The roguelands always looked the same–gray sky, dry earth, and an eerie kind of quiet that sat heavy on the bones. I’d only been back a handful of times since my memory returned, but each time, I felt the same cold unease, like the air here remembered pain but
couldn’t quite remember how to let it
- go.
Chad flanked my right, walking with his usual tension just below the surface. Two warriors followed behind us—Moonstone elite, handpicked and trained to the edge of brutality. I hadn’t wanted to bring an entourage, but Chad had insisted.
“We’re still cleaning up after a coordinated attack,” he’d reminded me. “This is not the
time to play diplomat in enemy territory without backup.”
“I’m not here for diplomacy,” I’d said, stepping into the transport. “I’m here for friends.”
Now, as we approached the small outpost nestled beneath the ruined overpass, I could see the warped sheet metal siding, the sagging tarps. It looked worse than usual. As if the
rogues who remained had already accepted that it would only be a matter of time before
more violence found them.
Erin, Maggie, and Carly lived even further out–past the last of the barricades, past the half–toppled watchtower where no one bothered to stand guard anymore. Past the makeshift market stalls and the cold fire pits where rebels once gathered to drink and plan and grieve.
They were tucked miles beyond the heart of the rogue camp, where the roads had crumbled into gravel and weeds and the signal from the comm towers barely reached.
Their place wasn’t much–just an old cottage someone had reinforced with scavenged metal and timber, nestled at the base of a pine ridge. But it was away from the worst of it. Off–grid, off–path, off everyone’s radar.
And maybe that’s why they’d stayed this long. It was far enough to feel like peace, even if it
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wasn’t real.
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When I’d lived with them, we’d never really settled down–had always moved from place to place, moving on when things started feeling unsafe.
t
I’d been out here once, when Aiden had somehow gotten out of our packlands and had been
lucky enough to be found by my friends.
Carly saw us first. Her eyes widened, and she stepped out from the door of their dwelling, hand shielding her eyes.
“Elena?” Her voice cracked on the last syllable.
I smiled as I approached. “Hey, stranger.”
J
She didn’t hesitate. We hugged, fiercely and fast. When she pulled away, her eyes darted to the warriors behind me.
“It’s safe,” I assured her. “I’m not here to start anything. I just needed to check in.”
She nodded, lips pressed tight, and then led us inside.
Erin was already there, wrapping gauze around her forearm. She stood quickly when she
saw me.
“Elena.” Her smile was real, if tired.
I nodded. “Are you okay?”
She glanced down at the gauze. “Rogue things. Minor scrap.”
“And Maggie?”
That pulled a reaction. Carly glanced away. Erin’s jaw tightened.
“She’s not here,” Erin said. “We haven’t seen her in a while.”
“She disappeared,” Carly added. “Again.”
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I swallowed. “You think she’s caught up in this…?” I gestured vaguely around.
“No,” Carly said. Too fast. “We don’t know. She was angry. That’s nothing new.”
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I could tell there was more, something bubbling just under the surface, but they weren’t ready to say it. Maybe they didn’t trust me like they used to. I didn’t blame them. Not after everything.
“Can we talk?” I asked Erin.
She gave a short nod and led me to the far side of the tent.
“Is this about Mason?” she asked before I could say anything.
I sighed. “Yeah. He’s miserable. I can see it. And I know you are too.”
“I told him not to come,” she said. “I didn’t want him to risk it. Not out here. Not where my past could get him killed.”
“Then come to Moonstone,” I said. “Both of you. Stay with me. It’s not the same as it was
before.”
“It’s never going to be the same,” she said softly. “You think you’re different. You think people have changed. But we’re still rogues to them.”
“You’re not to me.”
“That’s not enough,” she whispered. “Not anymore.”
I didn’t push her. But the tightness in my chest remained, even after we said goodbye.
