Chapter 65 Lost

Chapter 65 Lost
Theon.

As soon as I saw the robed man raise the dagger over Callista’s heart, I lost it.

The anger that had been building up in me exploded as my wolf commanded me to protect my mate, and there was nothing I could do to keep my instincts from taking over. There was no way I could deny the way my heart seized at the sight, fear unlike any other rising in me.

Because Callista is under that knife.

The stealer who escaped me made me search half the country for her because I didn’t even think she would be brave enough to do what she did is finally here and had somehow gotten herself tangled with a mess of a situation.

How did this even come to be? The morning I realized that she wasn’t in the castle, my wolf had gone into a frenzy. I’d gone to my office to get started on some paperwork when Kellin had come bursting in to tell me, “Callista’s gone!”

The sewers. Of all the things she could’ve done, she’d taken the damned sewers. When I’d arrived at the washing room, the other maids were gathered around the drain, staring at it with varying levels of disgust. The smell that came from down there had even made me want to hurl.

And Callista had escaped from there. We’ve tracked her through the forest and realized that she’d broken the barrier. How I didn’t even notice the barrier intrusion, I had no idea. But I decided to chalk it up to Callista being Callista. Frightfully clever and stubborn enough to accomplish even the undoable. I couldn’t help but admire her tenacity, because she had promised me once she won’t be staying at the palace anymore, and she went through with her word. She had such Alpha characteristics. I even felt relieved for her. Maybe with humans, she would be able to find some sort of peace. My anger lessened upon that realization, and sadness came. She had been miserable here enough to run, and it had been my fault. If I was a good person, I should have let her go.

But there were far too many dangerous than humans out there, hiding amongst them, and the agreement demanded that I protect her.

In the first two days, we scoured the human city, trying to find her. I couldn’t risk the widowers or the unmated wolves, and only I knew what exactly she smelled like, so I had to do it myself. But no, she wasn’t anywhere in the city. No matter where we looked, we couldn’t find her.

That’s when I knew that Callista had gone far, far away.

I’d wanted to give up, to let her go. Goddess knows how she’d been miserable in the pack. I remembered her expression the last time I saw her, and my conscience screamed at me. Or maybe that was my wolf, who was infuriated with me.

But it was not safe for a young wolf like her to be there all alone with the humans. There was a reason we kept to our packs. There were enemies everywhere, and Callista was a stealer who couldn’t transform into her wolf form. She was in more danger than any other normal wolf.

I couldn’t let her get hurt.

I’d searched the neighboring cities with Haden and Kellin, who were worried about her as well. I employed the ICT experts in the university to hack into the traffic cameras in the human cities to track her, despite it being illegal. I’d send wolves to neighboring packs to find out about her. Even called that jerk Farris, who was far too pleased to inform that Callista had not come around their pack, fortunately.

And then we found one clue. Three seconds of grainy footage of Callista crossing the street with a smaller person at her side, a week after escaping. Seeing even a flash of her figure made me feel horribly fond and relieved, because she was alive and seemingly unharmed. For the first time in days, my wolf stopped doing the equivalent of clawing at my brain in his fury.

My blood had gone cold seeing the name of the city she’d been in.

Werebears of the Brekett pack were a blood-thirsty lot that even other werebears were wary of. As soon as we arrived at the city where she was last seen, we’d smelled their stench all over the place. By then, my wolf had started to get agitated again, clawing into my mind.

“Danger,” He’d snarled, “Mate in danger.”

I’d followed her scent from a certain homeless shelter and then all around the city. I didn’t know why she had been going around the place so much, because in the previous cities where I smelled her, she hadn’t lingered. To me, her scent was so powerful that she might as well have put up written signs everywhere saying, “Callista was here!”

Today was the day of the full moon. My wolves and I searched the city until nightfall to no avail. She wasn’t anywhere here. My concern for her was growing, and I tried hard to keep my self-loathing at bay so I could get to her first. I could blame myself for this whole thing later. I had to save her first from whatever she’s been thrust into this time.

That was when I’d gotten a sharp pain in my chest.

“MATE!” My wolf had screamed frantically, just like he’d done when she was being tortured by the dungeon master, “DANGER, DANGER! FIND MATE NOW!!!”

I don’t know how I found the werebear pack. The moment I heard my wolf, the path to Callista was as clear as the day. Her scent grew stronger and beckoned me, and I followed with the speed of the wind, my wolves running behind me, following me into the forest.

As soon as we escaped the city limits, we’d used the witch magic portions that were with us to glamour ourselves and had turned into our wolf forms. Half the number of Rexellen pack guards were with me, protected against the stealer's scent, but I didn’t know if it was enough. But Callista was in danger, and no matter what, I had to save her.

“Praise be the Goddess of the moon!” The Alpha of the Bear pack had said, and I’d become airborne.

He doesn’t see me coming, not until it’s too late. His eyes widen, and my jaws wrap around his neck, and I force them down hard. My momentum propels us both to the ground and I unlatch his neck, landing on my feet. I can taste his blood in my mouth.

Eyes wide, the bleeding Alpha snarls, “You’re going to pay for that!”

With a roar, he turns into a bear, and I brace myself. Callista lies on the stone slab, bleeding profusely, and I have no time to squabble with an Alpha bear. But I need to get him away from her.

“Secure Callista!” I roar at Haden and Kellin through our pack link. “I need to take care of the big one.”

The Alpha lunges at me and I twist around, ducking my head under his stomach to bite at it. His fur is thick, but my fangs are longer, and I draw blood. This isn’t my first fight, and it won’t be my last. He roars and swipes at me with his sharp claws, but I dodge the attack. We bite and claw at one another, and he catches my stomach when I’m too careful about my back leg. I roar in pain and bite his ear, my teeth piercing cleanly through the membrane and yank, ripping it off.

The bear screams in agony, clutching at his head. His charcoal eyes latch onto me and he bares his teeth, rage spiraling around him.

“Kellin?!” I yell in my mind at my Beta who is still in human form. “Throw me the gun!”

As the bear braces to lunge, I turn into a human.

They never said to fight honorably when life was concerned. Especially when the life of my mate was on the line. I had to do whatever to secure my mate.

My Beta’s precision never fails, and I manage to grab the gun as it flies through the air. Four gunshots take the Alpha bear in his heart and stomach. He falls to the ground with a thud, and a primal groan sound rips from his throat. His gigantic body heaves, once, twice. And then it stills.

I get up, clutching at my bleeding side that is already starting to heal, and step towards the bear. Chaos reigns around me, and I nudge the body away with my foot.

The Alpha doesn’t move.