Serge's POV

It was faster cutting through the forest to get to the breech than by driving, so I abandoned my truck at the shelter and cut through the forest by running.

Mark took Elise inside while I rushed toward the forest. I put in my earpiece and shed my clothing as I went. It felt as terrible as it did every time I had to leave her for battle. I imagined it would be bittersweet even if the curse was not involved.

I put her out of my mind. I did not want to lose more of my people if there was anything I could do to help it and focusing would end her suffering more quickly.

"Call out two backup teams and put a third on hold, Sierra," I ordered.

"Roger."

"I'm out," I told her as I let my flesh shift and slide into my wild form.

With Austin's pack already occupied, we were on our own this time at least until Nicholas' pack arrived, and his forces were nearly as far from the location of the breech as it was possible to be. This fight was not a good situation for us strategically.

Sierra's voice crackled in my ear. "We're falling back to northeast eight. I'm out." I ducked under a low hanging branch. Things were not good if Sierra had to transform and run.

I adjusted my direction and hurried forward. I clenched my sharp teeth and rushed towards the break.

Questioning the wolf we captured had told us nothing, the eastern king seemed to keep his people as much in the dark as we were, and the small scraps of information we had managed to obtain were either things we already learned from past interrogations or had already inferred from observed patterns in behaviour.

He remained locked up, but I believed that he was useless to us. Perhaps we could catch another and find out something more.

The feral wolf part of my nature made me furious that my pack and my people were being endangered. I was frustrated by my inability to puzzle out and predict what was coming.

All speculations were pushed from my mind as I neared the quadrant. It was quiet, which probably meant that my patrol was falling back. I listened carefully as I run and I spotted one of my pack members, Tyler running full tilt in my direction.

When he saw me he slowed his pace and I joined him. A moment later Tyler joined us and then Brock, along with a dozen fighters of a backup force I had ordered.

I signalled that we would go back and reengage the enemy. I howled that my people should return to the offensive and we started forward, looking for our prey. Sierra stayed with us, her quiet eyes observing everything around us. There was a reason she was my top scout.

We rushed forward, fanning out until we hit the edge of the territory. We found none of the attackers, just their slowly fading scents. It was odd that they had retreated so suddenly.

I transformed. "We've lost the enemy. I'm sending out Group E to scout and see where they went. Do not engage. Everyone else, loop the perimeter and look for infiltrators."

They barked their agreement and began running in the directions that I had ordered. I ran the edge of the territory and found nothing out of the ordinary, nothing but the normal scents of the flora and fauna of my territory and the occasional hints of scents of my pack members.

Finally, I gave up. I had the teams switch out to give those who had seen combat time to rest. We had lost none of our fighters this time, but I still had an uncanny sense that something was not right.

The attack had been odd.

Though the news should have made me feel better, I was not comforted when I heard that Austin's pack had easily fended off their own intruders.

I hurried back to Elise.

* * *  *  *  *  * * *

I rushed through the trees on my way back to the shelter, because I wanted to get Elise back to normal as fast as possible, or at least as close to normal as she ever was now. As I neared, my sense of unease grew.  Though I could not place what it was, something felt off.

I pushed on forward. There was something in the tone of the far off voices, perhaps. I transformed and spared just enough time to pull on pants before striding towards the shelter.

"Serge," Leah said quickly.

"I need to get to Elise." I strode past her towards the door.

Leah did not mince words. "She's gone, Serge. We can't find her."

I stopped dead in my tracks. My heart pounded loudly in my ears. "Gone?" I asked, my voice sounding dire even to my own ears. I turned to look at Leah. "What do you mean, you can't find her?"

Leah looked anxious. "She's missing. People saw Mark carry her in, but she's nowhere inside."

I ran into the building, dodging people who scrambled to get out of the way. I jogged to the stairs and went inside and transformed back into my wolf form. I rushed down the stairs using my claws to keep my balance on the stairs and searched for her scent.

There was no hint that Elise had been down in the basement, where she should have been the entire time that I was gone. I rushed back up and searched for any trace of her scent.

I did not find anything I could be sure of, but I did pick up Mark's, all the way to the back fire exit. I growled and stood up on my hind paws to push the bar of the door. It swung open, letting me outside. I kept my nose low to the dirt and found his scent moving away and into the trees.

I howled loudly, catching the attention of nearby pack members. Several rounded the building, including Leah.

"We're organizing searches, extra patrols, and we'll let the patrols know to watch the border going both ways more carefully, Serge. And we'll notify the other packs."

I should probably be the one to tell Nicholas, but I had more pressing concerns. No doubt he would understand.

