That she wasn't probably meant we were all panicking over nothing.
No, that dratted inner voice whispered, you're not.
I crossed my arms and began to pace. Several minutes crawled by, ratcheting up my tension and frustration. When footsteps echoed in the hall outside, I swung around and all but ran out—and almost collided with Ilianna's mom in the process. Only quick reactions on her part kept us both upright.
"Risa," she said, her soft tones holding a hint of surprise and perhaps amusement. "This is not a place where speed is required."
I took a deep breath and tried to calm down. "I know, and I'm sorry."
She nodded. Ilianna had inherited her palomino coloring and her shifting abilities from her dad, as Zaira was human. But Ilianna had the same powerful green eyes as her mom and right now they'd narrowed considerably. "What can I help you with?"
"Two things." I hesitated, but there was no easy way to say it, so I just came straight out with it. "First off, we think something has happened to Ilianna."
Zaira frowned. "Mirri called earlier looking for her, but I didn't get the impression that she was in any way worried."
Then Mirri was better at containing her concern than I was. "I know. But Ilianna hasn't turned up for her date with Carwyn, and we can't get her on the phone."
The older woman smiled, although there was a slight edge of tension emanating from her now. "Well, given she isn't too pleased about our matchmaking efforts, her standing him up again is not entirely surprising."
I was shaking my head before she'd even finished. "Not this time. Mirri said she was determined to talk to him about the match."
"Talk him out of it, you mean," she said. But the tension in her ratcheted up several more notches. She studied me for a moment, then abruptly turned and walked away.
"Come along, child," she said over her shoulder, when I didn't immediately follow.
I hurriedly caught up. "I was hoping you could do a scrying or location spell for her."
"A location spell won't work." She opened a door and walked into another dark hall. "She learned to pert such spells at a very early age."