**No way out**

 Eliana followed Kieran through the twisting alleys, her pulse hammering in her ears. The city was a maze of stone and shadow, but their pursuers knew it well. No matter how many turns they took, the footsteps behind them never fully faded. 

"They're tracking us," she whispered. 

Kieran didn't slow his pace. "Obviously." 

Eliana clenched her jaw. *Of course he already knew.* 

A distant whistle cut through the air. A signal. 

Kieran cursed under his breath. "They're closing in." 

Panic threatened to take hold, but Eliana shoved it down. She was *not* going back. Not to chains. Not to a life where she was nothing more than a tool to be used. 

She scanned their surroundings. Narrow streets, crumbling buildings, nowhere to hide for long. If they kept running blindly, they'd be trapped. 

"Kieran," she panted, grabbing his arm. "We need to disappear, not outrun them." 

He hesitated for a fraction of a second. Then he pulled her into the nearest building. 

It was abandoned—barely more than a shell—but it had a staircase leading downward. A cellar. 

Without a word, they hurried down. The space was cold and damp, the air thick with dust and old wood. Kieran shut the door behind them, pressing his ear against it. 

Muffled voices passed by above. 

Eliana held her breath. 

Seconds stretched into minutes. 

Then—silence. 

She exhaled slowly, her body trembling from exhaustion and nerves. "That was too close." 

Kieran stepped back from the door, his expression unreadable. "They're not gone. Just waiting." 

Eliana's stomach twisted. 

They were being hunted. 

And their hunters were patient.