Chapter 3: The Search Begins

Alexander stared at the lodge manager in disbelief.

"What do you mean she never arrived?"

The manager maintained a professional expression.

"Our records show every guest who entered the Northern Territories this week."

"There is no registration under Scarlett Evans."

Emma immediately shook her head.

"That's impossible."

"Sister Scarlett always follows her plans perfectly."

Victoria stepped forward calmly.

"Maybe she stopped somewhere to help an injured traveler."

"She's a healer after all."

Alexander nodded, trying to convince himself.

"Yes... that's probably it."

"She'll contact us soon."

But deep inside...

An unfamiliar sense of unease began to grow.

Scarlett wasn't careless.

If she changed her schedule, she always informed someone.

Always.

The first night passed without a single message.

Then another day.

Still nothing.

By the third day, Alexander finally opened their private mind-link.

"Scarlett."

"Where are you?"

No response.

"Stop being stubborn."

"Just tell me you're safe."

Silence.

For the first time since becoming mates...

Their bond felt strangely distant.

As if an invisible wall had formed between them.

Meanwhile...

Hundreds of miles away, Scarlett stood beside the crystal-blue waters of Moon Lake.

The peaceful healer sanctuary looked nothing like the noisy life she had left behind.

Morning mist floated above the lake while birds sang from towering pine trees.

For the first time in years...

No one was asking her to solve their problems.

No one expected her to sacrifice herself.

"Dr. Scarlett?"

An elderly healer approached with a warm smile.

"We're preparing herbal medicine for today's patients."

"Would you like to join us?"

Scarlett smiled genuinely.

"I'd love to."

That smile felt different.

It wasn't forced.

It wasn't hiding exhaustion.

It came naturally.

Back at the vacation lodge, Alexander's frustration grew.

"She can't ignore me forever," he muttered.

"Maybe her signal is weak," Sarah suggested.

"The mountains interfere with mind-links."

"Then why hasn't she reached the lodge?" Alexander asked.

No one answered.

Finally, he contacted the Shadow Pack checkpoint.

"This is Warrior Alexander of Silver Moon Pack."

"I'm checking on one of your recent travelers."

The border officer searched through several records.

"Name?"

"Scarlett Evans."

Several moments passed.

Then came the reply that made Alexander's blood run cold.

"No traveler by that name entered Shadow Pack territory."

"That's impossible," Alexander said immediately.

"She had an official permit."

"She never used it," the officer replied.

"According to our records... she never arrived at the border."

Alexander slowly lowered the communication crystal.

If Scarlett hadn't crossed Shadow Pack territory...

Then where had she gone?

Emma suddenly looked frightened.

"Brother..."

"Did Sister Scarlett leave us?"

"Don't be ridiculous," Alexander snapped.

"She's my mate."

"She wouldn't just disappear."

Yet even as he spoke...

He remembered something.

"If I disappeared one day... would you come looking for me?"

Those had been Scarlett's final words before they left.

At the time, he'd dismissed them as emotional nonsense.

Now...

They echoed painfully inside his mind.

Victoria gently placed a hand on his arm.

"Alexander... don't worry too much."

"Scarlett is independent."

"She probably just wanted some space."

For some reason...

Her words only irritated him.

He quietly pulled his arm away.

"Enough."

"This vacation is over."

"We're going home."

Sarah blinked in surprise.

"But we just arrived!"

"The reservations were expensive."

"I don't care."

"Scarlett is missing."

James frowned.

"She's an adult."

"Stop making such a big issue out of it."

"She'll return when she's finished throwing her tantrum."

Alexander looked at his father with cold eyes.

"If something happens to her..."

"None of us will ever forgive ourselves."

Back at Moon Lake Sanctuary...

Scarlett finished treating an elderly wolf suffering from chronic injuries.

"You're gifted," another healer praised.

"Our patients already trust you."

Scarlett looked toward the peaceful mountains.

"Maybe..."

"I've finally found the place where I belong."

She didn't miss the constant arguments.

She didn't miss the endless responsibilities.

Most surprisingly...

She didn't miss Alexander.

Three weeks passed.

Her days became filled with healing, hiking, and quiet evenings beside the lake.

For the first time in years...

She slept through the night without waking from stress.

Meanwhile, back in Silver Moon Pack...

Alexander searched every territory where Scarlett might have gone.

Each day without news made the knot in his chest grow tighter.

Then one evening...

A pack scout rushed into his office.

"Alpha Alexander!"

"We found evidence that Scarlett canceled her Shadow Pack permit before departure."

Alexander stood up so suddenly that his chair crashed onto the floor.

"Canceled it?"

"Yes."

"Which means..."

"She never intended to take the route you arranged."

Alexander's face slowly turned pale.

For the first time...

He realized something terrifying.

Scarlett hadn't gotten lost.

She hadn't been attacked.

She hadn't been delayed.

She had left...

Because she chose to.