The Ivory Queen
Chapter 82

***Aurora’s POV***

As I dance with Diego, I can’t help but think of Oliver. I miss his clumsy steps. I look out in search of him but he’s nowhere to be found.

From the the corner of my eye, I catch a glimpse of an owl flying overhead and get a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach.

Something is wrong.

“Oliver?” I mind link him.

No response.

I try a few more times but I can’t seem to get through to him.

“Hey what’s wrong?” Diego asks, looking at me with concern.

“I can’t find Oliver,” I reply, still searching for Oliver in the sea of faces. “Sorry, but I need to find him.”

“No worries, I’ll help you look.”

We walk off the dance floor and towards my table but find it empty. I mind-link Evan.

“Have you seen Oliver?” I ask. I get a slurred response and I know Evan is too drunk to know where he is. I ask Rosalie and Carter but it seems they’re just as clueless.

I start to panic.

“Aurora, relax. I’m sure he probably wondered off to bed,” Javier tries to comfort me as he walks up to my table. “We’ll find him.”

Celina stumbles over and wraps her arms around me. “Hey, what’s wrong? I can sense your worry.”

She reeks of alcohol and her face looks flushed. I place my hands on her face and quickly heal her drunken stupor before explaining my concern. Now sober, she gives me a ray of hope.

“He went back to the house to get you some flats. He thought you’d want a break from your heels,” she replies, completely ignoring Javier’s presence.

Relief washes over me and I run into the house, calling his name. Much to my dismay, I get no response. I search our room and his office and come up empty. I’m on the verge of tears as I run down stairs to the entertainment room when I crash full force into Adeline.

“Hey!” She g****s as she spills her coffee onto her dress, still pretty drunk. “I was drinking that!”

“Have you seen Oliver?” I ask, looking around the room and finding it empty.

She bows half-heartedly before answering. “He was with you, wasn’t he?” She scoffs and I glare at her. “No I haven’t seen him. Simone has been taking caring of me all night…” Her voice goes quiet and she stares at her shoes, clenching her jaw and sighing.

I take a good look at her and evaluate her state. Her hair is disheveled and her mascara is running down her cheeks. She looks crushed and I pity her. She’s devastated at losing Oliver and the title to me.

“Are you alright?” I ask her and she rolls her eyes and scoffs.

“I don’t need your pity. I’ll be fine,” she slurs, forcing a smile and picking up her cup from the floor before turning on her heel and plopping herself down on a couch.

Just then, Simone walks in carrying a glass of water and aspirin. Sensing my presence, Simone bows.

“Have you seen Oliver?” I ask timidly as she approaches.

“No, Luna I haven’t. I’ve been too busy taking care of Adeline,” she replies coldly.

I excuse myself and run out to kitchen, dining room, and home theater. He’s no where to be found.

I open a vortex to the treehouse and search it. He’s not there. I open another vortex to the garden and find it empty. When I return to the house, I’m in full panic mode.

“Has anyone seen Oliver?” I mind-link the party.

I get several responses but no one seems to know where Oliver is. It’s like the earth swallowed him, leaving now trace of his existence.

Where is my mate?

I decide to hold an emergency meeting, calling my command line, Celina, Mia and Javier, as well as the Allies to the living room.

“We’ll find him, Luna,” Carter reassures.

“I want a list of everyone who came here from the outside, guests, workers etc. No one leaves until everyone is accounted for,” I demand and Carter begins barking orders. “And where is Evan?”

“Found him!” William calls out as he drags Evan into the living room. “He’s had a lot to drink, though,” he g****s.

Oh Evan… I sigh. I knew there was something bothering you but damn it. You have the worst timing!

“If it’s not too much trouble, could you please take him to his room?”

He nods and carries Evan upstairs. I feel like throwing up, the uneasiness building up in my stomach.

