Unlike when I witnessed my brother being taken, the vehicle below is already rumbling down the dirt road at a speed I can’t possibly hope to match. My connection to Luke stretches across the increasing distance between us as the vehicle disappears, the only evidence of its passing the cloud of dust and the heavy scent of exhaust.
Twenty-Nine
Ollie
My eyes burn withtears, and a mix of frustration and hopelessness wars in my chest as I stare at the spot where the truck vanished from sight, taking my mate with it. With every second, I can feel Luke getting farther and farther away, the bond tugging at my chest.
The emotions roiling in my stomach bubble over, and I collapse to my knees, leaning over to vomit onto the ground, the action leaving the burn of bile in the back of my throat. Wiping my mouth with the back of my hand, I rest my forehead against the nearest tree, the rough bark helping to ground me, at least a little.
The single-minded focus that got me all the way out here is wearing off, the cuts and bruises on my bare feet makingthemselves known along with the ache in my chest at being separated from Luke.
What am I supposed to do now?
Even if I can make it to the SUV without getting caught, I don’t have the keys, so I have no transportation except my own two feet—four paws, if I can manage to shift—and I’m stuck in an unfamiliar area with possible enemies around every turn.
The sound of voices startles me out of my thoughts, and I scramble off the path into the safety of the trees. Wanda walks out of the concrete building with a large male shifter I don’t recognize at her side. She points back toward the building and then off somewhere to the side. I can’t quite make out what she’s saying, but I do catch the words “bury” and “body.”
My stomach twists. I know Luke’s alive… but what about Macy?
A lump forms in my throat and I swallow it back. As much as I hate the idea of staying here long enough to find out who that guy is supposed to bury, I need to know.
Wanda hops into an ATV, powers it up, and takes off, leaving her lackey behind. The other shifter disappears into the building for a few minutes, then returns, dragging a large form by the legs.
My breath whooshes out in relief. I can’t tell who the body belongs to from here, but it’s much too big to be Macy. Which means she might still be alive and, if I find her, I’ll actually have an ally in all this mess.
Instinct tells me Wanda probably put Macy in another location. The Rockcastle Alpha Mate doesn’t strike me as someone who would have offered a two for one deal and, given her plans for me, she was probably livid when the humans took me along with Blake. She wouldn’t want the humans to see anything more than whatever shifter or shifters their current deal involved.
All I need to do is figure out where Macy might be, something that’s not going to be as simple as finding my way to Luke.
I turn around and head back the way I came. The path I cut through the woods is fairly obvious with plenty of footprints, trampled plants, and broken branches to show me the way. I catch sight of a light to my left and make my way toward it, surprised to find myself not in the clearing with the house I escaped from earlier, but the one with the Alpha’s house in the center.
The light is on in every room, and as I watch, I can see Wanda crossing in front of the windows on the lower floor. She’s moving quickly, a deep frown on her face as she turns her head to speak to someone out of view.
Earl? Or maybe Clay?
It doesn’t really matter who she’s talking to, just that she probably already knows I’m gone. I don’t have much time before they come looking for me, and the second she finds me, I’m sure I’ll be locked up again—this time more securely.
The last thing either me, Luke, or Macy needs is for me to get caught. Right now, I’m probably the only one of us free to do something.
Darting through the trees, I skirt around the edges of the clearing, making my way to the one of the outbuildings Clay showed me earlier. Then I work my way around to each one, peeking through the windows and praying for a glimpse of Macy.
But no luck.
I even check the chicken coop.
By the time I’ve checked every building in the immediate vicinity, I’m not feeling very hopeful. There must be somewhere else they put Macy, but I don’t know enough about the territory to figure out where, and I can’t just lurk around and hope to overhear some villain monologue about where they’re holding Macy.
So, I randomly pick one of the paths leading away from the clearing and follow it through the woods. The rest of the pack lives out here somewhere. I don’t know if I can trust any of them, or if I’m willing to take that risk, but maybe I can find a map in one of the houses. Or aphone.
Hope flares in my chest.If I can get in contact with the two praetorians somehow…
I increase my pace, almost giddy with excitement at the idea of having another way out of this mess. A few minutes later, I find myself in front of a small cabin. The structure is clearly old and parts of it are falling apart, but some instinct draws me closer, and I find myself on the half-rotted porch before I even think about it.
Taking a deep breath, I reach for the knob. It turns easily and the door creaks open with nothing but a soft push. One hand resting on the door frame, I poke my head inside. When nothing descends to chop it off and there’s no sound of protest, I step through the doorway and into the house.
My gaze darts around the interior, searching for anything that looks like a phone or a radio as I move further inside. I’m so distracted by my hunt for a method of communication, that I don’t even notice the other shifter until she grabs me by the ear, twisting it painfully.
“I told you kids to stay out of my house,” she snaps.
