Chapter 2 : On the Run

*Amaya*

What? I couldn't believe it. My heart sank to my knees. The butterflies in my stomach turned into poison darts and I felt violently ill. I fell to my knees as tears of sorrow flooded my eyes.

I looked up at my beloved who laughed as he turned and left the room. The ballroom erupted into chaos. I couldn't process anything. Caine, the man I’d loved since I was a child, the man I thought loved me, was gone.

I felt my father’s hands roughly grab me by the shoulders and pull me to my feet. He began to violently shake me as he yelled, “What have you done, Amaya? What did you do?”

But I was unable to reply. Nothing came to mind. I’d done my best to be the perfect mate for Caine. I did everything he wanted.

“You are truly a stupid girl. I turned my eye when I learned of your indiscretion with him because he was your mate but now! You’re all used up.”

“What?” I replied, stunned. I saw something snap in my father’s cold eyes. His right hand drew back and before I could react, he backhanded me hard across my face causing me to fall once again to my knees.

“You no longer have any value to me, you're nothing more than a whore now,” he spat.

I couldn’t hold back the tears. They fell like a tsunami from my eyes. “Father, please,” I begged. “I did nothing! I swear! I don't know what happened.”

“Enough,” my father roared. His voice reverberated throughout the room causing the chaos to stop abruptly. “You are no longer my daughter. You are banished for good. You may never return to my castle or my land. If you do, your penalty will be death.”

I was unable to move. I couldn’t even begin to understand what had happened or what I’d done.

I had done everything anyone asked of me. I’d spent the majority of my life preparing myself to be Caine’s mate, his wife. Maybe it was the color of my dress or the bags under my eyes but none of that should matter. I thought Caine loved me.

My father’s love? That was never something I assumed I had and it was clear now.

“Father, please,” my voice cracked, it was barely a whisper. I could hear the crowd murmuring but I didn’t care. I’d done nothing to warrant banishment. “Father!” I pleaded desperately, my voice louder.

He slowly approached me with an intense look of hatred in his eyes. It was done, his mind was made up. There was nothing I could say or do, I was no longer his daughter.

It felt like a lifetime before he was standing over me. Without hesitation, he forcibly grabbed me by my hair and began to drag me toward the door. “Don’t make your king repeat himself or I will kill you myself.”

He pushed me away from him with a hard kick that knocked the air out of my lungs.

The crowd began to surround us. I quickly scanned the crowd for any friendly face but was met with glares and contempt. I knew I had to do something but was unable to move, to think. What the fuck was happening? It felt like a nightmare. I was desperately waiting to wake up but I knew that I didn’t have much time.

Suddenly a commotion erupted from the crowd. Finally, someone was coming to my aid. I let out a small sigh of relief but was quickly brought back to reality when I felt a large snotty glob of spit on my left cheek. If my father wasn’t going to kill me, this crowd certainly was.

“Amaya!” Imelda’s voice rang out over the crowd. “Run! Now!”

That was the only push I needed, Imelda was correct. I needed to run. I struggled to get to my feet, my dress was too long and had too many layers for me to move with any urgency. I tripped over the stupid thing and began to crawl toward the door.

I felt a weight on my skirt, one of my father’s men had his foot on the train and was laughing menacingly. Panic set in, I was going to die. This man would do it without hesitation, an hour ago I was his princess he was sworn to protect me.

This was a joke, the sense of security and privilege I’d always taken for granted meant nothing more than wisps of air.

“Give that whore a head-start, don’t do it here,” my father commanded.

I took the moment of distraction and pulled with all my might away from the man causing my skirt to rip. It was better that way, now my legs were free to run, to save my life.

I found my feet before my father could finish his sentence. I knew if I wasted any time, he wouldn’t hesitate. I didn’t have time to get any of my things.

I frantically made my way out of the castle. Thankfully, they were good on their word, I did have a head start but I didn’t know how long.

I stopped at the entrance. My breath was staggered and my cheeks were stained with tears. I had three choices before me.

I could continue east of the castle deeper into my father’s territory and desperately try to find any allies but it was clear that choice was suicide. I had no one here.

I could head south toward the Sunfall Coast Territory but that journey was a week on horseback, I had no idea how long it would take on foot. I had no chance of being able to escape to the coast without notice but it sounded much better than the only actual option I had.

Head North through the forest to the one place I’d never want to go, Shadowguard. No matter what direction I went, it all led to death. I froze.

I knew the stories of Shadowguard very well. My brother loved to tell me them when I was little to give me nightmares of the vile, horrific things they did there. They were savages without any education or sophistication.

But I had to move, I had to do something. From behind me, I heard the faint noise of a crowd. My head start was coming to an end. I didn’t even think, I just ran as fast as I could and before I realized it, I was deep in the northern forest.

It was thick enough, maybe I could find somewhere to hide until everything died down. Then maybe I could make my way south or at least to a port and stowaway on a trade ship.

Once I felt that I was far enough away from any threat, I stopped and looked for a hiding place but in the dark of the new moon, it was nearly impossible. I’d explored these woods many times with my brother and then Caine. Hell, Caine gave me my mark in these woods.

But they no longer felt familiar. Everything felt foreign and hostile. I’d never felt as unsafe in my life. Nor as alone.

