Jameson and I fix up the guest room and cuddle on the couch.We talk.We rest.We laugh and make love again.It feels nice.Normal.The tension that once knotted my shoulders slowly fades into something I barely recognize as peace, but as the afternoon stretches on, unease creeps in.
I call Roxie again.
Voicemail.Again.
Nothing.
“She would’ve called by now,” I whisper.
Jameson watches me carefully.“Tell me what you’re thinking.”
“I don’t know,” I admit.“I just… have a bad feeling.It’s not like her to ignore my calls or not call me back.”
“Maybe she’s driving,” he suggests.
The light outside shifts toward evening, and the happy glow inside my chest dims with every unanswered call.
Something is wrong.
I can feel it.
And I’m about to find out just how bad it is.
TEN
Jameson
The meeting runs long.
Too long.
I try to focus on the reports, patrol routes, cult movements along the outer ridges, but something feels off in my chest the entire time.
My bear is restless, pacing hard beneath my skin.Go home,he urges.She needs us.
I smile as I head out, hurrying home to my mate.
The second I walk through the front door, I know something is wrong.
Fern is pacing.Full-on pacing.Hair pulled loose from its braid, phone clutched in her hand like she might shatter it if it lets her down one more time.Her eyes snap to mine the instant I step inside.
“Roxie still hasn’t answered,” she blurts.“All day, Jameson.All day.That’s not normal for her.”
Ice slides through my veins, but I force myself to stay calm and level-headed.
“Okay,” I say, ignoring my bear as he jolts to full alert.“Tell me everything.”
“I’ve called.I’ve texted.I’ve tried video calling.Nothing.Not even a delivered receipt.”
My jaw tightens.“That worries me too.”
My bear growls low and dangerously.The cult could have taken her, or she could be lost, have car trouble.
I swallow hard.Or Fern’s dad could have done something.
I push that thought away before it can take root.
“Write down her car description,” I tell her quickly.“Color.Make.Any stickers.Anything that stands out.And send me every photo you have of her.”
