The Alpha's Bride

Chapter 958: Missing (3)

Talia waved, indicating for Keith and Cassandra to stop their bickering. She spoke to Cassandra. "Damon was in trouble, in the forest covered with snow, and… I was there. Correct?"         

"I know what you are thinking, Alpha," Cassandra responded. "But Alpha Damon will be there with or without you. I believe that without you there..." She shook her head. "Your presence will be critical for his survival."     

"How do you know that?" Axel asked.      

"Alpha Damon was solid, while Alpha Natalia's image was fading. That means her presence is optional and will impact the outcome."     

"And what if her presence makes it worse?" Keith snapped. Cassandra told him before that her prophecies were just images, full of symbolism and open for interpretation. However, assuming Cassandra was right... if Damon was in danger, should Talia go there? Talia was pregnant! Was Cassandra setting up Talia?      

Cassandra released a long breath. "I can't force you to believe me. I received the prophecy, and I told you what I know. The rest is on you."     

Talia nodded absentmindedly, unsure what to do. Can she trust Cassandra? What if she was the one behind Yasmin's disappearance?     

'Where was Cassandra when Yasmin disappeared?' Talia asked Axel through the mind link.     

'We have someone keeping an eye on her. She is spending time in her quarters and with healers. But if a Guardian came to her in disguise, only Sandy would notice.'     

Talia puffed her cheeks. Everyone was a suspect.     

'Do you want me to take her in for questioning,' Axel asked.     

Talia rejected. 'We can't question everyone. We need to go by what we know. Where was Yasmin last seen?'     

'In the nursery, with kids. Several hours passed, and no one saw her until I went to look for her. There is a sofa in the nursery, and she would put the kids in their cribs and take a nap after feeding them. Everyone knows that, so they wouldn't disturb her unless she calls for help or kids start fussing…'     

Cassandra's eyes flashed when she saw the necklace around Keith's neck. "Didn't you say you lost it?"     

Keith quickly put his hand over the necklace. "I said I threw it away, and I did. Later, I went to retrieve it."     

"You said it was broken. It looks to me like it's fine. Give it back."     

"It's not yours. It's mine. Alpha gave it to me."     

Cassandra pointed an angry finger at Keith. "Liar!"     

"I'm not lying!"     

"You lied about throwing it away. Why would I believe you now?" Cassandra hissed and lunged at Keith. "Give it!"     

"Ahh!" Keith cried when Cassandra bit his forearm, and she kicked his shin a moment later.     

Keith grabbed Cassandra's wrists. The Oracle was going to snatch the necklace!     

"Arya! Help me get this wild beast off!"      

Cassandra had no abilities, and she was not a warrior, but she was still a she-wolf who didn't mind using dirty tricks.     

Arya grabbed Cassandra's arm and started pulling the Oracle away.     

Cassandra was livid. "Two on one? Is that how you are playing?"         

"Ahh!" Arya shrieked when Cassandra bit her finger. "You should fight with honor and not bite people!" Arya could do all kinds of maneuvers, but she didn't expect to be bitten. That was so barbaric!     

Cassandra sneered. "Honor? How can you talk about honor when two of you are attacking me?"     

Liam and Amelia scooted further away. They didn't want anything to do with this commotion. They were in a hospital!     

Talia tuned out the noise. She put her hands over her stomach while unease crept into her heart. She didn't trust Cassandra, but she couldn't ignore the prophecy either.     

"Axel," Talia called. "Give me your phone. I need to call Damon…"     

…     

Talia's hands were shaking. Damon didn't pick up the call, so she called Caden next. Caden said that Damon was not with him, and Damon didn't respond to the mind link when Caden tried to contact him. Maya didn't see Damon since that morning, and Trisha confirmed that he was not in the study, but his phone was there. Stephanie was not in the packhouse, and with that, Talia didn't know whom to contact next.     

"We need to go to the Dark Howlers pack," Talia said to no one in particular.     

"What about Yasmin?" Axel asked.     

Talia turned to Axel robotically. "If I'm right, this is much bigger than Yasmin and Damon. The Guardians are making their move."     

Axel didn't care about the Guardians. He wanted Yasmin and his kids back. "Then, let's go to where the Guardians are and get our mates and kids back!"     

"We can't just go there, Axel," Talia said. "They have devices that suppress Alpha aura and block the pack link and probably more things we don't know about. We would be walking into a trap." Assuming that Yasmin and Damon were there. Maybe all this was just a bunch of strange coincidences.     

"Are you expecting me to sit here and wait!?" Axel shouted.     

Talia frowned at him. "Calm down," she said while releasing some aura to tell him she meant business.     

She knew that Axel was anxious, they all were, but shouting and panicking won't help.     

Talia needed to think. What would Damon do? What would James suggest?     

Investigate. They didn't have time for it. Yasmin and the kids were missing, and Damon might be in danger.     

They needed strategy, and they needed numbers. There was no effective strategy without information, but she could do something about numbers.     

"Axel, go to the Silver Flame Coven. Tell Evanora what happened here. I am not sure if the Guardians are behind this, but I can't see anyone else capable of doing it. If we are going to get Yasmin and the kids back safely, we need the help of witches."      

Axel didn't want to go to the realm of witches. "Do we have time for this?"     

Talia was not sure. "Time is passing differently here. We have more time here than outside. Now, I need you to focus. Leave Kai and Meg to handle things here and continue searching for traces of Yasmin, Edgar, and Valeria. Ask Sandy and Tyler to organize whoever can come out to help while leaving enough warriors to protect our people. Until we confirm what happened, let's not cause panic, but we should be prepared." There was an option to ask witches that were staying here to teleport everyone to the Dark Howlers pack, but if Guardians were hiding here, they would be getting a free pass into another territory. It would be just replacing one bad for another.     

Talia put her hand on Axel's shoulder. "I am leaving now, and I will let you know if anything major happens. Your task is to convince Evanora to help us. Hopefully, she won't think twice about coming out when she finds out that her daughter and grandkids are missing, and she will have some spells to track her Yasmin. Regardless of the outcome, when you are done, find me."     

Axel realized that Talia was right. Surely, Evanora should have some spells they could use to find Yasmin.     

Axel moved while mind-linking Kai, Meg, Sandy, and Tyler with instructions.     

"What about me?" Cassandra cried.         

"What about you?" Talia asked dryly.     

"I can help. The relics!" She reminded Talia. "I figured out what most of them can do."     

Talia paused. If they were going to face the Guardians, those things might be helpful.     

"Get them. You have one minute. You will come with me." Talia said.     

Cassandra's eyes lit up, and she scurried down the hallway.     

"Liam," Talia called. "I want you to keep an eye on the Oracle. If she does anything suspicious, snap her neck."