Chapter 11

Kimble

His deep, lustrous fur shimmered under the moonlight, highlighting the powerful muscles beneath. I couldn’t tear my gaze from his piercing amber eyes that cut through the darkness with hypnotic intensity.

Standing tall and regal, with ears alert, he seemed to be constantly aware of his surroundings. If wolves were beautiful, then this one was the epitome of primal beauty and strength.

I lifted up the window and leaned on the ledge with folded arms. It was difficult for me to look away from him even though I knew wolves were ferocious creatures who could kill you in an instant. A low rumble emanated from his chest as he stared at me like I was his next meal. And then he peeled his lips back to show off his sharp canines, sending chills down my spine. I slammed the window shut, drew the curtains, and hurried back to my bed.

My thoughts were consumed by Aria’s proposal. I guess that was the best choice I had at the moment. There was no way Talon would free me. I was in a foreign land and didn’t know where to go or who to talk to. Everyone and everything were under Talon’s control.

In the stillness of the night, I tossed and turned in my bed. My thoughts were heavy, burdened by the choices that lay before me—choices that could alter my life and my fate. Talon was a tyrant. People under him lived under the iron fist of a tyrant ruler, a man whose cruelty seemed boundless. He ruled with fear, crushing dissent, and bent the will of his subjects until they had no spirit left to resist.

But not me. I still had a lot of defiance deep within me. Fight or flee. Though I couldn’t fight him.

If I fled, I could escape his reach, find refuge in some distant land where his influence couldn’t touch me. I could start over, perhaps live a life of quiet obscurity, free from his tyranny, on my own terms. But even that thought left a sour taste in my mouth.

Eventually sleep overtook my mind and I gave into its alluring pull. I jerked awake sometime during the night, sensing a warm presence near me, but there was no one. My room was shrouded in the usual darkness. Just my silly nightmares getting the better of me.

The next day when I went to clean Talon’s room, he wasn’t there, as usual, but Aria was in his bed. She stirred, looked at me, opened one eye and mumbled, “You again… Alpha Talon wants you to clean his bathroom.”

I avoided her for most of the time, but I didn’t rush my work because I wanted to talk to her. The bathroom was a mess, lotions and creams were scattered all around. He hadn’t taken a bath, yet all the fresh towels and other paraphernalia were in disarray. Gritting my teeth, I started tidying it all. When I finally emerged, I saw that Aria had woken up.

“Goddess!” she said in an irritated voice. “You took forever!”

“I’m sorry, but the place was a mess.”

She clenched her teeth, giving me a look of disgust, and walked past me to the bathroom.

“Aria,” I called her, disregarding her demeanor.

“Yes?” she asked tersely.

I took a ragged breath in. “I’m okay with you helping me run away.”

She paused and spun to look at me. A smile appeared on her lips. “Are you sure?”

I gulped. “I am. But how will you manage it? I’m not even allowed to leave this compound. Also, where will you send me? I’d like some details please.”

She chuckled, shaking her head. “You want to escape this town? I’ll help. I can promise you safe passage to a different town. Like I said, just remain hidden in that town for a month, and then you’re free to go anywhere.”

“Okay!” I breathed. It seemed like a good idea.

“Cool!” she chirped. “Get ready by 10 PM tonight. I’ll send someone, but please stay quiet about it, okay?”

I nodded vehemently, excitement surging through me.

Aria took a bath and got ready while humming ‘Hymn for the Weekend’ by Coldplay. She left, winking at me. “I’m going to arrange your escape!”

Quickly, I tidied the bedsheets and other stuff in the room. My hands were shaking with excitement as I opened the door to leave, but I slammed into a hard chest. “Ah!” I stumbled back. Steady hands prevented me from falling. I craned my neck to see Talon in front of me in nothing but long shorts.

Covered in sweat, his muscles were bulging. It was as if he had come back after an intense training session. Every muscle in his body was defined so well that my fingers itched to explore the contours and shadows they were forming. He stared down at me with feral intensity with his onyx eyes, like a predator. Time froze. Something inside me stirred, shaking my core. My throat became paper dry and I parted my lips with a soft sigh.

The tension between us was like a dance between fire and ice. I felt insanely drawn to him by an irresistible force, yet teetering on the brink of destruction. Perfect harmony between us was a delusion. How could intensity and restraint cohabit?

