The Alpha's Fated Outcast Rise Of The Moonsinger novel Chapter 417

Clarissa

He moved to the window and looked out. "Could be a network issue. Sometimes remote areas have spotty coverage."

But even as he said it, I could tell he didn't believe it any more than I did. I began pacing again, my wolf's restlessness becoming almost unbearable. Every instinct I had was screaming that my sister was in danger, and I was hundreds of miles away, helpless to do anything about it.

"I should call Miriam," I said suddenly. "She's with them, right? If something happened to Lyla and Ramsey, maybe I could reach her."

But I realised I didn't have Miriam's direct number. All my communication had been through Lyla or Ramsey. I tried calling Ramsey's number, but it just rang endlessly with no answer.

"This is insane," I muttered, sinking into my chair. "How can an entire group of people just become unreachable?"

Jeremy checked his watch. "It's almost 10 pm. Maybe we should wait until—"

"No," I interrupted. "Jeremy, I can't explain it, but every fibre of my being is telling me that Lyla is in immediate danger. The conversation with Ramsey felt wrong from the first word he spoke."

"You think someone else was pretending to be Ramsey?"

"I think we need to consider that possibility," Jeremy replied. "Shape-shifters exist, and magic exists among humans. If someone wanted to isolate Lyla or manipulate the situation..."

I felt sick. "But Lyla handed him the phone herself. She would know if it wasn't really Ramsey."

"Would she? If she was waking up, if she was focused on your problems, if whoever was impersonating him was good enough..." Jeremy trailed off, but the implication was clear.

I tried calling Lyla again, but still nothing. The number that had connected me to my sister for years was now completely dead.

"Jeremy, I can't just sit here," I said, standing up so quickly that my chair rolled backwards and hit the wall. "If Lyla's in danger, if someone's pretending to be Ramsey, if they're all compromised somehow..."

"What can we do from here?" Jeremy asked practically. "We don't even know exactly where they are in the human world."

"I have to try something," I insisted. "There has to be someone I can reach. Some way to verify if they're safe."

I began pacing again, my mind racing through possibilities. Could I contact White Moon Pack directly? Now that Ramsey wasn't around, his Beta… what was his name again?- would be taking care of things on that front. I'm sure he would know where they were in the human world.

I'll give it a few hours before reaching out. I didn't want to raise a false alarm.

The minutes ticked by with agonising slowness. 4:15 am. 4:30 am. 4:45 am. I tried Lyla's number every few minutes, but the result was always the same. Nothing.

"This is driving me crazy," I muttered, running my hands through my hair. "Jeremy, what if they're hurt? What if they need help and can't call for it?"

"Clarissa, you need to try to stay calm," Jeremy said, though he was as worried as I was. "Stress isn't going to help anyone."

"Stay calm?" I laughed, but there was no humour in it. "My sister is six months pregnant with twins, and she's disappeared along with everyone who was supposed to be protecting her. How exactly am I supposed to stay calm?"

I hesitated, my finger hovering over the answer button. After several hours of trying desperately to reach my sister, a call from an unknown number felt suspicious. But it could also be precisely what I'd been hoping for – someone calling with information about Lyla.

"Should I answer it?" I asked Jeremy.

"It might be them," he said. "Maybe they had to switch phones for some reason."

The phone continued ringing insistently. Finally, unable to bear the uncertainty any longer, I pressed the answer button.

"Hello?" I said cautiously.

"Thank goodness you picked up, Clarissa."

The voice was male and sounded familiar.

"Who is this?" I demanded, even though I was pretty sure I knew the answer.

"It's me, Ramsey," the voice said, and I could hear what sounded like relief. "Clarissa, I think Lyla's in danger."

My blood ran cold. "What do you mean she's in danger? Where are you calling from? Why is this number different?"

"We were attacked, or should I say kidnapped. I'm here with Miriam and other people. They took us while we were sleepin,g and seeing that Lyla is not here, I am scared of thinking what might be happening. I can't reach her. I need your help."