All Chapters of Abaddon’s Girl: Chapter 21 - Chapter 26

The cold air burned my lungs as I ran, feet pounding against the forest floor, my breath ragged and sharp. Branches lashed at my arms, my face, but I didn’t stop—not when I heard him behind me, his voice like thunder crashing through the trees. “Aurelia!” His roar sent a fresh surge of adrenaline through my veins. I pushed harder, my legs trembling beneath me, but Abaddon was fast. Too fast. His heavy footfalls were closing in, his presence a force pressing against my back. I didn’t dare look over my shoulder. I couldn’t. Then my foot caught on something—an exposed root, a patch of uneven ground, I didn’t know. I stumbled, arms flailing, weight pitching forward. The world tilted as I fell, crashing through tangled branches before I hit the icy surface of the river below. Water enveloped me in an instant. Cold. So fucking cold. It stole the air from my lungs, numbed my limbs. The current dragged me under, spinning me in a violent embrace. I kicked, clawed at the surface, but

Hours passed, my body drenched in sweat, the air around me thick and suffocating. I hadn’t moved. I just sat there, curled in on myself, trapped in a whirlwind of thoughts. My mind raced in circles, desperate, hopelessly waiting for a miracle that would never come. But what hope was there for me? My own father had orchestrated my abduction, hand in hand with an enemy he once called a friend. The betrayal was a slow, gnawing ache inside me, a sickness that spread through my veins with every passing second. My hands trembled as I clutched my knees, breath uneven. Had Abaddon known about this? Was this some twisted game he and his family were playing? I squeezed my eyes shut, the weight of the truth crushing me. No one was coming. I knew that. I was alone. And if I wanted to escape this nightmare—if I wanted to survive whatever they had planned for me—I had to act fast. I had to *think*. But *how*? The tiny window in the bathroom was my only view of the outside world, a

Aurelia's POVThe all-white glass house stood before me, gleaming under the sun, reflecting the endless stretch of ocean surrounding the island. My lips parted slightly as I took it in—the sleek architecture, the way it seemed to rise effortlessly from the landscape, an untouchable masterpiece. I hated to admit it, but Abaddon had done well for himself. Not that I'd ever tell him. I trailed behind him as he carried our bags upstairs, my eyes scanning the interior. It was pristine, modern, yet somehow intimate. The floor-to-ceiling windows framed the ocean like a painting, and the sound of waves crashing against the shore filled the silence. He caught my gaze, his smirk—the same smug, infuriating smirk—curling onto his lips. For a moment, the familiarity of it knocked the breath out of me. Everything that had happened between us—the pain, the betrayal, the undeniable pull—I felt it all at once. "It's cool," I muttered when he asked if I liked the place. His smirk deepened.