Chapter 65. She Left Us

Luca

I am not ok with the way Raine is acting. You have a crazy guy in your head, but you don't want your mates around you. What sense does that make? She didn't even want us there when she talked to Barrett. I don't know how to feel about all of this. I want Raine safe, and I feel she is safe when we are with her. So when she tries to push us away, I feel like she is not protected. I grabbed the bottle of whiskey out of the cabinet and poured myself a glass.

"Make that two while your at it." I hear Levi say as he walks up behind me.

"I take it your feeling the same way I am,"

"If you feel like Raine is pulling away and you don't like it, then yes."

"Yeah, something like that." Is all I say before I finish filling up the two glasses and hand Levi his.

"I think right now she needs us, and she needs us to help protect her. We don't even know who this guy is or what he wants." I tell him before taking a sip of the whiskey.

"Well, I learned my lesson with storming off about the marking thing we need to give her time and the little space she needs. Then she will come to us when she is ready." Levi says, and it does make sense. I know how Raine is and how she acts. She has a lot going on. With Emma and Mia missing, I am sure that she feels responsible. She always tries to take responsibility for everything, even when it is not her fault.

"Let's try to give her time and not push her," Levi tells me as he finishes his drink, and I have to agree with him even if I don't like it.

"Let's go talk to dad and see what all he knows about what's going on," I tell Levi as I finish my drink. I start toward the door without even looking to see if Levi is following. I know he is. He might say that we need to give her space and time, but I know he is as on edge as me.

"Are you in your office?" I mindlink and ask dad.

"Yes, son."

"Ok, me and Levi are headed to you now," I tell him and shut the link down. I head to the office, and I can hear Levi behind me. It doesn't take us long to get to the office. I walk in without knocking. Dad is sitting behind his desk, and Flo is seated in a chair. We both enter, and Levi shuts the door behind us.

"What did you need, son?" Dad asks, trying to get right to the point.

"I wanted to know what is going on with Raine," I tell him, and him and Flo both give me a look like they don't understand.

"What do you mean exactly?" Flo finally asks.

"I know that she is hearing the guy in her head, but she is pushing us away. So we thought we would come to talk to you and see what exactly is going on. Cause we don't think everything has been told to us."

"Well, after talking to Barrett, we think that Raine is from the prophecy and that the guy in her mind is Barrett's brother Chase...." Dad says but then stops and looks at Flo like he is trying to decide whether to keep going or stop. I guess he decided that we should know everything cause he continues. "The prophecy speaks of the light having multiple mates and that the choice of these mates is what will ultimately decide if Raine becomes the light or the darkness. We believe that Chase may be a mate, and he may be the mate that leads to the darkness." The growl that leaves Levi and me is loud and shakes the room.

"Calm down, boys. The last thing you want to do is scare Raine into doing anything stupid." Flo says, giving us both a stern look.

"How would you feel if it was dad and you were told he had another mate that would turn him evil?" Levi asks her before I can speak.

"I did not say that I did not understand your feelings. I am only telling you to be cautious right now for your sakes and Raines."

"I understand, but how are we to deal with this if he is her mate too?" I ask, looking to dad.

"I am not sure. With him having Emma and Mia, we have to be even more cautious."

"Do you think he will use them to hurt Raine?" Levi asked just as I was about to ask the same thing.

"I am thinking that he will not hurt them, at least not if he wants to have a chance with Raine..." Flo says but stops and gives us a sad look before continuing."But I think he will use them to draw Raine out." She finally finishes.

"I agree with Flo. I think he plans to use them to draw Raine out." Dad says, so we know what he thinks as well. Then it hits me like a ton of bricks.

"He is not going to use them to draw Raine out. He is going to use them to make Raine come to him." I say as everyone looks at me, and it dawns on them. Flo gasps and covers her mouth with her hand.

"He is right. That is why he took both. Then he would have even more for her to trade herself." We all turn and head for the door to find Raine. But, just as Levi reaches the entrance, there is a knock. Levi jerks the door open, and it's Barrett.

"Where is Raine?" Levi says in a hurry, and I guess the panic and fear is on our face because Barrett is quick to answer.

"I don't know. We left each other a little bit ago." Levi pushes by him, and I follow. I keep reaching out to her, but I am not getting her.

"I can't mindlink her," I tell everyone because they all have left the office to look for her too.

"I can't either," Levi says as we all sprint down the hall.

"You check the upstairs Levi, dad, and Flo you check the downstairs. I will check outside." I say before running for the stairs and out the front door. I make it around the outside in record time. I didn't even pick up her scent. I passed Kane, and I guess the panic was evident as I scanned everywhere for her.

I finally turn back to Kane and the few others standing there.

"Have you seen Raine?" I say, looking him in the eyes.

"No, do you need help looking?"

"Yes, you and a few of your men see if you can pick her scent up at all.

"No problem," He says as he turns, and I head back toward the house. I run in through the back this time, and as I make it to the living room, I see dad, Flo, Barrett, and Levi standing in the center of the room. Flo has tears running down her face. Levi is holding a letter, and his face is pale.

"What is it?" I ask, looking between them all.

"She left us," Levi says. I walk toward him, taking the letter from his hands. I read over it carefully.

Levi and Luca,

I know you will not understand and be upset with me, but I could not leave Mia and Emma in the hands of someone who will hurt them. However, he has agreed to let them go if I come to him. So that is what I am doing. Thanks to my father giving me my powers, I will be able to protect myself and come back to you both. Know that I love you both very much.

Love, Raine

I can feel the tears running down my face. I look up and see that there are tears in Levi's eyes. Something in me snaps. I feel my bones snap as the shift takes over. I don't try to stop it. As soon as I shift, I head for the door. I have to get out of here.