Page 36 of Ragoru

She’d expected as much, but part of her had hoped that she was mistaken. Or at very least wouldn’t encounter one.

Schooling her features so not to betray her displeasure with his presence, she decided to ignore him completely. Staring at him too much could draw attention to her that she didn’t want. Instead, she gave the woman at his side her full attention. Nearly as tall as the huntsman, the head of operations cut a clean figure in her fitted gray suit, her dark hair cropped short and styled sleekly to her head. Her face was clean of the powders and makeup that many women at the citadels wore, her deeply bronzed skin radiating warmth as she gave Evie a bright smile and extended her hand in greeting.

“At last. Our expert has arrived. Evelyn Willocks?”

“Yes. I was sent by Dr. Farris and Dr. Ross from Northern Outpost Fifty-Seven to investigate a report that was made regarding an unexplainable sighting. You are the head of operations around here, I assume?” Evie replied, taking her offered hand, noting its firm grip and thick calluses built up from years of hard work.

Whomever the head of operations was, it was clear that she had worked hard to make her way up through the ranks of the operations. Despite the friendly face she presented, Evie had no doubt that she would be a force to be reckoned with and ran the mining operation with a firm hand—something which no doubtthrilledthe huntsman given the way he seemed to stare holes through her at odd moments.

The woman dipped her head in acknowledgment. “I’m Overseer Blythe Manchen, and I run the Northern Run Mines here. You’ve had a long trip, Ms. Willocks. I will fill you in on the situation while I show you where you can rest and shower, and then we will get some food into you.”

Evie murmured her thanks and fell in step behind the woman, her neck prickling with awareness as the huntsman followed close behind them. “When can I speak to the miner who made the report?”

Overseer Manchen waved a hand. “Soon enough. They are on their shift rotation right now, so you have time to see to your needs before they’ll be available.”

Evie hid a grimace. That was inconvenient. She had thought, given the seriousness of the situation, that the miner would’ve been made available to her immediately. Apparently, nothing was interrupting the mine’s regular operation.

“There’s no way I can meet with them sooner?”

“Why? Are you in a hurry?” a gravelly voice demanded from behind her.

Hiding her discomfort behind an icy façade, Evie’s eyes flicked over to the huntsman.

“I’m eager to get started,” she clarified firmly. “I came a very long way to do this, and now that I’m here I’m ready to proceed with my investigation.”

A deep chuckle rolled from the huntsman’s chest, and he gave her a condescending look that rankled. “As you should know, the forest either conceals everything or gives up its secrets slowly. Whatever the miner saw would have long since moved on if we weren’t within or right up against its established territory. There have been reports of strange sounds that have followed since then whenever miners work in the shafts closest to those coordinates, which supports the theory that we breached into its territory when we opened up those shafts. Because of that there is no harm done by taking some time to rest and wait until the miner is off assignment and available to you. Whatever the creature is, it isn’t going anywhere.” His face became stony, his hands curling at his sides into fists. “Naturally, I would have already dealt with the matter if there were another huntsman assigned here to assure the protection of the mine.”

“Yes, but your Order’s usual tactic is just to destroy first and ask questions of what little you can find of the remains. As I told you before, we need someone here with a level head who can evaluate the situation,” Overseer Manchen pointed out to him before giving Evie an apologetic smile as they entered what appeared to be a large residential bunker. “Huntsman Vale is not wrong, though. There is no point in disrupting procedures around here when you are unlikely to get answers any faster than you would by waiting a few hours, though I admire your drive. Naturally, I’m also curious as to what we might have stumbled into. The tunnel we opened feeds directly into a natural cave shaft that extends hundreds of feet below, which has another narrow exit out into the open air. Because of the complexity of the cave system, we’ve been able to map only a very small amount of it. It could be anything dwelling on the tunnels beyond our mines.”

“Until it breaks into one of the mine tunnels and brings a very real problem to our door,” Vale pointed out. “The fact that someone saw it at all through a fissure in the wall should be enough to demand caution and plan for using defensive measures to deal with it.”

