The Alpha's Eluded Luna

6 Evasion

“Where is he?” I asked. My uncle drops his hands and gives a broken look before shaking his head.

“We don’t know. We searched all morning before we found several abandoned cars deep in the forest on the trail leading to Mirror Lake. The lake is still dry until the snow caps melt. I think Elder Welsh had them air lifted from the cover of the lake bed. We wouldn’t have been able to see the lights from the cover of the mountains but the patrols close to the area said they heard motor blades at around 4 in the morning. With the echo from the cliffs, we couldn’t pinpoint where the sound was coming from. When our warriors found the cars abandoned near the trailhead, Marcus and Corey put two and two together and figured they had help.” Uncle Louis paused momentarily and his eyebrows pushed together in anger before he continued. “They’re gone. All of the Welsh family. Elise was even staying with her father that night. We searched all their houses and they’re gone. Eric had called the nursing home his mate works at and commanded her home. She told the head nurse there was an emergency and raced out before anyone could ask what happened. When Marcus found out many hours later, he traced her scent to where our warriors found the cars. They’re all gone.”

Noah was snarling in the back of my head, frustrated with us for leaving and following the mountain pass as long as we did. If we had stayed we might have been able to track Eric’s mate right to them. If we were thinking logically, we would have known to go after Sydney’s family to get to him. We were so blinded by our need to catch and kill we were not thinking clearly. What were we going to tell Dani now? How could I tell her I let her attacker go? How could I face the woman I’ve loved from afar for so long, who I had never even spoken a single syllable to that I let her down?

My thoughts turning to Dani, I looked down at my mother who still had an arm wrapped around my waist as she stared despairing at her brother. “Mom, where’s Dani?”

She looks up at me, pity and sympathy written clearly on her face. “We don’t know.”

I jerk out of her arms, grabbing her shoulders, steadying her before Noah pushes forward and rawrs “You don’t know?”

She shakes her head, saddened by her own revelation and casts her eyes down to the floor. “Elizabeth called Tyson right after you left. I didn’t want to cause her more pain when she woke back up, so we thought having him transport her would be best. He came and was so angry he wouldn’t let anyone say anything to him. He just wrapped her in a blanket we had covered her with and carried her out to his sedan. Your sister went to help Marcus and I went to hunt down Elise. When I went to their cottage to check on how she was doing after your uncle got through to you, they weren’t there. I went to the hospital to see if she had been admitted, but when I got there the hospital administrator stopped me. Dr. Tyson had just called him and quit the hospital. He didn’t call to say he wasn't going to be there for a few days to take care of his daughter. He just quit.” My mom looks back up at me and shakes her head. “I’m sorry Paul. I searched for hours after that. The lockdown was lifted hours earlier so people could get to their jobs after we found the Welsh vehicles. They must have left pack territory the moment it was lifted. Elizabeth and a few other warriors went to see if they could trace the car. So far, they have lost their scent in the human town down river.” 

I’m stunned and silent. She’s gone? My mate is gone? And I didn’t even know what state her body was in right now. She had to be in pain, not just physically, but the emotional damage would be crippling. Then her last words rang clear in my mind once more.

“She thinks I did it.” I whispered in anguish.

“What?” my mom gasps, stunned.

“She woke up for a moment. She saw me standing over her naked, having just shifted back, and asked why I did it. She passed out again before I could tell her.” My voice sounds foreign to me. Noah is howling in pain and I’m having a hard time keeping the tears at bay.

“Oh honey, no.” my mom gasps with her hand over her mouth.

Uncle Lewis is giving me a look full of sorrow and sympathy. “That’s why they did it. That’s why they just cut ties with the pack. I felt their bonds breaking just now. I thought it was because of Sydney. But Tyson knew you were the next alpha, not Sydney, so I was wondering why they would leave with things unsettled. If they thought the next alpha was the one that hurt her though, that explains a lot.”

I think back to the feeling of 2 bonds being broken. I had thought it was Uncle Lewis trying to save his son from my wrath by banishing him. How much I wish that were true now. 

I reach out with my mind, trying to find a connection to Dani or Dr. Tyson but felt nothing. No block, no tether, absolutely nothing but the void indicating they are no longer part of the Crescent Valley Pack.

If their connection was still there, we could command them to come back so we could explain. Looking back at my mom, “Did you try to mind-link them before when you couldn’t find them?”

She nodded yes. “I tried Dr. Tyson but he blocked me out.”

“He blocked you?” my uncle asked, confused.

It takes a strong wolf to block out a ranking pack member. Dr. Tyson shouldn’t be able to block out the Beta female unless he had alpha blood. 

