Semua Bab The Fire That Chose Me : Bab 11 - Bab 20

Cass trembled in Evelynn’s arms, her breaths shallow and ragged, like she’d outrun a nightmare and hadn’t fully escaped it. Her skin was cold too cold and Evelynn could feel her pulse stuttering beneath fragile bones.“Cass, what happened?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.“They’re coming,” Cass rasped again. “Hunters. I tried to lose them I swear but they’re not normal. They knew where I’d go. They… they want her, Ev. They want you.”Evelynn’s blood went cold.Aiden was already moving. He helped Cass to the couch and scanned the windows, nostrils flaring like he could scent the danger on the wind. “How far behind you?”“I don’t know,” Cass whispered. “Maybe minutes. Maybe less.”Evelynn stood frozen in place, heart pounding. “Hunters?” she repeated. “Like people who… kill?”“Yes,” Aiden said tightly. “Like people who hunt our kind. Some do it for money. Some for sport. Some… for revenge.”Cass grabbed Evelynn’s hand, her grip surprisingly strong. “They’re not like anythin

Morning came quietly.Sunlight filtered in through the old cabin windows, golden and pale, softening the worn wooden walls and casting long shadows across the floor. Evelynn stirred beneath the thick quilt, the scent of pine and smoke lingering in the air. For a moment, she didn’t move. She simply lay there, listening—to the chirp of birds outside, the creak of the settling cabin, and the soft rhythm of Aiden’s breathing nearby.She turned her head.He was seated against the far wall, long legs stretched out in front of him, head tipped back, fast asleep. A book lay forgotten in his lap. His jacket was folded over Evelynn’s shoulders—he must’ve placed it there while she slept.Her chest ached, full of something warm and heavy. She didn’t know how he did that—made her feel like a poem, like the storm and the calm that followed it.She sat up slowly, careful not to wake Cass, who was still sleeping soundly in the corner cot. Her face had regained some color, the deep shadows beneath her

The door slammed open with a force that shook the walls.Evelynn gasped as a freezing wind poured in, blowing out the candles and tossing papers into the air like frightened birds. Aiden stood tall in front of her, blade in hand, his shoulders tense, muscles coiled like a spring ready to snap.But what stepped inside was not human.It was tall—its limbs too long, its face wrapped in shadow. Its skin, if it had any, shimmered like oil in the firelight, and its eyes—two burning coals set into a face that didn’t belong to this world—locked straight onto her.She felt it in her chest, like someone had reached into her and squeezed.Aiden didn’t flinch. “Get out,” he growled.The creature didn’t answer with words. It tilted its head slowly, like it was listening to something only it could hear, and then it stepped forward. One foot over the threshold.Aiden moved.It happened in a blink—the blade flashing, a snarl tearing from his throat—but the creature was faster than anything Evelynn ha

The tunnel was darker than Evelynn remembered.She followed Aiden through the narrow stone passage beneath the cabin, their footsteps echoing off the damp walls. The torch in his hand cast long shadows that danced like spirits ahead of them, flickering over moss and ancient carvings etched into the rock.Her fingers curled tightly around his.Not just out of fear — though it was there, coiled like a snake in her chest — but out of something deeper. A trust she didn’t fully understand, but couldn’t seem to let go of.“They’re close,” Aiden said quietly, glancing back at her. “Stay quiet. Stay near me.”She nodded, heart hammering.Behind them, somewhere above, the floorboards had groaned. Whoever they were… they were already inside.The mark on Evelynn’s wrist burned hotter with every step.It wasn’t painful, not exactly. It was like a heartbeat — pulsing with energy. With knowing. It seemed to pull her forward, down the tunnel, like it wanted something. Like it was leading her.Aiden

The storm that had been threatening all day finally broke over Ravenwood by nightfall. Rain hammered the roof in wild, uneven bursts, as though the sky itself had lost patience. Evelynn sat by the window, knees drawn to her chest, watching the glass bead and blur. Every drop seemed to echo the pulse in her veins—too fast, too sharp, too alive.She could still feel Aiden’s presence, even though he hadn’t spoken for minutes. He stood on the other side of the room, leaning against the wall with his arms folded, watching her the way he always did. Quiet. Intense. Like he was memorizing her just in case she disappeared.It was that look that broke her.“You can’t keep staring at me like that,” she whispered, pressing her forehead to the cool pane of glass.“Like what?” His voice was soft, but she heard the thread of danger in it—the kind that came not from threat, but from wanting.“Like I’m the only thing in the world holding you together.”The silence after was heavier than thunder. Evel