~Hunter
I stare at the ceiling, jaw tightly clenched.This went wrong. So terribly wrong.I’m stuck here, at the mercy of a ditzy girl in the home of others related to the Alpha. There is someone that can’t know where I am, and the longer I am here, the more at risk I am of being hunted down again.I feel as though I’m just sitting, waiting for him to show up.The moment I’m healed, I’m out of here, but not before killing the Alpha.I don't know this Alpha, but I know that they will happily hand me over to my pursuers. And because I'm injured, I won't be able to escape him either...The bedroom door opening has me sitting up.It’s him…Kaan.The hunting attire he was once wearing is gone, replaced by a neatly pressed tunic. He looks more like an Alpha, with his deep brown curls neatly placed, his skin smooth and unmarred.It’s the hidden muscle I noted beneath his clothing that deceived me into thinking he was more than a royal."Come any closer and I kill you,” I warn, pressing my back into the wood-carved headboard.He stalks in, thumb playing with a silver ring on his index finger. His sharp green eyes survey me, likely not impressed by my bed-ridden state.I’m more concerned for him finishing me off than terrible I currently look."Don't be so dramatic," he mutters, looking around the room distastefully.By the way his nose scrunches up, he isn't impressed by the cloying smell in here coming from all the wilting flowers. To be fair, neither am I."You shot me. You're the reason I'm stuck here," I snap. I get the feeling he's as arrogant as every Alpha I've ever met, and feels entitled to kill me if I become a liability."You were in dangerous lands. I was telling you to leave, or to announce yourself.""If they are so dangerous, why were you out there?" What could possibly be dangerous here? I've heard little about this small Kingdom for a reason.I was hoping I would just pass through it. So much for that."My sister and I were hunting," he comments. I watch him pluck a petal from a blush pink rose. He runs it between his fingers as he watches me."Hunting for innocent people to shoot in the back?" I retort.His lips curve up ever so slightly. "Animals, actually. My sister doesn't know much about the forbidden lands, and as the Alpha's sister, she needed to learn."Forbidden lands? That sounds ominous, despite the environment being anything such.Still, a animal hunter doesn't carry poisonous arrows. There was something else out there that they were hunting."What is so forbidden about that land? It looked fine to me."I'm not interested in chatting with him, but I am curious. At home we had no such thing, but varying Pack's operate differently.He gives me a hard look. "Am I supposed to believe that you are completely unaware of the lands your entered into."I clutch the sheets tightly. "Shooting me in the back was not a fair reaction."He raises his brows."I suppose I could have chased you down, grabbed you and brought you back here, although I doubt the civilians of this pack would appreciate me carrying a kicking and screaming criminal over my shoulder.""I'm going to kill you," I tell him coldly.My idle threats don't faze him. I don't seem very intimidating right now, but once I'm committed to something, I'm not going to easily back down."I wouldn't, if I were you." He smirks a little, looking over me. "You're the one in the bed, and I'm the one with your weapons."My mouth dries. Shit.He doesn't have my weapons on him now, as far as I can tell. He is wearing an ambigious black jacket that could have my favourite dagger tucked beneath it..."So you just came here to taunt me?""I came here to see you, to ascertain why you were in our lands,” he muses, stalking closer. If I didn’t have my wits about me, I would lash out I an attempt to harm him.I swallow tightly. Under no circumstances can I reveal my true intentions for passing through that forbidden territory."I'm not from here. I had no idea I was trespassing,” I tell him, trying not to convey my raising panic.He narrows his deep green eyes."Where have you come from?""I'm not telling you." I can’t tell him.If the truth is revealed, I’ll be sent back. I may even be sold once he realises the value of what is sitting in this bed. I don’t think I’m inherently anymore valuable than anyone else, but to my the man I’m running from…apparently I’m priceless."What are you doing here?" He presses."Again, I'm not going to tell you." I grit my teeth, holding his gaze with a ferocity to match his. Everything about him is calm and stoic, although I can see him contemplating snuffing me out with a pillow."What if my family decided to have you arrested? Then you will be forced to talk,” he notes.Being shoved deep into a prison could be a bad thing. I would be sitting, waiting to be found. It could be a good thing, however, as I may be able to disappear into the endless shadows of a prison, never to be accounted for again.Either way, in a prison would be better then being near him.“Arrest me then. You would be doing me a favour,” I comment snidely.He lets out a long breath, his frustration mounting. “What is going on?”