“But it hasn’t made an appearance since, and until it does show itself to be a threat, we are doing this my way,” Manchen said, eyes narrowed on him for a moment before she continued down a long hall, the heels of her boots clicking on the tile floor.

Evie cast a covert look between the overseer and the huntsman. It was clear that there was no love lost between them. In fact, it seemed that there was a clear power struggle ongoing between the two when it came to the operation of the mine. Evie would bet her savings that Manchen had forbidden the huntsman from abandoning his station at the mine to pursue his hunt in favor of requesting someone to conduct an official investigation. She also knew that Vale chafed against that restriction. She could see it in the hard glint of his eyes. It sent a prickle up her spine. He had the look of a man who would only tolerate his leash for so long before he broke it. While that was a sexy characteristic when it came to her Ragoru, with Vale it sent a wave of anxious urgency through her to get her task done and move her triad far from his reach.

Arriving at the last door at the end of the hall, Manchen swiped a keycard through the lock. The door opened, and the room automatically illuminated in response. Handing the keycard to Evie, she gestured to the room. Evie stepped inside, her mouth parting in surprise at just how large the space was. This wasn’t what she’d been expecting at all. Even the bed was larger than anything she had at her post or when she was staying in the residential buildings in the citadel when not in the field.

“This is where you’ll be. This room is usually reserved for visitors from home base, but I think it is more than appropriate to offer it to you for the night. There is a private shower, and a private bar should you wish to indulge. I will return for you once we are ready for you.”

“Thank you,” Evie replied as she completed her circle and once again faced them. She could feel the huntsman’s icy gaze on her as if he were trying to pry her secrets from her soul. She wished that he didn’t know where her room was. “This is great. I’m sure I’ll be very comfortable in here during my brief stay.”

Vale snorted mockingly, but she ignored it. Whatever he thought of her presence there, at least she could be comforted by the fact that there was no way he knew her secret. She also understood that he wasn’t going to accost her in her rooms. Manchen’s authority in the village was absolute, and he wouldn’t yet dare to tempt the displeasure of the woman whose immediate authority he served under. The sour look he gave the overseer confirmed that much. Still, it was a relief when Manchen pulled the door shut, erecting the final barrier between Evie and the huntsman. She nearly sank onto the bed with relief but caught herself at the last moment and headed for the shower.

She would do as was suggested. She would shower and then rest as she prepared herself for whatever she was to face next. Because if there was something inhabiting the cave systems, she needed to be ready for anything. She had assumed it would be some sort of new animal that was seen from a distance. She hadn’t even thought that it might be a sapient creature in the caves.

Was it Ragoru trying to find themselves a comfortable spot to den? Or was it something far worse?

CHAPTER30

Thral scented the wind, instinctively seeking any hint of their mate. He moved silently as he crept down the mountainside into the lower foothills, keeping the bulk of his body low against the rocks. He had watched Evie’s progress as she’d made her way down the treacherous path. His heart had been in his throat more than once as he was helplessly forced to watch her slip and slide along the broken rocks. Although she walked with a certain amount of surefootedness, reminding him of her experience navigating the hostile parts of this world, he’d still struggled watching her proceed without them.

He disliked this. So much so that when she finally returned to them, he was going to make certain that she was never outside of their protection again. She would always have at least one of her males with her so there would never be this unease if not knowing what might happen to her while she was unprotected. This inability to act and see to her wellbeing made Thral’s pelt prickle, his fur along his back and hackles rising in a silent challenge to whatever unknown force was keeping their mate away.

A soft growl rumbled in his throat. This was as far as he could go. He couldn’t venture any closer without possibly drawing the attention of the humans of the village. He couldn’t see her. He couldn’t even isolate her faint scent trail from the other human females dwelling within the village. It was maddening for him. To his senses, Evie was lost within the thick scent of feminine musk, making his protective instincts surge frantically with the desire to locate and secure his mate.

He spun around, his nose twitching at the sound of a sharp clatter of stones behind him. Sabol grimaced guiltily as he met his eyes.

“Sorry.”

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