Chapter six

Arnold

"No." Mira and Mora exchanged looks. "Arnold," Mira said slowly, "she's been gone for five hours." My stomach dropped.

"What do you mean she's been gone for five hours?" I demanded. Mira looked ready to punch me. "Exactly what I said. Gamma James gathered the elders, claimed he was acting under your orders and banished her." For a second I simply stared at her. Then the meaning of her words settled in and every ounce of exhaustion vanished from my body. "I never gave that order." This time neither sister looked surprised. They looked horrified. Mora was the first to recover. "Then where is James?" she asked, but I was already moving.

Servants scrambled aside as I stormed through the estate. A maid nearly walked into me while carrying a tray and the entire thing crashed onto the floor behind me, but I didn't stop. James had been with me for years. He knew exactly what Leticia's condition was. He knew she was carrying my child. The thought that he had still allowed her to be thrown out made my blood boil. By the time I reached the council chamber, my patience had run out completely. The doors appeared ahead and I kicked them open so hard they slammed against the wall.

Every elder inside jumped. James froze beside the table, the color draining from his face the moment he saw me. That expression alone told me enough. I crossed the room before anyone could react, grabbed him by the collar and drove him into the nearest wall. The impact rattled the shelves behind him and several elders immediately rushed to their feet. "Where is she?" I demanded. James winced and tried to pry my hand away. "Alpha Arnold, please listen first." I tightened my grip. "You have one chance to answer me."

"Alpha, please calm down," one of the elders interrupted nervously. I turned toward him and the old man immediately regretted speaking. "Calm down?" I repeated. "My pregnant mate was banished from this pack under my name and you want me to calm down?" Nobody answered. The silence only made me angrier. These were the same people who sat at meetings talking about loyalty and honor. The same people who claimed to care about Nightshade Pack. Yet the moment things became inconvenient, they had thrown a pregnant woman into rogue territory.

James finally found his voice. "The elders believed keeping her here would create division. The members were already questioning your judgment after the rejection. We acted for the future of the pack." The table beside me shattered when my fist came down on it. Wood cracked loudly across the room and several elders stumbled backward. "You acted for the future of the pack?" I laughed. "You banished a pregnant woman and convinced yourselves it was leadership."

Nobody had an answer.

I released James so abruptly that he collapsed onto the floor. Looking at him made me sick. Leticia had spent months enduring whispers and insults while trying to make herself useful. She never complained. She never caused trouble. She spent more time caring about this pack than half the people sitting in this room. The image of her standing in the ballroom flashed through my mind. The tears in her eyes. The disbelief. The way she looked at me after I rejected her. I had convinced myself there would be time to explain later. Time to fix things. Now she was gone.

"How long ago?" I asked.

James hesitated.

I took one step toward him.

"Five hours."

The answer hit harder than expected.

Five hours.

A heavily pregnant woman alone in rogue territory for five hours.

I turned and walked out before I killed someone.

"Mark!" My voice echoed through the courtyard. The Beta appeared almost immediately. One look at my face told him something was wrong. "What happened?" he asked. "They banished Leticia." Mark stopped walking. "Who?" "James and the elders." His expression darkened instantly. "When?" "Five hours ago." The color drained from his face.

The next few minutes turned the entire estate upside down. Warriors came running from every direction while scouts abandoned their patrol routes and rushed back to headquarters. Orders spread through the pack faster than wildfire. Nobody needed an explanation. The moment they heard Leticia was missing, every member understood the situation was serious. Mark quickly gathered the patrol leaders while I stood in the center of the courtyard fighting the urge to tear the estate apart.

"Search every sector," Mark ordered. "North, south, east and west. Check rivers, caves, hunting trails and abandoned structures. Nobody returns without reporting directly to me." Warriors immediately scattered. Within seconds the courtyard was almost empty again.

I didn't wait for further instructions. Pain exploded through my body as I shifted and my wolf burst free. The moment my paws touched the ground, I ran.

The forest blurred around me. Trees flashed past at impossible speeds while cold air rushed through my fur. My wolf took control immediately, pushing harder than usual as he followed every scent trail he could find. Since the rejection he had refused to speak to me. Now he was awake and furious. Every instinct inside him was focused on one thing.

Find her.

I searched the western border first because it was closest to the estate. Nothing. I crossed the river and followed several trails leading deeper into the forest. Nothing. I checked abandoned cabins, hunting grounds and old pack routes. Nothing. Every dead end tightened the knot in my chest.

A howl suddenly echoed through the trees.

Rogues.

I changed direction immediately.

The scent of blood hit me before I reached the clearing. Three rogues had cornered two Nightshade warriors near a rocky slope. One of them lunged the second I appeared. I met him head-on and slammed him into the ground. Bones cracked beneath my weight. Another attacked from the side. My claws tore through his shoulder before he could reach me. The third rogue tried to run. I chased him through the trees and tackled him before he made it twenty feet.

I shifted back and grabbed him by the throat.

"Have you seen a pregnant woman?"

The rogue shook his head frantically.

I tightened my grip.

"Think carefully."

"No! I swear!"

His fear was genuine.

I threw him aside and continued searching.

The hours passed quickly. Every report that reached us ended the same way. No sign of Leticia. No sign of a struggle. No sign of anything. The only thing keeping me moving was the bond. Weak as it was, it still existed. If she were dead, I would know.

The moon had already risen by the time I returned to the temporary command point. Mark stood over a map surrounded by warriors while Mira and Mora questioned returning scouts personally. Neither sister looked any calmer than before. Mira was arguing with a patrol leader who wanted to suspend searches until sunrise while Mora looked ready to throw somebody into the river.

"Anything?" I asked.

Mark shook his head.

I swore under my breath.

Another scout arrived.

Nothing.

Then another.

Nothing.

My patience was hanging by a thread.

The longer this continued, the harder it became to control myself. Every possible scenario forced its way into my head. Leticia was alone. Leticia was injured. Leticia was in labor. Each possibility was worse than the last. I remembered the way she looked whenever Ethan climbed into her lap. I remembered her refusing expensive gifts because she thought they cost too much. I remembered the way she smiled whenever I allowed her to call me Arnold instead of Alpha. Those memories should have comforted me.

Instead they made everything worse.

Hours later, shouting erupted from the eastern trail.

Every head turned.

A warrior burst through the trees at full speed. Mud covered his clothes and his breathing was ragged from running. Hope slammed into my chest so hard it hurt. Mark stepped forward immediately while several scouts gathered around.

"Report," I ordered.

The warrior looked straight at me.

"Alpha, we found her near the eastern border.”