Page 46 of A Hunger Soft and Wild

My senses ring with the echo of footsteps—too close for comfort. Every pulse of blood in my veins feels like a countdown. My clan’s enforcers are here. They’ve come for me.

Images flash behind my eyes: dark corridors in my mother’s estate, cold laughter when they cornered me, the echo of steel on stone. My mouth goes dry as I remember how I barely escaped with my life.

They’ll do worse if they drag me back.

Before I fully register my own actions, I turn to Roan. She’s already in motion—her sword half-drawn, muscles tense. She’s scanning the perimeter, determined, her brows knit in concentration.

The mere sight of her readiness both steadies and terrifies me.

She has no idea what they’re capable of.

I take a trembling step toward her. “Roan,” I whisper, voice ragged. “You can’t fight them. You can’t—”

She glances at me, a fierce glint in her eyes, but doesn’t speak. She’s too focused on picking up any sign of movement in the trees. The tension in her body sends a bolt of realization through me—She’s doing this for me.

She’s willing to risk everything, face an entire clan if that’s what it takes.

My heart twists, a dizzying blend of gratitude and dread.

I can’t let her do this.

My breath comes in shallow spurts, and the panic tightens my chest. My clan has no mercy, no compassion. They’ll kill her or worse, all because she tried to help me.

“I… I should go,” I stammer, stepping away. “If I surrender, maybe they’ll—”

Her head snaps around, eyes locking on mine. “What?”

My throat tightens. The words rush out, frayed and desperate. “If I turn myself in, they might leave you alone. They only want me. That’s how they work—they break you, make you an example. Then they leave everyone else untouched.” My voice cracks.

She straightens, sheathing her sword with a sharpclick. In two strides, she’s close enough that I can see the flare of anger in her eyes.

“No,” she growls, a blunt refusal that resonates with surprising warmth.

Tears well up, and I press my trembling hand to my mouth, trying to steady my breathing. “I—I won’t watch them hurt you,” I manage, voice muffled behind my fingers.

Roan’s grip lands gently on my good shoulder, forcing me to meet her gaze. “Aria.” She says my name firmly, making me focus. “We didn’t make it this long for you to surrender.”

My pulse hammers. I can’t quell the swirl of memories—fleeing under moonlight, blood on my clothes. “You don’t understand,” I choke out, shaking my head.

She exhales, her tone softening. “Then explain it to me. Help me understand. But don’t you dare run off alone and hand yourself over to them.”

I pull a shaky breath in, leaning into her touch despite every instinct telling me to withdraw. “They’ll kill you.”

Roan’s jaw clenches. “Maybe,” she says quietly. “But I’m not letting you go without a fight. And I’m sure as hell not letting them drag you back to whatever hell you escaped.”

My throat constricts, tears pricking my eyes. The force of her conviction both floors and reassures me. She’s never seen my clan’s enforcers in action, yet she’s ready to stand her ground.

I should be grateful. I should feel safer knowing she won’t abandon me.

Instead, fear squeezes tighter in my chest.

She doesn’t understand.

Roan has faced death before—I know that much. I’ve seen it in the way she moves, the way she watches the treeline like it might betray her at any moment. She’s fought, bled, survived.

But my mother? My clan?

Theydon’tlose. They don’tstop. And Roan—gods, Roan thinks she can protect me. But this isn’t just another fight.

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