Chapter 21-Honor
Two more days have passed without a single word from Rosalind.
No calls.
No texts.
She hasn't shown up at her apartment.
Or her job.
Something’s wrong.
Deep in my bones, I feel it.
And my Bear?
He’s tearing apart the inside of my chest trying to get to her.
“Dude, she probably just needs time,” Miles tries, not for the first time.
“No,” I growl, louder than I meant to. “This isn’t right. I’m telling you, Miles. She’s not just ghosting me. Something happened.”
Hope, who’s been pacing like a caged wolf, chimes in with a grim nod.
“Honor is right, Miles. This doesn’t feel like Rosalind just backing off. I called her a dozen times. Nothing. Not one text. And she always texts me back, even when she’s mad.”
Miles glances between us, and after a beat, nods.
“Okay,” he says. “Let’s go see the Alpha. He might’ve heard something.”
“Finally,” I mutter, then grab the passenger door of the truck—and crush the damn handle in my grip like it’s made of foil.
“Shit,” I sigh. “Sorry.”
Hope just gives me a wry smile.
“Whatever. I’ll fix it.”
Having an 800-pound Black Bear living inside me is no damn joke.
My strength—already off the charts—is now double what it was.
I’ve broken cabinet doors, snapped handles, crushed a kitchen chair just by sitting on it.
At this point, I’m one more accident away from paying rent in repairs.
That’s why I went ahead and bought the property next door.
Okay, it’s not just for me.
It’s for her.
I was hoping—still hoping—Rosie would want to live there with me.
Raise a family.
Be my mate.
My everything.
Hope’s been glowing with happiness lately, and now I know why.
She’s pregnant. My little sister’s having a baby, and I’m over the moon for her. A cub, Miles says.
But being happy for them doesn’t mean I can’t also be sad.
Truth is, it also makes the ache in my chest worse.
Because I want that.
What they have.
I want it with Rosalind.
I need her back.
We pull into the Den—a sort of clubhouse-slash-community center for the Barvale Clan—and the second we open the door, I’m hit by a wall of sound and scent.
Toddlers shriek in play from the living room, fur flying and tiny claws swiping in mock battle.
Several women lounge on mismatched couches nearby, watching with indulgent smiles and mugs of tea.
“Well now, who is this tall drink of trouble?” a short, sharp-eyed blonde asks, setting down her cup and looking me up and down.
Hope steps up quickly. “Mrs. Devlin, this is my brother, Honor. He’s, um, new to the Clan.”
“Newly Changed, Alpha fem,” Miles adds under his breath.
The blonde’s eyes narrow like she’s putting two and two together, but before I can process her reaction, a deep growl rips through the air behind me.
“Who the hell brought a newly changed Shifter around the cubs?”
The air stills.
I turn—and come face to face with a mountain of a man.
Black hair, grizzled jaw, green eyes that assess and challenge all in the same breath.
“Uh-oh,” Hope murmurs. “That’s Daniel Devlin. Head Enforcer.”
I step forward before anyone else can speak.
“I asked them to, sir. My mate is missing. Her name is Rosalind Carrera.”
The name hangs there like a bolt of lightning.
Daniel’s scowl drops.
“Rosalind?”
The large Bear repeats her name and I don’t like it.
I snarl.
“Do you know where she is?”
“How long has she been missing?” he counters.
“Two days.”
“Shit. That’s the last time I saw her.”
“What?” I snap.
My Bear is pacing now, just under the surface, hackles up and ready to maul something.
Then, Marcus Devlin, the Alpha himself, steps into the room.
“Easy, son,” he says in that calm, commanding voice. “Daniel’s our Head Enforcer. His job is to protect every member of this Clan—including Rosalind. He’d never hurt her.”
Daniel exhales hard.
“He’s right. I would never hurt one of ours. But I did have some words with her about how this all went down. Shit,” he growls, and I know he feels something about it, but I don’t give a fuck about his feelings.