“The gate guards have reported that no one has come in or out in the past hour and the border guards report no suspicious activity,” Rosalie sighs. “So he could still be on River Moon territory.”

“Who was he last with?” Patrick asks.

“Us,” Celina responds, pointing to her and Mia. “We were watching the dance floor and he said he was going to get Aurora some flats. That’s the last I saw him.”

“Was anyone in the house who could have seen what happened?” Jonathan asks.

“We were in here,” Simone storms in. “I was taking care of Adeline but she and I saw nothing. We didn’t even hear him come in. Are you sure they aren’t lying?” She accuses Celina and Mia, making them growl in response. Simone turns to me, fuming with anger. “And you! I told you to take care of my son! What happened? Where the hell were you that you lost him?” She snaps, her voice trembling near the end. Her eyes fog over as she mind-links someone.

Enraged by her accusations, Reyna takes control.

“On your knees, Simone,” Reyna commands.

Simone stiffens but obeys the command, a look of shock on her face.

“Who am I?” Reyna asks in a thundering voice, causing Simone to cast her gaze down to my feet.

“You are my Luna,” Simone squeaks.

“And who are you?”

A few angry tears spill down her cheeks as she trembles in rage. “I am a member of this pack,” she spits through gritted teeth.

“Then remember your place and never speak to me like that again,” Reyna snaps before giving me back control.

Simone scrambles to her feet and wipes her tears.

Words could it describe how shitty I feel right now. I did not enjoy doing that.

Did you have to humiliate her? I ask Reyna.

Lesson number one of being a Royal. You do not let people disrespect you or your family, Reyna responds coolly. You are kind and gentle by nature which is good for keeping your subjects loyal to you. But kindness is not enough to lead. You must be firm and let everyone know where you stand. You cannot let someone disrespect you in any way or it gives people the idea that you are not worthy to respect and lead. I did not humiliate her. She humiliated herself by speaking to us that way.

A few more tears tug at Simone’s eyes, reminding me of the gravity of the situation. David bursts through the door and runs to his mates side, wrapping her up in hug. She pushes away from him and looks furiously at me, pain and hatred in her gaze before she storms out of the room.

“What’s going on?” David asks, staring at the alphas in the room.

“Oliver is missing,” Wesley informs him. “He came inside to get some shoes but no one has seen him since.”

He face darkens and he turns to look at me, pain lingering in his eyes. “My son….” he mutters.

“I’m sorry,” I mumble, my voice laced with guilt. “I should have-“

“Don’t play that game, Aurora. You won’t win,” Wesley warns.

“We need to figure out what happened right before he disappeared. Was he acting strange before he vanished?” Jonathan asks.

I shake my head. “He was a little drunk and he said he was tired, but nothing out of the ordinary,” I sigh.

Carter returns with the list of guests and workers Oliver hired for the party. After about an hour of work, everyone at the party is accounted for.

“Oliver was thorough when he hired the workers for the party. Everyone had to pass a background check and wear a badge to be on the property. Only certain workers were allowed in or out of the house,” Carter explains.

“I want the workers with access to the house brought in immediately,” I order and he collects them all in the kitchen.

One by one, all 15 workers are questioned by myself and Carter but we come up empty. Everyone was doing their job and the guards corroborate their stories. It seems Oliver disappeared into thin air without a trace.

Back in the living room, the Alphas organize a search party to find him.

“We’re going to increase security and send a search party out for him,” Carter says, attempting to soothe me as we settle back in the living room. “I promise, I will do everything in my power to bring him back to you, Luna.”

“I want to join the search party,” I reply, getting up from my seat. “I can’t sit here idly while my mate is goddess knows where.”

“You will do no such thing,” Celina says, pulling me back. “You need to rest, I know you are trying to be strong but you need to give yourself some time to process everything. You’ll burn yourself out.”

Lesson Two, Reyna snarls. We don’t take orders from anyone. We give them.

