Chapter 2— On the rogues path

Aria's POV

My captor was still riding crazily, swerving and avoiding bumps as we escaped, no he escaped. I could still hear the Hounds chasing after us. My father must have been really mad at the atrocity committed.

And who knew the order he might have given.

The Hounds were after us, running at impossible speed in their wolf form but my captors were as good on their bikes as they were good in their full form.

He was weaving through the forest roads with coordination —like someone who knew these roads well enough. His crew, I suppose, no one was driving without a helmet on, followed after him with the same precision and control while fighting off wolves that came too close.

This seemed like some planned, coordinated military precision event. The way they stayed together like a pack would, driving and fighting.

But who would coordinate an attack on Alpha Theron, my father? Who was both brave and stupid enough to kidnap me?

My father was ruthless, he was well known in the area

I held my breath as we maneuvered another rocky road and finally came to a flat sandy ground.

He took a sharp turn, the bike leaning dangerously to the side.

This was it. This was my chance.

I threw myself sideways, almost succeeding in jumping off. Somehow he managed to catch me with one arm and the bike swerved dangerously, the screeching tires loud and almost deafening.

He growled and that was when I noticed he had half shifted to be able to maintain that insane amount of control.

“Alpha, are you okay?” One of the bikers said as he drove next to him.

He nodded and the biker drove further away.

“Try that again and I'd tie you to the bike”, he said.

“You wouldn't dare”

He chuckled, “You've got way more fight than I expected”.

One of the royal guards bounded next to us and leaped up to attack him. It was as fast as lightning, he brought out a pistol, aimed at the heart and I heard a couple of shots ring out.

Sweet Mary.

The wolf yelped mid-air, crashing into the dirt behind us in a spray of blood and dust. Silver bullets. The only thing that could drop a wolf that fast.

I stared at the fallen guard, my stomach twisting. I'd seen violence before—my father's compound wasn't exactly peaceful—but this was different. Raw and brutal.

And I'd just watched it happen while pressed against my kidnapper's chest.

"Eyes front, Princess," he barked, swerving around a massive tree root.

Another wolf came from my side, jaws snapping. I screamed before I could stop myself—a warning, not for me, but for him.

He reacted instantly, the bike tilting as he fired past my shoulder. The shot was so close I felt the heat from the barrel. The wolf fell away, whimpering.

"Didn't think you'd warn me," he said, his voice laced with laughter and sarcasm undertones.

"I don't want to die in the crash," I shot back, my voice shaking.

His laugh was low and dangerous. “Keep telling yourself that."

We hit a river—I didn't even see it coming. The bike plunged into shallow water, engine roaring as sprays of water soaked us both. My ruined dress clung to my body, the silver fabric plastered to my skin

I bit down on a scream.

The wolves couldn't follow through water—the scent trail would be broken. Smart. Whoever this man was, he knew how to disappear.

We emerged on the opposite bank, and the other bikes regrouped around us like a pack closing ranks. One rider pulled up alongside—a woman with wild dark hair whipping from beneath her helmet.

"She giving you trouble, Prez?" the woman called over the engine noise as she removed her helmet.

Prez.

President. He was the Alpha of this pack.

"Nothing I can't handle, Mika," he replied.

The woman, Mika—glanced at me, and I saw something flicker in her eyes. Not pity exactly, but... recognition? Maybe understanding?

Then she took off, taking point with two other riders.

We rode for what felt like hours but was probably only twenty minutes. My legs ached from gripping the bike, my arms burned from holding onto him, and the silver burns from my chains earlier on my wrists throbbed

Finally, the bikes slowed. We pulled up to what looked like an abandoned warehouse—it looked like the kind of place humans would never venture near and wolves would never claim as territory.

Perfect hiding spot.

He killed the engine. The sudden silence was deafening, broken only by my ragged breathing.

The other bikes circled around us, engines cutting out one by one. I counted them. Fifteen riders. Fifteen rogues who'd just attacked the most powerful Alpha in the territory.

My captor dismounted smoothly, his movements controlled despite the insane chase we'd just survived. Then he reached for me.

I flinched back instinctively.

He paused, something crossing his face too quickly to read. Then his hands closed around my waist and he lifted me off the bike like I weighed nothing.

My legs nearly gave out when my feet hit the ground. The adrenaline was crashing hard, leaving me shaking and dizzy.

He still hadn't removed his helmet. None of them had.

I was surrounded by masked riders, their leather cuts adorned with patches I couldn't make out in the dim light. The wolf in me—buried so deep I'd almost forgotten she existed—stirred uneasily.

Danger, she whispered. Alpha, he's powerful.

I shoved her back down. My wolf had never been any help before. She wasn't going to start now.

"Who are you?" I demanded, hating how my voice cracked. "What do you want?"

The riders shifted, closing in slightly. Not threatening, exactly, but definitely not friendly.

My captor stood perfectly still for a moment. Then, slowly, deliberately, he reached up and unclipped his helmet.

He pulled it off.

His dark hair, slightly too long, fell across his forehead. His face had sharp angles yet still managed to look like it was what his beauty needed, a scar cutting through his left eyebrow, another along his jaw. His eyes were grey—not like the soft grey of clouds, but like steel

And I knew those eyes.

My breath caught in my throat. No. It wasn't possible. He was dead. They were all dead. The massacre ten years ago—

"No," I whispered. "You're dead. You're supposed to be—"

His smile was cruel and kinda mocking.

"Disappointed, Princess?"

I felt the world tilt sideways.