Mila stilled in the trees, her head turning to the right. There was a pervading sense of danger, something so dark it was sending a cold chill down her spine. She didn’t know what it was, but it triggered her primal instincts, and she remained still, sampling her surroundings.
There were a myriad of scents on the air, and her brow puckered in a frown. What was confusing was she could scent wolves close by, a larger pack than the small family she had encountered a while back. However, she could distinguish the child from earlier, and that was odd because the girl had been travelling in the opposite direction with her parents. How could she have found her way to this pack, and why couldn’t she sense the child’s parents?
Mila didn’t stop to think about what she was doing. She automatically moved towards the pack. Whatever was happening, Dante would need to know. Their survival could depend on it. Moving as silently as she could, Mila had barely travelled any great distance when her breath suddenly caught, and she was still once more perusing the scene below her. He was there, the one she had seen in her vision. The Justice Seeker was watching the child run towards the wolves, his head snapping around as he scented the air.
Mila thought her heart might well stop as she watched him, his instincts clearly superior to those she had encountered before. Most would never have detected her presence, but the boy below was on edge, searching for something his senses told him was there. Would he discover her? Could he smell her hiding place? She was afraid to breathe just in case he heard her.
He stood still as a statue for a long moment, and then the air seemed to shimmer around him and she had to stifle the gasp that threatened to burst from her lips. He was the living vision, the exact replica of what she had seen in the cave that day with Dante. That wasn’t what caused her heart to stutter wildly in her chest though. No, her stifled gasp was because of what she was seeing… she could actually see him, though he appeared to be shrouded by a thin veil.
She could see him move away, the way the breeze rippled through his hair, his mesmerising animal grace as he moved. It felt like it was taking her stunned brain forever to acknowledge it, but it was mere seconds, and the message was as clear as day. Mila could see the Justice Seeker as if she still had her normal sight!
It was impossible, and she couldn’t understand how it could be, but the boy had done something so amazing it was as if he’d reached into her mind and flipped on a switch to her damaged vision. For a handful of heartbeats, all Mila could do was sit there and watch in fascination as the Justice Seeker vanished in the opposite direction.
Her heart hammering wildly, she had to make the most difficult of decisions. Follow the boy so she could watch him move as if she wasn’t blind, or follow the child towards the wolf pack that may be the one she had been searching for? She would have been lying to herself if she didn’t admit that she was sorely tempted to follow the Justice Seeker, however, there was too much at stake to allow personal desires to get in the way.
Mila slipped soundlessly down the tree, shadowing the little girl, using her forward movement as a means to get a snapshot of her surroundings. They didn’t have far to travel before she once more took to the trees and safety. They were almost at the campground of the wolf pack.
Mila watched attentively, seeking out each movement so her inner eye would snap a picture of her surroundings and the people in the makeshift camp. She needed to see if the human girl was here, and if she was, she would need to find some way to turn the Justice Seeker around so that they could meet.
*****
The child appeared from out of the thickets, pale and blonde, with blue eyes that were so haunted the entire group around the fire could only stare at her in silence.
“What the hell?” Roland, one of the pack betas, jumped up and moved quickly towards their visitor, ignoring the way the child flinched as he reached for her. “Colin, Matthew, check the perimeter, see if anyone else is out there.”
The child was stiff in his arms, the acrid scent of fear pervading the air. Despite that, he could tell that she was one of them, she was a wolf pup, and she appeared to have been through something traumatic. He wanted to curse but bit his tongue, as the child was so young. Their Alpha had very strict rules about watching their language among their young. It was a pity she was off somewhere on some top secret mission right now, and he was left to deal with this unexpected incursion.
What perturbed Roland the most was they had checked out the area before setting up camp. They had ensured there wasn’t anyone around them for miles. Now a child just appeared in their midst? Clearly, the area wasn’t as safe as they had first thought, and that was concerning. He needed to be out there with the remaining betas of their small pack. It was his responsibility to protect them.
“Ava.”
He didn’t need to turn his head to know his mate had come out of their tent at his call. She always knew when his need was great, and never asked any unnecessary questions, but then that was just the way his mate was. Giving her a brief smile, he handed the child over. “I need to check the area with the others. Look after the child.”
Ava watched her mate leave, and then her warm brown eyes dropped to the child in her arms. The girl was so young, far too young to have blue eyes so haunted. Her heart immediately went out to the child, and her natural maternal instincts kicked in. “Hello, sweetheart, I’m Ava. Can you tell me your name?”
The little girl just stared back at her and then her small fingers threaded in Ava’s shoulder length hair, which was loose around her shoulders, and she was surprised when the hand fisted it tightly. “Mama… Mama.”
There was something in the child’s voice that sent a chill down Ava’s spine; a sense of foreboding coming over her that she couldn’t explain. She knew better than to ignore it though, and turned to the other two pack females who were watching her with intent expressions. “It might be best if you take the children onto the next rendezvous point. The Alpha should head towards there if she’s on her way back; otherwise we can meet you there in a day or so.”
Both Astrid and Frankie shook their heads before she’d even finished speaking. Ava wasn’t massively surprised by their reaction, it was understandable that they wouldn’t want to leave their mates.
“Terra can take the children,” Frankie countered, her tone brooking no argument.