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“No, sire. I even asked around and nobody has seen her at all,” the man said, his worry obvious. “It’s not like her to miss a meal, and when she does, she always lets us know what her plans are.”
A prickle of dread shivered along Tarron’s spine. “Go ahead and save something for her. Just put it in the fridge, and when I see her, I’ll let her know it’s there if she gets hungry.”
“I’ll see to it right away.”
“Thank you, Anders.”
Tarron hung up and immediately punched in Calla’s number. The phone rang multiple times on the other end before he gave up. Ending the call, he rose and paced the floor. Calla was always telling him that he worried too much, and if he summoned the guards to search for her only to find her tucked away in some corner of the stronghold enjoying some privacy, she’d let him have it.
On the other hand, what if . . .
Quickly, he made another call, to the head of his guard. Jareth answered on the first ring.
“Prince?”
“Find out if anyone has seen my sister. I last saw her this afternoon, an hour or so before dinner. And find out if anyone was seen with her.”
“I’m on it, sir. I’ll call you back in a few minutes.”
Tarron hung up and left his quarters, jogging through the corridors in search of his sister. He started with her chambers and knocked. When there was no answer, he used his key to let himself in, something he’d never do under normal circumstances.
It took only seconds to ascertain she wasn’t there. Taking a quick look around, he saw there were no clues as to where she’d gone, either. His bet was that she wasn’t on the premises at all, and the thought chilled him.
If Calla wasn’t inside by now—
No. He wouldn’t think that way yet. Just then, his phone rang and he answered.
“Jareth. Have you got anything?”
“She was with Graham earlier,” the guard said. “Witnesses saw them head outside, and it seemed she planned to take a walk. She wasn’t too happy he insisted on going, it seemed.”
“What about Graham? Has anyone seen him?”
“No, Prince. As far as we can tell, neither of them has returned. I’ve already sent several groups of my men to comb the grounds.”
“Check the wading pool and the falls area. It’s her favorite place.”
“Heading there now, sir.”
Tarron was already running as he tucked the phone into his back pocket. If anything happened to Calla, he wouldn’t survive it. Stones and dirt slipped under his feet as he navigated the path too fast, belatedly realizing he could’ve teleported. He was too panicked, not thinking straight.
Jareth and two other guards were already at the waterfall when he arrived. Jareth and one guard were crouched over a prone form on the ground while the other guard stood watch.
“Is that Graham?” Tarron managed as he stopped next to them.
“Yes,” Jareth said grimly. “He’s alive, but quite severely wounded. It appears he was stabbed.”
Tarron crouched by the bleeding guard. Graham was unconscious. Tarron cursed, knowing they’d get no answers from him for a while. “Take him to the infirmary.”
The two guards grabbed the injured vampire and teleported away. Jareth stood and walked the area, eyes on the ground. Tarron joined him in looking for evidence that Calla had been here, and it wasn’t long before they found something.
“Is this her phone, sir?” Jareth asked. He bent and picked up the object, handing it over to Tarron.
He unlocked the screen and nodded, heart sinking. “Yes. It appears she’s been taken.” It was all he could do not to crush the device in his hand. “Let’s head back inside and then we’ll decide our next course of action.”
Which would be eviscerating whoever had kidnapped his sister.
This time he had the presence of mind to teleport, and appeared in his office seconds later. Mind gone cold, he made a call.
