Chapter Seven: A new home

As we drove away from the cabin, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off. Ronan was always so calm, so collected, but I could sense the tension in his shoulders, the way his fingers gripped the steering wheel just a little too tightly. He hadn’t told me where we were going, just that it was "safer" than where we had been. I didn’t ask. It wasn’t like I had anywhere else to go. But the silence between us grew heavier with each mile.

The road became more rugged as we headed deeper into the woods, surrounded by towering trees and mist curling at their roots. Despite the unease gnawing at me, there was something oddly beautiful about the isolation. The further we went, the more I felt like we were leaving the world behind—entering a place that time had forgotten.

After what felt like hours, the trees thinned, revealing an unexpected sight. Nestled between the hills, a village appeared—small, rustic, but alive. I hadn't expected this. The place looked like it was pulled from a storybook. There were cottages with stone walls and sloping roofs, smoke rising from chimneys, and people walking around, talking and working. It felt surreal, like I’d stumbled onto some hidden world.

“Where are we?” I finally asked, my voice breaking the silence.

Ronan didn’t look at me right away, his eyes scanning the village ahead. “It’s a place I know,” he said, a hint of something I couldn’t place in his voice. “You’ll be safe here.”

Safe. He kept saying that word, but I wasn’t sure what it meant anymore. Safe from what? From who?

As we drove into the village, I noticed the way people glanced at the car—some with curiosity, others with something closer to suspicion. Ronan pulled up to the largest house at the center of the village. It was grander than the others, though still understated. It had the same stone walls and wooden beams, but there was an air of authority about it. This was a house that commanded respect.

“This is where we’ll stay,” Ronan said, parking the car. “For now.”

I climbed out, glancing around. The air here was fresh, untouched by the pollution and noise of the outside world. Despite everything, I felt a strange sense of calm. Maybe it was the quiet, or the way the village seemed to exist in its own little bubble, but for a moment, I could almost believe that things would be okay.

Almost.

Ronan led me inside the house, and I was surprised by how warm and welcoming it felt. The inside was all wooden beams and soft lighting, with a large fireplace crackling in the corner. It didn’t feel like a house of secrets. But then again, nothing in Ronan’s world was ever as it seemed.

“I’ll show you to your room,” he said, his voice gentle. He led me up the stairs to a cozy bedroom with a large window overlooking the village. “You can rest here. No one will bother you.”

I nodded, feeling the weight of exhaustion settle over me. The last few days had been a whirlwind, and I hadn’t had a moment to process any of it. The cabin, the strange pull I felt toward Ronan, and now this village—it was all too much.

As I sat on the edge of the bed, I couldn’t help but ask the question that had been eating at me since we arrived.

“Why are you helping me, Ronan? Why bring me here?”

He stood in the doorway, his expression unreadable. “You needed help. And I couldn’t just leave you out there.”

“But why *here*? Why this village?”

There was a pause, and for a moment, I thought he wasn’t going to answer. Then he sighed, running a hand through his hair.

“I know the people here. They’ll protect you.”

I frowned, sensing that there was more he wasn’t saying. “Who are these people?”

Ronan’s eyes met mine, and for the first time since I’d met him, I saw something vulnerable in his gaze. “People I trust,” he said quietly. “That’s all you need to know right now.”

Frustration bubbled up inside me, but I bit it back. Ronan had saved my life more than once. He’d brought me here, to this strange village in the middle of nowhere, and for now, I had no choice but to trust him. But something told me that this place—this village—was more than just a safe haven.

I lay down on the bed after he left, staring up at the wooden beams on the ceiling. My mind raced with questions I couldn’t answer, but fatigue was stronger than my curiosity, and soon enough, sleep pulled me under.

When I woke, the village was quiet, the light outside dimming as the sun set behind the hills. I felt a strange sense of peace, but it was fragile, like the calm before a storm.

Something was coming. I could feel it.

And somehow, I knew that whatever it was, Ronan and this village were at the center of it.