I stiffen.
“What kind of words?”
Daniel’s jaw works.
“She was assigned to watch you. To make sure your Change went smoothly. But when she bit you—when she mated you without permission—let’s just say it was outside the job description. Unprofessional. I told her she’d compromised the mission.”
I blink.
“You yelled at her for choosing me? For claiming her mate?”
“She didn’t just choose you,” he says stiffly. “She forced your dormant gene to change you. That’s a big damn deal. You should have been vetted, at the very least you should have been told that there was a distinct possibility you would turn into something big and furry, for fuck’s sake.”
“Listen, I don’t give a damn about your chain of command,” I snarl. “You think she did something I didn’t want? That I didn’t feel that bond? That fire? That pull in my chest every second since I met her? My Bear chose her first, goddamn it!”
“Then why’d you turn your back on her?” He replies, and the question hits hard.
“I was protecting her,” I murmur.
Marcus clears his throat. “Honor—”
“Dammit, I know, okay? She thought I didn’t want her!” I explode. “She bit me, and I—fuck, I thought I was gonna hurt her, so I backed off. I didn’t know what was happening. I didn’t even know what a Shifter was, or that I was one until that same moment!”
Silence.
Then Daniel sighs.
“Well, you’re definitely a Shifter now. Angry, dominant, and full of piss and vinegar.”
“Yes, well, a mated Bear without his mate is bound to be all of that and more,” Marcus agrees.
“Oh God, she thinks I rejected her,” I whisper, the words hitting me like a blade to the gut. “But I didn’t. I was scared I’d hurt her. All I wanted was to protect her.”
Marcus lays a hand on my shoulder. “Then it’s time to prove it.”
Hope crosses her arms. “Damn right it is.”
I nod once, heart thundering in my chest.
“Then tell me where she is,” I growl, my eyes glowing with the Bear just under my skin.
Marcus’s expression turns grave.
“The thing is, son, we don’t know. The moment you arrived, I sent a team to her apartment. She hasn’t been there in at least forty-eight hours.”
My breath leaves me in a snarl.
“What?” My fists clench. “Shit. I need to go.”
Because if someone’s taken her or if she’s had an accident and is out there hurt and alone, then God help whoever’s responsible.
My Bear won’t stop. Not until he’s torn the world apart to bring her back.
“Wait!” a voice snaps, sharp and commanding as a crack of thunder.
I halt mid-step.
It’s the petite blonde Alpha female—Leya Devlin—rising from the velvet couch like a storm in silk.
Tiny, elegant, but unmistakably lethal.
Her power rolls through the room like a scent on the wind, freezing every instinct in my body.
“I’m sorry, ma’am, I can’t—” the guard protests beside me.
“You can’t what?” she fires back, voice like honed steel. “Listen to reason? Go out there with a plan? You know you men are all the same,” she scoffs, eyes blazing. “Always charging into danger half-cocked and hoping instinct will do the rest.”
Her mate, Marcus, steps up beside her like a mountain moving into place. I can feel my Bear bristling, hackles raised—not in challenge, but in sheer desperation.
And then I realize I’m growling.
Low. Dangerous. Uncontrolled.
Shit.
I wrench my gaze away from Marcus, immediately baring my throat in submission—an instinctive apology. I’m not trying to challenge their dominance, I just can’t help it right now.
“I’m sorry about the growling,” I mutter, the words raw in my throat. “I just need to find my mate.”
Leya’s eyes soften, just a touch. Not pity. Understanding.
“I get it,” she says, tone gentling. “You’re running on instinct. That’s not weakness—it’s nature. But if you want to help her, you need to be smart. Fast won’t matter if you’re dead.”
I clench my fists at my sides, the rage still simmering under my skin. “I am trying to be smart. But every second—”
“There’s a way to track her,” she interrupts, stepping into my path. “A way that works better than scent or cameras.”
I freeze. “How?”