Chapter Twenty-Four: Taken in the Night
Elena's pulse hammered in her ears.
Leon's grip was firm, not painful—but unyielding.
She tried to jerk her wrist free. "Let me go."
Leon didn't. Instead, he pulled her a step closer, his eyes dark with something unreadable.
"No," he said simply.
The single word sent a shiver through her. It wasn't a demand. It wasn't even a threat.
It was a fact.
Elena's breath hitched. "You can't just—"
Leon moved.
Fast.
One moment she was standing her ground, the next she was swept into motion, her feet stumbling as he guided her toward the door.
"Elena," he murmured, his voice eerily calm. "This isn't a fight you can win."
But she wasn't giving up that easily.
She twisted sharply, yanking against his hold. His grip tightened just enough to keep her from slipping away, but not enough to hurt.
It only frustrated her more.
The shopkeeper had answers. And now she was being dragged away from them.
"Elena," Leon warned.
"I don't care what you want," she snapped, resisting with every step. "I'm not leaving!"
Leon sighed, almost tiredly. Then, without another word, he shifted his hold—and in one swift motion, he lifted her off her feet.
Elena gasped as her world tilted.
"Put me down!" She struggled, kicking against him, but it was useless.
Leon barely reacted.
"We're leaving."
His voice was so steady—as if he'd already decided the moment he walked into that shop.
As if she had never had a choice.
The Cold Night Air
The moment they stepped outside, the fog curled around them, thick and unnatural.
The town was empty.
The damp streets were quiet, too quiet, and Elena realized with a sinking feeling—no one was coming to help her.
Leon's footsteps were even, unhurried, as if carrying her through the mist was nothing at all.
Elena gritted her teeth. She wasn't going to just—just let this happen!
She shifted her weight abruptly, throwing herself off balance in an attempt to force him to drop her.
He didn't.
Instead, he simply adjusted his grip, his arm curling more securely around her, pressing her against his chest.
Elena's heart skipped.
Not from fear.
From something else.
Something she didn't want to name.
She hated the way his touch made her feel—like he was both a threat and a shield at the same time.
She squeezed her eyes shut.
Focus, Elena. Find a way out of this.
But as the fog swallowed them whole, and Leon carried her deeper into the night, a single thought whispered at the back of her mind.
What if there was no way out?