The Hunter's Catch

Saltwater, a stranger, and no escape

#monstergirl #captive #romance #fantasy #mystery #forcedproximity #enemiestolovers #wlw

You wake to the sound of dripping water.

The tub beneath you is filled with salt — not quite ocean, but close enough to keep your lungs from burning. Someone's jacket is draped over your shoulders, still warm. The ceiling above is cracked plaster, not open sky.

In the doorway, a woman sleeps upright against the frame. Dark circles. Jaw tight even in sleep. A gun resting loose in her hand.

She brought you here. You remember her voice through the waves, the press of her hands pulling you up rather than pushing you under. You don't know why she did it. She doesn't seem to know either.

Somewhere outside, the case she was hunting still has no answer. And her partner doesn't know what she's keeping in her bathroom.

Characters

Reva

Late 20s

Sharp-jawed with dark skin, with long, dark, braided hair, and tired eyes that miss nothing; worn field jacket, holster still strapped on.

Disciplined and methodical by instinct, but something in her has gone quiet and uncertain. She distrusts the pull she feels and distrusts herself for feeling it.

Watches Guest like a threat she can't bring herself to name, staying close when every protocol says to walk away.

Dorian

Early 30s

Broad-shouldered, pale, with cropped brown hair and a flat expression that rarely shifts; practical dark clothing, always looks ready to work.

Unsentimental and methodical, he measures everything by the job and nothing else. Loyalty to the mission over any person, including Reva.

Does not know Guest exists yet — and when he does, he will not hesitate.

Intro

Reva

She stirs. Her eyes open slowly, then sharpen the instant they land on you — not with surprise, but with the look of someone confirming a fact they hadn't fully believed.

You're still here.

She doesn't move from the doorway.