Derek’s POV
I drove to the place where Angel and the driver were found.
Seeing me come, Francis got out of the car. This time, he looked completely different from the last time I saw him. He was even taller and more muscular than I was.
He walked over and patted me on the shoulder.
“They are in the car. The driver is still unconscious and Angel just woke up. She got many bruises. But I checked them and found no serious injuries,” Francis said meaningfully and gestured to the car.
I immediately understood his meaning and got in the car with Francis.
I saw the necklace at first sight. I chose it from numerous necklaces and was very satisfied with it. However, now the dazzling diamond could only remind me how stupid I was. Erika must have planned for it for a long time. Now I understood why she was so interested in Blood Day and why we got along so well in the past week. And I thought of how she insisted on taking a rest in her bedroom after being “poisoned”. I hadn’t figured out how she managed to escape after taking wolfsbane. Was she immune from it? Or could it be that she didn’t take it at all and she was just acting? She was such a good actress and made me look like an idiot. The only piece of good news was that I didn’t have to worry if she could survive tonight. I had been worried about her for the whole night and now it turned out that I was a complete joke. Probably she already popped a champaign and celebrated her successful escape somewhere.
I picked up the necklace, clenched my fist, opened the car window, and threw it outside the car without hesitation. Expensive and dazzling as it was, Erika didn’t want it at all and only regarded it as a burden. I would rather throw it away.
Angel stole a glance at me and then averted her gaze quickly. Now it was time to interrogate her. I needed to know what role she played in Erika’s escape plan.
“Where is Erika?” I asked her with a cold and severe tone that I would use when I wanted to project myself as a formidable Alpha.
“I … I don’t know.” Angel’s voice trembled and her eyes flashed.
“Look me in the eye. I don’t need a dishonest warrior. Tell me everything that happened. If you dare to leave out any detail, I’ll reconsider your qualification as a warrior.” I raised my chin high and asked with my arms crossed in front of my chest.
Francis cleared his throat and said, “She’s just a kid.” Then he turned to Angel, “Don’t worry, tell him everything you know.”
She nodded and said, “Tonight, when the car drove to the lake, Luna said that she wanted to take a walk because she felt sick. So I walked out with her. But she began to attack me while I was off guard. She tried to knock me out but I was still conscious and I wanted to know what she wanted to do…” she didn’t finish until five minutes later.
“How did she get the wolfsbane?” I asked. I still had some questions.
“What? I don’t know. I had no idea of her plan.” Angel said in confusion.
I studied her face carefully. She wasn’t lying. So another guy was also involved. She must have been contacting other guys without letting me know.
After a while, I asked the question to which I wanted to know the answer the most. “Did she mention why she escaped?”
“She said that she wanted to be a fighter.” She murmured.
That was not a surprising answer. I thought that she was willing to give up being a fighter for me. Turned out it was just my wishful thinking. I wondered whether there was anything more important than being a fighter.
I looked up at Angel and said severely, “You could have done better. She took wolfsbane and still escaped. I have a good reason to doubt that you also played a role in helping her escape. After Blood Day, go to the prison and get punished.”
“Yes.” She nodded.
“Wait,” Francis said tentatively.
I looked at him in confusion.
“A piece of advice, she could be of big use in the search for Erika with her gift. Now your guards aren’t available. We need her.” Francis suggested.
I shot him a glance. I knew what he meant. He didn’t want Angel to get punished.
“OK.” I agreed.
“So where should I search for her? Is there a search area?” he asked.
“Not far away from the lake is a forest which she is very familiar with. Search the whole forest. She’s still in the forest if no one helps her, which I’m not sure. She’s in a long white dress with a red cloak if she doesn’t change her clothes.”
“Can’t you feel her?”
“It’s very vague. I think it was because of wolfsbane. I tried to mind-link her but she blocked me.”
“OK. I’ll assemble a group of warriors to search for her. I’ll leave some warriors to you.”
“Thank you.” Francis went out and got his men for me. I stood outside the car and waited.
So she still wanted to be a fighter. I thought mockingly. I had to admit that she was a good actress. She made everyone believe that she wanted to be a Luna while the fact was that she hated being a Luna. Now a feeling of helplessness overcame me. I had been through hardships but I never felt helpless. For the last two times when she escaped, I was sure that she wouldn’t succeed. I knew that she needed a way to get that escape thing out of her system, so I allowed her to escape. But this time, I seriously didn’t know where she was or if I could find her again.
I looked into the distance blankly. The moon couldn’t be seen as the snow became heavier. At this moment, a sudden pain seized me and I found it hard to breathe. I took deep breaths and put my hand on the roof of the car to support myself with a frown. The pain didn’t disappear until minutes later. I heaved a sigh of relief. Although the pain was gone, I could still feel a hole in my heart and it was the loss of my mate.