Chapter 355

355 – Growing Distant

Madeline:

“Let’s look for Gina. Once we find her, we can start training to keep his wolf alive, at least enough so he is still considered a werewolf and not sent to the human world,” Ron explained, and I gave him a nod.

The rest of the day was the same. We wandered around looking for Gina.

Each time the drone showed nothing, the warriors returned empty–handed, and there was no news, I began to feel my heart break little by little, and then we returned to the cabin, defeated and alone.

“It is okay. You can start fresh tomorrow.” Yuvonne sat beside me on the couch, gently rubbing my arm.

I had returned and taken a shower, but I had not been able to eat anything. I took care of my children and then put them to bed. I insisted on doing it tonight. And then there was Baxter. He had been staying with Ron, asking him about the progress.

“I do not know, Yuvonne. I am afraid,” I uttered, running my hand through my hair. When I ran my hand down face again, I stopped, resting it against my forehead.

“No, I do not believe anything happened to her. You do not need to be afraid. She is fine. Trust me,” Yuvonne replied.

Then she pulled her hands back, as if something was on her mind. I removed my hand from my forehead and turned to look at her.

my

“It does not make any sense, though. There was always a myth, but there was never a witness to the monster. Yet the monster is real. How was there never a witness? Somebody must have seen it to start that rumor, right?” Yuvonne questioned.

Ron and Baxter, who were standing nearby discussing the map on the table, suddenly straightened and turned to look at her. Her question made sense, but it did not help in finding Gina.

“Yeah, but you will not. It changes nothing. My daughter is gone.” I paused, hunching down to rest my elbows on my thighs, bending forward to hold my face in my hands.

“Yeah, but whoever witnessed the monster must have survived to tell the rumor. Maybe if we can find that person, we can figure out how to escape the monster, how to defeat it,” she mumbled. Her words made me lower my hands and look at her face in silence.

“Or maybe we can find out where it stays, because the monster cannot stay in the clouds. It comes from the sky, but that just means it is flying around. That is its way of moving p>

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As she added that, I snapped my head toward Ron, and we shared eye contact.

“Right. If we can find the monster’s home, maybe we can find Gina.” I hesitated before standing up from the couch, feeling a surge of energy.

“Exactly. And for that, we need to find that witness. I mean, track down who started the rumor first,” Yuvonne added. Almost instantly, I felt like there might be hope. 1

“I will spread the word for anyone to come forward and tell us if they know anything about the person who witnessed the monster or who started the rumor,” Ron remarked, snapping his fingers as he grabbed his phone and hurried toward the door to make a call.

Just as he reached the door, Yuvonne stood up from the couch.

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Growing ext

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“Ron, it is pretty dark outside. Why do we not stay here tonight p>

Her words made us look at Ron. He seemed to understand the fear the monster had planted in all of us.

“Come on, Yuvonne. I am with you. You do not need to be afraid. We will go home, make a plan, talk it through, and come back in the morning to let them know what we are going to do next. Remember, my grandmother is home alone,” Ron explained.

The confidence in his voice made Yuvonne nod before stepping toward him.

The moment they left the cabin, I glanced at Baxter and noticed him staring off into space. I could not tell what he was thinking. He snapped out of it, looked down, and then turned his attention back to the map.

“What do you think we should do?” I asked, stepping closer and placing my hand on his shoulder.

“My opinion does not matter. You guys are already handling it. I will take care of the children,” he replied. There was sadness in his voice as he gently removed my hand from his shoulder and wandered back into the room. 2

I felt like, somewhere along the way, I had upset him. Maybe it was because I did not involve him in the search, but he needed to understand that I never asked him to stay behind.

He suggested it, and I was afraid he would push himself too far. His wounds were still not healed. He needed rest.

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