I exhale a breath as my eyes strain at his words, but this is only the beginning. Ryker needs to perish, and I need to see my mate's face again.
Felix orderedZara to stay home, despite her willingness to come. He kissed her forehead, touched her stomach, and told her to stay safe. My heart quivered at the sight of them and the severity of what we’re about to do. It could go wrong. Terribly wrong. But there’s no living without Caleb.
The journey up to the North takes longer than expected. Felix goes over the areas to check, and I test out the spells the witches put on us to protect our scents and presence. So far, so good.
One derelict building after another, we come up empty-handed.
“Where are you, Caleb?” I ask as I look up at the sky.
Felix cups a hand over my shoulder. “We’ll find him.”
“What if we don’t?”
He sighs. “That’s not an option.”
I nod. He’s right. It’s not.
“Do you feel anything from your bond?”
My chest clenches as I shake my head. “Nothing.”
“I’m sorry,” he says sincerely.
“Let’s keep going.”
We approach a small village where everything seems eerily quiet. There are a few people around, but no one looks at us or asks us why we’re here. Both of us stop to look around, and a chill rushes over my skin. All of a sudden, people start to hurry away, as if sensing something.
“Evan–”
“Something’s wrong.”
Felix nods as his gaze narrows. Wind ripples past us, and it feels like time stands still for a moment. We don’t have time to run; the devil is already with us.
“What do we have here?”
I nearly jump out of my skin as I turn to face the man who took my entire life from me. Felix holds out an arm and forces me behind him, but I’m tired of hiding.
He nearly killed me last time, but I’m not giving up without a fight.
“Where is he?” I say through gritted teeth.
Ryker’s eyes flash at me. “I could smell you from a mile away. Brave thing, aren’t you?”
My chest rises and falls rapidly. “Where. Is. He?”
He smirks at me before wrinkling his nose. My mouth turns bone-dry when he sizes me up and down.
“Somewhere you’ll never find him.”
I clench my jaw together.
“I didn’t think you had it in you,” he scoffs. “Caleb clearly doesn’t know how to scare people into submission; otherwise, you wouldn’t be here.”
“Because Caleb is nothing like you. He’s everything good in this world, and all you want is to tear him down.”
Ryker’s dark eyes turn nearly black as I speak. I have a death wish, clearly. But I won’t let him speak down about his son for a single second more.
“What is your obsession with him?”
