Chapter 29
Dark.
Empty.
Something missing.
Black for miles and miles.
Every time she closed her eyes she saw those warm brown eyes, searching, passing over her.
She wanted to reach for him, but couldn’t move.
No feeling.
Nothing.
He called something out.
The sound was distorted.
Die with me, the other voice whispered in her head. Join me in hell.
She watched those brown eyes sweeping through her vision, constantly moving.
Who was he?
Why did she want to go to him?
Then his eyes zipped away before disappearing.
She screamed out, but he was gone.
* * * *
They’d been at it for hours, and Evangeline had been right. Savon had retreated so deep it could take eons to find her.
“You need food,” Evangeline reminded for the dozenth time.
“Yeah, okay.”
Evangeline started to leave, then her essence wrapped around his, yanking Nate out of Savon’s mind.
Nate bolted upright. “Shit, you didn’t need to rip me into reality,” he snarled.
“You need food. Trust me. Been here, did this—with you.” Evangeline climbed off the bed with a frown. “Where did Bran go?”
“Probably downstairs. I can’t imagine watching three people sleeping is real fun,” Nate muttered. “Why don’t you check on him?”
“Why don’t you come down there and eat something. You can come back and look again afterward.”
Nate rubbed a hand over his face and his stomach rumbled. She was right. He needed to put something in his stomach. His shoulders deflated as he stood and headed downstairs. He found Bran lying back on the couch.
“Chinese should be here shortly. Didn’t want to leave before you were awake, so Chris is dropping it off.”
“Thanks.” He dropped into a seat and took a look at his watch. Eight hours of searching and no matter how strongly he felt her presence, he couldn’t find her.
Evangeline sat across from Nate. “I told you it might not be easy to find her. It could take some time. And that curse, I can feel it closing in while we’re in there.”
“What do you mean?” Nate asked.
“Not for us, but it’s pushing her deeper, Nate. I’m not sure we’ll manage to find her before this woman comes and breaks it, if she can even find his clan.”
“There has to be another way,” Bran stated.
“Should be, and I’ll talk to my grandmother, see if she has any idea, because right now, we’re stumbling through the dark. I didn’t see a single memory yet, and we pushed deeper than I’ve ever gone into someone’s head for the first time.”
“I’ve spent years in there with her. I know her mind better than I probably know my own. Which is why nothing is going to stop me.”
“And why I’ll be here to make sure you stop when you need to.”
Nate shot to his feet and walked to the kitchen. “I hate this. Fucking hate it.” He grabbed the pitcher of tea and paused. She’d made it that morning, a sway in her step, a smile on her lips. He didn’t think anything could ever go wrong a few short hours ago.
A fucking fantasy.
Finding her was the only option. Pulling her to the surface was his mission. He didn’t give a damn about anything else, except killing his damned father. Without him, none of this would be necessary. Neither of them would be in Silvertail Ridge.
Pure fucking suffering for twelve long years. Knowing he could reach out for her and she ran. And the worst part, he hurt her worse by chasing, but he didn’t know how to stop.
He placed the tea back in the fridge and leaned against the counter, suddenly not hungry, not thirsty, nothing but lonely when she was upstairs, trapped deep inside her mind.
The bell rang and he didn’t look up. Bran spoke with Chris but didn’t let him in. Nate dropped his head as the door shut.
“Nate, talk to me,” Evangeline murmured from beside him.
“I need to fix this, find my father, and take this pack. And if that means killing Canagan, fine, I don’t care about this damned pendant they keep talking about. I don’t get how it has anything to do with the end of the world, but they can have it.”
“About time you were ready to take the lead.”
He rubbed a hand over his face. “Wish people would stop saying that.”
“It’s true. This pack needs an intelligent leader. And let’s face it, Jay doesn’t have the skillset, and Bran, unfortunately, too many of us fear what a Sylvan could do to us.”
“You included?” Bran asked softly.
She blinked and turned to face him. “No, but Meridian? When did that happen?”
He placed the food on the counter. “Three years ago. I didn’t know what she was, but she knew what I was. Knew I hadn’t been awakened.” He scrubbed a hand over his face. “She thought I could challenge Canagan, end her and Killian. That was before being made a werewolf.”
“And your mother wasn’t there to train you.” She rubbed a hand over her face. “If they say Killian is alive, and he’s only been gone a couple months, why was your mother gone five years?”
“She left when Dad died? I don’t know.”
“Darron wasn’t your father,” she pointed out.
“Hell of a lot more my father than Killian,” Bran answered.
“Shit, Darron was more my father than my own, and I didn’t even live here,” Nate added. “He was a good man. But why hide all of this shit from both of you?”
“Maybe my mother can give us answers when we do finally find her.” Bran grabbed a few plates. “We should eat, then I’m assuming you’re diving back into Savon’s head.”
“What else am I going to do?” Nate answered. “I need to find her.”
Evangeline touched his shoulder. “I’ll come back tomorrow and pull you out. Early in the morning. And if you do find her, you’ll have some time to help her find herself before I get back.”
“Think I will?” He knew that sounded pitiful, but he needed to find her.
Evangeline nodded. “Maybe without me, it will be easier for you to slide deeper. I know how to find you, though, so don’t worry about that. And I’ll drag you out if I have to, at least to make sure you’re taking care of yourself.”
“Thanks.” He scrubbed a hand over his face. “Wish she hadn’t put me under.”
“I think it might be better this way. At least you both have a chance now. If Nikolai did this to both of you? She would have drowned in that lake, and you would be locked away, searching for her. This is better.”
“Christ, I hope so.”
They filled their plates, and Nate managed to eat more than his fill. He had no intention of coming back out of her head until he found something to go on.
* * * *
“Think this will work?” Robert whispered to Tremaine.
“Got to. It’s the only way we’ll know if Meridian is on Canagan’s side or not. And the way she’s bound, if she remembers this encounter…” He shook his head. “Canagan has some pretty ridiculous powers when it comes to shifters. She could sway some of my forms. Took a shit-ton of effort to resist.”
“What?” Preston balked.
“She could mind-fuck a lot off shifters. Were and otherwise. That’s why we’re going to Meridian.” Tremaine opened the door and barged into her home.
Meridian sat on the couch, sipping wine, staring at the bottle. “Figured it was a matter of time before you came.” She glanced up. “Wasn’t expecting you to bring Enforcers.”
“Need answers only you can provide and want to make sure you don’t share with Canagan.”
She snorted. “How so?”
“Taking a look in your mind and wiping our presence,” Robert explained. “Only way, unless you admit guilt now.”
“Don’t want to be involved at all. I’m stuck here, or I would have left long ago.” She pulled her legs to her chest. “After what that bastard did to Savon, knowing what he wanted to do now, she let him go after her. Her sanity has slipped completely, only leaving the monster.”
“You’ll be free soon,” Tremaine promised. “And you won’t remember seeing us.”
Robert took Tremaine into her head to search her memories.