His Missing Luna

CHAPTER 16

TRACKING

MALACHAI

We stop at the edge of an empty land sitting between two packs where I feel the ping the strongest. The Wolf Claw pack sits to my right and the Montana pack to the left. Both packs aren’t large and don’t belong on the same level as mine.

I alight from the car, with Lance following behind. There’s a tree that looks like something crashed into it. I run my hands over it, sniffing and smelling different scents of wolves. My eyes roam the tree, searching for more clues. Looking down, I see footprints, both human and wolf. Clumps of dislodged earth and grasses catch my attention too. I squat and feel them. The clumps are not yet hard, and the grasses stuck in between mean that whatever happened here wasn’t long ago.

My heart thuds in my chest. How does this connect to my daughter? Did she fight? Why did she? My mind fills with worry, but I shove it away to focus on what I am doing.

Everywhere I turn, I find the same signs, forming a trail into the empty land. I find blood on the ground and more clumps of dislodged earth with grasses strewn everywhere.

A battle happened here.

As I delve deeper, I notice something strange. Some trees are broken in the middle and others half-broken.

My wolf bristles inside, grunting as he rises up. “I feel something,” he huffs. He’s a grumpy wolf who hates interfering in my affairs, unless it concerns issues bordering on my mate, kids, pack, and our position as alpha.

“What is it?”

“Turn left.”

I follow his lead, stopping when he tells me.

“The ping is strongest here.”

I squat again to feel the ground, and instantly, the same surge of power travels the length of my body. Plugging into my powers, I close my eyes and use them. When my eyes open, they are a milky white, and I see I am squatting in the middle of a layer of circles. About five of them.

My heart thuds loudly as hope fills me.

“It’s our pup.”

I am standing at the border of Alpha Kizziah’s pack, asking for entry. Doing so out of courtesy. The security around the pack is terribly weak. So weak that a five-year-old Silvercrest wolf could slip in without getting caught.

A wolf walks towards me, dragging his feet lazily and giving me his best mean look.

I meet his eyes, allowing my wolf to flash in mine. He misses his step and almost falls to the ground when my aura presses out.

“I want an audience with your alpha,” my contempt dripping in my voice. A lazy patrol is a reflection of how lazy the alpha of the pack is. Such a patrol in my pack would have spent three months in daily training.

“Your…who…who are you?” he stammers, baring his neck at me.

“Alpha Malachai of the Silvercrest Pack,” I ease my aura so he can send a link to his irresponsible alpha. I take the time to feel the place mentally. Nothing seems out of the ordinary.

“He’s on his way,” he swallows hard as he speaks, not meeting my eyes. When he glances briefly at me, I see something in his eyes.

“He offers his apology for not allowing you on pack grounds. We were recently attacked by a visiting alpha,” he sputters as if it is his own idea to speak. “Alpha is very pissed. The little alpha too. The visiting alpha took something from the two of them. Something important.”

“What is this something?” I ask, weaving myself into his mind, urging him to tell me what he knows.

“This something…” he wrinkles his brows, thinking as he continues muttering ‘something.’

There’s a blockage in his mind. An alpha command that could have been placed by his alpha.

“I don’t remember that something,” he frowns, his eyes circling his sockets as he thinks of the something.

I delve deep, searching. There’s a meeting at the pack hall and a message was passed. I can’t hear the message as there’s another blockage.

I find another memory. This one is also at the pack hall, this time the place is decorated for an event.

In another memory, there’s a fight in the same hall. Wolves stronger, bigger, and meaner fight them in the same hall.

The command is strategically placed in his mind, forcing him to not have a recollection of what happened.

It’s either Kizziah knows a very powerful witch or someone taught him what to do, because only Silvercrest wolves have such knowledge of how to issue such alpha commands.

I let go of his mind when sounds of paws approach us, and from the scents coming, I know the alpha is among them.

His dark eyes hold secrets that call out to me. My wolf’s interest is piqued as we both stare at him. I feel the need to pry into his mind and fetch his secrets. It’s uncanny. Something about him tells me he has something I need for my mission.

“Alpha Malachai, what a pleasure,” he says in his best alpha voice, I am sure. A slight tilt in his voice catches my attention, and I also wonder why he’s not extending his arm out to shake me.

“I won’t waste your time as I am far from home,” I say, extending my arm out.

His eyes widen just a little when he sees me extending my arm. “I am all ears, Alpha.”

“That is disrespectful,” my wolf snarls. “He’s hiding something.”

I nod at my wolf and give him my best smile. “I was wondering if you could tell me about the fight that happened near you not too long ago,” my eyes roam the others with him. There’s a replica of him, whom I can deduce to be his son. His eyes harbor the same secrets just like his father, making me wonder what they are hiding. And piquing my curiosity more.

His mind also has the same command blocking parts of his memory. The others around him too.

“Strange,” I mutter inside.

“I heard nothing of a fight,” he says, shrugging.

“It’s just a couple of meters away from your borders. Your patrols would have picked something up.”

“None of my men have knowledge of a fight. Mind if I ask why you’re interested in this fight?”

“It’s a personal thing.”

“Then I am afraid, I can’t help you. If you would excuse me, I have a pack to run,” he gives me the same smile. “It was nice meeting you, Alpha Malachai.”

And with that, he leaves with his men except for the warrior and three others.

Not wasting my time, I turn away and head for the car, where Lance is waiting.

“You’re back,” he sighs in relief, pushing away from the car when he sees me. “Did your meeting go well?”

“Better than I imagined.”

“Where to now?” he asks when we enter.

“The Wolf Claw Pack,” I reply as I slip my belt on, praying I will find more clues. Yet, I can’t ignore the uncanny feeling I have towards Kizziah.

“He knows something,” my wolf murmurs.

Alpha Brian is more welcoming and tells me of the fight in the woods, but was late in getting there. Everyone had disappeared.

While in the middle of our talk, my phone rings. “My love,” I breathe as I receive the call from Rakiel.

“I am sorry, Chai, but you have to come home immediately,” the urgency and alarm in her voice raise my fears.

“Why, my love?”

“Three murders have happened since you left and they are tied to what you are searching for.”

“What do you mean?”

“Someone knows we are searching for her. They left a note for you, specifically warning you to let it go.”

My brain explodes with raw anger, and my fingers curl tighter around the phone.

“Come home quick, my love. We will find another way.”