Chapter 49: Chapter 49

The poison held him in its grasp, doing its terrifying work and draining him continuously. He couldn’t do anything to stop it. His fast healing didn’t work against wolfsbane. He needed an antidote or blood to regain his strength, but he couldn’t escape. The door of the tiny room underground was locked and sealed with a powerful spell. Ryder knew nothing about magic. Vampires were not capable of casting or breaking spells. He could only sit and wait, something he was not used to at all.

The worst was his growing thirst. He hadn’t consumed a single drop of blood in too long—his body was so weak, he couldn’t even get up anymore. His throat hurt and burned, and his fangs were elongated, ready to draw blood. They didn’t retract anymore. The last time he had been so desperate for the red liquid, he had been a young vampire without restraint. His despairing thoughts circled Elena, her tantalizing smell, the sweet taste of her blood as it filled his mouth. A groan left him.

Regardless of his physical state, regardless of his dizziness, his fury and loathing for Steph didn’t waver. Separating him from his soulmate was the cruelest thing he could have done. It felt like a part of Ryder had been cut off and locked away. Elena’s fate wasn’t within his control. He didn’t know whether she was safe or whether that bastard had hurt her, too.

Time ticked by, and with every breath he took, Ryder grew weaker. His senses failed him one after the other. His sight was already gone—he dreaded what would follow.

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Elena was roused by the sound of muffled voices. They were speaking over each other, some louder, others quieter, and with this buzzing noise in the background, she gradually regained consciousness. Her tiredness was gone in a second when she remembered their predicament. Fear struck her like a lightning bolt. Eyes snapping open, she stared at the ceiling of the living room. She sat up, rubbing her face and pushing the blanket away from her body. Dread gnawed at her and made it impossible to sit still. When she got up, she was driven by the sole desire to find her soulmate, to assure he was safe. She made her way through the dark living room, almost stumbling over the coffee table. The dim morning light that reached into the room wasn’t enough to illuminate her surroundings.

A jittery hand touched the door handle. She opened it and entered the foyer. The agitated voices grew louder—they originated from the kitchen. Elena’s fear mounted with every step she took. Soon, she would find out whether the search had been successful or not, but she was not hopeful… The upset state of the other clan members signified that something was wrong.

When she reached the kitchen, everyone except for Ryder was there. Her desperate gaze jumped from face to face, wishing to find an inkling of hope, but it was futile. The vampires’ eyes were ruby red with anger and desperation. Elena’s arrival made them fall silent. A veil of trepidation fell over the group.

“Did we wake you up?” Edgar asked. He scanned her appearance, scowling at what he saw. She looked ill, her complexion looking ashen instead of rosy. Since she had barely slept, dark shadows rested beneath her eyes, and her hair was messy. On top of all that, she still wore the clothes from yesterday.

“Not really. I couldn’t sleep well,” she admitted, nervously wringing her hands.

“You should rest more; you don’t look good,” Kelsey chimed in. Besides the anger burning in his scarlet eyes, she read debilitating worry for his friend, and maybe for her.

“No,” she replied, but once she realized how snappy she sounded, she bit her lip. “I’m sorry, I just can’t sit still as long as we haven’t found Ryder.”

“We don’t have any leads, unfortunately,” Edgar answered. The clan leader was visibly concerned, wearing a permanent scowl on his handsome features. Helen stood next to him, holding on to his arm, presumably to calm him down.

“What we found in Steph’s home wasn’t useful,” Kelsey continued. “It was obvious Ryder was there at some point. The front door was damaged, so he must have forced his way in, but neither he nor anyone else was inside the flat. It looked abandoned. None of Steph’s belongings were left, which means he lives somewhere else now. We followed his and Ryder’s scents to the parking garage beneath the building. Two humans accompanied them as well, but we lost them when they entered their car and left the area.”

“Steph disappeared with Ryder?” Elena asked, eyes widening in horror. “And you couldn’t follow them?”

Her own helplessness roused unstoppable rage within her. Steph had tormented her for long enough—and now he even hurt her soulmate. She couldn’t forgive him. Her hate reached an immeasurable height, towering over any other feeling. He made her miserable for years, and he was not allowed to do the same to her love. Ryder was all she had; she cherished him so much it was painful to be separated, even if it had only been a day. Her chest hurt.

This was where she drew the line.

“That means they’re keeping Ryder in a random location and we don’t have a clue where he could be.” Elena wanted to scream in frustration. Something within her urged her to hurry and save him quickly. A strange instinct kept telling her that Ryder was in grave danger. The magic of their soulmate bond buzzed in her chest, nervous like a swarm of bees. It felt weaker than yesterday, an alarming indicator that something was wrong with him.

“What should we do now?” Chump sighed. His red hair covered his eyes as he stared at the kitchen tiles. The weight of defeat lay on his shoulders. He didn’t want to lose his best friend.

It was clear they couldn’t rely on the vampires’ senses any longer. They needed a new plan. Elena wished she knew more about their soulmate bond—maybe she could have used its inherent magic to find Ryder, but it was vastly different from her green magic and hard to understand.

A sudden idea struck her. If she couldn’t use the bond’s magic, why not try it with her own? Elena had never used her powers to search for someone, and she wasn’t sure if it was even possible, but it was worth a try. She would do anything to find Ryder.

And if she ever saw Steph again, she would resort to any means necessary to stop him. She was done submitting to him and his violent ways. Steph would not manipulate her ever again. And more importantly, he was not allowed to lay a hand on her beloved soulmate. Her green magic was not meant to cause harm, but she would make an exception. For Ryder.