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“When you’re right, you are right, Old Man.”
Out of the shower and wrapped in a towel, Ranger walked into the bedroom, headed for the unused bed, and opened the suitcase he hadn’t bothered to unpack. Pulling out the one dress shirt he’d brought with him, a light blue oxford cloth button-down, Ranger shook it out and checked for wrinkles.
Reaching down for his khakis, just the tips of his fingers had brushed the starched cotton when the scent of wild ash, burning brimstone, and sulfur filled his senses. Throwing back his head and sniffing the air, Ranger inhaled deeply, snarling at Carradoc,“Do you smell that?”
"I do, and it's…"
“Ellie!”Ranger roared.
Racing across his room and throwing open the door, what he saw stopped the Guardsman in his tracks. He couldn’t believe his eyes. Drawing a single breath became impossible. His brain refused to reconcile what was right before him with what he wanted to see. Nothing made sense. Hell, even his heart stopped beating.
There, right before him, just across the hall, not fifteen feet away, the door to Ellie’s room was hanging by a single hinge. Unable to move, unable to think, Ranger had no idea how long he’d been standing there when Jianna’s voice cut through the fog.
"Ranger. Ranger! You okay?" The feel of her firm grip on his upper arm was the only warning he got before the Valkyrie shook him till his eyeteeth rattled. So close he could see every detail in the wolf marking under her eye, the Valkyrie yelled, "SNAP OUT OF IT! Now is not the time to get all up in your head. I need to know what the fuck happened here, and I need to know now."
Doing exactly as he was instructed, Ranger jumped to attention. But that was as far as his compliance went. Instead of answering Jianna’s barked questions, he started to move.
Marching across the hall, ignoring the calls of Rasha and Jianna to stop, he stalked right by all the Security Officers into Ellie's room. Once inside, he turned one complete circle, allowing not only himself but also Carradoc to survey the scene.
Chairs overturned. Mirror broken. Blood – Ellie's life's essence – staining the deep cracks, dripping from the sharp points. Clothes scattered everywhere. Pillows and blankets lying just where they'd landed - everywhere but on the bed. The signs of a struggle covered every single square inch. The room was a complete shamble.
Then he saw it. Glittering in the beam of the flashlight being held by the Security Officer Ranger instantly recognized as a Bear Shifter.
Walking across the room, nodding to the Bear, the shifter's hazel eyes watching his every move, the Guardsman knelt until his knees hovered above the carpet. Careful not to disturb any evidence, knowing how important it was to preserve the scene even though he knew who had taken Ellie, Ranger tentatively reached out. Warmth shot up his arm and straight into his chest as his fingers grazed the chain then grabbed ahold of the ruby heart pendant he'donlyever seen hanging around Ellie's neck.
Getting back to his feet, he spun towards the hallway and walked right past a waiting Jianna, snarling, "It's the Chimera. Can't you smell the fucking bastards? Fucking murdering bastards. They use Black Magic, Blood Sacrifice, Demon Familiarity - whatever the lowest form of being they can find - to get what they want."
Stopping just outside the still-open door of his room, not bothering to look back, he worked as hard as he could to keep from roaring as he stated, “The blood on the mirror is Ellie’s. She gave ‘em one helluva fight.” Holding out his arm, he let the pendant fall from his hand while holding tight to the clasp of the chain. “This is hers. She never takes it off. Never goes anywhere without it. The only way they got this off her and got her out of here without me hearing anything was if she was unconscious.”
Marching the rest of the way into his room, his hand on the doorknob, the Guardsman was just about to slam the door when Jianna asked, “What are you gonna do? Don’t you think you should let us handle this? Aren’t you too close to be…?”
“I’m going to get my Mate. I suggest you and your people stay the hell outta my way.”
