Kael sat rigidly on the mossy rock, his amber eyes dark as Nova finished tending to his wound. The waterfall’s mist ghosted coolly against her skin, but it did little to temper the heat of Kael’s glare.

  "You’re an idiot," he muttered.

  Nova arched her brow. "Excuse me?"

  "Running straight into a fight like that? No plan, no backup." He exhaled sharply through his nose. "You don’t charge into a battle when you don’t even know what you’re up against."

  Irritation flashed across Nova’s face. "I handled myself just fine," she said.

  "That’s not the point!" Kael’s voice dropped into a low growl, his frustration boiling over. He turned toward her fully, muscles tense. "You don’t get it! Those weren’t just hunters. They were Shadowmarks."

  Nova frowned. "And?”

  Kael let out a bitter laugh, shaking his head. "They aren’t just some backwoods amateurs. They are trained killers, professionals.

  "Didn’t seem very professional to me," she said, shrugging. "They died pretty easily."

  Kael’s gaze flickered toward the water, his expression tightening, then he muttered, “Too easily. They are part of a cult that has existed for centuries. One that believes anything supernatural is an abomination. Normal people can’t touch them, they use their wealth and power to hire others to do their dirty work.”

  Nova swallowed hard. "No one fights them?"

  Kael let out a slow, humorless laugh. "People have tried." His eyes lifted back to hers, unreadable, “Do you know what happened to them?"

  Nova said nothing.

  "They were shunned, exiled," Kael murmured. "Like they never existed."

  The words felt like they were painful to say, like a burden he was carrying. Nova sat in silence for a few moments trying to understand, then said"So that’s it? You just keep running?"

  His jaw twitched. "That’s exactly what I do. Why try to protect people who won’t protect themselves or their families? This way is easier." Kael turned back toward the water, his voice quieter now. "I’ve been on the run from them for years. Every time I stay in one place too long, they show up. I don’t know how they track me, but they always do."

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  Nova crossed her arms, trying to ignore the way his words made her chest feel too tight."You don’t really live, though," she said. "You just survive… alone."

  Kael hesitated. For a long moment, the only sound was the rush of the waterfall. Then, finally, he spoke. "I wasn’t always alone. I had a pack once. A family." His voice was low, rough, like the words fought their way out of his throat. His jaw flexed, and for the first time, Nova saw something fractured beneath the anger. “I was loved, cherished. My parents doted on me, and my older siblings, two brothers, never let me forget I was a runt. It was a good life, simple and safe."

  He paused, "But nothing stays simple forever. One day, I went out to the woods near our village to play. I was young, eager to explore, and I wandered farther than I should have. When I came back, the air was heavy with smoke. The ground was wet with blood. My family…my pack…they were gone. Dead, burned."

  Nova's breath hitched. "What happened?"

  "Hunters," Kael said, the word laced with venom. "Not Shadowmarks, not at first, Ordinary humans. They discovered what we were and saw us as monsters. They came, armed and organized.”

  "If I had been there, I would have burned too,” he said. “I was found by an old wolf a week later, half starved, scared, and broken. He took me in, taught me how to hunt, fight, and stay hidden.”

  “What happened to him?” Nova’s voice was barely above a whisper.

  Kael’s expression darkened. “The Shadowmarks happened." They discovered what he was and marked him for elimination. He was older, slower, but he still fought like hell to stay free. They didn't kill him quickly, though, they tortured him, and toyed with him, like it was some kind of game to them. By the time I found him, it was too late."

  Nova's breath caught, her heart aching at the pain in his voice. "Kael…"

  "I found out too late," he continued, his voice hardening. "By the time I reached him, there was nothing left to save. The ones responsible were long gone, already hunting their next victim."

  "But you found them," Nova said, understanding dawning in her eyes.

  Kael nodded, “I hunted down the one responsible for giving the order. He was supposed to be untouchable.” Kael smirked, “I got him though. They didn’t know about me yet.”

  Nova gasped, the realization striking her. "You were the one exiled." She hadn’t meant to say it outloud, but the moment she did, she knew she was right.

  Kael turned to face her, his gaze shadowed with something between defiance and guilt. "Yes. The Shadowmarks are usually influential people…politicians, celebrities, wealthy elites. People whose disappearances draw attention. My actions endangered all of us, and for that, they cast me out."

  "That’s why you’re alone.” Nova said.

  Kael nodded once. "That’s why I was banished."

  Silence settled heavily between then.

  Kael didn’t move. His gaze was distant, locked on the water, but it was like he wasn’t really seeing it. His body was still tense, shoulders rigid, like he was caught somewhere between then and now, lost in the weight of old wounds that refused to fade.

  Nova hesitated. She wasn’t sure what she was doing, only that the ache in her chest was as sharp as the grief in his voice.

  She opened her mouth to reassure him, before deciding against it. Words felt useless. There was nothing that she could say to change anything about his past or what he had suffered though.

  So instead, she leaned in and kissed him.