Hope Is Not Optional — Manuel Flores 61
Chapter 61
Chapter 61
Selene
I moved quickly down the slope, my boots scraping against the uneven rock. The mountain air was thin, biting cold against my skin. I had to get out of here before the guards came. They must have already seen that flash of light when the phoenix appeared, the guards would be rushing up here by now to investigate.
And if they found me standing here, they would find who I was, and start asking questions I can’t obviously answer. There was no way I was going to tell them I made a deal with the powerful phoenix.
I kept walking until I reached the ridge. The same damn gap I had jumped over last time stretched before me. I crouched slightly, peering down. The wind whistled through the chasm, carrying the echo of rushing water far below.
Nope. Not a chance.
I wasn’t stupid enough to try that again. Mira had used her energy to open the phoenix’s seal, and I’d used mine to keep it stable. My body felt heavy now, like every movement was twice the effort. If I tried to jump in this state, I wouldn’t make it halfway across, I’d just fall to my death.
I exhaled sharply. “Great,” I muttered. “Trapped on a mountain with no wolf, no energy, and a phoenix who couldn’t bother to help.”
If that damn bird had just carried me down, I wouldn’t be wandering around like some lost pup.
Rolling my eyes, I turned around and started searching for another way out. There had to be one. Mountains like this always had more than one way out, I just had to find the right one.
I walked for a while. After a while, I noticed the ground changing beneath me. The rough stone gave way to patches of green
grass.
I frowned, crouching down to touch it. It was soft. That meant I’d gone deeper into the mountain.
“When did I even wander this far?” I muttered, glancing back over my shoulder. I couldn’t even see the path I’d come from
anymore.
Lost. Wonderful.
I looked around to find a cave. It sat tucked between two jagged rocks. I tilted my head, debating. Every instinct in me screamed that walking into dark caves on cursed mountains was a terrible idea.
But the logical part of me, the part that had learned survival meant taking risks. If the cave existed in this part of the mountain, there might be something useful.
“Just a few minutes,” I muttered to myself. “I’ll look around and leave.”
I stepped inside. The air grew cooler immediately. My boots crunched over loose gravel as I moved further in. Thin beams of sunlight pierced through cracks in the ceiling. For a place that no one dared come near, it was strangely clean.
The sound of voices outside the cave made me stop. “Search everywhere! We have to find out where that strange light came from! Check every ridge, every damn corner-“There was a pause, “Even that cave over there!”
My heart stopped.
Shit.
I spun around, eyes darting toward the cave’s entrance just as a shadow appeared there, it was a man, holding a torch, scanning the darkness. I barely had time to think before I felt someone grabbing my waist.
12:55
Tue, Dec
Chapter 61
I gasped.
Before I could even fight back, the person yanked me forward, deeper into the cave. My body slammed into someone’s chest. The air rushed out of my lungs as my fingers instinctively clutched the fabric of his cloak.
My head was pressed against him, and gods, his chest was so warm it felt like it was burning beneath my cheek, rising and falling slowly with each breath. His hand was firm around my waist, and even though my brain screamed danger, my body refused to move. His scent curled around me, intoxicating and impossible to ignore.
When I still didn’t move, his deep voice echoed through the cave. “When are you going to get off?”
That voice.
I lifted my head slowly. The moment my eyes met his, my breath hitched.
Crimson. A pair of crimson eyes stared back at me.
No. It couldn’t be.
It was the man from the auction, the cloaked stranger who had watched me so intently. But now, seeing those eyes up close, my whole body trembled.
I knew those eyes. I’d seen them before in my past lives.
Red like fire. Red like death.
Alpha Dominic, the Demon of the West.
My executioner. The same monster who ended my past eight lives, the only one who could defeat me when I was at my strongest.
What the hell was he doing here? Why was he in the Mooncrest Pack? And wait, had I seriously scammed this man at the auction for gold coins?!
Oh, gods. I was so dead.
I tried to rationalize, to tell myself it could be someone else. There could be another man with glowing red eyes, right? Right?! But the moment his gaze sharpened, glinting in the darkness, I knew.
Fucking hell. I’m done.
He tilted his head slightly, studying me with that calm look of a predator studying his prey.
Did he recognize me? Did he remember me? Am I about to die?
“Who’s there?!” someone shouted from the cave’s entrance, closer now. The echo of footsteps bounced off the walls. I panicked. I couldn’t be caught here by the guards.
I looked up at the man I was still lying on, swallowing hard. His eyes narrowed, questioning, and dangerous. I didn’t have time to think. Before I could talk myself out of it, I reached up, grabbed the edge of his hood, and yanked it down.
It was really him!
Those crimson eyes locked on me, and for a second, I felt like I was staring straight into the gates of hell.
“Selene, don’t think about it. Think later. Survive now.” I whispered under my breath.
He opened his mouth. “What are you-”
12:55 Tue, Dec 23
Chapter 61
Before he could finish, I did the only thing I could think of. I leaned forward, and kissed him, and his body went completely
still.
AD
Comment
Send gift
No Ads
12:55 Tue, Dec 23
Editorial Board: Our editorial team works behind the scenes to refine each chapter, maintain consistency, and deliver the best reading experience.
Join Our WhatsApp Channel For Fast Update Or More Novels: 
Join Our WhatsApp Channel For Fast Update Or More Novels: