When I arrived at the inn, I decided to go inside and ask for Azalea, as she wasn't responding to my messages or calls. She might have been busy at the inn and unable to access her phone.

I parked and went inside to the front desk. The receptionist—a flirty girl with a fruit-themed name—was behind the counter. I inwardly groaned, dreading dealing with any trouble.

"Hello! Welcome to the Blue Moon Inn. Are you here for dinner or checking in?" she chirped.

"Actually, I'm looking for someone. Is Azalea around?" I asked patiently.

She rolled her eyes. "She went home. I can call her if you like," she said, clearly annoyed. Did Azalea have that many people looking for her? A surge of jealousy flared.

"That would be great. I'll happily wait," I said, smiling.

She gave a forced smile and grabbed the phone. After a minute, she looked up. "Um, she's not answering. That's unusual; she'd wake up to answer the phone if we called"

"What does that mean?" I asked, worried.

"Well, she might have gone out, but she usually tells Amy or me"

"Tells us what, Lemon?" Amy said, entering from the kitchen. "Oh, it's you," she said, recognizing me.

"Azalea isn't answering. I thought she'd gone back to her apartment after that strange incident with the cute customer and John" Lemon explained.

"I told her to get some sleep. She looked awful this morning, and we had everything covered. But that was a couple of hours ago. I was going to send her some food," Amy said, concerned. She looked at Lemon worriedly. "Try her again."

Lemon dialed Azalea's number again; still no answer. "I'm sorry. She's probably out; it's not normal, but" she trailed off, worry evident.

Amy gave me an unreadable expression. What was her problem? "You should just go. I don't think she wants you around," she said spitefully.

"That's for Azalea to decide, not you," I said quietly, dangerously so. She was human and didn't understand our ways, but she was infuriating me.

"I know what's best for her. You should go. She doesn't need this," she insisted, crossing her arms.

"Don't meddle in things you don't understand," I said darkly and turned to leave. I flung open the door, colliding with John. Just great. I stormed past him, knocking him slightly.

"Lose something, wolf boy?" he muttered. I stopped, whirling around.

"What did you say?" I growled.

"Nothing," he smirked.

I lunged, grabbing him by the throat and pinning him against the building. He struggled. "If you know where she is, tell me now," I threatened. I loosened my grip slightly to let him speak.

"You should take better care of your things," he gasped. I punched him in the stomach and dropped him. He groaned, collapsing. I ran to Azalea's apartment.

I pounded on her door; it swung open, revealing warm air and the scent of Azalea mixed with blood. A broken mug sat in a puddle of tea, near a small pool of blood. I went numb. Stepping inside, I called Azalea's name repeatedly.

I touched the blood; it was cool and thick, meaning it was hours old. Someone had hurt her hours ago and likely taken her. Pain lanced through my chest. My mate was gone, and I had no idea where. Searching the apartment, I saw a recently used space heater near the bed. On the bed lay a note adorned with a flower. I ripped open the envelope:

You almost wilted this pretty little flower. But now she is all mine. I warned you, Alpha. What will the big bad wolf do now?

Rage consumed me. The hunter had her, and he would pay.

[The following section is Azalea's perspective]

A throbbing ache pulsed in the back of my head. Groggy, I tried to recall falling asleep. Touching my head, I felt something dry and crusty in my hair. I wasn't in my apartment, nor at the inn.

I was lying on a large, soft bed in a cream-colored room. Two doors, a table and chair, and a nightstand were the only furniture. There were no windows, only a single ceiling light.

Panic seized me. Where was I? How did I get here? I sat up slowly, my head still hurting. Someone must have hit me. I remembered being at home, turning on the space heater, and hearing a knock. There was no one there when I answered. After that, I remembered nothing. Whoever did this must have been hiding.

I cautiously approached the doors. The first opened to reveal a bathroom. The second door was locked. I sat on the bed, hugging myself. I missed Liam. I realized I'd run from him, refusing protection from Damien and others. Liam wouldn't know I was gone. Everyone at the inn would assume I'd gone to bed. How long until someone looked for me? How long until Liam or Damien found out? Would they even know where to search? Fear shook me. A tear fell.

[The following section is Liam's perspective]

"Get every tracker we have. I need extra support for every search party. Call Langston and ask for help," I barked at Damien.

"Right away. Anything else?" he replied, unfazed by my tone.

"Tell your dad we need to speak with him about Azalea. Anything he knows might help."

"Sure. And Liam?"

"Yes?"

"We will find her." He hung up. My heart ached. Where was she? Who had her? She must be terrified. We had no leads.

"But we do," Gavin said in my mind.

"Who?"

"John! He knew your mate was gone!"

I roared and raced to Azalea's apartment, then to the inn, finding John gone. Lemon and Amy were at the desk, whispering.

I cleared my throat. "Ladies," I said. They looked up. "Have you seen John?"

"What's going on, Liam?" Amy demanded. "Where's Azalea?"

"That's what I'm trying to find out. Where's John?" I snapped.

"We don't know! We heard commotion outside, and when we went out, he was laughing hysterically, and you were gone! He left the parking lot saying something about getting the Alpha's head!"

This was bad. John took her, and he came back hoping I'd show up. "Where did he go? Amy, I need to know."

"He drove away. Where is Azalea?"

"I think he took her. Amy, close the inn. No more lunch or dinner. Get guests to check out."

The innkeeper emerged from his office. "I'll handle things here. Find that girl, and don't let any hunters hurt her." I nodded and left.

I should have known John was the hunter from the start. I never liked him, dismissing him as a simple human. Until Damien and the others arrived, I could do little. They'd need Azalea's scent, so I returned to her apartment.