POV: JACKSON
"What's happening?" I asked a warrior as I walked up to him. He was sitting by himself under a tree, which puzzled me. They were supposed to be in groups.
He nodded slightly before responding, "I decided to take a break before moving on." He stood up as he spoke.
"Where are the others? Why are you by yourself?"
"He told us to spread out when we arrived, so the others have gone pretty far," he explained. Looking closely, I realized he seemed more like one of the younger warriors and not someone who was well-trained.
"What group are you in?"
"Under 17," he answered.
"Did Sam or Eli organize this search party?"
"I showed up late…" He looked down sheepishly before meeting my gaze again. "But my friends said it was Delta Sam. He told the head warrior that he didn't want to overwhelm the trained warriors over something minor, so he asked us to help instead."
"Did Sam go with you all?"
"Yes, but he was leading the way. I'm not sure where he is now," he said, scratching his head.
Chris contacted me through the mindlink. "There's an issue, Jackson. I still haven't heard from Saint and the others."
"Where are you?"
"I'm still with the Pack leaders."
"Go check on them and see what's taking so long. Tell the Pack leaders I'll join them shortly."
"Okay, but I think Sam told the pack that Evelyn and Blake were kidnapped. I'm not sure why, but it's been going around."
"Why would he say that? First, check on Saint, and I'll be there." I disconnected the mindlink.
"Let everyone know that I said everyone should come back to the pack right away," I told the young warrior before heading back to the pack.
The plan was straightforward. Saint, Mateo, and Marcus would search Sam's house, while Chris would manage the pack leader and keep them updated. My role was to stay outside, ready to catch Sam once they found evidence in his home. However, it seemed like Sam was ahead of us. He told the pack that they had been kidnapped and was organizing a group of under-17 warriors to search for them. On top of that, I had no idea where he was.
When I arrived at the gate, I asked the guards if Sam had returned to the pack, but they shook their heads. I instructed them to detain Sam when he came back. They exchanged puzzled glances but nodded in agreement.
"I can't find Saint, Jackson," Chris's urgent voice came through.
"What do you mean?"
"I found Mateo and Marcus lying on the floor in front of Sam's house, but Saint isn't with them."
"What do you mean Saint is missing? Didn't he go with them?" My heart sank as I asked.
"I've been trying to wake them up, but they aren't responding."
"I'm on my way," I said, cutting off the call before rushing to Sam's house, trying not to think about what Chris had just said.
When I arrived, several pack members were gathered, staring at Mateo and Marcus on the ground. I checked their pulses and felt a little relief when I noticed they were breathing. "Where's Chris?" I asked the group.
"He's inside," a voice replied.
I stepped into Sam's house and found Chris in one of the rooms. "They broke the key to this room, but everything looks normal in here. What could have caused them to lose consciousness?"
"What about Saint? Where is he?"
"I don't know, Jackson. There's no sign of him," Chris replied, confirming the very fear I had.
"Take them to the pack hospital. Let me know as soon as they wake up," I instructed Chris. After that, I left and headed home. Thoughts of what should be the next step ran through my mind. When I walked in, I saw a Samantha sitting in the living room. I had hoped Saint would be there waiting for me.
"I heard that Sam is behind all this. Is it true?" she asked as she stood up.
"Yes, it's true. Sam is the one causing all this chaos. He's working with Ava and used his son to manipulate the pack."
"What?" she asked, her voice shaking.
"Sam has betrayed us."
"Why would he do something like that? I don't understand."
"I don't either. What kind of resentment could he have against me to drive him to this?"
"You knew he was behind this all along, right? Why didn't you tell me?"
I sighed. "We've been trying to catch him, but it looks like he outsmarted us. I think he kidnapped Saint." I fall on the couch, my hands covering my face.
"Are you really sure it's Sam behind all of this? I mean, what reason would he have to go after you?" I could tell she was struggling to believe it. After all, she trusted Sam much more than I did; they had grown up close.
"I don't know. I need to find Saint, Samantha. I can't let what happened years ago repeat itself..." My heart ached as the memories flooded back. "I can't lose Saint."
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Hours passed, and there was still no sign of Saint. Mateo and Marcus had just woken up. It took them a few moments to gather their thoughts. Sam was still missing. All the warriors who went to search had returned, but Sam was not among them.
The pack buzzed with questions about the situation. I asked Chris to update the pack leaders. This time, I didn't care about the lack of proof. Not while Saint was still missing .
"Something fell in the living room, so he went to check what made the noise. We both decided to enter the locked room. As soon as we opened the door, steam started pouring from the walls. I can't remember anything after that," Mateo said.
Chris walked in and scoffed. "They think we're wrongly accusing Sam of what happened to Saint. They say he was too busy searching for his kidnapped mate and pup to have done anything to Saint or anyone else. They also doubt he was behind the voices, asking why he would even want to do that."
"I'll address those questions once I have my mate back safe. Right now, my main focus is rescuing Saint," I replied, my gaze firm.
"If Sam took Saint, wouldn't he have crossed the borders? How did no one see him?" Marcus asked.
"Or maybe he used spels?" Mateo suggested.
"I don't think so. From what I learned from..." Marcus glanced at me, "...um, Ava, non-witches can't cast spells like that."
"It would be foolish for Sam to take Saint to another pack. That only leaves the possibility of an unclaimed area," I said as I stood up.
"Perhaps a rogue hideout? If he's teamed up with rogues, this is exactly the kind of situation they would exploit," Chris added. That made sense. Rogues typically have a spot they return to after wandering, but it doesn't function like a proper pack—just a place to rest. Before Saint arrived, I had often gone to raid rogue hideouts near our pack.
"Then we'll have to be like him, we'll make use of rogues too. Tonight, we go rogue hunting."