Heart of Ice

Chapter Fourteen

Song: Film Out- BTS

The next morning, we decide we shouldn't waste any time in getting to the safe house as quickly as possible. There is no doubt Demetrius is tracking us, and it is only a matter of time before he figures out where we are again. At least at the safe house, we will be off the grid enough that it will be very difficult to find us, and it will give the pack time to take care of Bloodbound.

When we stop by to return the key, the woman eyes me as she processes the return. Hunter takes notice and steps in front of me, his eyes narrowing. "Is there a problem?"

"No, sir," she fakes a smile as she hands Hunter a receipt. "I hope you and your girlfriend had a nice stay."

"Of course we did. I'm sure a few of your guests complained about the night we had," Hunter smirks as he crumples up the receipt and tosses it back to her. The woman's jaw drops as he grabs my hand and we walk away, and I can't help but to have the same expression as her– except I think mine is a little more horrified.

When we are far away enough that she can't see us, I rip my hand out of his and slap his shoulder hard. "Why the hell would you say that?"

He winces as he clutches his shoulder and pouts at me. "Do you have iron in your hand or something?"

I slap him again. "Answer the question!"

"Okay, geez, woman!" he glares at my hand. "It was none of her business. She didn't need to be staring at you like that."

I facepalm myself. "Hunter, there were 101 better ways to deal with that."

"True, but I tend to be that special one," he winks.

I roll my eyes and try to subdue the heat in my face as I walk in front of him. He is pretty quiet for a while, but then he catches up to me and peers at me curiously. "You want to talk about those nightmares?"

"Not particularly with you."

"It's better out than in. They say if you talk about a dream, it won't come true."

"Maybe so for normal dreams," I whisper, looking away from him. "But I think it's a little different when there's someone physically manipulating them."

He frowns. "It seemed as bad as the one you had before we were taken."

"It was. What I saw in those dreams... it's just not something I can get out of my head."

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, but I just worry that if you keep holding it in, it's going to build up, and eventually, you're going to break," Hunter sighs as our eyes meet. "And when that happens, it would be much easier for Demetrius to–"

"He killed my parents in the first one," I swallow, my voice raspy as the image of the dream flashes before my eyes. "Burned them alive and made me watch. My parents are two of the strongest people in the world. I've never seen them weak. I don't think I would survive seeing it actually happen," when I recall the first dream, the second one instantly comes to mind, and as I glance at Hunter again, tears brim in my eyes. "And the second one..."

His eyebrows knit together as we stop walking. "The second one?"

I hesitate before looking away from him. "I don't know what exactly Demetrius did, but there was blood all over you and you were barely breathing. He told you I let it happen on purpose. And then..." I swallow the lump in my throat, holding in the sob wanting to escape. I whisper, "And then, you died in my arms."

And if it hadn't been for you telling me you love me, I would've believed it was real, even after I woke up.

I can't meet his eyes after telling him about it, and when he doesn't respond, I start taking small steps forward as I try to think of anything but those dreams. I know what Demetrius' goal is. He knows my greatest weaknesses and if he can make me vulnerable, it will break the wall keeping him from finding me without any issue. The more he digs into my mind, the more he shows me the things he knows will break me mentally, and the closer he gets to getting what he wants.

"Alaska," Hunter's voice breaks me out of my thoughts, and although I don't respond, I stop walking. "You know neither of those dreams are ever going to happen, right?"

"You can't promise that."

"For some things, promises shouldn't be made. People always promise stuff and either on purpose or on accident, they break it because of their own choices. I don't make promises without knowing I can keep them without any problem– which is why I'm promising you now you'll never see any of us in that state. I promise with everything in me."

I finally turn around, and for the first time in a long time, he genuinely smiles at me. Something stirs in my heart when I catch sight of his smile. I hadn't realized how much I missed seeing it, or having it aimed towards me, until I finally saw it again. It makes my breath catch in my throat.

"Besides," he steps forward, his smile growing. "If it did ever happen, you'd still have me, your favorite enemy, to deal with. I'd torment you from the afterlife."

The last moment of my dream flashes into my mind again. Goodbye, angel. In another life. I blink rapidly, and the image of him dying is gone. He still stands there, his smile growing, and I slowly smile back at him, rolling my eyes playfully. "Of course you would. I don't think you would survive in death without bothering me in some way."

He laughs before he starts walking beside me. "Let's get to the safe house. We'll be able to breathe a little better and won't have to worry like we do being out in the open."

It doesn't take very long until we are deep in the woods of Pennsylvania, and eventually, we stumble upon the dirt path and thickness of trees aunt Hazel told us about. We follow along the path aunt Hazel described, darkness surrounding us even though it is the middle of the day. We soon come to a clearing in the valley, and there sits a cottage, smoke gently billowing out of the chimney on top. As I catch sight of the cottage, thousands of memories flit through my mind, all from this very place where every summer was spent with my family and Hunter.

"Is this..."

"It is," Hunter steps forward, staring intently at the house. "It's our summer house. Something only we know about."

I pull my phone out of my pocket, noticing there is no service at all. Although sunlight peeks through the trees, there are enough trees surrounding the house that nobody will be able to see it, even from a bird's eye view. This is the only place my parents ever allowed me to come after Demetrius began haunting me, and it was the only place I could ever be free. It was the only place after my nightmares started where I could have a real childhood.

"I don't think I've seen you this relaxed since the last night we were home," I glance at Hunter to see a small smile gracing his lips. I stare at him for a few seconds before glancing at the house again, my lips turning upwards as the gentle breeze brushes through my hair.

"It's easy to breathe here," I whisper. "I know I'm safe and nobody can get to me."

And even if it doesn't last for long, even though I'm with my enemy I don't want to be an enemy, just for a little bit, I'm able to feel freedom from the monster that has relentlessly chased me since my childhood.

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Hi loves,

Sorry for posting late— it's been a busy day with classes 😴

Kind of a filler chapter but there's definitely a lot more coming 👀👀

Let me know what y'all are thinking so far!

Please vote, comment, share, and spread the word!

Thank you for reading!

Much love,

Abby