73

Roman POV

My heart pounded in my chest, the weight of anxiety and anger pressing down on me like a suffocating cloak. The news of Emily's disappearance had hit me like a thunderbolt, shattering any semblance of calm I had managed to maintain. The mere thought of her being in the clutches of that conniving Sebastian ignited a fire within me – a fire that threatened to consume everything in its path.

As Alpha, I had always prided myself on my ability to protect my pack, to keep those under my care safe from harm. Yet, here I was, faced with the grim reality that I hadn't been able to shield the woman I loved from the malevolent schemes of our rival. Every fiber of my being screamed with frustration, the helplessness of the situation gnawing at my very core.

I tried reaching out to Emily through our mindlink, desperately hoping for a glimmer of connection, a whisper of her presence. But it was as if that link had been severed, leaving me feeling hollow and incomplete. The emptiness I