My Lycan Mate of Suicide Forest

Graeme tried contacting everyone again on his way to the next destination—a small historic town in Wisconsin called Ripon—but the calls still weren't going through. Was it possible that the elders had done something to make them all unreachable while he was away?

It was still relatively early—just past 7pm—but he could feel his body trying to make him stop and rest. The nap at August's hadn't been enough, and now the wound to his chest was taking a lot of his energy to heal. This extra stress of not being able to get ahold of anyone was no doubt adding to his exhaustion.

He groaned and pulled off onto the side of the road. He needed to think clearly rather than riding this wave of revenge. This wasn't good. His thoughts were scattered all over the place, and when that happened, he tended to make stupid mistakes.

A good example of this was the possibility that had only just occurred to him that Eliade may be alerted to the vicious killings of two males from August's past. What if they thought it was her? The frustrated hunt for her that had proven unproductive so far would gain traction with an investigation into the killings, and who knows where that would lead them… quite possibly back to Hallows Forest.

Graeme didn't know how much sway Penelope had over the researchers at Eliade or if she would even attempt to keep them from pursuing another search of the Grimm. As much as he wanted to fully avenge his mate, it wasn't worth the risk.

It would probably be better if he just focused on returning home now. If he could get a flight tonight, he could sleep on the way and see her as early as tomorrow afternoon. The thought of being able to see August and feel her under his hands—to know in person that she was safe, to be able to reassure himself in that way—was enough to convince him that this was the best course of action.

First, he checked the GPS tracker on August's mom to make sure that she was still headed in the direction of her home. Now that he knew she had no recollection of her daughter, there would really be no reason for her to return to Maine.

Sure enough, the little red dot that represented her car was still headed on the path to Maiden Rock. Susan Smith would be returning to a house with no trace of her daughter.

How would that affect a person's mental state? You would think that, even in the absence of the memories, there would be something else there—an emptiness where her daughter had been carved away. A haunting of something that was missing.

Graeme threw a look over his shoulder at the box of August's belongings that he had gathered to take to her. That was set to be one of the most difficult conversations he was ever going to have. He had never been the bearer of news like that—only the recipient. And he would have to start by admitting that he hadn't told her the real reason Eliade had returned to the Grimm to search for her: because her mother had been there.

He raked a hand through his hair, imaging how he would even begin to explain that as well as all that he had heard from Penelope. His mate was part fae. In fact, all lycans were part fae! He still didn't know how to feel about it, so he couldn't even imagine how she would react. Perhaps it was best that at least this was something they would be learning and processing together—a new awareness of both of their identities.

Since he knew that August's mom was still safely returning home, Graeme searched for flights back to Maine. Just as he feared—there weren't any that night. It was too last minute to have been that lucky.

As he scrolled through the list of flight options that were available, it appeared that the earliest would be Friday morning. He groaned. It would be faster to drive. And he wouldn't be able to do that until he got some rest.

He pulled back onto the road to continue heading to Ripon. There would be a place there where where he could get something to eat, and then he would sleep in the car before the long drive.

Ripon was larger than August's hometown but still quite small. It had that quaint, historic feel with beautifully restored Italianate buildings in the downtown square. There was an energy here that wasn't present in Maiden Rock, as well. Small clusters of people were out visiting the eclectic shops and restaurants in the square where it was decorated for the upcoming Halloween holiday.

Graeme threw on a flannel jacket to cover the blood that had stained his t-shirt. The wound wasn't bleeding anymore, thankfully. He could feel the internal healing at work, which meant he really needed to eat to help that repair along. If he didn't have enough energy, the healing would continue to drain him, and he wanted to be at his full strength when he returned.

He spotted the pub that he knew August's second attacker worked at—a small place on the corner called Tap 28. It had a stone and ivy facade with seating out front. Even though it was a Wednesday, there were people seated outside with their food and drinks, enjoying the fall weather. It appeared to be a lively place.

Graeme exhaled deeply and averted his attention from it. He wouldn't go in there. He would return to Ripon some other time or catch up with this Drew Jackson further on down the road. The fact that Jackson and Maura didn't even remember August and what they had done to her now that Penelope had cast her enchantment sat uneasily with him as well.

"Can I get a large dark roast and these as well?" Graeme pushed a water, sandwich, chips, and fruit and nut container across the counter of a small coffee shop. This would be enough for now, and then he would stop for a better meal on the way home.. As much as he needed to rest, he wanted to at least get started on the journey back.