“Please just leave me alone. Once I’m healed you will never see me again.” I turn my head, looking out the window, trying to signal that this conversation needs to end."I still require answers,” he pushes.“Why?""It is expected of me to keep this territory safe." He doesn’t seem so amused anymore.I hold back an eye roll. I’ve been surrounded by men sporting the same attitude my whole life. Protecting their Pack is of upmost importance, and nothing else compares."Because you're an Alpha, huh?""You speak so lowly of us Alpha's. Do you come from a lawless place?” I can't tell if that's an insult or a genuine curiosity.“I come from a place I want to return to, which I shall do the moment I feel better," I mutter.Tugging the duvet up to my chin, I consider pulling it over my head so I can drown in the darkness. Kaan freaks me out, and not just because he's capable of overpowering me at this point...It's because he's capable of revealing my secret.“I recommend never returning here again.” His voice sounds a little more distant as he backs away to the door.I peak out from under the covers. "I just want to heal and get out of here."The irritating part of this exchange is that I'm telling the truth. I have no interest in this Pack and in Kaan and his sister. I truly want to get out of here as quickly as possible."Tay is fragile, she isn't exposed to other girls her age very often, so watch how you act around her," he demands.I nearly roll my eyes. Ideally I don't see his sister again through this healing process."She's the one forcing herself on me," I tell him through gritted teeth. "Have you really not spoken to others your age for years?"His brows crease."It wouldn't be right for the royals to integrate with the general public," he says after a long moment of silence.I slap a hand over my eyes. He sounds indoctrinated, but he also sounds careful with what he is saying. I sense there is just as much deception and secrets going on here as there was at home."I hate this place so much already," I mumble."Stay in your bed, say little to Taysa, and leave as soon as you're better," he orders in a tone that is purely Alpha. "Otherwise I'll kill you."I narrow my eyes on him. "Not unless I get you first."His lips tilt up as he gives me a final look. "Challenge accepted."~HunterI stare down at the plate in front of me, trying not to grimace.I've been propped up on a stiff chair at a table adorned with food I can't bear to stomach right now.There is an insistent, stabbing pain in my back, but I've been told this dinner is an honour for me to attend, as I am in the presence of Alpha royalty.The two straight-backed, stern-faced people in front of me are the parents of Kaan and Taysa, and the previous Alpha and Luna.Tay told me as she helped me stumble my way downstairs that they relinquished their title to Kaan, but not their control.They look so much like two as well.The father has cold green eyes like Kaan, although slightly more narrowed. The mother is much more like Taysa, with warmer eyes and softer features."Thank you for joining us for dinner," the man says. Cyrus is his name, I believe.Allira, the previous Luna, gives me a long look. "I want to apologise on behalf of my son. I understand he did not mean to shoot you, he was just concerne
~HunterI stare down at my legs, silently cursing them.It's been a week since the dinner and my injury has made little progress. My legs still feel lifeless and stiff, incapable of making a quick escape if necessary.The door to the room opens, Taysa walking through balancing a tray on her arm."Good morning." Her sing-song voice fills the room. "How are you feeling?"I shrink back into my pillow, closing my eyes as she rips open the curtains, cold, grim light casting it's horrid glow over me.Even a sunny day depresses me now."I still can't walk, or hardly move," I grumble. She's heard this mantra every day this week, and yet the smile never slips from her face.Setting the tray down on the bedside table next to me, she plucks off the silver lid covering the main plate, revealing a perfect omelette."The healers think that by next week you'll be able to start walking," Tay tells me."Comforting."Seeing me staring enviously at the steaming mug of coffee, she hands it to me, watchin
~HunterFor the first time in days, I'm not in excruciating pain.The slightly too hot water has numbed my senses in the most blissful way. The soap, scented rose and vanilla leaves my skin feeling smooth and buttery.However, this is one thing ruining my experience.“I don’t like the fact that you could turn around at any moment," I mumble, casting my gaze back to Kaan.It's only been five minutes since I sat down but he hasn't so much as tilted his head in my direction.“Believe it or not, I have no interest in seeing you undressed," he responds.I roll my eyes.Maybe it's because my mind is no longer on the pain, or maybe I'm just losing it, but I can't help but wonder if he has a lover. Not because I want him, but because Tay mentioned that they don't breach these walls often.“Have you even spoken to a woman other than your sisters?” It comes out like a dig, which I don't mind.His shoulders tense. “What makes you think I don’t?”“Taysa doesn’t see anyone, so I presumed…” I drift
