Aria’s POV
I drifted in and out of consciousness, caught between dreams and the sharp pain that shot through my body. It was hard to tell what was real and what wasn’t.
I could hear a voice, deep and familiar, murmuring to me through the haze. Denderick. It had to be him. But sometimes, it felt distant, like it wasn’t there at all.
I was aware of being held and carried, but I couldn’t open my eyes. My head lolled to the side, and I could feel the rough fabric of a cloak brushing against my cheek. Each step jostled me, sending sharp aches through my ribs, but I couldn’t even manage to cry out. Everything was dull like I was wrapped in fog.
That voice again, was soft and reassuring. “You’re safe, Aria. I’ve got you. We’re going home.”
Home. The word lingered in the back of my mind. I wanted to believe it, wanted to hold on to that promise. But my body wouldn’t cooperate. I was trapped in this state of semi-consciousness, my senses dulled by the exhaustion, the pain, and the torment Logan had inflicted.
At some point, the air changed. It felt fresher and cooler. Slowly, I opened my eyes. The light was blinding at first, but as my vision cleared, I realized we were outside. The dungeon walls, the chains, the darkness-they were gone.
The open-air felt like a gift after so long in that hellish prison. My chest rose with a deep, shaky breath. The pain was still there, but the freedom in the air made it feel bearable.
Denderick carried me the rest of the way to a waiting carriage. When we reached the carriage, he carefully propped me up against a stack of pillows. The softness of the cushions felt foreign after the hard, cold dungeon floor, but I sank into them gratefully.
“Water…” I croaked. My throat felt like sandpaper, each word scraping painfully as it left my lips.
Denderick nodded and reached into his coat, pulling out a canteen. He held it to my lips, and I drank slowly, the cool liquid sliding down my parched throat. I hadn’t realized how desperately I needed it until that moment. Each sip brought me back a little closer to reality, a little farther away from the nightmare I had been living.
When I finally felt like I could breathe again, I leaned back and took a good look around the carriage. We weren’t alone. Two women sat across from me, both looking worn and frail, but alive.
Sara… and another woman I couldn’t recognize. She had to be from the dungeon as well.
Sara still had wide, haunted eyes. Her brown hair was tangled, and there were dark circles under her eyes, but she was alive. She sat quietly, her hands folded in her lap, as if afraid to believe that the ordeal was truly over.
The other woman was even thinner, her blonde hair limp and dirty, her cheeks sunken from starvation. She was barely holding herself together, but there was a certain resilience in her gaze. Despite everything, she had survived. We all had.
Sara caught my eye, and we exchanged a small, weary smile. It wasn’t much, but it was enough. We were free. We had made it out.
“Thank you,” Sara whispered, over the rumbling of the carriage wheels. “For everything.”
I shook my head slowly. “No… we survived because of Denderick.”
I glanced over at him, my heart swelling with gratitude. He had come for me, just like he had promised. He had risked everything to save me from Logan’s hellish grip.
“Denderick…” I began, “What about Giselle?”
The question had been weighing on me for some time, but I hadn’t had the strength to ask until now. I needed to know.
He looked at me for a long moment. “You don’t have to worry about her anymore.”
“Wh… what do you mean?”
“Giselle killed her sister, remember?” He said. “And she had a hand in your kidnap as well. I took the issue to the Council of Alphas, and they judged it accordingly. Giselle and her father were banished. Trust me, we won’t be seeing any more of them for years.”
I sighed and snuggled even closer. I was all too happy to see that Giselle was finally out of our lives for good. The pain that she had caused me was still there, lingering in the corners of my heart.
Denderick reached out, his fingers brushing across the back of my hand. Even that slight touch was almost unbearable. “Giselle wanted more than she ever deserved. She and I were never meant to be together.”
I lowered my gaze, keeping my eyes fixed on the floor of the carriage. It wasn’t just Logan who had destroyed my life. Giselle had a hand in it too.
“I can’t believe it,” I whispered, shaking my head.
“Giselle was loyal only to herself,” Denderick replied bitterly. “Her father’s influence twisted her beyond recognition.”
There was a long silence after that before I asked again.
“Logan and Erinne… they escaped, didn’t they?”
Denderick sighed, his features hardening again. “Yes. But we’ll find them. I won’t rest until they’re caught, Aria. They won’t get away with this.”
I nodded, but my heart sank at the thought of Logan still being out there, somewhere. He wasn’t finished with me. I could feel it deep in my bones. There would be more blood, and more suffering before this was all over.
But that wasn’t my biggest concern right now. I looked down, my chest tightening as I remembered Erinne’s taunts, her cruel words echoing in my mind.
“Denderick…” I began hesitantly, “I need to bury Edward properly. Can that be arranged?”
Denderick gave me a soft, sad smile, and he took my hand gently in his. “Aria… we haven’t found his body yet.”
I felt the air leave my lungs as if someone had just punched me in the gut. The pain was sharp, raw. It was like losing him all over again.
“But… Erinne said-” I started.
“I know,” Denderick said softly. “But we’ll keep searching. We won’t stop until we find him.”
Tears welled in my eyes, but I blinked them away. I couldn’t break down now. I had to hold on to the small sliver of hope that maybe… maybe he was still out there, alive somewhere.
The carriage slowed to a stop, and I glanced out the window. We were back at the pack house, Denderick’s home.
Sara and the other woman stepped out first. Then Denderick held the door wider and helped me out, his hand steady on my arm. The fresh air hit my face, and I took a deep breath, feeling the warmth of the sun on my skin.
For the first time in what felt like forever, I was free. I was safe.
And I was home.