Page 41 of A Wolf’s Wound

Ryder

I burst outside, praying she hasn’t gotten too far, and at least my car is still there. “Hannah! Shadow!” I yell.

One of the guards comes running around the side of the house. “Everything okay, Ryder?”

“No,” I say sharply. “Where are Hannah and Shadow?”

“They’re not inside?”

“If they were, would I be asking you where they are?” I say, trying to control my temper. “They’re gone. Didn’t you see anything?”

“N-no,” the guard stammers nervously. “But I just started my shift a few minutes ago.”

“Call your superior, and tell him what happened,” I snarl, yanking open my car door. “I want a full report about this.”

The guard nods vigorously, fumbling for his phone as I roar back up the road to the main house.

Inside I find my brothers around the kitchen table. “Hannah’s gone,” I say shortly, and they all look at me.

“What do you mean?” Thomas asks. “Where did they go?”

“I don’t know,” I growl. “And the guard on duty had no clue either. He said something about a shift change.”

Michael shakes his head, his expression stormy. “Shift change doesn’t mean wander around and leave people unprotected!” he says. “Ryder, we’ll find her.”

“I want every available shifter here, immediately,” I say, and Gavin nods.

While we wait outside for the shifters to assemble, I pace back and forth, too wired to stand still.

If Hannah and Shadow left on foot, I don’t think they could have made it back to the city already.

The most likely route they took was through the woods along the edge of our property.

Unless Hannah wanted to try and hitch a ride back, in which case they’re on the main road.

Not knowing which route they took is making me feel even more frantic. In my mind’s eye I see the forest and road, both arcing away from our property. Right now they both feel like impossible distances, plenty of space where Hannah and Shadow could get lost.

No, Hannah’s too smart to get lost. She knows woods and forests from growing up in the Blackwood pack. I remind myself that she’s capable and strong.

But how good would all of her smarts be against a maniac with vengeance on his mind? That’s what’s really worrying me, that no matter which route they chose, they picked the one where this creature is lurking.

“Okay!” Gavin says when everyone’s finally gathered before us. “Hannah and Shadow are missing. It is of the utmost importance that we find them immediately.”

“We don’t know where they went,” I jump in. “I want teams in the forest and on the main road. But we also need teams searching all of the side roads and combing every inch of this property.”

The shifters nod in assent. “How long have they been missing?” one of them asks.

“About six hours,” I say. I know I wasn’t asleep for longer than that. “Maybe less.”

“Could they be in a building on the property?” someone else asks.

“That’s a good thought,” I tell him. “I don’t anticipate that they would have stayed here. But we can’t afford to leave any stone unturned. I want teams going through every building and checking every room.”

“What should we do when we find them?” a third shifter asks.

Gavin and I both start to speak at the same time. He looks at me and nods. “You take this, Ryder. You’re in charge.”

“Thanks,” I tell him. “When you find them, call me first and give me your location. Then contact all of the teams and send out your coordinates.”

“Do we need weapons?” someone asks. “I mean, are we assuming they’re in danger?”

“Yes,” I say grimly. “We are assuming that. Hannah and Shadow came here in the first place because she’s being stalked by someone. That threat is still very active.” At that, I become too choked up to say anything else and bow my head.

“Thank you for your hard work,” Gavin says, stepping forward and putting a hand on my shoulder. “We know if we work together, we’ll find Hannah and Shadow and be able to protect them from harm.”

“Are you okay?” Thomas asks me as Michael and Gavin enter the crowd, assigning different teams to different areas.

“Not really,” I admit. “I’m worried as hell, man.”

“Me too,” he says. His words aren’t reassuring, but it is nice to know that everyone else is taking their disappearance as seriously as I am.

Underneath my fear is a hot thread of anger. How could Hannah just take off like this? Doesn’t she know how dangerous things are right now? What is she trying to prove? Doesn’t she realize how unsafe she is now?

I can’t imagine why she would just leave, especially after what happened in the cottage. Sure, I know I fucked up with the whole “mates” thing, but surely it couldn’t have been that bad! How could we go from having sex one minute to her running away the next?

I don’t understand what could have happened between then and now to spook her so badly.

I know she wasn’t threatened in the cottage; that would have woken me up for sure.

And the gap between when one guard left and the other came on wouldn’t have been long enough for someone to get in undetected, even if the alarms somehow failed.

Which means she left voluntarily. I’m glad none of my brothers, and none of the shifters, asked about that. If I’m wrong and we’re mobilizing all of this force to search for someone who doesn’t want to be found… No, I can’t think about that right now.

As angry as I am with Hannah, I have to admit that I’m just as mad at myself.

She would have only left under her own power if she was upset with me.

I must have done something or said something to make her need to leave.

Could it really have been the mates conversation?

Did I hurt her? Does she regret sleeping with me?

I don’t know what it is, but I’m already feeling guilty as hell.

“Let’s go!” Gavin calls, running back to me. “We’re taking the eastern route through the forest.”

We jump back in my car and race to the forest line.

Other cars are dotted along the boundary, too, as more shifters fan out through the woods.

Gavin and I get out of the car and head into the forest, moving quickly but thoroughly to scan our assigned area with care.

I don’t see any evidence that they’ve been here, though.

We keep moving, not talking or even looking at each other. I study the ground, the trees, and the bushes, hoping to catch a glimpse of Hannah’s hair or Shadow’s tail. A few times I think I see them, but it’s just shadows and light dancing across the forest floor.

Every so often I look out at the forest, trying to refocus my eyes and thoughts. But every time I do, I’m gripped by the realization of just how huge the forest is and how much distance there is between the compound and the city. And how small Hannah and Shadow are.

After an hour we’re still moving quickly, but it’s difficult to maintain any optimism. I can tell by the slump in Gavin’s shoulders that he’s having similar dark thoughts.

Then a scent tickles my nostrils, and I freeze. I recognize this scent. I sniff deeper and a jolt of fear mixed with rage runs through me. It’s the stalker. He’s here.