Free Control (Book Seven) (Fated Saga Fantasy Series) by Rachel Humphrey - D'aigle

checked out, first.
    They’d all learn what had happened on the ship, soon enough.
    Ivan made his way to the large meeting hall near the center of the village. It was the only space large enough to accommodate so many people.
    Ivan made sure Maria got inside and comfortable. She slid his coat off her shoulders and handed it back to him. He tried to tell her to keep it, but she refused.
    “It is freezing out there. It is nice and toasty inside.”
    He conceded and put it back on.
    “Thank you, Ivan,” she whispered softly. “I cannot express how relieving it is to see a familiar face.”
    “I understand how you feel,” he replied.
    “Maybe, after everything calms down, you could actually tell me a little bit more about what is going on.”
    “ Sure,” he answered, his throat feeling scratchy. He cleared it again, saying goodbye. He left with a quick gait, once again with the need of getting more air. This time, the feeling in his heart wasn’t pain, but nerves sending shivers down his spine.
    Meghan found him just minutes later.
    “Wow! Can you believe it? Billie, Noah Flummer.... Maria,” she added in a playful tone.
    “What exactly were you trying to do back there anyway?” he stammered.
    “Oh, yeah, sorry. That did not come out like I intended it to. I was just trying to put in a good word for you. You know. She just happens to be the one gal you like and you literally whisk her off a ship...”
    “That was your idea of helping?”
    “I said I know it didn’t come out right, geesh! I think I made up for it.”
    “Meghan, they just arrived here, out of thin air, in some part assisted by your brother; they are clearly battered and confused, and all you can think about is setting me up?”
    “Well, why not?”
    “I don’t know as I will ever understand how your brain works,” he grumbled. “It had to be you...” he added under his breath, walking back towards the ship.
    She shrugged, not seeing the big deal and followed, assuming they would return once the chaos had calmed.

    Chapter 3
     
    Colin stepped gently into the lighthouse so as not to awaken Catrina. He closed the door, suddenly unable to move. She was not on the sofa where he had left her. The blanket was in a heap on the floor.
    “Catrina,” he called out. She did not answer. “Perfect. I left. She woke up, probably freaked out because I wasn’t here.”
    He darted through the lighthouse calling out for her. She wasn’t in the kitchen or the dining area. He knocked on the women’s restroom door but there was no answer.
    “Maybe she went up to the top of the light?”
    He raced up the spiral staircase two steps at a time, expecting to see her up there, searching for him. But it was empty. His heart skipped a few beats.
    “Catrina,” he shouted mo re forcefully, racing back down the stairs.
    She was not there. She was nowhere.
    He stepped back into the room where he had left her sleeping.
    “I shouldn’t have left her. I knew it was a bad idea...” he trailed off, horror reaching into every fiber of his being. He felt like a wrecking ball had hit him straight in the gut and thought he might be sick.
    He had mad e a terrible mistake. An error beyond forgiving.
    In his hurry to save Billie and the ship, he had forgotten to leave Catrina cloaked. He had taken the protection cloak wit h him, leaving her vulnerable and easy to find.
    Someone must have traced the magic and taken her.
    His head swam with too many equally terrifying thoughts.
    “What have I done?” he called out in a panic. “I have to find her.”
    His heart thumped and his thoughts strummed at full pace, threatening to overwhelm him. He struggled to catch his breath, each one coming out harder and more ragged. He turned in circles, unsure of where to start his search.
    He fell over, his legs faltering, and he half walked, half crawled, out of the lighthouse back onto the beach.
    He needed to keep control. This was not the time to lose it. He stood up but almost fell