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CHAPTER SIX

Penulis: Beauty Cin
last update Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-10-07 09:53:32

~ RAE’S POV ~

The night was cruel.

Cold wind slapped against my skin as the guards shoved me through the border, the silver cuffs biting deeper with every step. I stumbled, my knees hitting the ground, the dirt grinding against my skin. The mark on my arm still burned like fire, the veins pulsing with heat that refused to fade.

“Run if you want,” one of them sneered. “The rogues will catch you soon enough.”

Their laughter cut through the silence. Then the sound of footsteps faded. The gates slammed shut behind me.

And just like that… I was alone.

Banished and Branded.

I pressed my forehead into the cold dirt, my chest heaving. My body shook violently, my breath shallow and sharp. The world spinning. I wanted to scream, but no sound came out. My throat was raw, torn apart from earlier cries.

I stayed there for a long time, on my knees. On the ground, until the howls started.

It was low and distant at first. Then it got louder, and closer.

The rogues had caught my scent.

Panic slammed i
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  • THE MARKED BOUNTY: Betrayed By My Mate    CHAPTER FORTY

    ~ DAMON’S POV ~The wind had changed again. It carried the smell of snow and wood smoke, sharp enough to make your chest ache when you breathed too deep. Winter was coming fast, faster than anyone here had planned for.I stood near the edge of the half-built wall, my hands raw from lifting stones. Around me, the villagers worked in silence, their movements slow but steady. Every hammer strike echoed through the valley.Jax dropped a pile of timber beside me. “You ever notice how winter always feels like it’s watching us?”I smiled faintly. “That’s because it is.”He grinned. “I knew you’d say something grim like that.”“It’s not grim. It’s true.”He looked up at the sky. The clouds were pale gray, heavy. “You think we’ll get snow tonight?”“Maybe,” I said. “You ready for it?”He snorted. “I’ve been ready for worse. Remember the frost at Iron Hollow?”“I try not to.”He laughed, shaking his head. “You’ve gotten soft.”“Maybe I’ve just learned when to rest.”He raised an eyebrow. “Sinc

  • THE MARKED BOUNTY: Betrayed By My Mate    CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

    ~ RAE’S POV ~Mara stood beside me, wrapped in a heavy coat. “I told you it would snow before the month ended,” she said, her breath forming clouds in the air.“You also said it wouldn’t stick,” I said, smiling.She shrugged. “I was half right.”Kira called from across the yard, “You two done admiring the weather? We’ve got work!”Mara groaned. “She’s never satisfied.”“She’s right, though,” I said. “We need to check the storage. The food won’t last long if the cold keeps up.”We headed toward the storehouse together. Inside, the air smelled of grain and dry herbs. I ran my hands over the sacks stacked against the wall. “We’ll have to ration carefully.”Mara frowned. “You worry too much.”“Someone has to,” I said. “Kira can’t do everything.”Kira entered behind us, carrying a small lantern. “I heard that.”I smiled. “Then you agree with me.”She chuckled. “You’ve been running this place more than I have lately.”“That’s not true,” I said quickly.“It is,” Mara said. “People ask you be

  • THE MARKED BOUNTY: Betrayed By My Mate    CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT

    ~ DAMON’S POV ~The borderlands looked different than I remembered. Once, they were filled with soldiers, fire, and fear. Now there were only empty fields, half-broken houses, and people trying to start again.Jax and I had been here for nearly a month. Each day was the same, rebuilding, carrying wood, mending walls. It was slow work, but steady. The kind of work that left your hands sore and your head quiet.That quiet was something I hadn’t felt in years.We reached the edge of the settlement just after sunrise. The air was cold enough to sting. Smoke curled from a few chimneys, and the smell of wet earth filled the morning.Jax was already ahead of me, hammer in hand. “You’re late,” he said.“I was checking the eastern wall,” I said. “It needs new support beams.”He smirked. “Everything needs new support beams. Welcome to the border.”I smiled faintly. “You complain too much.”He shrugged. “Someone has to balance your new attitude.”“My what?”He grinned. “This calm, humble thing

  • THE MARKED BOUNTY: Betrayed By My Mate    CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

    ~ RAE’S POV ~The days in North Ridge started to blend together in the best way. Morning light through the window, the smell of firewood, Kira’s voice calling out tasks before breakfast. I had begun to know the rhythm of the place, who woke first, who needed help with the water, who could be trusted to smile even on bad days.Mara always grumbled when Kira sent us out before sunrise. “You’d think she’d give the new ones a chance to sleep in,” she said one morning as we carried buckets from the well.“She treats everyone the same,” I said. “That’s fair.”“Fair isn’t warm,” Mara muttered.I laughed softly. “You’ll survive.”She shot me a look but smiled anyway. “You sound like her now.”“Maybe that’s not a bad thing.”The sun was just starting to climb. The mist from the river drifted through the trees, glowing in the light. It reminded me of another river, one farther south, one I had left behind. But the memory didn’t sting like before. It felt distant, like something that had happene

  • THE MARKED BOUNTY: Betrayed By My Mate    CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

    ~ DAMON’S POV ~The walls of the southern keep rose out of the mist like they had never changed. Gray stone, tall towers, flags hanging heavy in the still air. I had seen them a thousand times before, but never like this. Never as a man walking toward his own judgment.Jax walked beside me, his steps slower than usual. He glanced at the guards by the gate. “They remember you,” he said quietly.“I’m sure they do.”“Think they’ll let us in?”“They have to,” I said. “They’ve been waiting for this.”Two guards stepped forward as we approached. One of them lifted his spear slightly. “State your name.”“Damon Vale,” I said.The guard’s eyes widened. For a moment, he didn’t move. Then he turned to the other man. “Go. Tell the council. Now.”The other guard ran inside. The first one looked back at me, uncertain. “You’re supposed to be gone.”“I was,” I said. “Now I’m back.”He hesitated. “Why?”“To finish what I started.”The guard’s expression shifted. He stepped aside, motioning toward the

  • THE MARKED BOUNTY: Betrayed By My Mate    CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

    ~ RAE’S POV ~By the time we reached the ridge, the air had changed. It was colder here, sharper, the kind that cut through your clothes and settled in your chest. The path wound between gray rocks and patches of pine, opening suddenly to a valley below.Mara stopped and shaded her eyes. “There it is,” she said.“That’s the village?” I asked.She nodded. “North Ridge. Old trade route. Used to be richer before the border closed.”I pulled my cloak tighter. “It looks tired.”“Then you’ll fit right in,” she said with a small grin.I almost smiled. “Let’s go.”We followed the slope down, our boots slipping in the loose soil. The closer we got, the more signs of life appeared — chickens scratching near the fences, smoke from ovens, voices carried on the cold air.When we reached the first house, a woman came out carrying a bucket of water. She stopped when she saw us. Her eyes were wary but not unfriendly.“Travelers?” she asked.“Yes,” I said. “We’ve been on the road a while.”“From where

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