"Try harder." She pokes me in the chest, right over that aching spot. "You're Lorenth Varyon. You don't give up on things that matter. And this matters more than anything, doesn't it?"
The thread pulls taut again, and I can't deny it.
Senna matters.
She matters more than the bakeries, more than my pride, more than the two weeks I've wasted searching blind.
I need to find her.
"You said her name was Senna?" Lora's already moving, her mind clearly spinning with plans. "No last name?"
"No."
"Physical description?"
"Five-four. Brown skin. Black curls. Gray eyes." The words come easy because I've memorized every detail. "She was wearing a mask at the festival. A silver-blue silk dress."
"Was she from the city?"
I hesitate. "I don't think so."
"What makes you say that?"
"The way she looked at everything. Like it was all new to her. She'd never been to the Masquerade before."
Lora nods slowly. "So probably from one of the outer villages. That narrows it down."
"There are dozens of villages within riding distance." More depending how far she traveled.
"Then we start checking them." She's already committed to this, I can tell. Already planning how to track down a woman neither of us knows anything about. "We'll ask around. Show up at markets. You said she's human—someone will know her."
The idea of dragging my sister into this makes my jaw tight. But I also know I'm not going to stop her.
And maybe—maybe she's right.
Maybe I need help.
"Mom?" Kova appears in the doorway, her young face scrunched in confusion. "Why does Uncle Lorenth look so sad?"
Lora glances at me, one brow raised in question, and I force my expression into something less pathetic.
"I'm not sad, troublemaker."
"You look sad."
"Well, I'm not."
She doesn't look convinced, but Kaelen calls her back to whatever game they're playing, and she disappears again.
Lora waits until their voices fade before turning back to me. "We'll find her," she says, quiet and firm. "I promise. We'll find your mate."
The thread in my chest pulls again—desperate, insistent—and I nod.
Because I have to believe that.
Have to believe I'll see Senna again.
Even if I have to tear apart every village between here and the mountains to do it.
