"Samara, is the boy not yet home?"
Samara lifted her gaze away from the beef stew that she was cooking and looked at Alpine who had asked the same question for the nth time.
"No. Gray isn't home yet. I know it's strange. He never likes those events to stay late and—-"
"It's not just staying out for the night. I don't like what my guts are telling me. The boy is in danger and I want you to find him."
Samara looked at Alpine who was looking as worried as a father would to his son. Her chest heaved with heavy breath and said nothing. But her chest was heavy with gratitude. It had been years since she chose to stay with a young Alpine. And in those years that they were together, she never saw him worried about another being until his ward came into their lives. Gray had changed him. And she was not complaining, well until today.
Because Alpine had been peeking in the kitchen, disturbing her in her cooking, to ask the same question over and over.
"Do you want me to go and ask someone to call Lucas's boy? He was the one who was with Gray."
Alpine did not answer but he looked out and sniffed the air outside the kitchen window.
"No need. I'm going out to look for him."
Samara shook her head a little. "Don't you think you're worrying too much? Gray is a teenager. He could just be with the other kids."
"Yes, he could be. However, Gray isn't like the other kids."
Samara nodded in agreement. Gray would not be with other kids his age unless it was necessary or he was forced to be, like attending the Turning event last night.
"I'm coming with you."
Alpine released a low growl. "No. I'm just going to have a quick run."
"You know the reason why I'm coming with you even if you don't like it. And if you don't bring me with you, I'll have someone take me and follow you."
Alpine looked at him with his hooded eyes and when he saw that she had turned off the stove, he breathed a resigned breath and said.
"I'll wait for you at the back of the house," he said, walking out of the kitchen.
Samara hurried to her bedroom to put on some appropriate clothes and take some of her essentials. She was not a wolf-like Alpine and the other residents of Freedom Land.
But she was the first one to come live with Alpine in this place and the others who came after knew who she was but said nothing. Most probably because of Alpine.
However, it did not mean that there was no problem with her being a witch and living with a wolf. They were an odd pairing. One that was being frowned upon.
Samara shook her head. She felt responsible for Alpine when she first saw him as a young boy.
'I promise to stay with him,' she thought to herself as she grabbed the bag of her herbs and quickly put it inside her coat, and strode out of her bedroom.
She was familiar with Alpine being impatient. He would leave her if she would not hurry.
When she stepped out of the back door, Alpine had already changed into his wolf form, ready to go.
Samara chuckled inwardly. She knew that if she did not get out, he would have left without her.
"I grabbed something that we would need on this trip."
Alpine stared at her as if he was trying to tell her his displeasure.
Samara ignored him and just climbed on his back, positioned herself comfortably, and prepared for the speed that Alpine would be doing.
She had no time to gather her thoughts for they were already speeding along the trees, taking a path that she remembered. The vegetation was thicker but some landmarks were still the same.
Since Alpine took Gray under his care, she no longer joined him in his usual run. It was better for him and Gray as well to go together. Wolves thrive in togetherness just like witches, she thought bitterly for she left her own coven to live a life that was not what was expected of her.
With the thought of her coven, she could not help but wonder where they were now. Their coven was a gypsy one. In one of their moves, they ended up in the Holy ground and that was where she met Alpine first. Something happened that made her stay behind and when her coven asked her to come back, she no longer had the heart to leave Alpine on his own.
In the end, her coven wasn't happy but they could not do anything because of some promises that were exchanged. And after spending so many years with Alpine, she was glad that she was the one who was chosen to stay behind.
Her thoughts, wandering in the past were halted when Alpine stopped and lowered down for her to get off his back. She quickly jumped out of his back and scanned the surrounding area.
There was no indication that Gray was here or in the nearby area based on Alpine's reaction when he sniffed the air, searching for Gray's scent.
"The Wolf's head. Something is there."
She wasn't even finished with her sentence but Alpine already bolted toward the direction of Wolf's head.
It was a few meters down from where Alpine left her and the area was rocky and right off the cliff, hence, she decided to just stay where she was and checked the Holy ground to know if the energy of the ground was disturbed.
She was burning some herbs and murmuring some incantations when she heard Alpine howl. She had been in his company for a long time and she knew that he was calling the wolves around the area.
She just finished with her incantations when Alpine returned in his human form.
"Tell me what went wrong in this place for Gray to be anxious and in rage."
"So it was him?" She tilted her head and looked up at Alpine. When she saw the danger in his eyes, she realized that things were not just as she expected. It was worse than what she initially thought.