Chapter 25: Griffin

25

GRIFFIN

B en hasn't let me out of his sight since morning. We've traipsed through valleys and riverbeds, and covered vast areas of the forest. Nothing. There's no sign of her anywhere.

"It has to be one of them. We should be up there searching for her. Not here." I snap, frustrated at being back in Sutton after another day of fruitless searching in the forests around Kali's home and leading up into the mountains.

According to Ben, Henry went to Zora Hills to find Jed and establish whether his alibi for the time of the kidnapping stands up. He's also going to pay some of the local elders in town a visit and encourage them to de-escalate any crazy plans anyone might have.

"Well, if you could be trusted not to say anything else fucking stupid that could get my cousin killed, maybe you could have. But you clearly have no clue about the prophecy, about beasts in general, or about Kali. So, you're staying right fucking here."

Jack blabbed when it became clear my little visit to the diner might have made Kali's situation worse. He told them that he had to escort me from the bar, and that I'd been completely out of control earlier that day at the gas station. He's also on Ben's shit list, but he got to escape and go with Henry due to his extensive knowledge of the region.

"I'm her mate." I grit out. "I can feel her. She's still alive. If I was close enough, maybe I could tell…"

Ben rounds on me, eyes glowing and his sharp teeth descending past his top lip.

We're wet, exhausted, and have been on the go for twelve hours straight. The sun is dipping below the horizon now, and most of the other search parties have called it a night.

"So, you say, Griffin. But conveniently, Kali's not around to back you up. You have no mating mark, and the only interaction anyone has seen you have with her was Kali telling you to leave her alone! Not to mention, the police are looking for you in connection with another assault." With a furious roar, he spins away with his chest heaving, and his hands clenched by his sides. "So, for the love of god, shut the fuck up. Because between John, Evan being in jail, and now Kali, I'm a man on the fucking edge."

I know the feeling. Yet my beast remains calm in the face of Ben's anger.

Before coming to Sutton, he would have wanted to challenge anyone who spoke to me like that. Is it more subdued because he knows Ben is his equal in terms of strength? Is it because he's related to Kali? I can't work out why he's not more agitated, but I'm grateful. The last thing I need is to support Jack's assessment of me being a loose cannon.

"Let's get some food and call Henry, see what he can tell us," Ben says wearily, his anger replaced now by despondency.

It's not an apology, and he's not saying he believes me, but I'll take it.

We drive most of the way in silence, Ben only speaking up as we get closer to Sutton Main Street. "It's exactly like John. Well, apart from the attack before. But disappearing without a trace, it makes no sense. We're a town full of super sniffers, for god's sake. How does someone just vanish?"

As we roll to a stop outside the cafe, which has stayed open to feed the search parties returning to town at dusk, I wait to see if Ben's finished before climbing out.

"Why was she pissed off with you?"

I'm surprised it took this long for him to ask. Although maybe he figured I'd lie, and so he didn't even bother.

Shifting in my seat, I'm uncomfortable talking to her family about this. It's not going to improve their first impression of me.

"I snuck out, in the middle of night, after we met." Clearing my throat, I ignore his scowl and continue. "This beast stuff is new to me. I don't understand most of it. My other side is wild, hard to control, and I was afraid I'd hurt her and freaked out."

Ben turns in his seat to face me, waiting for the rest.

"Of course, I regretted it immediately. I went to see her at the bar, but she wasn't exactly keen to talk. Rightly so, she told me to get lost. That's when Jack arrived." I look him straight in the face as I admit the next part. "Even if she was furious with me, I shouldn't have left. Should have followed her home."

Ben raises his eyebrows. "I know you think that now, but that's just the guilt talking. If nothing had happened to her, she'd be mad as hell at you for sleeping in her garden." Pushing open the door, Ben's phone starts ringing the second his boots hit the road. "Believe me, sometimes, no matter what you do, it's the wrong thing. You can't beat yourself up over it."

As we push into the cafe, Maisy's concerned face is the first one we see. She smiles kindly before immediately handing me a steaming mug and then pressing it into my hand.

"Here, eat up. I don't know how you guys are still on your feet." Producing two plates piled high with sandwiches, she sets one down in front of each of us before returning to the counter and cutting two huge slices of cake. "It's too much. I know you want to find her, but you need to rest."

There are a few people still lingering, with tired eyes and solemn expressions, and they're all looking to Ben, hoping for some news.

He shakes his head.

Maisy brings more napkins and some cream to go with the cake. She points her knife at me, and Ben smirks, knowing I'm going to get the main brunt of her lecture.

"Especially you. I mean, you've been out all day, and then going back out every night. You can't survive on a couple of hours of sleep each night, no matter who or what you are."

Frowning, I chew my mouthful of food quickly. "What do you mean?" I ask, ignoring Ben's curious gaze.

"You. I know you have better eyesight in the dark, but you can't stay out there searching all night."

"I haven't been." Shaking my head, I turn from Maisy to Ben, whose expression has turned dangerous. "I haven't. I crashed last night around midnight, and I woke up when you knocked."

Maisy purses her lips and stares at me. She doesn't want to contradict me, but it's clear she doesn't believe me. "It must have been someone else coming and going then." She's being agreeable, and Ben knows it.

He gives me a hard look as he speaks to Maisy. "Who else is staying with you, Maisy?"

My palms are sweaty, and my heart is pounding. This is ridiculous. I know I haven't been out scouring the hills around Sutton in the middle of the night. Yet knowing that Ben already barely believes me, I don't want anything to damage our already tenuous relationship.

"A pregnant woman and an eighty-year-old couple," she answers quickly, her cheeks pinking as she hangs me out to dry. "But maybe I'm mistaken. It could have been the wind, or…"

Ben stares at me, blinking once. The tension in the air is palpable. "Where are you sneaking off to in the middle of night, Griffin?"

The smear of mud on my hand comes unbidden to the front of my mind as I stare back, with no answers to give him.

"Nowhere."

Ben looks at me and pushes to his feet slowly, leaving the tips of his fingers resting on the tabletop. Taking a long swig from his mug, Ben considers my answer, and I frown, wondering when he continues to stare at me, suspicious.

"What's going on?" I ask, not liking where Ben's thoughts appearing to be headed. He doesn't trust me.

When he slams his empty drink down and shoves his keys into his pocket, it's my turn to look confused, watching him head for the door to leave alone.

"Even if I knew, I don't think I'd tell you."