Lyra's POV,
"Argghhhh!!!" He screamed loud in agony.
I almost fell sorry for him. Cabinets crashed against stone as the Beta of Crimson pack staggered backward, clutching his left eye, howling like an animal caught in a trap.
The beautiful golden pin trembled between his fingers, slick with blood, his grip clumsy and panicked. He lunged for me, blind with rage, and pain.
I didn't even have time to react again. I was shaking from the adrenaline rush of stabbing him in his eye. My back hit the wall and my chest heaved as I realized there was nowhere left to run.
The door beside me was locked and the window in front was too high.
Outside, the moon watched in silence.
This is it, I thought. This is how I die.
I flexed my fingers.
But if I was going to die, I would not die quietly.
I immediately grabbed his wrists as he reached for my throat. His hands were heavy, and shaking with fury.
I screamed a battle cry of somewhat and pushed him with his hands still on my neck. I slammed him back against the cabinet, ignoring the crack of my shoulder, and the pain of him strangling me.
With all the strength I did not know I even possessed, I drove the pin deeper into his eye.
Calder shrieked.
Not a man's scream. I almost laughed at the absurdity.
Because twenty minutes ago, he wanted to show me how much a man he was.
I didn't stop. My left hand locked around his, holding him there, and forcing him to feel the pain while my right hand pushed the pin deeper. My lungs were starting to close up and my vision blurred from him still strangling me but I derived joy in seeing he was also affected.
His knees buckled. My body convulsed. And then something else happened.
The air suddenly shifted.
Warmth flooded my palms. It rushed into my veins and unexpectedly, Calder's screams turned hoarse, an his struggles dissolved into desperate jerks. His left eye looked at me in horror
I didn't understand it or even realize that I was the one doing it. I didn't believe I was the one doing it.
Somehow, I was draining him.
The guards outside began to shout and fists slammed against the locked door. Wood groaned as someone yelled his name outside
Calder muttered something through his lips, then sagged against me, suddenly weightless, and empty. His body went slack in my arms, his left eye was rolled back, and his breathe wasn't there.
I pushed him off me and watched him tumble to the floor.
For a heartbeat, I stared at him in complete horror. What have I done?
My hands were trembling, but glowing faintly.
A loud thud snapped me back to reality and I got up. I needed to escape.
I looked up at the high window and cursed. If only I could transform into a wolf, even an omega wolf would do, I'd be able to reach there.
With all the strength I could muster, I pushed a cabinet underneath the window silt and climbed it. The door rattled again and my heart skipped a million beats. They'd catch me and...and…
I inhaled heavily and acted. The window shattered beneath my elbow and I climbed out.
Cold air hit my skin hard and, the glass tore my dress and my skin, but I didn't stop. I hit the ground hard, pain building up in my leg, and ran. My lungs burned and my ears rang.
The shouts grew louder behind me.
I hurried back to the hut, panting and Lucia immediately came to hold me steady, eyes wide, and face already pale.
She was always like that. Assuming the worst already.
"What happened, Lyra?" She asked. "Why the fuck is there blood on your hands?"
"I hurt him," I gasped, holding onto her. "I don't even know if I hurt him. I may have killed him. They'll kill me, Lucia. I need to turn myself in."
Lucia's face twisted into something ugly and she grabbed my shoulders hard enough to hurt. "Are you crazy? What the fuck are you talking about?"
"They'll say I attacked him. He's a fucking Beta for heaven's sake. They wouldn't even listen to my side of the story." I hissed, running my hand through my hair.
Lucia let go of me and cursed under her breath.
"Lyra," She said calmly. "Look at me."
I ignored her, rocking my arms, and biting my nails.
"Look at me, damn you!"
She yelled and my head snapped up in shock.
"Tell me what happened. The short version."
"It's…it's Carden. It's the Beta." I was scared as fuck so my voice shook but she nodded for me to go on. "He called me…in…into his…be…bed chambers."
"That motherfucker." She gritted out and looked down at my hands. "So, you killed him"
I shook my head vigorously. "No…no. I stabbed his eye with a pin. But now, they'll kill me. I'm…fucked, Lucia."
I didn't tell her what happened after because I myself wasn't even sure. She walked up to me and hugged me tight. I immediately melted against her body.
Oh Gods, what have I done? I don't want to die.
"You wouldn't die, Lyra." She patted my head. "You wouldn't die."
"What do I do?"
"We have to get you out," Lucia whispered. "You can't stay."
"Where would I go?" I frowned, looking up at her. "They'd catch me in a second."
"No, they won't. You and I know that," Lucia said fiercely. "Lyra, if I were you, the one whose scent shifted at intervals, I'd have left this dreaded place since."
"You never wanted to leave because you're scared the same thing that happened to Eryx would happen to you"
That name hurt worse than anything. I pulled myself away from her.
"Eryx died for me to live."
"Exactly! Not to remain in a goddamn cage!"
The alarm bell rang and we froze.
"Listen to me." Her eyes were already determined. "I already have a plan. Come on."
"How do you already have a plan?"
I followed to the back of the hut to see her pull out a tarp soaked with dirt and fruit juice.
"I've been planning for this day since day one."
She stretched out her hand for me to hold and I scoffed.
"Come on, your scent will shift again in exactly three minutes. By then, they'd have come here, looking for you."
When she saw I wasn't going to hold her hands, she started to shove me in and I grabbed her. "What about you?"
She laughed. "Me? Did you hit your head too? This is my pack. I can't leave."
"Yes, you can." I held her firmly. "Come with me. No one would miss an omega."
She hissed and shoved me in, "Your good heart would get you killed one day. If not you, then me."
I slowly let go of her and stayed still, still filled with panic. She went to the front of the cart and pulled it toward I don't know.
Around me, guards shouted and searched. I had to stay as frozen as possible, determined not to even breathe anytime I heard someone pass too close.
When the cart finally stopped, Lucia pulled me out in the middle of nowhere. I recognized the place. This was the borders of the pack.
Before I could say a word, she pressed her forehead to mine.
"You run," she whispered. "You survive. And when you're strong enough, you come back for me. Swear it."
I blinked back my tears and held her finger.
Like we always did in the cold nights. In the cell we were thrown in for disobeying. In the darkest moments. We were always there for each other, even if it were just our fingers.
"I swear it," I whispered back. "I swear it. I will."
She gave me the biggest smile and kissed me on the forehead.
"Go on, now. The forest will lead you."
Without looking back, I turned and ran into the forest. The trees swallowed me and I could feel them remembering me.
My home.
Animals came out from the shadows and birds sang. They led me down to the paths that no one should ever know.
Guided by instinct and the forest itself, I followed the trails my adopted father once showed me, back to the ruined place that had once been my home.
I collapsed there at dawn, alone.
I, Lyra Noctis, understood one terrible truth.
I'm a fugitive. A criminal. And they won't stop until I'm found.
I rolled on my back and stared at the ceiling.
What do I do now…?