Chapter 102: Pictures

Carter My wolf kept pushing me to run faster and harder. He needed our mate back and this was the only way we had a hope of finding her. Ever since she'd been taken Luca had been pushing me to get up and do something, only I had been to busy feeling bad for myself. I hadn't let him out since our mate had been taken and it was driving him nuts. His wolf was more attached to Elinn, only because animals had a tendency to get attached faster than humans. I loved Elinn more than anything else in my life, but we had our ups and downs which caused me to be more cautious around her than Luca was. Now that he was finally free he was going to use the time to his advantage. Letting our legs pump faster than they ever had before to make up for all the time without moving them. Trying to get back to the site of the kidnapping before all the scents and evidence could disappear. It was a long shot because we had been away for so long but we weren't giving up now. Our punishing pace continued as we ran towards the cabin. The forest seemed to be whispering to us to go faster to run faster. We needed to get to there, we needed to get there as fast as we possibly could. The wind whipped at our heels seeming to propel us forward with more force than we could muster. I felt as if I was going mad, forests couldn't talk to people! Although this was Archaios Wood, where goddess roamed and the original werewolves lived. Full of mystery and intrigue were what powered these woods even though no one really went inside them. We were one of the few people who had ever walked into the woods and walked out just fine. Something protected the Archaios Wood, though no one had been able to figure out what it was. Whatever it was had been around for hundreds of years and had long since been forgotten. When I was little my mother would tell me stories about an ancient god who watched over the woods and it's occupants. I just wished that he had been more vigilant and been able to save my mate from her captors. My foot caught on a root almost causing me to go down. I really had to focus on where I was going I was almost at the cabin at this point. I needed to figure out what I was going to do when I got there, after all, if I wanted to find her I had to concentrate. Finally, I could see the mess that was the home where Elinn was temporarily raised. But something seemed wrong, it wasn't as messy as it had been before all of this. There were also lights on in the house, someone else was here, even though no one was supposed to be there. I shifted silently pulling on a pair of shorts and crept towards the house. Neither of my parents had said anything about anyone else being out here. That meant that someone was trespassing and I got the feeling it was a rouge. Maybe one who had information on Aurelio and could tell me where to find him. As I crept up to the house I could hear music playing from inside. It sounded like the fifties swing music, something you would hear in those old black and white movie musical things. Why the heck was someone sitting in my mate's abandoned house listening to old music? What sort of a messed up person was messing around in the house? Quietly I peeked in through the door expecting to see a rogue wolf sitting there tearing up the house. Instead, I was met with the image of a man sitting on the floor surrounded by all the pictures that used to be hung up in the stairwell. I carefully stepped inside trying not to disturb this man even though I wasn't sure why he was here. Then I got a better view of his face, it was Ecstan. "She was always so happy. I could never catch her frowning or crying, she was always just smiling." Ecstan said never looking up from the photo in front of her. I looked down at all the pictures around him, ones of his wife and daughter. "I remember the first time I heard her crying. We were having a picnic by the pond and having a great time. Then a group of rouges attacked us and Elinn started crying. My wolf and I got so mad that we just tore those rouges apart." He told me and I couldn't help but stare at all the pictures around him. Elinn was so tiny but Ecstan was right, I couldn't ever see her frowning. He and his mate looked so cute together as though they were the perfect high school. I could almost see the childhood, Elinn could have had, what her life could have been. "She's gone, she's gone now and it's all my fault. If I hadn't given her away that day she would never have suffered. She would have been in a loving home with me and…. This is all because of me," Tears slipped down his face as he stroked his hand along the images of his lost daughter. "No this isn't your fault it's mine. If I had been a better mate, if I had tried harder to teach her about the world she would never have left. She would have to know that it's a packs job to protect others and she would never have given herself up." I laid my hand on his shoulder. "Carter, this is in no way shape or form your fault. All you ever tried to do was help her and look what I've done. All I've ever done is messed up her happy life, you brought her back to a world where she could be happy. Please don't say things like that!" Ecstan turned looking up at me with true sincerity in his eyes. "No, this is my fault….and I'm going to fix it," I told him and walked out of the room to try and track Elinn's scent. I was going to find her, and I was going to destroy Aurelio if it was the last thing I did