Idalia hurried away from the door, her arm around Arik, her knife pointed at whatever would appear from it.
The steel doors dinged open.
A man stepped in. His shadow stretched across the floor like something alive.
The coach went cold.
The doors clung shut.
An immediate growl of agony rang through the space, snapping Idalia's attention back to the rogue. He was turning and bending into hazardous positions. His nails clawing into his neck, as he dropped to his knees, and stretched a desperate hand forward.
To the man who wasn't even looking at him, but was casually adjusting his leather gloves.
"P—L—E… PLEASE!"
Idalia scurried back, holding Arik — who had now fallen silent— tighter to herself. Her eyes bulged with fear, her body trembling, her grip even tighter around her knife.
The rogue raised his head, and his eyes had gone pitch black. Blood spilled down the corners of his eyes, his mouth and his nose.
Then he crashed to the floor and lay eerily still.
Silence seized the space.
Idalia let out a shaky breath, her gaze glued to the horrific sight.
"That resolves it." The calm voice seeped through the room like cold poison.
Her heart raced at the knowledge of who she was left with.
Slowly, she looked back at him, but he was already looking at her. Her blood froze in her veins with dread, and her throat tightened, the air painful in her lungs.
This… was the Silver Hunter?
He looked too precise to belong on a train. White shirt. Black vest. Silver hair slicked back. He did not look like a wolf— he did not feel like a human.
"You are bleeding." His voice cut coldly through the air, his face unreadable.
Her clattering teeth became louder, her head feeling heavy.
Whatever he was, Idalia wasn't going to find out.
The door dinged open, and she bolted. From coach to coach, till she was out of the train.
"We apologise for the inconvenience as we had to make an emergency stop at Centra-City—" The overhead announcement faded into the distance as she ran right into the bustling street.
She kept running till her throat burned with the need to breathe. She looked around swiftly for shifting shadows, silver hair or eyes that lingered too long on her.
But she found none.
Just then, someone bumped right into her.
"Sorry, Love."
That voice.
Her eyes widened with recognition.
The same man that had bumped into her at the train station.
She yanked out her knife and pointed it at him. Without a word, she tried to shove past him, but he grabbed her hand and pulled her back. She swiped the knife in the air, targeting his face, and missing it by a hair's breadth.
Her face fell. She took a staggering step back as her body went cold.
Something sinister twinkled in the man's eyes as he stepped closer to her. She tried to move, but she couldn't. Then she felt a needle being pulled out of her arm.
"I like you, you know." The man whispered, his breath warm over her ear.
Her heart was racing, and her mind was trying to fight, but her body had gone into paralysis.
No.
No!
NO!
By Argon, No!
Tears ran down her cheeks, not for her but for her son.
"You smell like nothing."
She slumped forward, and he held her in his waiting arms. "Who smells like nothing?"
Her eyes fell closed despite her fighting her eyelids to stay open. She heard a car screech to a stop next to them. Then she felt herself being shoved into the vehicle.
The voices were starting to blend with the darkness in her mind and the dizziness in her head. But she was still able to catch some.
"What about the child?" She heard another voice ask.
A woman's voice.
Different voices.
Back and forth.
Blurred voices.
Then she heard the man snap angrily. "Then get rid of it!"
Nothing was said after that.
If it had been, she wouldn't know. Her head was too heavy, and her senses were failing her.
She heard the door slam shut. Felt her son being taken from her. Heard him cry. Heard the door swing open. Shut. Open again. No cries.
Her mind fought. Grieve was crashing over her. She wanted her son. The emptiness against her belly was driving her insane. But no matter how hard she tried to do something, her body remained unmoving.
"All done then. Let's go."
The car began to move.
And Arik was no longer in her arms.