Page 41 of Captive Witch

“I-I don’t know, boss. She was sitting there against a tree, then she was… gone. Like she… she just disappeared into thin air.” He pulls the phone away from his mouth. “Have you seen her?”

“Who are you talking to? You aren’t supposed to be on the property, you idiot.” Snarling, I sprint through the woods, channeling my wolf’s speed.

“It’s her sister. She’s—”

“I’ll be there in two minutes.” I hang up, cursing every living soul in this world. How did she disappear? Brent is my top hunter, he wouldn’t just let her wander off, so then where is she?

Racing through the woods, I pull every sense of my wolf through to the surface, fur tingling below my skin, urging me to shift. Every now and then, I slow, swearing I can smell Adara nearby, sage and spruce surrounding me, but then the wind blows, and it’s gone.

I curse under my breath, tearing the rest of the way in the direction of the academy, and stumble over Brent with two young girls. One looks like Kaylus, if he were a human and female. Her black hair shines under the sun like his feathers, and her features are small and pinched. The other looks like a smaller version of Monique—same golden blonde hair and green eyes, though hers are less piercing and more… warm. I work to unclench my jaw as I approach, trying to remember this is Adara’s sister—not that vile excuse of a woman.

“Tell me everything,” I say to Brent, walking up behind the group.

“Gideon?” Adara’s sister says, her wide eyes swimming in tears. She launches herself at me, wrapping her arms around my waist and burying her face in my chest. “Gods, she was here, a-and then she was gone, and I-I don’t know what to do. I asked around, and no one at the academy knows anything, and I don’t know if it was the coven or—”

“Woah, woah,” I say, putting my arm around her shoulders. “Let’s start from the beginning here.” Lifting my gaze, I see her friend—who must be Wren—standing off to the side, her arms tight around her middle. She worries her lower lip between herteeth, sniffling every few seconds. Sighing, I open my other arm, and she glances up at me before moving to my side, wrapping one arm around my back and the other over Juliana. Glaring at Brent, I growl, “Speak. Quickly.”

“She was sitting there,” he points over to a spot just inside the tree line, “and I was just a few yards into the forest. I had eyes on her the whole time before she…” He holds his hands together then spreads them apart. “Gone. No trace. I found some footprints, though.”

I pat each witch’s back before stepping away to follow him. Two sets of footprints make a track until one set disappears. Frowning, I follow the one set before coming to a long trail.

“It looks like someone was thrown,” Brent says.

I glare up at him. “Does it? I couldn’t tell.”

He grimaces. “Sorry, boss. I, uh, also wanted to show you this.” Walking a few feet past the large disturbance of dirt, where leaves, twigs, and the earth are shoved yards down, he stops at another tree and looks up. Jagged edges of the bark protrude, just above my head, exposing bits of the trunk beneath.

Touching my finger to the wounds, I narrow my eyes and inhale through my nose. Metal. Copper. “Blood.” I search the tree trunk, but no blood is smeared into the bark.

“Here,” Brent says, crouching beside a spot in the forest floor. There’s a footprint with a streak beside it where someone didn’t quite catch their footing, blood is smeared on the leaves and rocks beside the mark.

Adara,my wolf growls.

My hand shoots out, touching the blood and bringing it to my tongue. A blast of peace washes over me, but it fades quickly. “It’s hers.” I look over my shoulder, the bark drawing my attention back to it. Tracing the wounds, I bring my fingers to my nose and sniff. The sweet and spicy tang is familiar, almost painful, but there’s something else in there. Fresh. Sharp.

Mint.

“Have any of the hunters discovered news about Aramin?”

Brent’s head snaps up to meet my gaze. “No, none of them.”

I punch the tree beside me, the rough bark cutting into the skin on my knuckles. Blood trickles down my fist, dripping onto my shoe. “Get them.”

“Here?” he says, standing and looking around.

“Where else?” I snap. “Aramin was here. She’s working with Monique.” I stalk off, moving back toward the academy and the two young witches huddled together. I scan the sky for the raven as I walk toward them. “Have you seen the bird? Kaylus?”

Juliana and Wren jump at the sound of my voice and exchange a look before they shake their heads. “He was h-here,” Juliana says, “but I haven’t… I haven’t seen him since just before you got here.” A new wave of tears pours down her cheeks. “If he dies, does Addy die too? Did they take him somehow without us seeing? H-how did they take her in front of us like that? I-I…”

Closing my eyes, I clench my jaw. I don’t have the time to babysit, but I know how much she means to Adara, and watching her cry makes my chest ache. “Where is your headmistress?” I ask, keeping my voice calm. Quiet. I already feel like an ass for startling her once.

Wren wipes her tears on her sleeve, keeping one arm around Juliana, shock written plainly on her face. “You can’t talk to her. She knows who you are.”

I raise a brow. “I didn’t ask for your permission. I asked where she was.”

She swallows hard, her chin quivering. “I-I won’t tell you. Addy cares about you. She wouldn’t—”

Pinching the bridge of my nose, I let out a long sigh. “I won’t ask you again, and I can’t promise to stay as patient as I have been. My mate is out there, bleeding and gods know where.” Raising my head, my gaze bores into her. “You either tell mewhat I want to know, or you go inside and get the hell out of my way.”

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