned and followed Dante into the shadows of the trees.

We left Night Fang territory step by step.

I tried to keep up with Dante, but he walked fast, like a man on a mission. His long strides ate up the ground, and my legs ached trying to match his pace. My lungs burned, but he didn’t slow down.

He didn’t look back at me. Not once.

It was like he was waiting for me to speak first, to break the silence.

I stayed quiet. I had too many questions—where we were going, why he’d helped me, why Amber and Jared chose him to be used in their plan, what came next—but the way his shoulders stayed tense told me I wouldn’t like his answers.

Finally, a faint light appeared through the trees, headlights.

We stepped into a small clearing. Several dark cars were parked in a loose line, and men stood near them, some leaning on the hoods, others talking quietly.

The moment they saw Dante, they stopped talking. Every head turned toward him, and they dipped their heads in respect.

I didn’t need to ask to know these were his men.

Dante walked straight to the nearest car and opened the back door.

“Get in,” he said coldy.

I hesitated for only a second before sliding inside, taking the chains with me.

He got in beside me and shut the door. The engine started, and we rolled forward, leaving the clearing and heading back into the forest.

I leaned against the cold window, watching the shadows and trees blur past, my thoughts tangled together.

Jared’s voice kept echoing in my head. "We killed him... He was in the way...."

And then Amber. The smug look on her face. Like she’d finally won some long fight I hadn’t even known we were having.

I understood her hate. At least, I thought I did. She believed I had stolen Jared from her, even though she had ended things with him long before he asked me out. It didn’t matter that the truth was different. Amber had always believed whatever suited her.

But Jared? Why go to the extent of killing his own father for power? And why involve Blood Moon and Night Fang?

Even if they hated me enough to frame me, fine—I could believe that. But why go to such trouble? Why drag two whole packs into this?

I sighed and shook my head in disbelief.

The thought made my stomach twist.

I shifted in my seat. Dante still hadn’t said a word. He sat back, one arm resting on the door, and his eyes fixed ahead like the silence didn’t bother him.

I broke first. “Where are we going?”

His eyes flicked to me, then back to the front. “Blood Moon.”

I already knew that, but hearing it made me uneasy.

“And when we get there?” I asked. "What happens to me?"

“That depends on you,” he said coldy, his voice empty of emotions.

I frowned. “On me?”

“Yes.” His tone was flat.

"Whatever," I sighed. "I'm done."

"We'll see how much you really mean that." He said without looking at me.

“I meant it,” I shot back with a frown.

He gave a short, humorless chuckle. “You say that now. But words are cheap, Aria.”

Anger started to break through my numbness. “You think I’d go back? After what just happened?”

“I think,” Dante said slowly, “you let your emotions decide for you. People like that are unpredictable.”

I narrowed my eyes at him. “You don’t know me.”

“No,” he agreed. “But I’ve seen enough tonight to know you’re reckless.”

“Reckless?” I snapped. “You mean not rotting in a dungeon for something I didn’t do?”

“I mean running through the woods in the middle of the night with guards chasing you,” he shot back. “Making yourself a target when you could’ve stayed hidden.”

“You didn’t exactly drag me off the path gently,” I muttered.

He didn’t answer. His silence was annoying.

I turned back to the window and let the conversation die.

After a while, Dante spoke “Anymore questions?”

I hesitated, then asked, “Why help me? You don't even know me.”

His gaze met mine coldly. “Because you were useful.”

The bluntness stung more than I wanted to admit. First of all, I wasn't the person he thought I was. I wasn't the one feeding him information. And secondly I didn't appreciate him making me sound like a tool to be used. And I still had a lot of questions. Like how he knew my scent for example. Not to mention, what exactly he has against Night Fang. But for now I focused on the topic on ground.

“Useful,” I repeated. “That’s it?”

“That’s it,” he said simply, still not looking at me, not even a single glance.

I swallowed my reply. Maybe it was better not to expect anything from him, then he couldn’t let me down.

I kept thinking about Amber. About Jared. About how everything I knew had fallen apart in just hours.

I thought of my life, of my childhood home, and how none of it felt like mine anymore. I had no parents, the only sibling I had wished I didn't even exist. The alpha who had always been like a second father to me was gone too, and now, the mate I thought I was going to have had betrayed me.

But that was okay. I'll live.

At least, that’s what I told myself as the headlights cut through the dark, taking me toward whatever waited in Blood Moon.

Everything will be fine.