Cassidy
The plane touched down with a jolt, and my stomach lurched violently.
I clenched my hands against the armrests, forcing myself to breathe. The hum of the engines whined as we slowed, the pressure shifting in my ears. Outside the window, the world was dark, only a few scattered lights breaking through the endless stretch of trees.
I was in Canada.
I had never left the country before. Never thought I would.
And now?
Now, I had been taken.
I swallowed hard, refusing to let my hands shake.
Kieran hadn't spoken to me since the plane took off. Not after what happened in the car.
Not after I had nearly begged him not to make me get on this damn thing.
I hated that he had seen that.
Hated that he had calmed me down.
Hated that, for just a moment, I had almost believed him when he said he wouldn't let anything happen to me.
I wasn't safe with him.
I wasn't safe anywhere.
The plane slowed to a stop. A mechanical hiss sounded as the stairs lowered, and a rush of cold air flooded into the cabin.
I shivered, my thin dress useless against the sudden bite of winter.
Kieran stood first, adjusting the cuffs of his coat like we hadn't just spent hours in unbearable silence. "Come."
I didn't move.
I wasn't ready.
I wasn't ready to step out into a country I had never set foot in, surrounded by wolves who didn't want a human here, in a place that was just another cage—one that I might never escape.
But my hesitation only lasted a second.
Because if I didn't move, I knew Kieran would make me.
I forced myself up, my limbs stiff from the flight, and followed him down the steps.
The cold hit me like a slap.
Sharp, biting, unforgiving.
The snow-covered ground stretched in every direction, the dark outline of a dense forest looming beyond the runway. A sleek black SUV was waiting a few feet away, its headlights cutting through the night.
Two men stood beside it—guards, both of them wolves, their expressions unreadable.
I barely noticed them.
Because all I could feel was how different everything was.
The air smelled wrong.
Crisper, cleaner—colder.
The silence was different, too. Not the thick, heavy quiet of the estate in America, but something else. Something vast.
I wasn't home.
I would never be home again.
A lump formed in my throat, but I shoved it down.
I wouldn't break here.
I wouldn't.
I barely reacted as Kieran led me toward the car, his grip firm but not forceful.
Not yet.
He was still waiting.
Waiting for me to try something.
Waiting for me to fight.
But I didn't.
Not yet.
The second I was in that car, I would be trapped again. Another long ride. Another stretch of road leading deeper into his world, deeper into him.
I had one chance.
One moment.
The guards were watching, but they weren't watching me.
Kieran's grip loosened slightly as he reached for the door handle.
Now.
I ran.
I didn't think—I moved.
I shoved away from Kieran, my feet barely touching the icy ground before I bolted, my breath burning, my body screaming at me to go, go, go—
I didn't make it far.
A blur of movement—heat against my back—weight.
Kieran tackled me before I could even reach the tree line.
I hit the ground hard, the freezing snow searing against my skin.
"You little—"
His growl vibrated through me as he flipped me onto my back, his body caging mine against the snow. His breath came in sharp exhales, his dark eyes burning furious as he stared down at me.
I gasped, squirming, but he pinned my wrists above my head with one hand, his other arm bracing against the ground beside me.
"Did you really think you could outrun me?"
I didn't answer.
I just glared.
Because I had known.
I had known I wouldn't make it.
But I had tried.
And I would keep trying.
Kieran exhaled through his nose, his grip tightening slightly before he yanked me up onto my feet.
"Get in the car," he ordered.
I didn't move.
His lips curled. "Cassidy."
I gritted my teeth. "Go to hell."
Damon's amused chuckle sounded from somewhere behind us. "She really doesn't like you, boss."
Kieran ignored him.
I expected him to drag me to the car, to force me inside, to punish me for running.
But instead, he just stared at me.
Waiting.
Daring me to fight him again.
I hated him.
I hated him.
But I wasn't stupid.
I yanked my arm from his grip and stormed toward the car.
I got in on my own.
Because that was the only choice I had left.
The SUV moved through the snow-covered roads in silence.
I sat as far away from Kieran as possible, my arms wrapped around myself for warmth.
I refused to speak.
Refused to look at him.
The weight of everything pressed down on me. The icy roads, the unfamiliar land, the cold that refused to leave my skin.
I was gone.
I had left my mother behind.
I had left everything behind.
And now, I had nothing.
Nothing except him.
I pressed my forehead against the cold glass, my breath fogging the window.
I would escape.
I didn't know how.
I didn't know when.
But I would.
I would never look back.