Chapter 49

KAI

Panic clawed at my chest the moment I stepped into Alina’s room and saw it empty. She wasn’t here. The bed was neatly made, her things were still scattered around the room, but she was gone. My mind raced as I stood frozen in the doorway, my heart hammering in my chest. She couldn’t have just vanished. Could she? I did not want to the consider the other option of it. That she was not here, and she had left a week ago which meant that she had succumbed to whatever fate that waited her out of the pack already.

“Alina?” I called out, even though I knew it was useless. The room was empty, silent.

Without wasting another second, I tore through the palace, checking every room, every hallway, every nook and cranny. Nothing. She wasn’t anywhere. My steps quickened, my breathing growing ragged as I searched everywhere for her, my mind whirling with all the possibilities of where she could be. I knew she had a bond with my sisters now. I was hoping that I was going to find her here, but I