Rapidly becoming aware of my situation, I stepped back. “I—I’m sorry!” I muttered, tucking a strand of my hair behind my ear. Why had the temperature of the room suddenly increased? “I didn’t know you were coming, otherwise I would have gone earlier.”

No reply. He continued to stand in the doorway, blocking it with his muscular frame. Well, this would be the last I saw of him, so I tried to calm my frayed nerves. Memories of him stabbing Harry’s hand flooded my mind.

“I’d like to leave. My work here is done.”

“Have you eaten breakfast?”

His question caught me off guard. “Yes!”

He narrowed his eyes and then stepped aside just enough for me to squeeze out. And that’s what I did—squeezed my way out. In the process, my hands touched him. His muscles rippled where I touched him, leaping in response.

I walked slowly to the stairs in order to show I wasn’t affected, but as soon as I was out of his sight, I dashed to my room, ignoring the hunger pangs in my belly.

Throughout the remaining day, I stayed in my room and packed my little bag lightly. I didn’t have much and thought it was better to stay unburdened. Jackie called and asked how I was. She’d asked Alpha Talon if she could take me out once a week, but she didn’t say whether he’d responded.

10 PM couldn’t have come any slower. I was waiting on the sofa when I heard a soft knock. My jaw dropped to the floor when I opened the door. “Harry?” He looked like he could barely contain his anger.

“Shh!” he growled. “Aria sent me for you.”

“Oh! Aria sent you to help me get out?” I was surprised and guarded after what had happened in the kitchen.

“Are you coming with me or are you staying here?” he snapped.

“I don’t trust you!” I squeaked.

He clenched his teeth. “Fine. Go to hell!” He turned and quickly walked away.

When he was on the stairs, I shouted, “Wait!” I ran to him and said, “I have to talk to Aria.” Because I wanted to be sure she’d sent him.

He let out an exasperated sigh and took his phone out. He dialed Aria’s number and gave it to me. “A—Aria?”

“Why are you calling me?” she hissed. “Harry will take you to safety!” She disconnected the call and I was left with nothing but to trust my own intuition. I pursed my lips and wondered what other option I had. “Okay,” I breathed. “Where are we going?”

Without answering my question, Harry took out a small bottle of apple cider vinegar. “Sprinkle it over your body.”

“Why?” I asked, confused. It was then that my eyes went to the bandage on his hand. Guilt weighed heavily on me. Because of me, he’d got that injury, and now he was helping me.

“Just do what I say and don’t ask fucking questions!”

I sprinkled the liquid over me as I followed him out of the servants’ quarters. He guided me through the back of the manor toward the tree line where the forest began. “I’m not going inside that forest!” I complained, scared he might kill me.

“For Goddess’ sake, just follow me,” he grated. “We’ll follow the line of trees to the end of this compound.”

“Okay…” I was feeling so fucking unsure, but did I have a choice?

“Don’t worry, I won’t kill you,” he grated when I hesitated. “I’m loyal to Aria. If she’d asked me to kill you, I would have already.”

It took us twenty minutes to reach the end of the compound, where his car was waiting. We quickly got in the car and he sped away toward the highway. Four hours later, he stopped in front of a gated community where he showed some papers. As soon as the guards cleared him, he rolled his car in and stopped in front of a nice cottage. “This is where you’ll stay for the next month, okay?” he spoke for the first time since we started.

“Okay…”

He got out of the car and walked to the porch. I tightened the grip on my satchel as he knocked softly on the door. We must have waited for less than two minutes when the door opened and a tall, muscular man emerged.

Harry bowed to him and said, “Aria has sent her to you.” He handed him a letter.

The man gave me a once-over, and his lips lifted into a charming smile. Seriously, at this point, I was doubting myself for trusting Harry and Aria. This man looked all shades of wrong. But I was prepared to deal with him as I laid my hand over the hidden pocket of my backpack, where I had hidden the knife Josh gave me.

“It’s fine,” the man drawled. “Aria already told me about her.”

Harry bowed to him and left. He didn’t look in my direction even once before speeding away.

“Come in, Kimble,” the man said. “I’m Liam. Don’t worry, I won’t eat you.”

An old woman peeked from behind him. “Come in,” she chirped with a soft smile. “You can sleep in the room next to mine.”

Her words melted away all my apprehensions. Good people existed in the world.

I stepped into the house.