~HunterAzura's smile is tentative. She doesn't trust me.I don't blame her. I'm a complete stranger in her own home, which I can't imagine is a common thing to happen here."Just point to the door if you want me to leave." I smooth my hand down my right leg, which is hurt the most by my back injury. "I just need a moment..."Azura sits up a little, peeking over the edge of the table.She points at my leg."Your brother shot me in the back. It's really affected this leg in particular," I explain, releasing a long breath. My skin is sticky from exertion, and the more I sit the more I don't want to get back up.Azura winces, shaking her head a little. She doesn't seem surprised."I don't like him..." I tell her flatly. No point lying to her.She smiles, looking down at her book of paintings. She doesn't seem to disagree, although there is something deeper in her smile, like she is sharing a private joke with herself."I like Taysa though. She seems nice," I add. I need to be nicer to Ta
~HunterI grit my teeth, pain searing down my back."Stand.""I can stand.""Then do it."Huffing out a breath, I stare at my legs stretched out in front of me. I was instructed by Kaan to lay down on the grass and now I'm going through the painful process of trying to get to my feet.Sliding from the bed is one thing. Actually standing up entirely is a whole other battle.And it doesn't help that Kaan is staring down at me with his arms folded, his brows raised."Give me a second..." I mumble, trying to manoeuvre my legs under me so I can rest on them.The pain isn't even the difficult part to overcome. It's how weak my legs have become, how little they respond to my silent demands."You're overthinking. Use your legs," Kaan instructs.I glare at his boots, wishing he didn't feel obliged to help me. Regardless of how I feel about it, I'm letting him aid me in my recovery in hopes it gets me out of here quicker."Grab me if you need to," he murmurs, extending a hand.I ignore it."I'l
~HunterI stare down at the plate in front of me, trying to eat it as quickly as possible so I can go back to the room.Why Allira, Kaan's mother, insists on forcing me to attend these dinners is beyond me. I'm not part of their family, and I don't want to sit opposite Kaan in serious pain, pretending like he isn't contemplating the ways he could kill me.Over the past week he has been training me rigorously.He could at least try make it less obvious he is desperate to get me out of here..."Where's father?" Tay asks. She manages to look cheerful in even the most grim situations. I can't decide if I despise it or admire it.The ex-Alpha was here for a day before he's off again. They may as well move out and give everyone space."He's away at our holiday home. I'll be joining him tomorrow," Allira states.Kaan shakes his head a little, staring down at his food. I don't think he cares what his parents are doing, but some part of him resents them.If I had to stay, I would want to know
~HunterThe air is cold around me as I stalk as quickly toward the edge of the forest as fast I can.My legs and back collectively protest with each step, but I fight on. This is the first time I've left the manor since I got here a few weeks ago, and it feels great.Even if each step makes me feel like I'm about to collapse.Once I make it to the perimeter wall, I scale along it to find a side gate that staff use. Tay mentioned in passing that the lock is rusty and no one has bothered to replace it.I knock it loose and pass through with little issue.I pick my way carefully through the forest, trying to focus with the low lighting. The nearest village isn't too far from here, apparently, and I want to find out where Kaan is going, and what he's doing in the middle of the night."Following me?"I nearly scream, whirling around. Kaan emerges from behind a tree, smirking knowingly at me.Letting out a deep breath, I try calm my thundering heart. When did he figure out I was following h
~HunterI lean against the wall, trying not to throw up.Kaan must be having the same experience but for an entirely different reason…I just spent an unreasonable amount of time trekking back here to the castle with him. He’s drunk enough to be a nuisance, swaying back and forth as we walk, even worse than me.Because of his state, I had to grit my teeth and fight through the pain to make it back. We collectively collapsed about six times between us.I would be mortified if I wasn’t sure Kaan will forget this by tomorrow."I can't believe I'm helping you, I'm meant to be the injured one,” I remind him for the tenth time tonight, rubbing at a dirt stain on my pants.He stares me down with a lazy smirk, his deep brown hair slightly damp, hanging down over his eyes."Say the word, and I'll carry you."I roll my eyes, pushing off the wall. "You are barely even capable of keeping your head up. Now go into your room."His bedroom door is open, dousing the hallway with light. I haven’t look