Chapter 4 Into the Depths

I do not know what came over me, but I ran.

My feet pounded against the pavement as I sprinted, my breath coming in short gasps.

The sound of his footsteps-heavy, purposeful-followed me, getting closer with each passing second.

The dark streets of Riverdale seemed to stretch on forever, the streetlights casting long, flickering shadows that mocked my every move.

I could not shake the feeling that I was being hunted, but I had no choice but to keep running.

My heart was racing, fear closing in on me, but there was something else-something deeper, something I did not fully understand.

The man's words echoed in my mind, over and over again: "You are not as invisible as you think you are."

I had to get away. I had to find safety.

I turned a corner, my sneakers skidding against the wet asphalt.

I glanced over my shoulder, but there was no sign of him. Maybe I had lost him. Maybe.

Thud.

I stumbled forward, my arms failing as I tried to keep my balance.

My body hit the ground with a sickening thud, the wind knocked out of me.

For a moment, I could not breathe, could not think.

The darkness around me closed in, suffocating.

But then I heard it.

Footsteps. Slow, deliberate.

I scrambled to my feet, my legs shaking, but I did not dare look back.

I knew better than to give in to fear. I had to keep moving.

A sharp breath escaped me as I pushed myself harder, forcing my legs to carry me.

I had no idea where I was going. I was not thinking clearly.

My mind was a mess of panic but I could not stop. Not now.

But just as the tension reached its peak, something in the corner of my vision caught my attention.

A shadow, darting across the street ahead. I squinted into the darkness, my heart pounding louder than the pounding in my chest.

It was not him. It was something else.

Another figure.

I stopped dead in my tracks, my heart thumping painfully against my ribs.

This one did not move like the man did. It was not a predator stalking its prey. No.

This figure had a stillness to it, a presence that felt... familiar.

Before I could process it, a voice called out to me from the shadows.

"Eliaca?"

I froze.

I knew that voice.

I wanted to turn and run, to disappear into the night, but my body refused to obey.

I stood there, rooted in place, my eyes wide, my mouth dry.

"Eliaca." The voice came again, this time softer, almost... gentle.

I took a shaky breath, and then, like a force pulling me forward, I moved toward the voice.

There, standing at the edge of a dimly lit alley, was a face I had not seen in days.

"Mum?" I whispered, my voice shaky, unsure.

She stepped out of the shadows, her expression unreadable.

Her dark eyes were narrowed, and her lips pressed into a thin line as she regarded me.

She looked almost distant. Like she did not recognize me.

I swallowed hard, feeling a surge of emotions crash through me-relief, confusion, anger.

I had no idea what to say.

"I did not know where else to go." My voice cracked, and I hated how weak I sounded.

"I could not stay there anymore. I just... I just needed to get away."

Her gaze softened, but there was still a coldness to her. Something was not right.

"Eliaca," she said slowly, as though testing the weight of my name on her tongue.

"You should not be out here alone. It is dangerous."

I shook my head, my heart still racing from the chase.

"You do not understand. I cannot go back. Not yet."

She frowned, but there was a flicker of something in her eyes-something I could not quite place.

For a moment, she just stood there, looking at me.

"I know you think you are doing the right thing," she finally said.

"But you do not know what is out there. You are not ready for this."

Her words were heavy, filled with an unspoken warning, but I could not figure out what she meant.

I opened my mouth to protest, but she held up a hand, stopping me.

"No," she said firmly. "You need to listen. This is not just about you. There is a reason you left, Eliaca. A reason you ran."

I took a step back, confusion swirling in my mind.

"What are you talking about? What reason?"

She glanced over her shoulder, like she was looking for someone.

Her eyes darted quickly, and I felt the tension in the air shift.

"You need to trust me," she said, her voice suddenly low, urgent. "Come with me. There is no time to explain here."

I hesitated, my instincts screaming at me to run in the opposite direction, but something in her tone, in her expression, made me pause.

She was scared. Terrified, even.

"Who is after you?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

She did not answer at first. Her eyes flickered to the alleyway behind her.

Then, in a voice that was barely audible, she said, "They are always watching."

Before I could react, a noise from the far end of the street caught my attention; a car, its engine revving to life.

I turned, my breath catching in my throat as a set of headlights pierced the darkness.

The car screeched to a halt right at the intersection, the engine growling in the quiet night.

I felt my heart slam into my chest.

"No," I whispered.

Her expression twisted into something dark.

She grabbed my arm, her grip painfully tight.

"We have to go, now."

I yanked my arm free. "What the hell is going on?"

She did not answer. Instead, she pulled me with her, faster than I thought she could move.

My feet stumbled to keep up with her pace, my mind a whirlwind of confusion and dread.

The car's headlights grew brighter as it moved closer, but it was not stopping.

I was not sure what I was running from anymore, but I knew this: I did not want to find out.

"Eliaca!" Her voice was strained as she urged me forward.

I was about to ask who was after us when I heard a voice-low, gravelly, unmistakable.

"Eliaca!"

I stopped dead in my tracks, panic rising in my throat.

There he was, standing in the street behind me.

The man.

The one who had been following me from the beginning.

And in that moment, I knew. I was not just running from the past anymore.

I was running from everything.