Chapter Six.

He didn’t say a word.

Riven stormed through the palace halls with Raya in his arms, her body limp against his chest. The weight of what had happened still clung to the air like mist—her scream, the rogue’s collapse, the scent of blood, the way her eyes had gone wide with something he couldn’t place.

Not fear.

Something deeper.

Something dangerous.

The guards parted before them as he passed, his aura flaring with barely restrained rage. Her chambers were just ahead. His boots slammed the stone floor with each step, echoing his fury with every stride.

When he reached the door, he didn’t bother knocking. He kicked it open and carried her inside, then dropped her unceremoniously onto the bed.

She bounced slightly, then sat up, breath catching as she met his eyes.

“You didn’t have to carry me like I’m some broken thing,” she snapped.

“You weren’t walking,” he growled.

“I was thinking.”

“Thinking?” He turned sharply, pacing. “You call what you did in that forest thinking? Running out there alone, unarmed? And the fact that you shifted back…what if he harmed you?”

“I wasn’t alone.”

That stopped him.

He turned to face her slowly. “What did you say?”

“I had control of the situation.”

“No, Luna,” he said, voice rising. “You didn’t. That thing—he could’ve ripped you apart.”

“But he didn’t!” she shouted, rising from the bed. “And you didn’t see what I saw.”

“What? What did you see?” he demanded, stepping closer. “Because from where I stood, I saw a feral rogue nearly kill you!”

She exhaled sharply, clenching her fists. “You don’t get to do this. You don’t get to act like you care when all you see is risk.”

His jaw tightened.

“You think I don’t care?” His voice dropped, lethal and low. “You think I dragged you back here because of protocol? You could’ve died out there, Luna. And you’re acting like it was nothing.”

“I’m not some helpless creature, Riven.”

“No. But you’re still mine to protect.” His voice broke then, just for a moment. “You’re the Queen. The only thing standing between this kingdom and collapse. You don’t get to gamble with your life.”

His hands went to her shoulders.

Her breath hitched. The contact was brief—but blistering. He stared into her eyes, his gaze hard, searching, like he was trying to see past the storm she was hiding behind.

She swallowed hard. “Let me go.”

“No.”

“Riven—”

“Not until you listen.”

He pushed her back—just enough to press her against the wall, his body caging hers in a way that wasn’t cruel or forceful, just... desperate.

His hands braced on either side of her head.

“The poison is still spreading,” he said. “Two more villages reported symptoms this morning.”

She blinked. “I know.”

“But what you don’t know—what I haven’t told you—is that the rogue…” He looked down, then back at her. “He’s the only one who’s survived exposure. The river he was found in—three others died just touching that water. He came out of it breathing.”

Her lips parted, a tremor running through her.

“You’re saying…”

“He’s the antidote,” Riven said. “Or something in him is. And until we understand how, he’s the most valuable thing we’ve got.”

Raya stared at him, every breath of his brushing her skin now, every word vibrating through her ribs.

“You’re sure?”

“I am.”

Their faces were inches apart now. The air between them was molten. He stared at her like he was trying to read a map across her skin.

“I thought I lost you out there,” he murmured, and it wasn’t a confession. It was a fracture.

Her throat worked around the lump forming there, but no sound came out.

“For the last time Riven stop acting like you care!”.

Riven didn't break his gaze,instead it softened which made Raya's pulse quicken.

“I get the fact that your father died and abandoned you,and you didn't get that parental care from your mother either but that doesn't mean the people around don't care.”

“Raya” he called, Her name left his lips like a secret– low, warm, and unguarded.

Just that. But it curled around her spine like a touch, soft and burning.

She’d heard his voice a thousand times, but whenever he called her by her name,she folds.

And god's help her — it unraveled something deep inside.

He didn’t touch her beyond that cage of arms. Didn’t kiss her. Didn’t move closer.

But his stare stripped her bare.

And she didn’t look away.

Something passed between them—an ache. The sharp edge of longing dulled by years of restraint and loyalty and duty. The storm in his eyes met the wildfire in hers, and neither blinked.

Time slowed.

The scent of him—wolf musk and cedar and battle—wrapped around her. Her pulse drummed in her ears. She wanted to speak, to push him back, to pull him closer, to do something, anything, but all she could do was feel.

And he felt it too.

She saw it in his breath—just slightly faster.

She saw it in the way his gaze dropped to her lips... but didn’t move.

Didn’t take.

Didn’t dare.

Then—a knock.

Sharp. Final.

Riven pulled back instantly, face shuttered.

“My Queen.” A voice from the other side of the door. “He’s awake.”

The rogue.

Raya stepped away from the wall, her pulse still echoing in her fingertips.

“Prepare the chamber,” she said, without looking at Riven. “I’ll be there shortly.”

He nodded once and left.

And the silence he left behind was louder than any scream.