The ash hit Rein's face the moment he stepped out of the den.
Not just dust—but heat, grit, and the kind of wind that scraped at your eyes like guilt that refused to blink. His boots hit cracked black stone. His breath steamed in the cool air.
He didn't look back.
Every part of him ached. His ribs. His thighs.
His
neck
, where teeth had
almost
claimed him.
His thoughts rattled inside his skull like they were trying to escape too.
She wasn't violent anymore.
That's what scared him most.
The deeper he'd slipped into her den, the softer her touches had become.
The more possessive.
The more... certain.
Rein sprinted over a narrow ridge, leapt across a shallow ravine, nearly twisted his ankle on a chunk of dragonbone—and kept going.
He passed the old trap he'd set days ago, now half-covered in ash.
Passed a broken tree where her claw marks still carved his name.
His lungs burned. His side ached.
Still he ran.
Because deep down, he knew:
Zeraka wouldn't stop him.
She wouldn't need to.
When he reached a high ridge overlooking the valley below, Rein stopped.
Just for a breath.
The land stretched wide—cracked cliffs, slow fires burning in the distance, roiling clouds smeared across a sky that refused to turn blue.
He exhaled.
And for a moment, he felt...
Not free.
But
loose.
Untethered.
Then a whisper.
A ripple in the stone behind him.
"Good."
Rein turned.
Zeraka stood on a ledge a few dozen paces back, arms crossed, one fang tugging the corner of her lip into a grin that was somehow even
more
terrifying because it wasn't angry.
It was delighted.
"You really ran," she said.
Rein's heart thudded. "Don't follow me."
"I'm not."
She stepped forward, slowly.
"I'm
chasing
."
Rein stepped back. "You think this is a game?"
"No." She licked her lips. "I think this is
mating season.
And I like when my mate has stamina."
Her claws flexed.
"Run faster, little flame."
Her smile widened, and this time, her
tail wagged.
"Because next time I catch you... I'm not letting you sleep in your own bed."
And then she was
gone
—a blur into the haze, vanishing into the valley below.
Rein swore under his breath.
And ran again.