Page 66 of The Wolf She Shouldn't Desire

Danny and the vampires around him tense slightly and have a suspicious gleam in their eyes that makes them all look wary and on edge as they stare at me. Shit. Silence greets me.

“Perhaps we could lend a hand?” Eric offers behind me. Why he is offering, I have no clue but don’t argue or show any confusion since I was about to offer the same.

Danny stares at me in contemplation before closing his eyes on a sigh. “Talia is missing.”

His words are like diving into a frozen lake. It turns you cold, stings your skin, and shocks you to where you are without breath or words for a few seconds as your body adjusts to the shock. “When’s the last time you heard from her?” I ask as calmly as I can manage.

“Not since the party held at our coven house about three days ago. She tends to go away to recharge for a day or two after things like that, but she will usually give me a heads up after a day if she plans to stay away longer so we don’t worry. Usually, I can always communicate with her too or find her no matter what, but all I’m getting is radio silence from her.” His words are laced with frustration and worry that match the furrowed brow and pinched lips adorning his face that mirror the others around him currently.

The more he talks, the more dread fills me, along with a sense of panic and the desperate urgency to find her. No wonder I haven’t heard from her. No one has, because she’s missing. I feel like an idiot for not realizing that her silence wasn’t because she was lost in her head, falling back on her mindsetthat we can’t be together. No. It was because she was missing and needed help. Guilt at being so self-absorbed fills me, but I quickly shake it off. Talia is missing, and I need to focus.

“Did you check all the usual places besides here that she visits?”

“I already checked every place I know she goes. We heard from someone that she was involved in a commotion here two days ago around mid-morning. A few hours later, she left, and no one has seen her since.”

“We tapped on every connection we have to try to find her or gain information on who saw her to try to retrace her steps,” one of the other vampires chimes in, “but nothing.”

I cross my arms across my chest to hide the fact that my fists are clenching tight enough to make my knuckles turn white.

“Maybe there is someone in our connections that could give us some information,” Eric states. “Maybe a wolf saw her in the city somewhere, or even a human. The more people we ask, the better chance you have in figuring out where she may be.”

“Is there a catch? Or a price we have to pay for that?” This time a different vampire speaks. One that stands like a statue, quiet and serious, keeping his eyes on everyone.

Eric doesn’t say anything, leaving it to me to decide on the answer to those questions. Without hesitating, I answer. “No, no price or debt.”

“Why are you helping us, wolf?”

Would it be too much to tell them that Talia has had my back in the past and—if not saved my life—saved me from serious harm? Or maybe it’s better to recall when she helped a wolf who is now a part of my pack to show I owe her for the kindness she showed him? That’ll work.

“She’s shown she doesn’t hold some unbiased prejudice against wolves. She even saved one from being ganged up on by a group of vampires a few weeks ago, and he’s part of mypack now. That’s rare, and I would hate for that compassion and courage to disappear. I have no ill will against vampires unless they harm those I protect. So, I’m happy to help if I can when it comes to Talia.”

“You talking about Ian?” Eric asks and look to see him with a stunned expression on his face. No one knows the full specifics of how Ian came to have my contact card and come to try to join my pack and I told Ian to keep it quiet. The less people that know about Tali’s involvement the better for her safety. I nod in confirmation to Eric though.

Turning back, I see the vampires look to Danny, waiting this time for him to respond. He doesn’t take long to make a decision. “Whatever you can do to help us in locating her is appreciated.”

“Hey, what’s going on?” Jax comes up to us to stand behind me next to Eric, closely followed by Reed. At a quick glance, I see Lochlan and Ronan take notice and break away from the girls they were talking to and make their way towards us as well. Eric fills them in with Danny and the other vampires filling in information here and there.

A plan starts formulating in my head while they catch up. I’ll check her secret garden, and if she isn’t there, I’ll go to her apartment whereIlast saw her. I have no clue how I am going to get in there with the absurd amount of security she has in place to protect her personal space, but I’ll damn sure break down every last one of them to get in there and make sure she is okay or to find any hint as to where she may have headed after coming here if I have to. By the sounds of it, she came here after I left her, but she could have gone back to her apartment.

I vaguely register a phone ringing as I continue to plan.

If I don’t find anything at her garden or apartment, maybe I should check the city where we crossed paths in the past? Either way, I’m definitely going to utilize every connectionas Eric suggested as well and see if any information can be obtained that way. My wolf paces inside me itching like never before to break free that its a struggle to keep him held back. I haven’t struggled this hard to keep him under control since I was a teen and fresh out of my first shift. My skin vibrates with the need to let him out but it would be a bad idea and the rules in the club forbid wolves from shifting inside. I need to find Talia fast or—

“What the fuck did you just say?!” Danny’s hiss breaks through my thoughts and inner battle with my wolf. Everyone around me goes tense and dead silent along with me. Whoever Danny is talking to they are definitely pissing him off like I’ve never seen any vampire before. But suddenly his face drops, and he goes pale. I didn’t even think a vampire could get any paler.

Danny looks up, and his eyes stare straight at me. My heart skips a beat. Dear god please don’t let her be dead. Don’t let her come into my life and tilt my world on its axis just to have her ripped away.

“What?” I growl so fiercely that I swear everyone in the club freezes.

Danny drops the phone from his ear. His face contorts in anger once again. “Zander has her,” he spits.

The other vampires do the same through various curses, and the growl I gave a second ago doesn’t compare to the one that breaks through me now. It’s fueled with the anger of my wolf combined with my own along with my power as an alpha. “What did he say?”

“He took Talia. Said she needed a lesson in who she needs to give respect to and who she doesn’t.”

“What the hell does that mean?”

“He’s been bitching about her defending the wolves he has been attacking. Says he’s been justified in his actions and that wolves need to learn to respect vampires. He believesvampires are superior and should be treated as such. Therefore, vampires should be able to attack wolves until they learn their place, essentially.” Danny sneers as he talks, clearly not agreeing with the mindset.

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