“Yes, I didn’t push hard at first because I thought he was just angry that my nephew hurt his daughter so brutally. I did try to push it harder the more worried I became but never could get around his block.” My mom scrunches her face in confusion, her green eyes focusing back on my hazel ones. “I’m sorry Paul. I should have explained more when he came to get her. I was just so worried about you and finding Sydney. I thought it would be best to explain after Sydney had been dealt with.”

The thought of my mate being gone and her thinking I was the one who raped her made my heart break. I collapsed to my knees on the floor, my whole body shaking violently as Noah’s grief merged with my own and everything inside me seemed to shatter.

“We will find her honey. We will find her and explain.” My mom kneels in front of me, reaching her hand out but pulling it away, not knowing how to console me. 

My uncle came around the desk and doesn't hesitate before gripping my shoulders, crouched on the ground behind me. “Yes we will. I didn’t know she was your mate or I wouldn’t have let the border patrol let them pass. This is more my fault than anyone else’s. If I had raised that child better, if I had taken him and not let that disease of a family get a hold of him, I could have prevented all this. Don’t blame yourself, don’t blame your mother, blame me. But I promise you boy, we will find her. We will find your mate and we will find that whole family and they will pay for what you and Dani are both going through right now.”

Just then, a small knock sounded at the door. I don't have the strength to turn around at first and acknowledge whoever it is, but my mom’s voice causes me to jerk my head back up. 

“Randy? What are you doing here honey? Now's not a good time.”

“Hi Mrs. Lopez, Alpha Lewis. Um, I’m here because of Dani Lee. I think she’s in trouble.” He stutters out, giving me a nervous side glance before focusing back on my mom. 

I straighten and turn to him so fast he jumps back in surprise. “Where is she?” Noah snaps through me. “Where is my mate?”

“Your mate?” He squeaks in confusion. “Dani is your mate?”

“Where is she?” I asked again, gritting my teeth to try and suppress my wolf’s anger.

“Randy, do you know where Dani is?” my uncle asked before I could scare the kid any more. 

Randy shook his head, his tousled dirty blonde hair falling in his eyes with the force. “No, I can’t find her. But I was with her last night in the laundry room downstairs. We got wine coolers we found in the rec room fridge and after drinking them we both started to feel weird.” Randy scrunches his nose at the memory before he continues, “I don’t remember finishing my laundry or anything after getting up to throw the drinks away.” He presses his lips together as tears start falling from his face. 

“My mom found me in the laundry room this morning when she brought down the linens and I was tied to the table legs in the middle of the room. Dani wasn’t there, but I knew she was with me before I passed out. Mom said she didn’t know where Dani was but the whole pack was a mess looking for someone and to stay clear of the chaos until she knew what was going on. But I couldn’t find Dani at all today. Then I heard Sydney was on the run. I know he’s become obsessive with her lately. 

“He’s been following her around school even though he has already graduated. Just yesterday he was trying to pressure her to go to dinner with him. He even offered to train with her once, but her dad quickly shut him down. I just have this feeling he did something to her. Why else would I have been tied up? My mom thought Dani was playing a prank on me, but she isn’t like that. And I can’t get a hold of her. Her phone is even off.” My mom is now holding Randy’s arm like she's supporting him as he finishes his explanation. I could see his fear for his friend, for my mate. 

“Randy, come in and sit down. I’ll explain what happened.” My mom leads Randy to the couch in the sitting area connected to the Alpha’s office. My uncle takes a seat in one of the winged back chairs but I remain standing, my arms crossed as I listen to my mom go over the events of late last night and today. When she tells him how we found Dani, he breaks down and she has to console him for several minutes before he gathers himself enough to finish listening to what happened.

Randy loved his friend. That was clear from the deep hurt he felt hearing his friend was gone. That she and her father had run away before he could even know what had happened to her. 

“Randy, If you hear from Dani or her father will you let us know? Paul has to clear up this misunderstanding. She is to be this pack’s next Luna and we need her here.” Uncle Lewis asks. 

Randy looks over at me, worry and pity are written on his features. His manicured hand pushes his hair from his forehead, revealing his shaped eyebrows. His brown eyes are swollen from crying and his lips are chapped and bleeding from biting them so hard. “She had a crush on you for years, you know. She would get mad whenever I suggested she date any of the boys in her little fan club. She said she was saving her firsts all for her mate. But when I brought you up, she blushed and said ‘maybe’. I think she knew deep down you were her mate.” He shook his head before he continued. “I can’t believe it’s true. She was only here last night because she heard you were coming back today. I could tell she was excited and I offered to let her spend the night so she could run into you today.” Randy pauses and looks down for a moment, “She told me I was being silly, but she still came.”

