In Reach?

Liam’s POV

I’m speeding my way back to the pack-grounds, and this crap weather is working against me. Now the car keeps skidding on the road and Noah’s calls can’t get through. It’s raining, again. It’s not even raining season. But I have to get back. I have to get to Mira. She’s in danger. She must be. I can feel her restlessness. It’s intense. No wonder I can feel it all the way here.

The moment we enter pack grounds I feel somewhat relieved, because I know she’s still here.

I barely put the car in park when I rush out and into the house.

“You’re back already?”

I hear someone’s voice in the background, but I’m not bothered enough to know whose, as I run up the stairs.

I run down the hall and up ahead I see Theo.

“Alpha. You’re back.”

But he can sense my worry.

“She’s not there.”

I freeze dead in my tracks, hearing those words.

“What?” I’m asking myself more than asking him. She has to be here. I felt her presence.

“Yeah. Char took her for some check-up a while ago. I figured it was fine since you gave her the key to the room. But Rachel went down with them, just in case.”

Rachel?

I run back down, rushing to the infirmary. Noah catches me on the way.

“You find her?”

I just shake my head as I rush past him. I follow the light scent of Mira I can still smell. I end up in one of the cubicles and stand shocked seeing Rachel's still body lying on the floor. I kneel next to her body. I relax knowing she’s fine, I can hear her breathing. She’s just passed out.

But my eye catches something on the floor close to us. It looks like green powder, but with shredded leaves. I pick some up with my fingers and smell it. What is this? I can’t get a smell from it at all, and it’s bothering my wolf. The more I sniff the more I realize that it’s numbing my nose.

“What the hell.” Noah rushes in and kneels down next to us. “What happened?”

“I don’t know. But she’s just passed out. Doesn’t look like anything serious.” I pick her up and lay her down on the bed in the room.

I open the mind-link to all my patrols and warriors.

This is your Alpha speaking. Everyone, find my aunt Charlotte, now! This is an emergency. She is not to leave pack grounds.

Yes Alpha!!! I hear a chorus say back.

I run out with Noah next to me. “We have to hurry. Her scent is still here, so it hasn’t been that long since they left. But the rain will interfere with tracking them.” I run out the backdoor, where their last trace of scent leads me. Why can’t I sense her anymore?

Rogues! That’s Mason’s voice.

Where?

South border. Don’t know how many. They’re coming from all sides. But Alpha, I may be wrong, but this attack seems off. It seems more like a distraction to me.

Shit! Char.

I nod to Noah so he can go to help Mason at the border. I continue running through the back-end of the woods. A few seconds later I see Liz running up next to me already in wolf form.

On my way to Mason, Noah told me you may need my help tracking Char.

That’s right. She’s our bets tracker.

Can you track in the rain?

My nose may not be that great in the rain, but it makes it easier for my eyes to catch the footprints.

She runs up ahead and takes a slight turn. She must have picked up on something. But we’re running up-hill. Why would she want to escape from up there? There is nothing but a cliff over the river.

A minute later, the rain just stops. As if it was instant. Weird. But Liz is running faster now.

This way Alpha. She’s close.

She is. I can hear her stomping on the muddy ground. Running out of the dense grove, I see her standing there, at the edge of the cliff, as if waiting for me. But she’s alone.

“Where is she!!!”

“Liam……I’m sorry.” She looks sad.

“Where the fuck is she?!!!”

I stomp closer to her. This is pissing me off. Because I know now, - she brought me to a dead end. She was just another distraction.

“You have to know, that whatever I did, it was what was best for Mira.” She’s calm with her words.

“Restrain her.” I look at Liz who has already shifted and put on a shirt.

“It’s too late.” I look up at Char in confusion. “You caught me, and they’re already here.”

Before I could even say another word, I hear the swooshing of something flying next to my ear. That’s when I see it, plunged into Char’s stomach. A dagger was thrown at her.

A huge howl is echoed in the woods as Liz calls for patrols to the hidden dangers in the tress. I can already hear them running this way.

I hear Char moaning in pain, looking at the dagger and almost loosing her footing.

“Char.” I whisper trying to get closer to her.

But she steps back from me, back towards the edge of the cliff. She whimpers as she pulls it out of her, dropping the bloody thing on the ground. She looks back up at me and takes a step back, falling off the cliff.

“Nooo!!!” I run to her, but I already know I won’t reach her in time.

Mason, Theo and Noah are here now as well. I can sense them.

“What the fuck.” Mason pulls me away from looking over the edge. “We should check the river. She could have survived the fall.”

“No, she won’t.” We look back at Theo, holding the bloody knife.

Taking a closer look at it, I know what he means. I can see the engravings clearly as it already starts to rust. It’s hexed. The random gasps I hear around me, tell me they know as well, - she won’t heal. At this point she’s as good as dead.

Alpha, we caught the hunter.

I walk back into the woods, to see who it is that Liz caught.

She has him knelt down on the ground. He looks skinnier than most hunters I’ve seen, and he’s small. But then again, most men are smaller than us wolves. He looks quite beaten up. Liz must have done a number on him.

“Where is Mira?”

“I d-don’t know who you’re talking about.” He stutters from fear. A hunter defenseless and surrounded by wolves, - he knows his fate.

Gggrrhhh!! Every second passing without us knowing where Mira is, is pissing my wolf and I off. He’s on the verge of breaking out. I know he wants control. But if I give in, he will end up killing everyone he sees, until he finds her.

I can see the little hunter shaking. He can probably sense my aura, and how strong my urge to kill and mutilate is right now.

“I swear. I was just sent to kill that woman.”

Ggrh! “Why?”

“Because,……..she’s no longer needed.”

With no hesitation, I grab his head with both hands and snap his neck.

With everybody’s eyes on me, I break the silence as I look at Noah. “What’s to report?”

“The rogues were easy to handle, but they left as quick as they came. My guess is, they,……they must have found what they came for.”

Ggggrrrhhhh!!!!

But he continued. “There are no signs of Mira. They must have her already.”

Gggggrrrrhhhh!!!! More growls join in. I know this definitely affects Theo, but I’m happy to see the others caring for their Luna as well. They’re probably realizing that she’s just as much a victim in all this. But why did I have to lose her, for them to realize this?

“Dahlia has crossed a line, and I will no longer wait for permission to kill her. Mason, I trust that our warriors are in fighting form as they always are. Ready them, because we are going to war.”

"Yes Alpha."

Mira’s POV

I cannot let them find me.

I cannot let him find me. I have to get away. It’s the only way.

Char told me, this is what’s best for me, and Liam.