Grace of a Wolf (by Lenaleia) novel Chapter 261

Chapter 261: Caine: Saved! (3)

CAINE

Where the fuck is she?

Fenris has already done his job. Bodies litter the ground in various states of conscious or unconscious, bleeding and broken, but generously kept alive. For now.

My wolf stands by them, no longer oversized, his ethereal blue glow brighter than usual. He appears calm at first glance, but the erratic snarling in the back of my head says otherwise.

He’s as crazed as I am.

Grace isn’t here.

Andrew staggers to his feet with my arrival, covered in dirt and blood, both his and not. He’s alive, breathing, and here. But she isn’t.

My hand closes around his throat before I register moving. I lift him off the ground with a growl. "Where is Grace?"

To his credit, the beta doesn’t struggle against my grip, even as his windpipe compresses.

"Gone," he rasps. "One second she was there. Next—"

"Gone?" The word comes out more animal than human. "You let her disappear right in front of you?"

Caine. Fenris’s voice cuts through my rage. Put the pup down. He’s not your enemy.

I bare my teeth as my eyes continue to bore into Andrew’s. "He let her—"

We both did. Fenris stalks toward us, huffing and growling as his muzzle sweeps from left to right, constantly filtering for our mate’s scent. If you need to hit something, I’ve left you plenty of options. They’re still breathing. Barely.

My grip tightens on Andrew’s throat. He wheezes but stares at me with steady brown eyes, like a loyal dog waiting for its master to stop kicking.

Damn it.

I release him. He drops, catches himself on one knee, and rubs his throat without complaint.

"She was right there," he says, after a few coughs. "Then she just... wasn’t. Ellie disappeared, too. No one saw it happen. There’s no scent trail, nothing to follow. And no one can link with Ellie."

Ellie, that damned Luna stalking Grace like prey. My fingers flex in frustration; if anyone deserves to be killed here, it’s her. Letting her live was a mistake, one I won’t make again.

Even if I have to do it behind my soft-hearted mate’s back. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

I turn to the wolves Fenris has incapacitated. "You," I snap, pointing at the nearest one. He has a shattered leg, trying to drag himself away. "Where did your Luna take her?"

He shakes his head frantically, his fear sour in the air. "We don’t know, High Alpha!"

I flood my voice with alpha pressure. "Answer me."

"I don’t know!" His voice goes strained and high-pitched. "Luna Ellie said the human did something to her. Now they’re both gone!"

"Did something," I repeat flatly. "What things could a weak human like Grace do to your Luna?"

"I don’t know! I swear, I don’t know anything!"

I look to the next wolf, then the next. Same story. Same ignorance.

They’re useless, Fenris snarls, pacing the street where Grace apparently disappeared. None of them know anything.

"Then none of them need to live."

Andrew’s head snaps up. "Wait—"

"They attacked my mate!" I roar, ready to grab him by the throat again.

But, contrary to expectation, Andrew shakes his head. "A death sentence is expected. Just don’t do it here. If Grace comes back... She’ll be frightened."

I hesitate. He has a point; the woman is extraordinarily soft-hearted.

Fenris grumbles. He isn’t thrilled, either; letting them breathe even one more minute grates against our nerves.

But I nod anyway. "Take them back. They’ll be dealt with after we find her."

A strange sound rends the air, like tearing paper, only far too loud.

"You think?" My voice rises despite my efforts to control it. "You disappeared into thin air. You were gone. We couldn’t feel you, couldn’t sense you, couldn’t—"

Fenris seems surprised. You have restraint? he asks skeptically.

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