Taryn stiffened, partially leaning out of the vehicle. “Do you think Luca took her?”
“I don’t know,” Solomon said. “If he did, he somehow managed to take out two of our enforcers first. That means he can fight. Very well.”
A new fear slammed into Caidrik, riding hard on the back of fury. His chest felt too tight, his lungs burning as if he’d already been running for miles.
He wouldn’t force her. Luca wouldn’t. Not if he wanted to be Alpha. Unless he didn’t plan on being the Alpha. Unless he planned on killing.
“All right,” Caidrik said. “I’m going to her. Now. Where’s the search party starting?”
Solomon hesitated. “I was going to send them toward the mine.”
Caidrik had memorized every inch of the territory the last two months. Every ravine. Every cut trail. Every abandoned structure. “I’ll go track her from there, then.” Too much time had already passed, considering the mountain was on the other side of the territory.
“I’m coming with you.” Taryn hopped to the ground.
“No,” Caidrik snapped. “Stay here.”
She didn’t even wait. She ran, boots pounding once, and then shifted mid-stride. Fur exploded outward as bone and muscle reformed. A sleek burnished-brown wolf hit the ground running, powerful and fast.
Solomon swore and tore off his tie. “She’s a good fighter,” he said, already shrugging out of his coat. “I’m coming too. Three is better than two.”
“No,” Caidrik said again.
“Too bad,” Solomon echoed, and then he shifted.
It wasn’t graceful. It wasn’t elegant. But it was effective. His body folded and reformed in a rush of motion, landing in the snow as a solid, grey wolf with long legs built for endurance.
Caidrik didn’t argue again. He ran. The shift tore through him in a familiar rush of pain and release. Bones cracked and slid. Muscle reknit. His center of gravity dropped as he hit the ground on four powerful paws and surged forward without breaking stride.
The forest swallowed them.
Snow sprayed behind him as he ran full out, lungs pumping, heart slamming. The air cut cold and clean through his chest. Branches snapped beneath his weight. The world narrowed to scent and sound.
Mine. Slate. Cold iron.
He reached the abandoned mine in minutes and skidded to a halt, nose low. Nadia’s scent hit him like a blow. Fear. Cold. Blood. It wrapped around his instincts and squeezed hard.
She was here. And not alone.
He circled fast as Solomon and Taryn fanned out. Luca’s scent was present. Fresh. Sharp with stress.
And another.
Caidrik froze.
That one he knew.
Ravencall.
A growl ripped out of his chest, low and lethal. He snapped his head toward Solomon.
Solomon stilled, nostrils flaring. He caught it too.
Luca was the Alpha of the Ravencalls. The bastard had taken her.
Lights flickered in Caidrik’s vision as his adrenaline surged. He spun and took off, tearing through the trees, tracking Nadia’s scent with brutal focus. Rabbits scattered. A deer crashed away through brush. The forest blurred past as he angled left, then right, correcting with instinct.
The trail changed, and he smelled oil, rubber, and exhaust. He skidded to a stop on an icy road streaked with dark stains. So they’d taken her by vehicle. Good. He launched forward again, much faster in wolf form.
