Chapter 20: Griffin

20

GRIFFIN

S wallowing down big gulps of air, I drive the winding, twisty road to Kali's rented cabin.

For the whole drive, I berate myself for not following her, for not sleeping in the fucking rain outside her house last night. It's what I wanted to do, what my beast told me to do, but I chose to be a gentleman and give her space as she'd asked, like a fucking idiot.

As I get closer, the blue and red glow from the police car parked outside her home makes me want to vomit. The small cabin that all my memories of Kali centre around is now a crime scene.

A small group of people huddle out on the road, neighbours of Kali's and friends of the King's, here to show their support. I park as close as I can get and pull a cap down over my eyes to shield them from the driving rain. Suspicious glances dart my way as I make my way closer, getting all the way to the bottom of the steps before being stopped by a hand to the chest.

"Woah there. I don't know who you are, but if you're from the press, you better run along. Tensions are high, and I have enough to do." The local law enforcement understandably doesn't want gawkers here while they're trying to investigate a missing persons case.

Holding my hands up, I force a neutral expression onto my face, pretending that the overpowering scent of Kali's blood isn't making me want to tear everything and everyone apart.

"I'm the new ranger. Just coming here to get an item of clothing with her scent on it for the search."

He blinks at me for a second, then at my extended hand. It's hard for most decent people to be rude.

I don't move and don't elaborate further, hoping he doesn't question me.

When he stays quiet, leaving a long pause before he opens his mouth to speak, I'm not sure what way this is going to go. But when he lets out a huge sigh of relief and shakes my hand enthusiastically, I know I'm good.

"Great. We need some more calm heads around here. We're as worried about this lot getting all worked up and killing someone as we are finding Kali, safe and well." He ushers me under the cordon and inside the property, looking up at me with a tired expression. He's not joking about the killing part. I know from experience it's a genuine concern.

All these guys have been working through the night already. They're exhausted.

Still, my beast doesn't like that, and neither do I. Let them kill whoever they want. If they were involved in kidnapping Kali, they deserve to be punished.

"You're not worried about finding her?" I ask through gritted teeth as I follow him up the porch steps and to the threshold of Kali's home, hesitating before going further. "Or about contaminating the crime scene?"

The young officer shakes his head and encourages me to go inside, pressing his clipboard to my back.

I'm tempted to yank it from his hands and smack him over the head with it.

"Course I am. But if they wanted her dead, they had the perfect opportunity here. And as for prints, with her injuries, the cleaning supplies used, the wet weather and all the people that have been through this place in the last couple of days… It'd be impossible to get anything useful. Boots on the ground are what's going to solve this one."

My beast seems to accept that, not pushing harder to challenge him, so I give him an agreeable murmur as I scan the room for anything new or different. There's nothing. The house looks the same, apart from the dining chairs all resting against the walls of the house, with the table dragged to the middle of the floor. This was her hospital bed. There's a dark stain in the wood underneath that's not going to come out easily.

Closing my eyes, I breathe deeply to stop rage from consuming me. We'll get her back. Then we'll make everyone pay. To calm myself, I snag a scarf from inside the door. Her scent reassures my beast as I move from room to room, looking for some clue as to who has been here. But there's nothing, not that I can see.

"No forced entry. No signs of any struggle." The officer rattles off, used to treating the local ranger, or John more specifically, as another law enforcement agent after the recent spate of missing people and endless searches. "Maisy was in the back, so he must have walked straight in the front door and snatched her. They got her out fast when they spotted their chance."

Of course they did. She would have been weak as a kitten, if she was even conscious. Vulnerable. Scared. And once Jack left, she was completely defenceless with only Maisy to protect her.

My hands ball into fists at my sides, thinking how frightened she must have been. Must still be. It's probably a good thing Maisy left the room, or they might have gone through her to get to Kali. That doesn't bear thinking about.

"It had to be a beast, because the road was blocked." He continues. "Jack went to fetch Doc, because he couldn't get his car down the road." Nodding, I'm sure that whoever it was, carried her on foot through the woods, and quickly, either to a temporary hiding spot, or to a vehicle.

But the words die on my lips when I spot a familiar brown leather wallet sticking out from under the coffee table. My wallet. I'm her mate. Henry knows that, but I don't need the complication of having to explain why something of mine is here.

I zone out as the officer continues to tell me about the search area they covered last night. While he's answering a call over the radio, I tug a throw blanket off the back of the couch and pretend to drop it on the floor. As I pick it up, I scoop up my wallet and hide it under the bundle in my arms.

When I stand, the officer's sharp gaze is on me. "Kali just moved to town. Not everyone knows her. I can bring the scarf, and Jack can take the blanket to let the search parties learn her scent."

He doesn't say anything, just listens to whoever is on the other end of his call, and then continues to watch me.

I can't help being drawn to the bedroom. Standing in the hall, staring in through the open door, I'm bombarded with memories of our night together. My knees almost buckle with the strength of the emotions that crash over me.

"I don't think you should be back here." The officer narrows his eyes, and even though I'd love to set him straight, now isn't the time.

Instead, I give him a stiff nod and move toward the front door, trying to push through the devastating loss I feel walking away from the place that links us to each other.

"Thanks for your help," I mutter, jogging down the steps and then ducking my head to hide my eyes, which I'm absolutely certain are glowing at the memories of what we did right here in the rain.

The officer follows me to my vehicle and leans his arm on top of the door, stopping me from closing it.

"Appreciate you coming out," is all the officer says, holding his hand out to shake mine. He must see the beast shining in my eyes, but he doesn't comment or react, he just returns to his spot guarding the door and slowly lifts the radio to his mouth.

I've got a pretty good idea who he's calling about.

Before anyone decides to bring me in and ask me some more questions, I need to get out of here. Because I have one theory about what happened to Kali, and I'm not going to waste any more time before checking it out.

"Let's go pay Jed a visit. Make sure he doesn't have anything to do with what's going on."

A week ago, I would have said talking to myself was the first sign of madness, but I'm well beyond that now. A little bit of eccentricity is the least of my problems.

As I pass the sign for Sutton on my way out of town, I rub Kali's blanket all over my body and breathe in her delicious scent. I'm embracing the craziness that my life has become. I don't care anymore.

All I want is her back, and I'll do anything to find her.