Chapter 68: A New Alliance Anna POV

Despite the anxiety in the air, Elara’s voice stayed steady as she stated, “We can’t stay here much longer.” Her gaze darted between Lucas and me as she leaned on the table’s edge. “The rogues will return, and they won’t go away without answers the next time.”

“Rogues? What are you saying?” Lucas fired back.

“Yes! I went out last night when I was stopped by some rogues.” Elara came back clearly angry.

Lucas clenched his teeth and crossed his arms. “And what specifically do you recommend? Running into the woods without thinking?”

Elara’s lips quirked, a ghost smile that stopped short of her eyes. “Hardly. Not far from here is a haven. It’s safe and hidden—a location where you may reorganize and select your course of action.”

I looked at Lucas, seeing the same doubt in my own mind. “What are you doing to help us?” Unable to control the edge in my voice, I asked, “How does this benefit you?”

Elara let out a sigh and pushed the table away to move around the room. “I’m not doing this for gain, Anna. Believe it or not, I’ve been where you are—alone, hunted. I wouldn’t be here right now if someone hadn’t shown me the way out.” She stopped and looked at me. “I’m giving you the same opportunity.”

Lucas gave a snort. “And all we have to do is trust you?”

Elara shot back, her tone cutting, “No. Trust is not given; it is earned. But it’s a death sentence to stay here. You and I are both aware of that.”

To my own surprise, I answered softly, “She’s right.” Lucas squinted his eyes and turned to face me. “We must leave this place. Not after tonight’s events.”

“And you believe that the answer is to follow her?” He raised his voice and demanded. “Anna, we hardly know her. She might be leading us into a trap, for all we know.”

Elara’s eyes flickered, but she didn’t say anything, allowing me to answer. “And, Lucas, what are your plans?” I responded by taking a step toward him. “Continue to run until we are completely exhausted? Or perhaps we ought to wait right here for the thieves to track us down and bring us back to Oliver?”

He scowled at me, his jaw tensed, the muscles in his neck taut. “I’m arguing that we must approach this strategically. Not merely… desperate.”

Elara interrupted with a sharp voice, “Enough. You don’t need to believe me. You don’t even need to like me, really. But you will pay attention if you wish to live.” She pointed to the window, where the first rays of morning were just starting to peek through the shutters. “This area will be overrun with wolves by tomorrow. You’re basically dead if you’re still here.”

The crackling of the fire was the only sound amid the tight silence that surrounded the room. I glanced back at Lucas, who had a tough yet torn face. To be honest, neither he nor I trusted her. One thing, though, she was correct: we couldn’t stay here.

At last, I said in a hushed voice, “Okay. We’ll leave.”

Lucas’s eyes opened in shock as his head jerked in my direction. “Anna—”

With a stronger tone than I meant, I interrupted, “I’m not asking for your permission. Lucas, we have no other option.”

His jaw worked as if he were biting back words as he looked at me for a long time. With a tired moan, he finally turned away and combed through his hair. He whispered, “This is a mistake.”

“Perhaps it is,” I admitted. “But it’s not an option to stay here.”

Elara caught our attention by clearing her throat. “We must depart immediately if we are going. The sooner we go, the better, as the refuge is a day’s trek.”

Despite his gloomy expression, Lucas stayed silent. With barely controlled rage, he snatched his bag from the corner and flung it over his shoulder. With a knot in my stomach, I did the same.

The trip was stressful, with a lot of unspoken words weighing on the silence between us. Despite the rough ground, Elara led the way with confident, sure steps. Lucas stayed near me, his eyes always looking around, each muscle in his body tensed like a spring.

To break the hush, I muttered, “You don’t trust her.”

His face was unreadable when he looked at me. “Do you?”

I paused. “No. However, I don’t see any other choice.”

He whispered, turning back to the road in front of him, “There’s always another option. All you need to do is be ready to search for it.”

“How long do you think we have to search?” My anger boiled to the surface as I shot back. “Lucas, you heard her. We are being hunted by the rogues. Time is not a luxury we own.”

“And when we arrive at this sanctuary, what happens?” His voice was quiet but heated as he ordered. “Why doesn’t she turn us in the instant we let our guard down?”