“If it were me, Oliver would be on the front lines searching for me. You can’t ask me stay here and just wait for news!” I snap, yanking myself free from her grasp.

Before anyone can try to stop me, I bolt out of the house at the speed of light and shift. I walk to towards the search team gathering outside and they bow before me. Carter and the allies come out to stop me but no one dares to question me in my wolf form and I begin handing out orders

“We’ll divide up the territory into four teams with Team A searching the Northern border. Pay special attention to the river. Carter and David will lead you. Team B, I want you to search the Western Borders along Lluvia Blanca and Maple Moon. You will be led by Javier and Mia. To the East, Alpha Wesley will lead Team C in the search. I will lead Team D to the south near the Desert Sky borders. Each team will also search the tunnel system in their respective areas. Is everyone clear on what we are doing?” I ask.

“Yes Luna,” my pack responds and off the soldiers go.

I take my team down south, sprinting at full speed until I reach my destination. We search every crevice, tree, rock formation and tunnel in our vicinity and my heart shatters when my team reports back with nothing. I have not shed a single tear, trying to stay strong for my pack, but with every passing minute, it’s becoming harder to hold back my emotions.

I muster up the last bit of energy I have left and give our section one last run through at the speed of light. Nothing.

I return to my men, my legs shaking from the use of power. It feels like my knees are about to give out and I lean up against a tree to catch my breath. For a few minutes, I say nothing, trying to collect some courage to face my team as they wait for orders. I close my eyes and listen to the sound of my heart pounding in my chest.

“Luna, do you want us to search again?” William asks after several minutes of my silence. I offer a simple nod and William sends half the team to search again while the remaining wolves stay with me. “Luna, w-would you like us to take you home?” he asks. I don’t respond. “Luna?”

I can’t respond. I might break down if I say a word, so I just look up at the moon, desperately trying to hold back my unshed tears.

“You can cry if you want…” He whispers. “You can scream, you can shout… you don’t have to hold it in…”

I turn to face him and he and the others lower their gaze in respect.

“We’re here for you, Luna. Whatever you need,” he says.

I knew I could not cry, for if I did, I would never stop. So I do the only thing I knew I could do. I begin to howl. A howl so powerful and full of pain, my own wolves whimper and cry at its sorrowful tune. I howl in hopes that Oliver hears my song and somehow knows that I’m searching for him. I will not give up until I find him.

We return to the pack house in the early hours of the morning, exhausted and defeated at having found nothing, not one single clue as to Oliver’s whereabouts. I thank Patrick, Wesley and Jonathan for their help, sending them home. My wolves are eager to keep searching but I send them home as well to get some well-deserved rest.

“We’ll continue the search later in the morning,” Carter announces. “Right now, you just need to get some rest,” he says ushering me to my room.

“I’m not tired,” I mumble. “I think I’m going to keep searching. Maybe we missed a clue and it’s best if I search-“

“Aurora, that’s enough! You need to rest. Oliver wouldn’t want this for you. He’d want you to rest.”

I’m about to protest when I feel Celina’s fingers wrap around my temples from behind me. “I’m sorry, Aurora, but you need to take a break,” she whispers as she begins to use her powers to soothe my fears.

“No…” I whimper as the calm settles in my mind and I begin to grow tired.

Mia stands in front of me, her eyes glowing gold. “Don’t worry, Aurora. You’re going to have a beautiful dream tonight. I will make sure of it. Just go to sleep,” she whisper as I feel myself drift off, the house turning into a warm sunny beach.

As I look around, I see a cave sitting in the distance. Oliver is standing there waiting for me to explore it with him.

I don’t know how long I have in this dream world but I decide to cherish every second of it. Hand in hand, Oliver and I explore the cave. On our expedition, we collect seashells and sea glass, make sandcastles, swim into each other’s arms, and steal k****s under the sun. He sings to me with his beautiful husky voice while I dance on the shore and he pulls me close when the waves get too big. I am so happy.