Chapter 2 Running From Fate

The forest swallowed me whole.

Cold air burned my lungs as I sprinted through the trees, bare feet slapping against old roots and damp earth. My nightshirt snagged on low branches, ripping at the hem, but I didn't stop. I couldn't.

Not when I knew what happened if the riders caught me.

In my first life, I hadn't tried to run. I'd believed the elders when they said, "The Alpha King only wants to meet the chosen."

Fools.

Liars.

Or victims, just like me.

I pushed the memories down before they drowned me again.

I had a second chance. And I intended to use it.

Behind me, the faint echo of hooves drifted through the trees. The riders weren't close yet, but they were trained hunters-loyal to Draven and skilled at tracking scents, footprints, fear.

The hum under my skin from earlier still tingled faintly, strange and unsettling. It wasn't painful-just... alert. Awake. Like something inside me recognized danger and was testing its reach.

Not a full awakening.

Not a shift.

Just the smallest whisper of power I never had in my first life.

I slowed only when I reached the old moss-covered boulder at the forest's edge-the one I used to climb as a child. My breathing was ragged, but I forced myself to focus.

Think, Elyra.

Where can you go?

The village was behind me. The capital was far to the north. The border lands were too dangerous, even in the old timeline. That left-

The river.

If I followed the river downstream, there was a half-collapsed hunter's cabin on the far side of the marsh. In my first life, my brother and I hid there during a storm. It was abandoned, forgotten... and safely outside the easy patrol routes.

Unless this timeline had shifted more than I realized.

A gust of wind rushed through the trees, carrying the scent of horses and leather.

Close.

Too close.

I slipped behind the boulder just as two riders appeared through the darkness, their torches casting long, twitching shadows across the forest floor.

"Search the west side," one ordered. "The King said the girl ran toward the trees."

My stomach twisted.

He didn't say my name.

He said the girl.

That alone was different.

In my first life, they had known me by name before I even stepped outside my door. This time... Draven must not have all the information yet.

Good.

I needed every advantage I could get.

The second rider swung his torch toward the ground. "Footprints."

I froze.

His horse pawed at the dirt. "She's barefoot. Can't be far."

They nudged their mounts forward, following the prints that led deeper into the forest-away from the river.

A small miracle.

I waited until their torches dimmed into nothing but flickers between the trees. Only then did I let out the breath I'd been holding.

I pressed a shaky hand to my chest.

Calm.

Focus.

Move.

The river wasn't far. If I cut right, stayed low, and avoided snapping branches, I could reach it before the riders circled back.

I stepped forward-

And my foot slid in the mud.

I caught myself on the boulder, but my palm slapped against the stone hard enough to sting. The faint hum under my skin flickered again, warm and quick, before fading.

"What are you trying to do to me?" I muttered under my breath, flexing my fingers. Whatever was inside me wasn't fully awake, but it wasn't asleep either.

I didn't have time to figure it out.

I darted toward the river, weaving between trunks, careful and quick. When I finally heard the rush of water, relief nearly buckled my knees.

I'd made it.

Moonlight glimmered across the river's surface. I crouched low, peering through the reeds. No torches. No hoofbeats. Nothing but the whisper of water meeting stone.

Good.

One step at a time, I waded in.

The shock of cold nearly knocked the air from my lungs, but I kept moving until I was deep enough to cross without leaving clear tracks on the other side.

My nightshirt clung to my skin like ice. My teeth chattered.

I told myself it didn't matter.

I'd chosen a path Draven wouldn't expect.

Because in my first life, I never ran.

I never tried to survive.

I never made myself unpredictable.

This time, I would.

By the time I dragged myself onto the far bank, every inch of me trembled. Water dripped from my hair and clothes, but I kept moving, forcing my stiff legs to carry me toward the marshland.

If the cabin existed in this timeline, I'd find it. If not-

I swallowed.

Then I'd improvise.

The forest grew thicker as I pushed deeper into the marsh. Frog calls replaced the crackle of branches. The mud sucked at my feet with every step, slowing me down.

But then-

There.

Just barely visible through the cattails.

A slanted roof.

Broken wood.

The silhouette of a familiar, forgotten shelter.

Relief almost made me collapse.

I hurried to the cabin, slipped inside, and closed the old warped door behind me. Dust coated the broken table. A nest of leaves lay where a bed once was.

Safe enough for now.

I curled up in the driest corner, hugging my knees to my chest.

My body shook from cold and adrenaline. My mind spun with fear and memory. My heart thudded painfully, like it wasn't convinced this second life was real.

But one truth grounded me:

This time, Draven wouldn't find me so easily.

And I would never again let the Alpha King decide my fate.