I felt tears forming in my eyes once again. My heart was decimated. I couldn’t walk another step. I found a boulder to catch my breath.

I could now see the damage to my dress. The skirt was almost completely gone, exposing my thighs. The chiffon sleeves were ripped and the soft pink that I was so proud of was now a nasty muddy brown. Large sections of my hair were no longer pinned up but were instead mangled and soaked in my sweat.

As it always did, without thought, my right thumb began to gently rub the inside of my left wrist. I’d always thought of my mark as beautiful but now I saw it for what it truly was, ugly.

It was supposed to be a crescent moon and I guess if you squint or if you look at it with rose-colored glasses, it could be. In reality, it wasn’t a recognizable shape. It was mangled.

Maybe it was the perfect symbol of Caine’s love for me. I was just practice for the mate he would truly love. He’ll mark her with precision and care, unlike the mark he gave me.

I wasn’t aware of the time, but it didn’t matter. Since no one acknowledged it earlier in the day, out loud I said pathetically, “Happy birthday, Amaya.” What a wonderful way to ring in my twentieth birthday.

“Oh yes,” a sinister voice purred from the shadows. “Happy birthday, Princess.”

I jumped. Every single hair on my body was standing alert. My heart was racing uncontrollably. While I was lost in self-pity I failed to realize that I was surrounded.

“I don’t think she’s a princess anymore,” another menacing voice called out from the shadows.

“You know, I think you’re right, Jasper,” the first voice replied. “You know what that makes her?” His tone was playful as if it was all a child’s game, not like my life was on the line.

“No, Jax. What does that make her?”

Two men appeared before me. They were tall, strong men. I could make out a scar on Jasper’s cheek, and Jax was missing an eye. These men had seen battle, they’d experienced violence.

Jasper smiled, his teeth were mostly rotten. “Oh Jaxy Boy, she’s our favorite thing.” He clapped his hands together as they both slowly approached me.

“You don’t say, Jasper. This whore’s a rogue?”

My heart sank. It was true. The word escaped me but it was the one I was desperately trying to find. I was now a rogue. And these men? They were rogue hunters.

“The king gave her a head start, should we do the same?” Jasper asked Jax as if I wasn’t there.

Jax rubbed his scruffy chin, his face was as dirty as my dress. “It’s more fun when there’s a bit of a hunt.”

“True, true. But how much of a hunt will she give us? Is it worth tiring the wolves?”

Oh shit. I should’ve realized that they had scouts. Of course, they did. My father was right, I was truly a stupid girl. A stupid girl who couldn’t shift yet, who could maybe outrun these idiots but couldn’t outrun a wolf.

“We could both have her now, you know,” Jasper casually said. “I’ve never had a princess.”

Jax laughed and it sounded like a toad being stretched out. I wanted to vomit. Without trying to bring any attention to myself, I ran my hand along the boulder searching for anything to use as a weapon. Thankfully, I found a loose rock.

I threw it as hard as I could in their direction. The rock found its way to Jax’s lower stomach. It was unexpected and it knocked the air out of him as he doubled over in pain. Jasper’s playful mood quickly turned dark but it was my opportunity.

I jumped to my feet and sprinted as fast as I could in the other direction.

I easily ducked under Jasper’s outstretched arms. My brother liked to play this game too, so I quickly learned how to escape. I was too soft and small to do any damage but I could be fast. And it was obvious that these men weren’t used to chasing without shifting. I could use that to my advantage.

But I was too busy focusing on the threat behind me. I didn’t notice the hidden threat closing in. The next thing I knew the ground below me disappeared and I was tripping over my misplaced feet causing me to roll…where?

I had no idea. The ground was rough with jagged rocks and broken branches.

Then a loud snap!

My heart stopped as my body did too. I wasn’t sure what the snap was at first, but it terrified me to search for the source. It didn’t take long, it was obvious as soon as I tried to move. My left leg was no longer going in the direction that it should. Suddenly, the most agonizing pain erupted through my broken leg.

I cried out uncontrollably. I’d never broken a bone in my life. It was misery. My brain felt as if it was on fire, I couldn’t process anything but pain. I was going to die. The rogue hunters were going to find me. I couldn’t fight anymore. I didn’t have the strength.

I was slowly drifting in and out of consciousness. Caine’s beautiful face flashed before my eyes. I couldn’t tell what hurt more, the physical pain or the heartbreak. This was how I was going to die.

I heard a soft melody floating above me. Clearly, my mind was going.

The sun began to peek through the clouds. The dawn of a new day, but it would be my last I had no doubt. I forced my eyes open to see the sun one last time. Instead, a small brown wren caught my attention.

I laughed to myself weakly as I realized that it was the source of the music and not my mind losing its grip on reality.

Never in my life had I heard anything as beautiful. The tiny bird gave me hope that maybe there was still good in this world that would carry on without me. I was deeply grateful for the hope, I needed it more than air at that moment.

In gratitude, with the small amount of strength I had left, I tried to whistle the tune back to the tiny bird. It almost took everything from me, my vision was blurring, but it brought a smile to my face. I could die in peace.

But peace was too much for this rogue princess to ask for. As I closed my eyes for what I thought would be the last time, I saw a large shadowy figure move toward me from the corner of my eye. I wasn’t alone.