“You believe that I would go to all of this trouble only to turn on you?” Elara’s chilly, piercing voice cut through the atmosphere. Her eyes were burning as she turned to face us, having stopped walking. “I would have turned you over back at the cabin if I had wanted to.”

Lucas stepped forward, standing straight. “And why are you stopping now?”

Elara’s eyes stayed fixed. “Because, Lucas, I have also been hunted. I understand what it’s like to be lost and have nowhere to go. Whether you think I’m trying to help or not, I am.”

I raised my hands and moved between them as the tension crackled like a live wire. “Enough. You two.” My voice got softer as I turned to face Lucas. “We must take this chance. If we don’t, we’re basically dead.”

He stared at me for a bit, then sighed in frustration and moved away. “All right. However, I’m not dropping my defenses.”

“No one is requesting that you do so,” Elara stated in a harsh voice. With stiff shoulders, she turned and started to walk again.

The scenery started to change as the day went on. With every step, the air grew colder as the thick forest gave way to undulating hills. According to Elara, the refuge was tucked away in the center of a deserted town that the outside world had long since forgotten.

As the sun began to set, Elara remarked, “We’re close.” Her face was reserved when she looked back at us. “Remain vigilant. We may not have been pursued by the rogues, but that does not ensure our safety.”

Lucas grumbled something, but I chose to ignore him and keep my eyes on the road ahead. With every stride I took, the weight of our predicament grew, making me feel more uneasy. Although Elara’s offer was a lifeline, there were terms I was not yet aware of.

It was a haunting and strangely lovely sight when we finally arrived at the village. In the last of the light, crumbling buildings with moss and ivy growing on their walls stood like sentinels. The silence was nearly startling, and the air was heavy with the smell of decay and wet earth.

“This way,” Elara noted, guiding us to a big stone structure in the middle of the community. The interior was amazingly undamaged as she pushed open the thick wooden door. “We’ll spend the night here.”

Lucas carefully made his way inside, looking around him. I followed because I was too tired to be careful. With an ambiguous look, Elara shut the door behind us.

With a quieter tone now, she said, “Get some rest. For the time being, we are safe here. I’ll provide you all the information you require regarding the mark and its meaning tomorrow.”

Dropping his bag close to the wall, Lucas snorted. “Easy. Another promise to be explained later, another day.”

Although Elara’s jaw tightened, she refused to fall for his trick. Rather, her eyes softened and she turned to face me. “Anna, you’ll want to be prepared for what’s ahead. The mark is more than a simple sign. It will change everything, and it is a calling.”

“What does that mean to you?” My question was hardly heard above a whisper. Her comments felt like a stone pressing down on my chest.

Her eyes shifted to Lucas and back to me as she paused. “Take a nap first. We will discuss this in the morning.”

My body was too exhausted to fight, but her enigmatic answer only made me feel more uneasy. With the room filled with shadows from the flickering flames, I sank onto an improvised cot close to the hearth.

Lucas sat down opposite me and stared into the fire with his arms on his knees. Unspoken but obvious, the tension between us persisted.

I broke the quiet by saying, “You think she’s lying.”

Without looking at me, he answered, “I believe she is concealing something. And it seems like you’re trusting her too quickly.”

I spoke more strongly than I meant to when I said, “I don’t trust her. However, I think that remaining here is preferable to going out.”

At last, his dark, curious eyes turned to face me. “For the time being.”

The room was filled with the sound of the wind roaring through the broken windows as the night became darker. My dreams were rife with broken pictures of the mark and the rogues who hunted us, and I fell asleep in fits.

The dim light of dawn was just beginning to filter through the wall cracks as I woke up. Elara was already up, preparing something over the fire with her back to us. With bloodshot yet attentive eyes, Lucas sat close to the door.

Elara said, “Good morning,” without looking back. “If you want food, it’s available.”

Lucas grumbled something incomprehensible, but I forced myself to get up and follow her across the room. With a tired but determined smile, she served me a bowl of what looked to be a thin stew.

“We’ll begin revealing the truth today,” she said softly. “But Anna, you must be ready. What you find could completely alter your life.”

With the weight of her words pressing down on me, I took a deep breath. “I’m prepared.”

Lucas’s sharp, mistrustful voice pierced the atmosphere. “We’ll check on that.”