Chapter 52 Gone without a trace

Chapter 52 Gone without a trace
Chapter 052

DARIUS

It took all of my restraint not to turn around and go after Raven.

I had watched her run back into the chaos, disappearing into the panicked crowd to search for her friend.

Every instinct I had was screaming at me to follow her. To protect her and drag her out of there by force if necessary.

But I did not.

I did not blame her for going back. I could not. If Dorian was in the same situation, if I thought he was trapped in that chaos, I would not listen to anyone either.

I would run back to save him without a second thought.

Before the attack, I had seen Dorian with Samantha. But that was just an assumption. What if I had been wrong? What if Dorian was not with her? What if they had been separated in the chaos?

I managed to get out of the underground and into the hallway where students were still evacuating.

The crowd was thick, bodies pressed together, everyone trying to get away from the gunshots that were still echoing behind us.

I helped where I could pulling people up who had fallen, directing them towards the exits all while keeping my eyes open, searching the faces for any sign of Samantha or Dorian.

But I did not see them.

Finally, I pushed through the last of the crowd and made it outside into the night air.

My lungs burned from running. My heart was pounding so hard I could hear it in my ears.

And then I saw them.

Dorian and Samantha standing together just beyond the main entrance.

Samantha was pacing frantically, her hands in her hair.

Dorian was trying to calm her down, his hands on her shoulders, speaking in low urgent tones.

They spotted me at the same moment I spotted them.

"Where is Raven?" Samantha demanded immediately, rushing towards me. "Where is she? Why is she not with you?"

"She went back," I replied, my voice tight. "She went back to search for you."

"What?" Samantha's face went pale. "Why would she do that?"

"Because she thought you were still in there. I told her you were with Dorian, but she refused to believe me. She'll said she was going back to find you no matter what I said."

"You let her go back in there?" Samantha's voice rose to a shout. "You just let her run back into danger?"

"It was not my fault," I snapped back, my own frustration boiling over. "I told her you were safe. I tried to make her come with me. But she refused. What was I supposed to do?"

"You could have stopped her! You could have—"

"I am going back for her," Samantha announced, already turning towards the entrance. "I am not leaving her in there."

"Samantha, wait—" Dorian reached for her arm, but she was already running.

Dorian looked at me for a moment, his expression torn. Then he sighed. "I am going to help her find Raven. We will be back."

He ran after Samantha, leaving me standing there alone.

I felt torn. Actually torn between staying here where it was safe and going back with them to search for Raven. Part of me wanted to follow, to help find her and to make sure she was alright.

But another part of me was angry.

Angry that she had put herself in danger.

Angry that she had not listened to me.

Angry that I cared so much about what happened to her.

Then something hit me. A sharp ache that tore through my chest like a physical blow. I gasped, doubling over slightly from the intensity of it.

My wolf began whimpering inside me. Pacing frantically. Purring with distress.

"What is wrong?" I muttered, looking around for any sign of danger. "Atlas, what is it?"

"Our mate. She is in danger. I can feel it through the bond we share."

"What bond? We have not marked her. There is no—"

"There is always a bond. Weak, but present. And right now, it is screaming that she is in danger."

I did not want to believe it. I did not want to acknowledge what my wolf was telling me.

I turned towards my dormitory, intending to go to my room and wait for news. To let Dorian and Samantha handle finding Raven.

But Atlas thrashed violently inside me. Actually thrashed so hard it made me stumble.

"Go back for her! Now!"

The panic flared through me, overwhelming every other thought. I turned and ran back down the stairs, taking them two at a time.

I found Samantha and Dorian trying to get back into the underground.

The main entrance had been sealed off by security, but they were looking for another way in.

"Over here!" I called out to them. "There is another entrance this way."

They followed me as I led them around the building to a service entrance I had noticed earlier. The door was unlocked, probably left open by fleeing students.

We made our way back down into the underground space. But it was different now. Quieter. The chaos had moved elsewhere, only a few stragglers remained, and security was starting to sweep the area.

"Where did you last see her?" Samantha demanded, looking at me with desperate eyes.

I pointed towards the area where I had left Raven. "She was heading that direction.searching for you."

Samantha ran the entire perimeter, screaming Raven's name. "Raven! Raven, where are you? Please answer me!"

But there was no response. Just empty space and the debris left behind from the panic.

Atlas had gone silent inside me, but I could still feel that aching panic. That sense that something was terribly wrong.

Samantha broke down down in tears, her hands covering her face as she sobbed.

Dorian looked at me accusingly. Like this was somehow my fault.

"It was not my fault," I repeated, my voice harsher than I intended. "I tried to make her come with me. But she refused. I could not carry her over my shoulder and drag her out. What would that have looked like? She would have accused me of assault, of trying to hurt her. I did what I could."

Samantha returned from searching another section. She was holding something in her hands. A silver bracelet with small charms.

"It is not your fault," she whispered, her voice broken. "I know how stubborn Raven can be. She would not have listened to anyone once she made up her mind."

She held up the bracelet. "I found this. It is hers. And there are shards of glass around where I found it like there was a struggle."

My blood ran cold.

"We need to leave," Dorian urged, looking around nervously. "The authorities will be here soon. If they find us poking around, they will have questions we cannot answer."

We made our way back towards the exit. Samantha clutched the bracelet like it was the most precious thing in the world.

Dorian kept his arm around her shoulders, supporting her weight as she stumbled.

I was the last one out. And as I was leaving, something caught my eye. A piece of paper hanging from a wire near the exit.

It looked deliberately placed. Like someone had left it there specifically.

I grabbed it quickly, tucking it into my pocket without the others noticing. We made our way back to the main campus.

Samantha headed towards her dormitory, still crying. Dorian went with her, probably to make sure she was alright.

I went to my room closed the door.

Then I went to the bathroom and pulled out the piece of paper.

It was folded once. When I opened it, there was a message written in neat, precise handwriting.

"We have the little wolf. If you want her back, don't look for her or tell anyone you found this."