“Don’t blame yourself, sweetie. You couldn’t have known. It's not your fault.” Mom rubs his shoulder, consoling him.

Dani felt it too. Hearing my mate wanted to run into me, some of the pieces of my heart mended back together. Hope we can get past this horrible misunderstanding starts building inside me. 

“I will let you know if I hear from her, but can I suggest something?” Randy asks, looking at me.

“What?” I ask.

“Loose the half man bun thing. Go all in and grow it all out, or lose it completely. Makes you look scared of commitment.” he gives me a small smile before turning to my mom who's laughing softly at his statement.

 “Mrs. Lopez, I need to go help my mom with dinner. I’ll let you know if I hear anything.” Randy gave my mom a quick hug.

Mom rubs his back and nods before Randy gets up and leaves.

“What an interesting boy,” my Uncle says, standing up and heading to his desk. I walked to the chair he had just vacated and plopped down. Exhaustion is finally taking its toll on my body. 

“We will find her honey.” My mom reassured me.

“We have to mom. I have to. I need her. I need my mate.” I lay my head back and closed my eyes. The image of her stained and bruised body flashes through my mind before I open my eyes again, trying to replace the image with something else. “Does Randy live here?” I ask to distract myself from the morbid thoughts my tired mind was taking me to.

“Yes, his dad died in a raid last year. They had a house in the human town since he worked as a police officer. His mom moved back to the pack to take a job as lead housekeeper. He’s a good kid. He used to have trouble with the other kids but Dani helped him a lot. They’ve been best friends since she moved here in her fifth grade year.” 

I nodded at my mom’s explanation. “What about Sydney?” I turned my face to the side to ask my uncle.

“What about him? The boy will answer for his crimes. And his mom will answer for her part in hiding him.” My uncle replies without looking up from his laptop where he’s typing out a mass email to other alphas in the area to be on the lookout for Doctor Lee and my mate. 

“She’s your mate. Won’t that hurt you?” I asked, not fully believing him.

“I marked her but never mated her after. The bond isn’t fully formed. I won’t be hurt by separating her from myself.”

“But Sydney?” I asked him. It would be impossible not to have s*x with the one you marked. Uncle and Elise had Sydney, so having a s****l relationship didn’t seem like something my uncle would avoid.

“Sydney came before I marked her. And I’m honestly starting to question his paternity. If it wasn’t for her father, I probably wouldn’t have even marked her. The man badgered the hell out of me to take responsibility as alpha. I tried to love the boy but,” he stops, closing his eyes as his wolf flashes on the surface, “I tried. Heaven knows I did. We just never had a connection. I thought it was his mother’s influence on him. I’ve been investigating Elise and her family for the past several months and found that her father and brother Eric killed her fated mate not long before Nora died. And Sydney was born prematurely. He was small, so I didn’t question him being born earlier than expected, but now I’m starting to put the pieces together. When we find them, you will get Sydney. I won’t stop you. I will get Elise and her family though. I need to know. I need to know what happened to Nora.” Uncle Lewis’s anger was vibrating off him at the idea of his chosen mate having something to do with the death of his fated mate.

I nodded to him and felt my mom’s hand start rubbing up and down my arm.

“Get some sleep honey. Your dad and sister are on their way back now. We will find her. Marcus is tracking the Welsh family and I’ll be joining your sister to find Dani. Get some sleep so you can start fresh again tomorrow.” She stands and puts a hand on my back, encouraging me to stand. 

I let her lead me out into the hall. She kissed my cheek and gave me a small smile.

“Fran, I need you for a moment before you head off,” my uncle calls out to mom from his office. “Get some sleep boy. Your alpha responsibilities start tomorrow,” he tells me.

I nodded to him and walked off to climb the stairs up to the 4th floor and Beta quarters. Our apartment is the same as the last time I saw it. My room looks freshly cleaned, my army green duffle sitting on the black bedspread of my king-sized bed. 

There is an addition to the organized clutter on my nightstand. My mom must have had a picture of Dani framed to surprise me. Her smiling face and bright eyes tug at my heart as she plays her guitar in the pediatric lounge in the hospital. I walked over and ran my fingers over the image. Her golden hair was loose over her shoulder and I can almost imagine my fingers running through those beautiful locks.

I had to get her back. I had to find her.

I take the picture and clutch it to my chest before lying down and letting my exhaustion take hold of me, ignoring the wetness building on my pillow against my cheek.

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