79.

-HIM-

“Watch that mouth of yours, Beta Emerson. Remember who you’re talking to,” Warns one of the council members heatedly as he glares at me. The tension in the room escalates as I hold his glare.

“I apologize on his behalf but I’d like you all to get rid of your prejudices about Jake’s mate. She has been working with me in the office for the last couple of weeks. She is exceptional,” Brooke tells them politely to dilute the tension in the air.

“She has gone missing today. That’s very surprising. She could have decided another day to disappear,” Speaks the judge stiffly this time.

“I am sure she didn’t disappear on her will. Something must have happened to her and we are trying to find her out. I’d like it if you respect our sentiments and refrain yourselves from talking so poorly of her. After all, she’s a member of our pack,” Brooke insists but the men only chuckle at her.

“Alright, female. We’ll have it for now. I hope she shows up before we leave tomorrow otherwise Beta Emerson would have to take Tiffany as his mate,” Speaks the judge. My chest vibrates with a growl at this.

“I am already mated. I’ll never accept, Tiffany,” I grit at them. The judge cocks an eyebrow at me.

“Oh really? You two have completed the mating process?” He inquires with interest.

“Yes,” I breathe.

“Then where did she mark you? Show it to us and we may consider it,” Offers the judge with the tips of his lips slightly raised. At this, my eyes darken because he knows too well that humans are not capable of physically marking.

Cybele carries my mark and scent but it’s the first time I realize that I’ve got nothing of her. It hurts me and my wolf internally but I maintain my calm on the surface and tell him, “You know how unfair you sound,”

“I don’t care,” He says while staring me down. I hold his gaze rather than submitting by looking away. I’ll never do that because I don’t have any respect for any of the council members.

“I am already mated. I will not accept Tiffany as my mate. I am adamant about this decision of mine,” I state firmly, looking him into the eyes. The muscle in his jaw ticks as the tension in the room starts to escalate again.

“We stand with Beta Emerson’s decision,” Brooke states before the rest of my pack members present there repeat her words. This visibly makes some of the council members upset but this time the judge decides to dilute the tension, “We’ll see about that,”

The small informal meeting dissolves so that the council members could have lunch and rest before the big official meeting in the evening. They’ll be staying till tomorrow evening to inspect everything in the pack. They’ll then go back and make reports about it and make judgements and decisions on my leadership.

As soon as I walk out of the guestroom, I go looking for the search party. So far, I haven’t received any updates on them through the mind-link. I wonder where they’re looking for her. I try to track her scent in the pack but because it’s windy today, her scent has already disappeared.

It’s as if she was never in the pack. The thought disrupts me. My wolf is anxious for her more than ever. What if we never get to see her again? What if it was our last time when I showered her with kisses this morning?

I will be devastated if anything happens to her. I wouldn’t be able to live without the pain of losing my mate so soon and so young. I have worked hard to win her trust and have her in my life yet I failed to protect her. I am starting to loath myself.

I should have listened to my wolf and should have gone looking for her when I felt something was wrong. How could I be so careless?

“Beta,” Greets one of my warriors as soon as I walk into the woods and spot one.

“Any news? Where are you looking?” I inquire urgently.

“We have scanned the southern and western parameters. We’re now running towards the north,” He informs me. I don’t waste a second to phase and charge into the woods and run in the direction the warrior told me about.

Meanwhile, my mind keeps replaying the moments we met. We have come a long way from there and I’d be devastated to lose her just when the best of our relationship is about to begin. Whoever is behind this, I’ll make them pay for this. I’ll make their life hell.

After running non-stop for almost an hour, I am finally able to catch up with the search party. I join them instantly and start looking for any sign of her. Soon we reach the cabin where we’d come often to have some alone time.

Just seeing it reminds me of the hollowness in my chest that has been expanding since the afternoon. The bond is terribly silent and it’s killing me. I want to see her soon otherwise I will lose touch with my wolf. He’s not taking this very well. If I let him then he can set the whole pack on fire.

“Nothing in this direction,” Concludes the warrior who’s leading this particular search party. This disappoints me very deeply. The sun has now neared the horizon and it’s starting to get dark and cold. We have to get to her sooner.

“Did you see anything there?” I inquire when we unite with another search party. The wolf who’s leading it shakes his head with disappointment. We are soon united with search parties led by dad and Davis.

“We have searched the north, south and west parameters. We also have some of the wolves watching those as well. Only the eastern parameter is remaining to be searched,” Dad concludes and everyone agrees.

“The eastern parameter is the longest and it’s already dark,” Notes one of the wolves.

“Doesn’t matter,” Grits Davis before we are heading towards the east. We get divided into small search parties before scattering around the place. We take our time to scan half the parameter. By now, it’s completely dark and very windy due to winter.

“Still no clue,” One of the search party members grunts when we are done looking at another area. By now, my wolf is on the edge. If we don’t find her tonight then I doubt that pack will remain standing tomorrow morning.

“We still have two more places to look,” One of the members assures. I keep running silently, searching for my Cybele. At one point, I want to stop and scream her name out loud in the woods until my vocal cords are ripped.

I don’t know what time is it when we are done scanning the densest part of our territory. Now, only one place is remaining and she better be there. I don’t even wait for the search party to join me before I run in the direction.

Just then my prayers seem to be answered because the night wind brings me a combination of scents. I taste them on the tip of my tongue. The scent of the blood is dominant. It is mixed with the scents of several other wolves and her!

Her scent is very faint, almost unacknowledgeable but I am too familiar with it to miss it. I howl out loud before pumping my legs faster. Soon, I reach the easternmost part of my territory which is mostly barren and covered with a lot of salt lakes.

The scents get the strongest when I reach there. Meanwhile, I feel the search parties catch up with me. We cross the small lakes before we finally reach the biggest one. I freeze on my tracks when I am finally able to spot some bodies lying lifeless on the ground.

I phase and rush to them. The smell of blood hangs thick in the air. I look at the bodies. They have been torn beyond recognition but their faces are intact. I don’t give them much thought as I sniff for Cybele.

I catch her scent before I follow it to the farthest body laying just at the edge of the biggest lake. My eyes widen when I finally spot her lying lifeless on the ground. I get by her side instantly. To my terror, I find a rope tied to her neck. On the other side of the same rope, a boulder is tied.

A chill runs down my spine when I finally realize the purpose behind the setup. Whoever did this, they wanted to throw her in the lake with the boulder tied to her neck so that as soon as she is pushed into the deep lake, she snaps her neck and drowns to death.

The thought rages me as I untie the rope from around her neck and check for pulses. I sigh with relief when I am finally able to feel her faint pulses. She seems unconscious. I am able to feel the sparks whenever I touch her and it calms my wolf to some extent but I am blinded by rage.

I want to know what happened here and who did this. It's hard for me to believe that something like happened under my nose, in my pack! They dared to take my mate away from me. I am deeply ashamed that I couldn't keep my mate safe in my own pack. Whoever dared to do this, I am not going to spare them.