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“And don’t worry about waking me up,” I chuckled. “I sleep weird hours anyway.”
“Okay. I can also get you that information on where she was going for group therapy if you think it would be helpful. It’s at the same clinic she went to when she decided to get sober.”
“That would be great,” I replied, brightening a little. It was so much easier when I didn’t have to dig. “That would be great, Demi.”
“Okay — I’ll get right on that. Have a good, ah…morning? Night?”
I laughed. “Have a good one, Demi.”
I put my phone down and leaned back, rolling this new information over in my head. At this point, I was only expanding my list of possible suspects, not narrowing it down — but this was going in the right direction. I could feel it in my bones. This wasn’t going to be cut and dry, so I needed to think outside of the box. Hopefully, some of the information Demi was sending over would yield some answers — or at least some new avenues of investigation.
Hang on, Cyn. We’ll find you yet.
12
ELI
Sanders’ Family Home
Austin, Texas
Ipulled up to the family home on Summer Street, putting my car into park as I stared out at the cheerful blue house, knowing the family inside would be anything but. Late last night, my father contacted me to share that one of Remus’ pack wolves, Ashley Sanders, had gone missing. Her parents, Catherine and Ryan, had exhausted all of their resources looking for their daughter, but she hadn’t come home. Hadn’t reappeared. Talking to the pack elders had been fruitless, so they’d reached out to Remus himself.
My father had been visiting with his grandsons when the call came in. I’m not sure why he felt I should be part of this loop, but I was glad he mentioned it. I hadn’t met Ashley Sanders before, but it seemed all too convenient for a ghost like Iris to appear days before a woman near her age suddenly went missing.
It’s either a coincidence, or I’m paranoid, and my gut hasn’t led me wrong before.
Frankly, I’d have probably had less drama over the years if I’d listened to my baser instincts more often, but there was no time to dwell. I drummed my fingers over the steering wheel as I stared at the front door. A moment later, when Remus’ sports car pulled in next to me, I got out and met him as he stepped out of the driver’s side.
He raised his brows. “Eli. I’m surprised to see you here.”
I shrugged, not begrudging him. It was my father who’d alerted me, after all. “I needed a break from paperwork,” I said. “And my dad was upset enough about this to call me, so… I figured it was important.”
“Ah,” Remus said, not realizing Nic had done that. “He gave you the background?”
“He did.” I gave a small nod. I had my own theory on the matter, but I did not need to share that with Remus — not until I had more proof.
“Just as well. A second set of ears will help for sure.” He clapped a hand over my shoulder before turning to head inside.
Even though the family was expecting Remus to visit them, Catherine was still near hysterics, unable to stay in one place for more than a few seconds. First, she offered us coffee, then tea — then, she started fussing with the pillows on the couch. I bit the inside of my mouth, wishing I could do something to ease the hurt and knowing there was nothing I could do.
Nothing would help until she knew where her daughter was.
As Remus tried to pull Catherine aside, rumbling to her in his deep, dominant voice, I began investigating the family room. Outside of Catherine’s fussing, it looked well-kept but lived in. The couch looked like people sat there, not sterile like all of my mother’s furniture. The light was pulled to one side of the side table, not perfectly centered. There was even a book, though it looked like it hadn’t been touched in a few days.
Not surprising.
There were family photos — one on the side table, several more on the bookshelf. Some of the couple, others of who I assumed to be Ashley. A little girl chasing after ducks with a delighted look. A teenager hugging her mother. A young adult holding up her high school diploma. They looked like a happy family.But looks aren’t everything, I thought darkly, turning back to join the others as Remus got Catherine and Ryan to sit on the couch.
“When was the last time you heard from Ashley?” Remus asked, sitting in a chair across from her parents. I sat in its twin, folding my hands in my lap as I listened.
Ryan’s mouth tugged down. “Three days ago. The night before the Moonmate ceremony, she went out with friends to celebrate her new job,” he explained, barely able to hold Remus’ gaze. The corners of his mouth kept trembling. “She had gotten into the marketing program at the University of Texas, and she was hoping the firm she’d gotten a receptionist job at would be a good fit for her when she graduated.”
When he trailed off, Catherine spoke up. “Her best friend was taking her to dinner at the Golden Dragon — I know they were meeting up with several of their other friends, too. They were both on the track team, so she didn’t come home after. She’d been staying with her friend, Sunny, who is going to school in Maine…any day now.” She sniffed. “It wasn’t until Ashley’s boss called that we started to worry. She’s never skipped school or a shift. We didn’t know what to think, but she still didn’t show up. She was so excited about the Moonmate ceremony. We thought maybe she’d just rushed right there, but she left her outfit at home, and when we got there, none of her friends had seen her either.”
Both of them fell silent at that point, and I leaned forward, my brows furrowed. “Did you call the police?” I knew not all shifters were comfortable getting human authorities involved, but missing people were still missing people…
“Yes,” Ryan said, sounding dejected. “But she’s eighteen now. She’s an adult. All we could do was fill out a missing person report and provide them with her description. They haven’t done anything else, even though they told us the first forty-eight hours were the most crucial. That’s why we called the pack elders… and Remus.”
