Page 88 of Royal Beast
When we pull up to the crash site, the scene is a flurry of flashing red and blue lights, shattered glass, and the wreckage of what used to be Clary’s car. My breath catches in my throat as I take it all in, the chaos almost too much to process.
Rory is already there, his tall frame hunched over Clary, who sits in the back of an ambulance with a paramedic hovering nearby. Blood streaks her temple, staining her pale skin, but she’s alive. She’s talking, her hands moving as she speaks to Rory, who looks like he’s barely holding it together.
Kellan barely gets the car in park before I’m out, running toward them. Rory glances up as I approach, his expression grim.
“Where is she?” I demand, my voice cracking. “Where’s Rose?”
Rory’s silence answers before he does. “She’s not here.”
“What?” My legs almost give out. “What do you mean, she’s not here?”
Kellan catches up to me, his hand gripping my arm to steady me. “What the hell is going on?” he growls, his tone sharp as he addresses Rory.
“She’s missing,” Rory says, his voice low. “The responders haven’t found her. Clary doesn’t know where she is either.”
I turn to Clary, who looks up at me with tear-filled eyes. “A big, black SUV started tailing us. It wouldn’t stop. They were right up on our bumper. They forced me to run the light,” she stammers, her voice shaking. “I tried to keep control, but when they tried to ram me, I ran the red light to get away. I got hit…”
“Where is Rose?” I demand again, desperation making my voice shrill.
“I don’t know,” Clary says, her face crumpling. “When I came to, she wasn’t there. I don’t know what happened to her!”
The world tilts on its axis. My knees buckle, and I would’ve hit the ground if Kellan weren’t holding me.
“Stay with me, Darcy,” he orders, his voice steady.
“She’s gone,” I whisper, tears blurring my vision. The world wobbles around me.
Kellan’s grip tightens, and I feel the tension radiating off him. “We’ll find her,” he insists again, his voice low but fierce. “Whatever it takes. We’ll find her.”
The ambulance lights cast eerie shadows across the scene as Kellan and I stand frozen, trying to make sense of the chaos.Clary sits on the edge of the ambulance bed, her hands trembling as she recounts everything she remembers.
“I didn’t see much,” she says, her voice shaking. “It all happened so fast. The SUV came out of nowhere, rammed me into the intersection, and then… after the crash, I was in and out of it. But…” She hesitates, her brow furrowing as if something has just occurred to her.
“But what?” Kellan demands, his voice sharp.
Clary shakes her head as though trying to clear the fog in her mind. “When I was at the hospital earlier today before I picked Rose up, there was this man. He had dark hair and was standing near the nurse’s station, just watching. At first, I thought he was waiting for someone, but now that I think about it…” She trails off, her face paling.
“What?” I press, my heart pounding in my chest.
“He was wearing sunglasses,” she says slowly, the realization dawning in her eyes. “I thought that was weird. And when I left with Rose, I swear I saw him again, outside, near the parking lot.”
A cold chill runs down my spine, and I look at Kellan, who’s already piecing it together. His jaw tightens, his expression darkening with each passing second.
“The Russians,” he says grimly.
My stomach drops. “What?”
“They must’ve known Max was in the hospital,” Kellan says, his tone heavy with realization. “And they knew you were there too.”
“And that I sent Rose with Clary,” I whisper, my voice barely audible.
Kellan nods, his face hard. “They were watching. They targeted Rose.”
The world feels like it’s crumbling beneath my feet. My knees buckle, and I clutch at Kellan’s arm to keep from falling. “No,” Igasp, tears blurring my vision. “No, they can’t. She’s just a little girl. Why would they take a little girl?”
“To send a message,” Kellan says darkly, his voice tight with anger. “They think taking Rose will give them leverage. They’re trying to break us.”
A sob rips from my chest, and I turn on him, my fear morphing into desperate anger. “You were supposed to protect us!” I cry, anger surging inside. My hands fly out, slapping him across the face. “You were supposed to keep her safe! I trusted you!”
