Chapter 281: Found

Hayley’s POV:

Christopher said confidently, “You’re wrong. This isn’t her. It isn’t her!” With that, Christopher walked away.

Christine’s parents seemed to snap out of their trance and turned to look at me. “This isn’t Christine. This can’t be Christine. Our wolves didn’t sense her presence. This isn’t our daughter.” Christine’s mother repeated it over and over, while her father, clinging to a shred of rationality, said, “The body is unrecognizable. The only way to be sure is to have it tested.”

So, he contacted a local testing center, and the results came in quickly—within 24 hours, we had the report. Everyone held their breath as he pulled out the document. When he saw that the match was less than one percent, everyone exhaled in relief.

“I knew it, this isn’t Christine. It couldn’t be,” Christine’s mother cried, the evidence before her proving the body wasn’t Christine’s, which meant Christine was probably still alive. The news brought a sense of relief to me as well. Christine, you must still be alive, right?

“Found her! Found her!” Christopher suddenly appeared, his joyful voice breaking everyone’s thoughts. I snapped out of my daze and rushed forward. “Did you find Christine?”

Christopher nodded excitedly. “The embassy just sent word. Christine contacted them. She went to the embassy to renew her passport. She’s probably on her way back home.”

The news hit me so suddenly that I could hardly believe it. “Is this true? Where is she now?”

Christopher answered, “Christine renewed her passport two days ago. She’s probably already back home. Once she’s there, we’ll be able to reach her.”

“But if she’s okay, why hasn’t she contacted us?” I asked, confused. Everyone went silent. This didn’t make sense. It was so unlike Christine to not reach out.

“The embassy confirmed everything. All her details matched. It’s her.” Christopher’s certainty made me believe it too. It was Christine. “Then let’s go back home,” Benjamin suggested. I nodded, agreeing.

When Christine’s parents heard she might already be home, they were overjoyed. They immediately booked the next available flight and returned with us.

After several hours of flying, we landed safely at Midnight Pack’s airport. We all hurried out of the terminal, eager to get to Christine’s house. However, when we arrived, the house was empty. Christine wasn’t there.

Christopher looked utterly lost. “This can’t be happening. What’s going on?” I tried to comfort him. “Don’t worry. If it’s Christine, she’ll come home.”

“But where is she now?” Christopher’s question left us all lost in thought. We left Christine’s house and headed home, Benjamin and I driving together.

In the car, I turned to Benjamin, my mind racing. “What do you think is going on? If Christine’s back, why hasn’t she come home yet?”