Chapter Seven: Hunted HeartsAria's POV
The forest was colder than before.
The trees whispered as we moved between them, like they knew we were being followed. Every snapped twig, every gust of wind through the leaves made my heart race.
Kael walked beside me, silent but alert. His hand stayed close to the dagger strapped to his hip one of the few things we'd taken from my grandmother before we left. Along with food, a map, and the warning:
"They'll come for you, Aria. But don't let fear slow your feet."
We hadn't even made it halfway to the eastern valley, and I could already feel them behind us. The hunters. Lucian wouldn't sit on his throne and mourn a runaway bride. He'd send his dogs. And they would come with silver and fire.
Still, I kept moving. For Kael. For us. For the truth in my blood that now burned brighter than fear.
"Are you okay?" he asked quietly, breaking the silence as we hiked up a ridge.
"I'm tired," I admitted. "But I'm not stopping."
He smiled a little. "You're stronger than I ever knew."
"You helped me remember how to be."
At the top of the ridge, we paused. I pulled out the map my grandmother gave me, the old parchment soft from use. We were close to a river that would lead us through the valley. Maybe two more days if we weren't caught first.
Suddenly, Kael's hand shot out, grabbing my arm.
"Down," he whispered.
We dropped to the ground behind a rock just as two riders appeared on the path below, their cloaks dark and lined with silver-threaded armor. They weren't scouts. They were elite.
Lucian's Shadow Guard.
I held my breath.
The riders paused, sniffing the air like wolves catching scent.
"She was here," one said. "I smell moon oil and lavender."
Lavender. My skin still held traces from my grandmother's blankets.
Damn it.
"They're heading east," the second guard muttered. "He'll want them alive. Especially her."
Kael tensed beside me.
Alive didn't mean safe. Alive meant dragged back in chains.
The riders turned and galloped off, following the wrong trail Kael must have masked our scent again. He was always three steps ahead.
We didn't speak until their hoofbeats faded into the distance.
"That was close," I whispered.
Kael nodded. "Too close. We need to move. And fast."
We followed the river as the sky darkened. The moon hung low behind the clouds, casting everything in a grayish glow. My legs screamed with every step, but I didn't stop.
Kael slowed his pace for me. Always watching. Always protecting.
"You don't have to shield me from everything," I told him as we crossed a shallow stream.
"I'm not," he said. "But I won't let them take you again."
"They won't."
I stopped walking and turned to face him. Water rushed around our ankles, cold and clean.
"I'm not that girl they tried to marry off," I said. "I'm not afraid to fight."
His eyes searched mine, something heavy in his gaze.
"I know," he said. "But if they hurt you"
"They already did," I cut in. "And I survived. Now I want to live."
He stepped closer, brushing his fingers down my cheek.
"I just got you," he whispered. "I don't want to lose you."
"You won't."
I kissed him first this time.
Not because I needed reassurance.
But because I needed to remind us both: we were still here. Still fighting. Still ours.
By nightfall, we found shelter in an old hunter's cabin abandoned, half-buried under ivy and roots. It was small, just four walls and a sagging roof, but it was dry and hidden.
Kael built a fire. I curled into the corner with the map, running my finger along the path toward the eastern valley.
"Do you think the people there will help us?" I asked.
"They've lived outside the pack's control for years," he said. "If anyone understands what we're doing, it's them."
He sat beside me, pulling a blanket around us both.
I looked at him, really looked. His face was bruised, lips chapped, dark circles under his eyes but I had never seen him look more beautiful.
"Do you regret it?" I asked. "Choosing me. Running."
He shook his head without hesitation. "Never."
I leaned into him.
"They'll never stop coming, Kael. As long as Lucian breathes… we'll be hunted."
"I know," he said softly. "But I'd rather run with you every day than live a lifetime beside someone I don't love."
I closed my eyes and let his words settle in my chest.
Love doesn't ask for permission. It doesn't wait for perfect. It simply chooses.
And we had chosen.
I woke up to the smell of smoke.
Not from our fire.
From outside.
Kael was already on his feet, sword drawn. "They found us."
Flames flickered through the cracks in the wooden walls. Smoke poured in through the door.
"They set the cabin on fire to trap us," he growled. "We need to move. Now."
I grabbed the map and the bag. Kael kicked open the back door, but two shadows loomed in the trees guards, cloaked and armed.
"Aria, run!" Kael shouted.
"No"
"I'll catch up. Go!"
I bolted through the trees, heart pounding, smoke trailing behind me. I didn't look back. I couldn't. Every part of me screamed to turn around, to make sure he was okay but I trusted him.
I just had to get to the river.
The moon broke through the clouds as I reached the water. I slid down the slope, boots slipping on the wet dirt, and dove into the freezing current just as another torch was raised behind me.
The cold hit like knives, but I swam hard, gasping as I reached the far bank. I turned, ready to scream
But Kael burst through the trees a second later, blood on his shoulder, eyes wild.
He saw me.
Ran.
And jumped into the river.
He reached me just as my legs gave out.
"I told you," he panted, lifting me into his arms, "I'd always find you."
I pressed my face into his neck.
"They won't stop," I whispered.
"Then neither will we."
We disappeared into the woods again wet, cold, wounded.
But together.
And still free.