Chapter One

Tiera cried out in pain as she stumbled through the dark, banging her shins on debris that littered the alley. She tried to muffle her sobs, but she was overwhelmed with confusion and fear pounded in her veins. Why were they Hunting her? Heavy steps caught her attention and spurred her into flight once again. She couldn't fight the men following her; it was suicide to think that she stood a chance.

Not paying attention to the path in front of her, Tiera turned a corner and abruptly ran into a wall of flesh, causing her to stumble back. A hand gripped her shoulder and a second covered her mouth. It was too dark for Tiera to see anything but the outline of the figure in front of her, but as the stranger pulled her closer, her hands met with his hard body. Tiera struggled against his grip as panic set in and the footsteps of the Hunters approached. As she stared up at the stranger fearfully, he cocked his head for a moment, as if thinking, and drew her further into the shadows of the alley. He adjusted his grip so her back was wedged close to the front of his body, his arm wrapped around her chest. Her heart was pounding frantically, tears were dripping down her face, but she was no longer sobbing.

Tiera heard someone whimpering softly and realized that it must be her when the stranger whispered in her ear. "Hey, hey, I won't hurt you. Calm down, I won't hurt you. Stop crying." When she quieted, he spoke again. "I'm going to release you, ok? The buckles on your outfit are catching the light of the stars and you need to turn around so we can hide better." Tiera nodded slightly and the stranger cautiously relaxed his grip. At that second, the footsteps were closer than ever before, and terror caught hold of her body. She swallowed the scream that was rising in her throat and tried to run.

The man grabbed her arm and spun her around to meet the hard planes of his body, stifling her low cry of pain as the top of her head struck his chest. Tiera couldn't breathe as the leather of the stranger's jacket was forced on her face with the man's grip tight across her shoulders and the back of her head, but tears flowed freely. Bells rang gently in the night from across the city, signifying the end of First Night. Her heart beat wildly as the Hunters slowly made their way past the shadows, their guns clanked softly and their boots crunched the frosted ground. She stood frozen against the man long after the footsteps faded into the night, not daring to hope she had escaped.

Drawing a ragged breath, Tiera brought her hand up to the man's chest and felt his heart beating steadily. He relaxed his grip suddenly, and she felt herself stumble back slightly, the night air unexpectedly cold on her body. She didn't realize how truly alone she was until she had stood that close to the man and shared his body warmth. Trying to think of something to say to her rescuer, she was caught off guard as another shadow materialized next to her. A hand caught her wrist as she jumped, and her stranger tugged her closer. "Little Rabbit, he won't hurt you." His voice was deep and lilting, and Tiera looked up, wishing for light to see him.

The shadow said something quietly and apologized for scaring her before turning to speak with her rescuer. Tiera looked at the two men, willing them to finish what they were planning so she could flee into the night to lick her wounds. Tears streamed off her face as they continued to stare at her, whispering to each other in the darkness.

Apparently coming to a conclusion, the shadow muttered something angrily and her stranger tensed. "She is coming with me." Tiera stood rigid and tried not to think of what would happen to her. It wasn't the first time she had been at the mercy of men, and it certainly wouldn't be the last. The shadow-figure sighed and nodded, melting into the darkness.

Finding her voice, Tiera asked timidly, "Please don't hurt me." Her voice sounded high and frightened in the darkness. The stranger looked at her for a long moment.

"I'm taking you somewhere, Little Rabbit, don't be scared." With that, he tugged at her wrist again and set out into the maze of the city.

As the adrenalin wore off, Tiera realized just how tired and cold she really was. She had been running since the end of Second Day, and it was well into First Night already. She shivered uncontrollably. Tiera still wore her performing clothes and they kept little heat near her body. Tears fell steadily as she followed the man, wondering how long he would keep her.

She didn't realize he had spoken to her until he turned around and she ran into him. Nervous, she looked up, the faint light from a building casting shadows on his face. She snapped her gaze back down to her feet. Tiera could feel his eyes on her for a long moment, then he abruptly let go of her wrist. She stood petrified, waiting for but half-dreading something to happen. She flinched and closed her eyes as she felt him move closer to her, until something heavy dropped on her shoulders. Her eyes flew open to gape at the stranger, his jacket warm on her bare skin. He stared at her for a few seconds, then took her hand and pulled it through the arm of the jacket. He repeated it with her other arm then grabbed her wrist and they were off again.

