Page 74 of The Librarian and Her Alphas

“But it’s an emergency. My girlfriend is missing,” I say, raising my voice.

“Unless you return with a warrant or a subpoena, I can’t help you.”

He’s completely useless to me now, so I head out the front door, shading my eyes against the sun as I look for Lena. She’s not outside, and all I see are desolate roads for miles.

I stalk back inside, knowing it’s time to inform the pack. Lena’s scent has disappeared, and I know I can’t track her further. I have no choice but to wake the others and see what we can do. Worry churns in my gut.

She could be anywhere by now, and she’s pregnant with our pup.

In my haste to alert Damon and Max, I burst into our room, the door slamming against the wall. Damon wakes instantly, springing up from the bed.

“Max!” I shout, throwing a pillow at his sleeping form. “Wake the hell up! Lena is missing!”

“W-what?” Max asks groggily, sitting up and staring at me in confusion. “Why are you being so fucking loud?”

“Lena is missing,” I say again. Pain lances through my chest at the thought of her out there alone and vulnerable.

“What do you mean?” Damon asks, now wide awake. “She was right here all night long!”

I shake my head. “When I woke up, she was gone. I searched everywhere but couldn’t find her. I asked downstairs at reception, and they said they hadn’t seen her.”

Damon slumps onto the bed, anguish clear on his face.

“Now I know why she didn’t want to be marked last night,” he mumbles, scrubbing a hand across his face. “She’s been planning to escape from the start. Just when we let our guard down, she disappears this morning.”

“It can’t be. This is a mistake,” says Max in disbelief as he throws on clothes.

Damon chuckles bitterly. “We must have scared her if she would rather be out alone than be protected by us. Do we even bother looking for her?”

The hurt on our pack leader’s face cuts me to the core. He might not always show it, but I know just how deeply Damon feels. He loves Lena, and her withdrawal from his life with the pup he’s always wanted has destroyed some part of him.

“Damon—” I say, reaching out to put a hand on his shoulder, but he shrugs me off.

“I don’t need pity. Hell, I know you all feel the same.”

“I think it’s time we let her go,” I say, coming to a realization. “She doesn’t want us.”

“She’s carrying our pup,” Damon snarls, getting up and approaching me. “And she is the only thing I think about!”

His eyes darken with anger, and I can feel my own eyes start to glow in response. With an irritated grunt, he turns sharply from me and begins to pick up his clothes from the floor.

“What the fuck are you doing?” I ask, confused by this sudden change in behavior.

“I’m going out to find her,” he says shortly.

“The longer you argue, the further away Lena gets. Do you want to find her or not, Gunnar?” Max cuts in.

“Yes,” I say finally, as Damon and I glare at each other angrily for a moment. But I feel my eyes return to normal as my temper cools.

Max is right. We don’t have time to mull over how Lena feels about us.

“There’s a note from her,” Max says, picking up a piece of paper from the dresser.

How can I fucking miss a note from her?

Damon and I rush to either side of him, reading over his shoulder. The letter looks like it’s stained with teardrops.

I’msorry I had to leave like this, but I know you would have convinced me to stay if I hadn’t. Please know that my leaving is not your fault. I’m so grateful to you for being so kind and loving towards me, but I’ll never feel safe as long as Zorin is out there. Not even you can protect me from him.

---