Runaway Rogue

Chapter Forty Five: Caspian's POV

"Has Clara gotten any useful information at all?" Caspian thundered just as Forest got off the phone.

The alpha sighed. It sounded weary, but not nearly as bone tired as he had been when Anabelle was gone. Somehow, that made Caspian's blood boil even more and he feared he was only a matter of seconds from bubbling over.

"Things are tight there. She's only able to be on the packlands because her brother is mated to one of his men. Any information she can give us is good information, Caspian. These things just take time."

"So, she's giving us nothing, right? Because she can't follow the cars that are leaving the pack, she can't talk to Andrew herself, she has no access to his office or his home. So, she's sitting there, taking a risk, and it's really for fucking nothing. No one has seen Indigo. He leaves every day, going in the same direction. He's keeping Indie off his own lands. After three fucking days that is all we know!"

"Caspian, now is not the time to lose it. I know that this is hard. I just went through it with Anabelle, but—"

"He didn't fucking want Anabelle! He didn't give a shit about your mate. He wants Indigo! Indigo has wronged him. Indigo has made him look like a fool. He's not just going to let Indigo sit pretty in some remote house after she embarrassed him. I know that and you know that!"

His wolf hated that he had the audacity to shout at his own alpha, but that wolf was just as upset about his mate being snatched away from him.

Forest didn't rise to the bait, just watched his beta closely. "We're going to figure this out, okay? We just need to go slow and play our cards right."

Caspian was done. Something in his was beginning to fray. "I don't want to go any slower! We don't know what he's done to her already! Fuck! I'm going to kill him. I'm going to fucking him right now." He moved, ready to bolt.

Forest grabbed Caspian's arm, yanking him back around. "Give me a week. Just one week. We have to try and handle this civilly. If you go after him, even if you win, they will come after us. We know how he operates. Destroy now, ask questions later. I know what you're feeling. But think of the pack. If we can't figure out a way to get her out and the video doesn't do enough to get others on our side, then you can fight him. I'll figure out a way to keep the pack safe."

It wasn't what Caspian wanted to hear, though it had been a couple days since he stopped believing that Forest would unveil some magical plan that would instantly fix the situation. They had sent the video. No alphas had responded. Indigo was still gone.

But he had to agree with Forest. He would burn the world down for Indigo. However, he could not endanger anyone else. Andrew's slimy grip had reached far enough already and Caspian's own pack had already suffered so many times.

"You have a week," Caspian hissed, then stormed out of his alpha's house.

It was late, or really early, depending on how one looked at it. The sun was going to start rising soon. Indigo would have been alone for another night. Or maybe she wasn't alone. And that was worse. But either way, Caspian had failed again.

Regardless of the fact that most of the world was sleeping, the pack was not. The whole pack worked in strict shifts now. Everyone contributed. Whether it was watching children so their parents could do rounds, cooking to feed those who had been doing laps all night, or actually being the men and women roaming the forest, everyone had a job. Caspian should have been grateful, but he couldn't find it in himself in that moment. He wanted no leaf unturned, no square inch of grass unchecked.

He slipped back into his own home, preparing to take on his own shift. Well, he couldn't really call it a shift. He roamed the grounds for as long as his body would allow him, then he would bundle up and pace around the homes, waiting for reports from anyone would was around. He tried to sleep sometimes, but it was in short bursts, no more than a couple hours at a time. He tried to remember to eat, but if it didn't come individually wrapped and couldn't fit in his pocket, it didn't make it to his stomach.