Page 40 of Dawn to Dusk
After investigating the area and calling out to her with no response, we conceded that we lost her. We couldn’t track her without her scent.
We went back to the compound and knocked on Balthazar’s door. He opened the door naked as a newborn with a glare in his eyes. “What?”
I could smell a female’s arousal behind him and figured that was the source of his bad mood. “Esmerey is missing.”
“Correction, she’s not in her bedroom.”
“She would never leave the safety of her wards at night.”
“Correction—” That attitude grated on my nerves. He was lucky I considered him my alpha. “In recent months, she stayed in at night. Forty years before gives us plenty of evidence that she will go where she needs to. She has always been afraid of the night; you are only now aware of it.”
“What if she is hurt? Or kidnapped?”
“The same woman you failed to kill on a multitude of occasions?” He asked me with an annoyed expression. “The same woman that single-handedly crippled half of the council’s army when they attempted to seize her for treason?”
“Yes.” My answer came out slowly, realizing that I was not thinking clearly.
His stern stare said ‘moron’ better than any words could. “You should not concern yourself with the wellbeing of creatures more powerful than you. You’ll give yourself an apoplexy over nothing.”
The man never did pull his punches.
His face softened as he studied my face. “I’m certain she will reappear from wherever she holed up at when the sun rises.”
“She could be hurt.” It was a possibility. Powerful as she was, even she had limitations.
“I don’t believe you think that. I think you two are concerned she has replaced you with less disappointing lovers.” Another proverbial punch landed right in the gut with the force of a sledgehammer. I could almost taste the bile in my throat.
“I’m worried.” I told him, swallowing the effect his words inflicted on me.
He huffed, but he finally contemplated the situation. After a moment, he narrowed his eyes and looked over his shoulder. “Sorry, lovely, duty calls.”
Without waiting for a response, he stepped out of his room, shutting the door behind him. We went outside and when his bare feet touched the earth, he closed his eyes to focus.
It took long enough for me to know that when he opened his eyes, she wasn’t there. His eyes all but confirmed it. He held up a finger before I could say anything. “She isn’t likely to stay out in the open, we all know that. Remain calm.”
“Lots of terrain she could hide in where Balthazar would not sense her.” Ziam agreed, but his face pinched up and his hair stayed that weird yellow.
“The lake.” I tried to play along, but really, what would she do in the lake at night?
“She could have left for one of the human towns nearby, and may be out of range.” Balthazar told me, even as his foottapped. She would have told him if she left, and he knew it. He grumbled, stomping off.
“I’m going to talk to Sorin. He can search through rock more effectively.” Ziam took off.
I followed after Balthazar, knowing he was my best chance of finding her with no scent trail to follow.
My nerves sat on edge, and I was ready to snap at any moment. Sticking with him so he could keep me in check was in everyone’s best interest.
Chapter 15:
Esmerey
The next morning, I found a berry bush close to the cave I slept in. I popped some berries in my mouth as Ziam clomped into the small clearing with the energy of an angry hornet. It was strange to see anything but a smile on his face. Instead, his handsome face was twisted into a sneer worthy of my mother. His hair displayed an alarming shade of red, and his cheeks were not too far behind.
“Damn it, Esmerey.” He let out a snort of breath that reminded me of a horse. My eyes went wide with surprise. “I looked for you all night.”
“Why?” The word dragged out while I tried to wrap my mind around his outburst.
“You failed to come home last night.” He said it like a husband expecting me in bed by seven. Did I wake up in the right world?