I nodded my head and tore off into the forest, following her abductor's scent.

* * *  *  *  *  * * *

Mark's scent mixed with someone else I could not place to the edge of the territory. There were extra patrols rushing through the territory. I barked for them to follow me and we left the territory, following the trail until it ended and four wheeler tire tracks took its place. We followed the tracks as best we could, until we found the abandoned vehicle sitting nestled under the branches of a tree.

My stomach clenched viciously. I would have swore had I had my human mouth in that moment. I transformed quickly back to my human form and started barking orders at my troop. I sent Brock and Tyler to search the water line and another to deal with the four wheeler. He could bring it back and perhaps we could trace who it belonged to for a clue. I was out of range of my headset, so I sent another fighter back with messages to get search parties set up past where we had tracked Mark.

Having done everything I could think of, I was at a loss for what to do next. She was gone and I had no idea how to find her and get her back. I gritted my teeth as my helplessness and fear and anger fought for supremacy. Who had taken Elise? I wanted to assume it was a plot by the eastern wolves, but I did not want to miss any possibilities.

As Brock and Tyler returned and reported that there was no sign of anyone leaving the lake, my heart turned to stone and plummeted as if dropped in a lake.

It was horribly possible that Elise had been taken by floatplane away from the territories. It would be almost impossible to find her. She was gone and after everything I had done to her I had even failed to protect her in the end.

* * *  *  *  *  * * *

All three territories were on high alert. Search parties were organized to ensure that nothing had been missed and any other avenue of enquiry was explored that anyone could possibly think of.

I talked to so many people my head spun. Her family and their worries, her friends. Austin had called and informed me that one of his pack members had gone missing and was certainly a person of interest, although no one could say if he were involved or not.

It seemed too much to be coincidence. I could not stop myself from rushing around and trying to do everything possible, yet everything I did felt like it was in vain.

The manic energy fuelling me was interrupted only once. I walked out of the offices and found Matthias standing and waiting for me with an accusatory expression on his face. I gritted my teeth and willed myself to have patience with him.

"You lost her," he growled.

I schooled myself again to control my temper. He loved her too, and she had been a part of his life longer than she had been in mine. I understood his frustration.

"What the hell, Serge? I stepped back because that was what she decided. I let her go, and you fucking lost her," he growled.

What could I say in my own defence when his words were an echo of my own thoughts? "I did not know there was a traitor in the pack," I said in what felt like the most inane response possible. How could I have not known? Surely there must have been some sign, but even as I desperately dissected my scant dealings with Mark, I found no sign that he had ill intent again Elise or the Trifecta or myself.

Matthias growled, although he was completely human. He stepped forward and I had a visceral memory of him punching me in the face the day that I had first cursed Elise.

This time I blocked his attempted punch and stared him down.

"If you think I'm not upset about this, you are very wrong. I love Elise and I am going to destroy whoever planned this, mark my words. Either help me find her or run off with your tail between your legs. I don't have time to play with you right now."

"Of course I'm going to help you find her. I'm not playing," Matthias growled.

"Good. Then join the forces, or make yourself useful. Maybe you can get something out of the prisoner we still have."

"Curse him," Matthias suggested without missing a beat.

My head throbbed and my body went cold, but not because it was not an excellent idea. It felt like the best idea. I was reckless and angry and it would feel so good to make one of the enemy forces suffer.

I took a step in the direction of the confinement cells before I stopped myself.

I had already misused the curse once. I would be a fool to do it again on a whim.

I spun and met Matthias's gaze. "You try to get something out of him first. Don't kill him."

Matthias frowned, but nodded and walked away. He dropped his clothing on the ground and shifted until his dark grey fur completely covered his flesh. He grabbed his clothing in his teeth and disappeared into the trees

After a hectic and terrible all-nighter, I found myself back at my house in the early afternoon. I probably would have kept going until I crashed, but I was forced to give in because Dan and Leah had tag teamed me and forced me to go home.

As if a thing such as rest could be forced.

As I lay in my bed with my eyes shut, I only wished I could make myself sleep. Even in my exhaustion sleep eluded me. Instead of resting, I pictured Elise terrified and trembling in fear in Mark's—in someone's clutches.

The questions would not stop coming. Why had he taken her? What could he possibly have hoped to accomplish? His own demise, because that was surely what he was courting.

My poor thrall. I remembered accounts about how thralls could not survive indefinitely away from their masters. How long did she have? I did not want her to waste away.

And that was if something worse had not already happened to her.

My blood turned cold yet boiled. When I got my hands on Mark, I would know everything and he would regret the same.