There was a brief pause before he replied, “I had no choice. It was urgent. Besides, she was having so much fun in the woods."
Something in his voice made my annoyance spark. “You should have brought her back before you left. She’s only six years old! You can’t just abandon her like that.”
Randolf’s response was curt. “I’m dealing with important issues, Haley. I can’t be everywhere at once.”
Several emotions crashed into one another in my head. My daughter was out there, alone. The woods were vast and dangerous. The thought of her vulnerable and frightened made my heart pound.
For the Moon's sake, what if she ran into a rogue wolf?
“Randolf!" I snapped through the mind link. "This isn’t just about your duties. Our daughter’s safety is at stake!”
He didn’t answer. I could feel the connection between us fading as he shut me out. For a moment, I was left in a headspace of anxiety and helplessness.
And without giving my actions any thought, I turned and dashed into the forest.
My daughter was gone.
The words pounded in my head like a wicked, tribal drum as I shifted into my wolf form. My heart pumping with fury and terror. I had to find her. I had to find Clara.
"Search the woods! Now!" I mindlinked the warriors nearby. "The princess is in there alone!"
How could Randolf have let this happen to his daughter?
My thoughts went wild as I ran, the wind pushing through my fur. Tears of despair tore through my eyes. God, I couldn't lose her. I couldn't lose Clara.
Clara was supposed to be with her father, in our territory, under the protection of our pack. There shouldn’t have been any danger, and yet he'd managed to let this happen.
As I neared the middle of the forest, a scent hit me—familiar and sickeningly wrong. It was blood and something else. Something that didn’t belong.
Rogues.
Panic took over my thinking. I pushed forward, faster, the trees blurring around me until I reached the clearing. My heart nearly stopped as I spotted a small, lifeless body sprawled in the grass, crimson staining the earth beneath her.
"No! Clara!" I shifted back, falling to my knees beside her, my hands trembling as I touched her cold, blood-soaked skin. I pulled her close, my tears mixing with the blood on her tiny, delicate face. She was so still, so quiet, her beautiful eyes closed forever.
"Why?" I whispered, my voice broken. "Why my Clara?"