Kai's lungs burned as he struggled in Richard's unyielding grip. Every twist, every kick, every desperate attempt to push his brother away was met with the same calm, absolute force. Richard held him as if he weighed nothing, his icy blue eyes unflinching, his movements deliberate and controlled.
"Put me down!" Kai shouted, his voice raw with frustration. "I'm not going back!"
Richard didn't answer. Instead, he leaned closer, pressing Kai's face firmly into the side of his neck. The cold of his aura seeped through Kai's skin, prickling like frostbite, and for a moment, the world narrowed to the sound of Richard's steady breathing and the unyielding presence of his arms.
Kai twisted and squirmed, but the more he fought, the tighter Richard's grip became. It wasn't just physical strength—it was the command of a man who had never been denied. Kai's blue eyes flashed with defiance, but beneath the rage, a strange, instinctive sense of connection stirred, like the echo of blood that bound them.
"You can struggle," Richard murmured, his voice low, almost teasing, "but it won't change anything. You belong to Father. And Father won't wait."
Kai's heart pounded, his body instinctively pressing back, yet he couldn't find leverage. Every attempt to twist free only pressed his face deeper into the hollow near Richard's neck. The scent of him—cold, sharp, utterly unyielding—filled Kai's senses. He could feel the ice radiating from Richard's aura, wrapping around him, holding him, reminding him that resistance alone would not win.
"Let…me…go!" Kai gasped, voice muffled, eyes narrowing in fury.
Richard's only response was a faint smirk, his grip unshaken, his posture relaxed yet impossibly strong. "You're not going anywhere, little brother," he said softly. "You've run long enough. It's time to come home."
Kai struggled again, muscles straining, but the more he fought, the more he realized the futility. Richard's hold was absolute, not out of malice, but because he could be. He had been sent to retrieve Kai, and he would not fail. Not now. Not ever.
The helicopter waiting above the cliffs roared faintly in the distance, a reminder that escape was no longer an option. Kai's defiance flared one last time—but even as he struggled, he couldn't help but notice the strange steadiness of his brother. The calm, unshakable force that made resistance feel almost…pointless.
For the first time since he had left home, Kai's blue eyes met Richard's directly, and he saw not just a hunter, but family. Ice and blood, power and legacy, all tangled in a way he couldn't untangle.
And though he would fight with every ounce of strength he had, deep down, he knew the chase was over.
Richard carried Kai to the Helicopter with ease, despite Kai's struggles. He held him tightly, feeling satisfaction that his little brother was finally coming home. Even though Kai despised it.
They boarded the helicopter, to Kai's dismay.
Richard's arms remained firm, his hold unyielding, and Kai realized with dread that the storm he had feared for so long had finally caught him.
He didn't want to go back.
Not now,
Not ever.