***
Back at Moonstone, the quiet didn’t soothe me the way it used to. The packhouse walls felt too tight, the air too heavy. I hadn’t even changed out of my jacket when Logan found me
near the kitchen.
“You went to the roguelands.” His voice was sharp, already laced with accusation.
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I swallowed. “You think she’s caught up in this…?” I gestured vaguely around.
“No,” Carly said. Too fast. “We don’t know. She was angry. That’s nothing new.”
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I could tell there was more, something bubbling just under the surface, but they weren’t ready to say it. Maybe they didn’t trust me like they used to. I didn’t blame them. Not after
everything.
“Can we talk?” I asked Erin.
She gave a short nod and led me to the far side of the tent.
“Is this about Mason?” she asked before I could say anything.
I sighed. “Yeah. He’s miserable. I can see it. And I know you are too.”
“I told him not to come,” she said. “I didn’t want him to risk it. Not out here. Not where m past could get him killed.”
“Then come to Moonstone,” I said. “Both of you. Stay with me. It’s not the same as it was
before.”
“It’s never going to be the same,” she said softly. “You think you’re different. You think people have changed. But we’re still rogues to them.”
“You’re not to me.”
“That’s not enough,” she whispered. “Not anymore.”
I didn’t push her. But the tightness in my chest remained, even after we said goodbye.
***
Back at Moonstone, the quiet didn’t soothe me the way it used to. The packhouse walls felt too tight, the air too heavy. I hadn’t even changed out of my jacket when Logan found me
near the kitchen.
“You went to the roguelands.” His voice was sharp, already laced with accusation.
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“I did.”
He stepped closer. “Alone?”
“With Chad and warriors.”
“And you didn’t think to tell me?”
I shrugged out of my coat and threw it on the back of the chair.
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“I didn’t know I needed permission,” I snapped. I was tired, and getting damned sick of the
men around me constantly assuming they knew best.
“This isn’t about permission,” he said, voice low. “You could have been killed. Again.”
“I was careful.”
“Did you talk to Maggie?”
I frowned. “No. She wasn’t there.”
He went quiet for half a second. Too quiet. Stood there looking at me with narrowed eyes, crossing his arms and leaning back against the countertop.
“I don’t want you going back without me.”
I blinked. “Excuse me?”
“If you want to visit your rogue friends, I go with you.”
I stared at him. “What is wrong with you?”
“I’m trying to keep you safe.”
“No, you’re trying to control me.”
His arms fell to his sides. “That’s not fair.”
I sighed. Threw my gaze to the heavens. The Goddess was testing me.
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“I’m so tired of all of you,” I hissed. “You, Mason, Derek, everyone jumping to conclusions. Accusing me. Dismissing me. I’m not a child. I don’t need protecting. I need respect.”
His jaw tightened, but he didn’t say anything else. He moved closer to me, reached out a
placating hand to try to rub my shoulder. I shrugged his hand off.
And made a decision.
I walked up the stairs, found Aiden sitting cross–legged in the hallway, playing a card game against himself.
“Hey,” I said softly.
He looked up.
“Are we going somewhere?”
I blinked. “What makes you say that?”
“You have that face. The ‘I’m over everyone‘ face.”
I laughed. “Might not be such a bad idea. You want to go away for a little bit? Just the two of us? Somewhere quiet?”
He grinned. “Beach?”
“You read my mind.”
His arms shot into the air. “Yes!”
As he ran to pack, I turned away from the hall, grabbed my phone, and booked the flight. We needed out. Even if it was just for a little while.
Rogue Outskirts
The old train car creaked under the weight of the wind, the rusted roof rattling like bones in a box. The fire in the barrel blazed low, barely illuminating the scarred face of the man who stood with his back to it, watching the treeline like it owed him answers.
A scout stumbled in, breathing hard. “She just booked a trip,” he said, smiling.
Chapter 80
The scarred man turned, slowly. “Who?”
“The Moonstone princess. Elena.”
His eyes gleamed.
“To where?” he asked.
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