As they darted through the city, Tiera didn't know what to think. She fingered the collar of the leather jacket with awe. He had given her a jacket.

The stranger stopped at a decrepit building, like so many others in the Inner City. The windows were bashed in and boarded up; piles of rocks and wood from the crumbling building scattered the ground. He pushed open the door and pulled her inside, causing Tiera to stumble after him as he made his way deeper into the dark house. As she passed a staircase, two green eyes glowed in the dark, and a low growl rumbled. She heard herself whimper, and the man turned slightly. "Teeka, down," his voice rang out in the stillness. The beast shrank back to its post and they continued down the hall. She was filled with dread as the man opened one of the many doors in the hall and pulled her in behind him. As Tiera looked at the sparse room with only a bed, chest, and oil lamp, her eyes filled with tears. The man gently pushed her towards the bed and told her to lie down. She did, but she took off the jacket, not wanting to remember his kindness. Crying, Tiera shivered at the cold and looked up at the man standing before her.

"Little Rabbit, why are you crying?" His voice was soft. "You're safe now."

She rolled to her side, curling into a ball and wishing he would stop being nice to her and finish what he was about to do. She felt him kneel by her side and the sobs came faster. She flinched as she felt him place his hand on her head. Tiera cried harder, rocking herself.

"Please, please no," she whimpered. "Please don't hurt me."

"I-" She felt him stiffen and draw back. Tiera bit back a scream as someone pounded on the door. It flew open and another man walked in.

"Riat, what are you doing home so early?" He called out joyfully. The man walked into the room. "Why don't you light the lamp? I can hardly see you." He stiffened. "Who's crying? Riat, what happened?"

Tiera's stranger reached over to light the oil lamp and the man by the door made a shocked noise deep in his throat. "Lyd, she needed help, so I couldn't finish tonight. I'm surprised Rehi didn't tell you. I spoke with him earlier."

Tiera wasn't paying attention to the conversation; she was struck by the man who had saved her. She hadn't had the chance to look at him properly until then, and she was surprised to see a man so beautiful. His dark hair framed his wide face and tanned skin. His eyes were brown and slanted slightly up at the corners; freckles sprinkled his nose and cheeks. Tiera forgot to be afraid of him; for a second she even forgot to breathe. Then he moved his hand to the back of her head and reality crashed back to her.

The man called Lyd was speechless. "You brought someone back?! Why? Who is she?"

Riat smiled gently down at Tiera, making her head confused. "She hardly speaks. I don't know who she is." As the two men stared at her Tiera hid her face in her hands.

After a while, Lyd spoke up. "Why is she crying? What happened?"

"Not right now, Lyd, I'll tell you later. Will you go warm up some soup?"

Lyd nodded, and left the room with a questioning glance at Tiera. It was quiet after he left, and Tiera didn't know what would happen. On his knees by the bed, Riat moved closer to Tiera and she closed her eyes. He responded by smoothing her hair.

"Little Rabbit," he whispered gently. "Little Rabbit, I won't hurt you. I won't hurt you."

Tiera's eyes shot open, barely daring to breathe. She had been told that before, so many times before. But something struck her, as she was caught his eyes, that perhaps this mysterious man called Riat was different. Perhaps. "Do you promise?" He bent in so he could hear the words that were barely breathed. Riat looked down at the girl and feelings he didn't think he was capable of having shot through him. Tired lines marked her face and her eyes were full of worry, pain, sadness and fear; more than anyone should ever have had to experience.

Solemnly, he nodded. "I promise." She looked at him for another moment then closed her eyes and relaxed her small body with a look that could barely be described as a smile on her face.

Tiera didn't realize how tense she was until she completely relaxed in Riat's bed. She was beyond tired, and was already more than half asleep when he pulled a blanket around her shoulders. Vaguely she heard the bells ending Third Night.

Riat closed the door firmly and leaned against it, letting out a deep breath in the hall. What was he doing? He couldn't protect everyone. It was just with those big green eyes staring up at him half in fear, he couldn't refuse her anything. Sighing, he rubbed his neck, making his way down the hall to the kitchen area. Lyd was stirring the soup over the large fire pit in the middle of the floor. He looked up and grinned, a mischievous smile playing on his face.

"Well Riat, looks like you've found another orphan."

Riat smiled slightly. "Yeah, that's what it looks like." Lyd filled a bowl and handed it to his friend.

"So tell me, Riat, what's the story with the beauty crying in your room?"