MasukRILEY °❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:・ When the back doors opened, Noah and Seraphina looked like a complete fucking mess. Both of them were soaked to the bone with their hair plastered to their faces, clothes heavy and dripping as they shivered from the cold. But that wasn’t what stopped me cold. That wasn’t what made every thought in my head grind to a fucking halt. No. It was the way Noah was carrying her. Seraphina was in his arms, her head tucked against his neck, one of his hands cradling the back of her neck like he was terrified she might slip. Her gaze caught mine and held it, freezing the room so hard I couldn't process a single fucking word Noah was shouting over to James. It was like I was somehow underwater, right up until her eyes slowly started to slip shut. “Saraphina?” Noah called out when he noticed. Seeing her go under must have set off a total fire alarm in Noah because all the color drained straight out of his face, his eyes wide and completely frantic, wearing a look of p
SARAPHINA °❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:・ I was so cold. The rain had soaked through every layer I was wearing, and the night air bit straight into my bones. I shivered so hard my teeth chattered, my hands barely able to keep their grip on the back of his neck. I could hardly feel my fingers anymore. Noah seemed to notice and without breaking stride, he tightened his arms around me, pulling me closer against his chest like the extra pressure might somehow make me warmer. Honestly, it didn't, but I couldn't really blame him when he was just as soaked as I was; still, pressing up against his solid, warm chest was the only thing holding me together right then. As we walked for what felt like forever under a relentless rain, I occasionally heard him curse under his breath. Then headlights cut through the darkness ahead of us. Noah tensed up instantly. His grip on me shifted, one arm still supporting my weight while the other hand went to the gun at his side. He stopped walking as the car approac
“Ye…” I started but then thunder cracked across the sky and I flinched so hard I almost stumbled.My grip on his arm tightened instantly, fingers digging into the fabric of his jacket. I’ve always been terrified of storms. The sound of thunder, the way the sky goes dark, the feeling of being trapped under something bigger than me—it had always set something off deep in my chest. And right now, after everything, it felt ten times worse.Somewhere nearby, rain was probably falling hard. I could hear it moving through the trees, a heavy rushing sound getting closer by the second.I held onto him tighter, almost pressing against his side without meaning to.“You said they might come for me again,” I went on, voice shaking. “You can’t just leave me here to fend for myself. Look at me, I can barely walk. I don’t even know where the hell I am. And as you can probably guess by now, I don’t work for any organization. I’m not some trained agent or bounty hunter. I’m just… me. And I’m too invo
I opened my mouth, still not sure what the hell I was supposed to say, when a phone buzzed in the tall one’s pocket. He answered it without looking away from me.“Yeah.”A short pause. I could hear a low voice on the other end, but not the words.“Okay.”He cut the call and stood up slowly, still watching me.“They’ve gotten in,” he told the shorter man. “No point digging for answers anymore. Just kill her.”My blood ran cold.The shorter one frowned. “Seeing that Noah’s got her tied up here might mean she knows something valuable.”The tall one shook his head. “If that were the case, they would’ve already killed her.”Noah?What the fuck did they mean by NOAH keeping me here?It was James. James and Seraphina. They were the ones holding me so I wouldn’t be able to find Noah. Not the other way around. My mind scrambled, trying to make the pieces fit, but nothing did.Before I could even open my mouth to ask what the hell they were talking about, the shorter one sighed.“Okay then.”H
RILEY °❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:・ Hours Earlier ❁✿❀ I was so fucking pressed I thought I might actually piss myself right there in the chair. I’d been holding it for hours, shifting every few minutes, clenching hard, praying James would come back soon so I could beg him to untie me to use the bathroom. My bladder felt ready to burst and every small movement sent an ache through my lower stomach. Even with the zip ties biting into my wrists and ankles, my ankle throbbing from the jump, and my entire body hurting, the urgent need to pee was starting to outweigh it all. When I finally heard the door open, relief crashed through me so hard I almost cried. FINALLY. “You’re back,” I let out, my voice rough from disuse. “I need to go. Bad. Please—” But the footsteps were wrong. I frowned. There were two sets of them, both lighter and quieter. My heart suddenly started kicking hard against my ribs. Mr. James didn’t walk like that and his steps were heavier. Soon they stepped into the room. A
I stared at him in a daze. And it took me a long moment to realize the gunshots inside the house had stopped. The sudden silence was worse than the noise. “No,” I whispered. Then louder, panicked. “No, no, no—” I scrambled to my feet, slipping in the mud, heart racing so fast it hurt as I ran, stumbling toward the front door, bare feet sliding on the wet ground, the gun still clutched in one hand. I reached the door, yanked the door open— —and slammed straight into someone coming out. I stumbled backward, nearly falling, but a strong hand was fast enough to catch me by the waist just in time and pulled me upright. For a split second I was ready to fight my way out. But then I looked up. And… it was Noah. Rain-soaked, bloodied, breathing hard, but ALIVE. His dark eyes locked onto mine, wide with shock. He was still holding a gun in one hand, the other holding my waist tightly. “Saraphina, are you hurt? I heard gunsho—“ I didn’t let him finish and immediately threw myself a







