CHAPTER 5: INTO THE SHADOWS

ROSELYN’S POV

The silver light disappeared as suddenly as it had come. My body crumpled to the floor. Every muscle ached as though I had been torn apart and stitched back together. For several long seconds, all I could hear was my own breathing. Then the sounds of battle rushed back. Steel clashed against steel. The cottage walls shook. Someone screamed.

I forced my eyes open. The pendant lay against my chest, its glow now so faint that I wondered if I had imagined it.

“Roselyn!” Roland’s voice cut through the chaos.

I pushed myself onto my elbows just in time to see him block a vicious strike with his silver sword. Sparks burst into the air as the glowing runes along the blade flared brightly. The three masked assassins surrounded him from different directions. He was outnumbered, Yet he refused to retreat.

The scarred leader smiled beneath his mask.

“She’s waking up,” he said. “You can’t hide her anymore.” Roland’s face hardened.

“As long as I breathe… you’ll never touch her.”

The assassin laughed. “You’ve grown old.”

“Old enough to kill fools.” Their swords collided again.

The force of the impact sent a gust of wind through the cottage, knocking chairs against the walls.

I struggled to stand. My legs trembled beneath me. Everything around me spun.

“Roland…” He glanced toward me.

His expression changed instantly. “Run!”

“I can’t leave you!”

“You can.” Another assassin lunged toward him.

Roland twisted aside and drove his shoulder into the attacker’s chest before kicking him backward.

The scarred man seized the opening.

His black blade slashed across Roland’s arm.

Blood splattered onto the wooden floor.

“Roland!” I took a step toward him.

“No!” His voice thundered through the room. “Get out!”

For the first time since I had known him… I heard fear. Not fear for himself. Fear for me.

The pendant around my neck suddenly grew warm again. A strange pulse spread through my chest. One of the assassins stopped fighting. His eyes locked onto the pendant.

“There! The relic has bonded with her!”

The three men turned toward me at once. My heartbeat quickened. Their murderous intent crashed over me like a wave. I couldn’t move.

The scarred leader slowly pointed his sword at me.

“Take the girl alive.”

The other two rushed forward but Before they could reach me, Roland stepped between us. His silver blade flashed. The room exploded with light.

The assassins staggered backward, shielding their eyes.

“Roselyn!” Roland shouted. “The back door!”

I finally moved. Tears blurred my vision as I stumbled toward the rear of the cottage. Every instinct screamed at me to stay. To help him.

But another part of me knew I would only slow him down. I threw open the back door and ran into the darkness. Branches whipped across my face as I raced through the forest. I had never run this fast before. Behind me, the sounds of battle grew fainter.

Then… A terrible explosion echoed through the trees.

The ground beneath my feet trembled. I stopped. My heart pounded. “Roland…”

Smoke rose above the treetops where our cottage stood. I took one step back, Then another, I couldn’t leave him. I turned to run back— A strong hand suddenly covered my mouth. I screamed against the stranger’s grip.

“Quiet.” The voice was low but firm.

“If you want Roland’s sacrifice to mean something…you’ll stop struggling.” My eyes widened.

The stranger wore a dark hood that concealed most of his face. Only a pair of piercing blue eyes met mine. He slowly removed his hand.

“Who are you?” I whispered.

Instead of answering, he looked toward the smoke rising above the trees.

“They’ve already sent more hunters.” My blood ran cold. “What?”

“They won’t stop until they find you.”

I backed away. “How do you know that?”

The stranger looked at me for a long moment before speaking.

“Because… I’ve been searching for you for nineteen years.”

Before I could ask another question…

A chorus of wolf howls echoed through Oakridge Forest. Not one, Not two. Dozens.

The hunters were closing in.