The night sits still. I lie awake beside Rhys, watching his chest rise and fall. The guilt burns through me like acid.
I can't silence my wolf anymore. My body hurts everywhere now, not just the scar. The mate bond pulls at my chest like a rope tied to my ribs, dragging me outside.
At dawn, I slip from bed. Rhys doesn't stir. I dress in dark clothing, wrap a cloak around my shoulders. My hands shake as I tie the clasp.
The village sleeps as I move through the shadows. The armory stands at the northern edge, a stone building with iron-banded doors. I approach carefully, checking for guards. Empty. Everyone's preparing for the execution, focused on the central square.
I pick the lock with a thin blade. The mechanism clicks. Inside, weapons line the walls. Swords, spears, bows. I ignore them all, searching for what I need.
The keys hang on hooks near the back wall. Dozens of them, different sizes and shapes. I scan the labels carved into the wood above each hook. Storage. Gates. Barracks. Prison.
My fingers close around the prison key. Heavy iron, cold in my palm. I pocket it and slip back outside.
The prison hut sits at the village edge. One guard stands outside. He straightens when he sees me approach.
"Luna?" His voice carries surprise. "You shouldn't be out here alone. It's not safe before sunrise."
"Elder Cael asked me to check on the prisoner." The lie comes smooth. "He wants to ensure he's alive for judgment."
The guard hesitates. "Alpha didn't mention—"
"Alpha is sleeping." I keep my voice level. "Open the door."
He swallows hard, then nods. His key scrapes in the lock. The door swings open.
Inside, the prisoner sits chained to the wall. His wrists bleed where iron has worn through skin. His head lifts the moment I enter. Those golden eyes lock onto mine.
"You shouldn't be here," he says.
"Neither should you."
I move fast, pulling the stolen key from my cloak. My hands shake so badly I nearly drop it. I kneel beside him, reaching for the shackles.
"What are you doing?" His voice stays low.
"Freeing you. You'll go north, through the pine glen. There's a creek that leads past our borders. Follow it and you're free."
"And you?"
"I'll return before they notice. No one has to know."
He watches me with those unreadable eyes. "You think they'll let you go unpunished when they find empty chains?"
I flinch. "They won't find out."
I jam the key into the first shackle. It clicks open. Metal scrapes against raw skin. He winces but doesn't make a sound.
Then the second shackle falls. Metal clangs against stone, too loud in the enclosed space.
Then—footsteps crunch outside.
"Luna?" The guard's voice carries confusion. "Elder Cael is here. He's asking for you."
I freeze. The prisoner's hand closes around my wrist.
"Hide," I whisper. "Let me handle this."
But the door swings open before I can stand. The guard steps inside, torch raised high. His eyes go wide when he sees the empty shackles hanging from the wall.
"Luna, what—"
The prisoner moves like lightning. One second he's crouched beside me, the next he's on the guard. His fist connects with the man's jaw. Bone cracks. The guard drops hard.
I stare, frozen in shock.
He grabs my wrist. "Now it's both of us."
"Wait—"
"Run!"
He yanks me through the door. Cold air hits my face. We sprint past the fallen guard, past the watchtower, toward the tree line. Shouts erupt behind us.
"The prisoner's escaped!"
"Sound the alarm!"
"Luna's with him!"
Horns blast through the dawn. Deep, resonating calls that wake the entire village. Dogs begin barking in the distance. My legs pump harder. Branches whip my face, drawing blood. His grip on my wrist never loosens.
We crash through the pine forest. Mist hangs thick between the trees, obscuring everything beyond ten feet. My lungs burn. Behind us, voices multiply. Metal clangs. Warriors arming themselves.
The creek appears ahead. Water glitters in the first rays of sunlight breaking through the canopy.
I skid to a stop, pulling against his grip. "This is where we part."
He turns to face me. Sweat drips down his temple. "You really think there's a way back after this?"
"I can make them understand. If I return now, if I explain I was trying to question you, trying to get information—"
"Ardena." His voice cuts through my panic. "You’re not one of them."
The words hit like a fist. My scar erupts in white-hot pain. Images flash behind my eyes. Fire consuming wooden buildings. Children screaming. Women running with infants in their arms. Warriors in Ironvale colors cutting them down. The crest painted in ash across burning walls.
I stagger, clutching my side. "What did you do to me?"
"Nothing. You're remembering what they tried to make you forget."
The horns blast again, closer now.
He catches my hand. "You can stay and die for their lie, or come with me and learn your real story."
I look back toward the village. Duty. Love. Rhys's face when he wakes and finds me gone. The wedding that bound me to him. The life I thought was mine.
The pain flares again.
I dive into the creek after him.
Cold water steals my breath. The current grabs us immediately, dragging us downstream with brutal force. Shouts fade behind us. My cloak tangles around my legs. I kick free, gasping for air, swallowing water.
The creek pulls us through rapids, over rocks that scrape skin from my arms and legs. I surface, choke on water, go under again. His hand finds mine in the chaos. He pulls me up, keeps me moving, won't let go even when the current tries to rip us apart.
We tumble downstream for what feels like hours. My body goes numb from cold. My muscles scream. Finally, the current slows. He drags us toward the bank, hauling me onto muddy ground with strength I didn't know he had left.
I collapse, gasping. Water streams from my hair, my clothes. Blood mixes with creek water on my arms, diluting to pink in the mud.
He sits beside me, breathing hard. Half-smiling, half-shaking. "Told you they'd find out."
I almost laugh. Breathless. Terrified. Free.
Above us, distant and fading, Ironvale's horns still cry. Search parties spreading out, trying to find which direction we ran.
I don't look back.