All Chapters of Shattered promises: Chapter 51 - Chapter 56

The world became a blur of cold air, shattered glass, and Aarin’s arm locked around her waist.They didn’t fall far—only one story—but the impact still knocked the breath from her lungs as they hit the ground hard and rolled into the bushes.Aarin didn’t stop moving.“Get up,” he rasped, pulling her to her feet. “We have seconds before they—”A sharp whistle cut through the night.A thin metal dart embedded itself in the dirt inches from her foot, still vibrating.Her pulse spiked.“Aarin—”He yanked her behind the building, chest heaving.“They’re tranquilizers,” he said. “Designed for things stronger than humans. Don’t let it touch your skin.”Her stomach dropped.“Things?” she echoed.“Aarin… what ARE you?”He didn’t answer.He was listening.Every muscle in his body coiled tight, his head tilting in a way that wasn’t human at all—as if he could hear the Hunters’ movements from far away.“Three above us,” he whispered.“Four circling from the north.”He closed his eyes.“One more…

The scream didn’t stop.It ripped out of her like something alive—raw, ancient, and filled with a rage that wasn’t hers. The room shook. The air vibrated. Metal groaned under an invisible pressure that made the lights flicker and burst one by one.“Alina!”Aarin rushed toward her, but a force—like a shockwave—threw him back into the wall.His body slammed against metal with a brutal crack.“Don’t touch her!” Darian barked, shielding his face from the violent energy spiraling out of her. “She’s crossing the first threshold—if you interrupt it, she’ll tear herself apart!”Aarin pushed himself up, blood running down his forehead, eyes blazing.“I don’t care!”He lunged again—Another shockwave blasted out of Alina’s body, hurling him across the room a second time. He hit the floor hard, coughing, but still reached out in her direction, dragging himself over broken glass.“Alina—fight it,” he groaned. “You have to fight it.”But she couldn’t hear him.She wasn’t even fully in her body any

Alina woke to silence.Absolute silence.The kind that made her skin crawl. She blinked against the harsh, white light overhead. Her head throbbed, pounding in time with her heartbeat.The room was unfamiliar. Sterile, but not like the last one. This place smelled of stone and cold metal, mixed with faint traces of smoke—like a fire had been put out just moments ago.Her arms and legs were free. She tested her body cautiously. Nothing felt restrained. Yet… something wasn’t right.A shadow flickered at the far end of the room.Alina squinted. Slowly, the figure stepped into the light.It was Elias.“Good, you’re awake,” he said smoothly, voice calm but with a razor’s edge that cut straight into her chest.“Where… where am I?” she croaked, her voice barely a whisper. Her hands trembled.He didn’t answer immediately. He walked closer, slow, measured, his eyes locked onto hers like a predator studying prey.“This is a safe place… for now,” he said. “Though not entirely yours.”Alina’s sto