A Shifter's Curse by Raven Steele (books to read fiction .txt) 📕

on Ryder’s forehead told me he was getting nervous too.

Maera dropped to the second row, taking her time to interrogate the pack by asking the most ridiculous questions. She was enjoying herself way too much. Silas, who had been unable to hold still in the front, had joined her. He paced next to her, eyeing her victims just as intensely. His hand, the one not holding his cane, opened and closed. He looked like he was just itching to beat someone. He reminded me of the human downstairs--waiting for the next hit.

They continued down the line but things were moving faster now, spurred on by Silas’ impatience. What the hell was I going to do?

I was going to have to confess. Wasn’t I?

They were almost to me. Maera approached Samantha, and eyed her curiously. She touched Samantha’s face and ran a thumb across her lips.

Samantha growled. "Step back, bitch."

Maera chuckled. "I like this one."

"But is she keeping secrets?" Silas snapped. "We don't have time for your eclectic tastes."

"She keeps secrets, like the rest of them, but none that hurt the pack."

She stepped in front of me and stared into my eyes. I summoned my powerful wolf to mentally guard my consciousness, still undecided what I was going to do about Ryder.

Maera’s power came on strong, almost too strong. My teeth expanded into sharp points, and my fingernails began to tingle, the way they always did before they snapped into sharp claws.

She laughed in surprise. "This one is strong."

Silas stepped close to me and sniffed. "You smell terrible."

“A problem I'm aware of."

A few of the shifters chuckled around me. I noticed Luke shuffling near Dominic, still staring intently at his stupid phone, but his head was tipped to the side, like he was listening for something. Disappointment washed over me again at his lack of concern. I quickly scolded myself. I didn’t care about Luke.

Without warning, Maera grabbed my arms, her nails digging into my flesh. "Hold still. This might hurt."

A sharp pain, like the tip of a frozen needle, stabbed at my mind just behind my eyes. I sucked in a breath, but held my iron-clad mental grip. I couldn’t let her pass. Silas continued to sniff me, his eyes traveling down my body. This worried me more than Maera who continued to pry into my brain.

"Let me in, viper," she cooed.

This bitch wasn't going to stop if I didn't give her something. My mind rolled through different memories, the least possible offending one.

She tapped my forehead. "It's like a bank vault in here. We may have to do something different with this one. I’d love to break her down. I bet her mind is chock full of beautiful secrets.”

"Move on," Dominic ordered from the front. “We’ll deal with her later.”

Luke was staring at me now, his phone still in his hand, but his lips were open, just a little bit. Like he was surprised.

Ignoring him, I called up to Dominic. “There’s nothing to deal with, Sir. I just don’t like witchy fingers banging my brain. Makes me feel sleazy.”

Silas’ eyes bore into mine. “When we’re finished, don’t leave. We will question you further later.”

Ryder glanced at me nervously, just as they stepped in front of him. I ground my teeth. There’s no way he would be able to withstand her powers. I glanced across the row at my uncle. It was the same with him. They’d be tortured. Probably killed. I swallowed, nearly choking on the lump lodged in my throat.

The sun had long set, and my shadow was gone, abandoning me to the darkness. It only took me a second to make my decision. I couldn’t let Ryder or my uncle take the fall. It was my revenge that had brought us here.

I turned toward Silas. “Stop, I—”

"Hey, boss!" Luke called out. Dominic looked back at him. Silas and Maera also paused.

He held up his phone. “I just got a message from Brenda. She said two Greybacks just walked into her restaurant. What do you want me to do?"

My eyebrows lifted in surprise. What the hell were Greybacks doing in town? Jackson and I had a deal.

Dominic didn’t hesitate. “I want them captured and questioned.” He looked over the pack. “I want ten men to leave right now. As for the rest of you, stay close. If we find the Greybacks’ location, we fight them tonight.”

I inhaled a shaky breath at how close I had come to confessing. I eyed Luke. His timing was highly suspicious. Silas called out several names to go with him. I was one of them. Dominic also ordered Fire Ridge’s security team to go with him, which included Luke, along with his own personal bodyguards.

When I walked past Silas, he grabbed my arm.

“I want you close to me,” he breathed, his breath smelling of garlic and green olives.

My stomach tightened, and I resisted the urge to yank free from his grip. He kept a hold on my arm, practically dragging me to his SUV. He opened the door to the driver’s seat and waved me inside.

I guess I was driving.

Samantha, Jerry, and Maera crowded into the back seat while Silas slid into the passenger seat.

“Drive to Antonio’s on Fifth Street,” Silas barked, his hands gripping the dash. I thought he might be anxious for a fight with the Greybacks, but he kept glancing at me as if I had pissed on his shoes. Could he be upset that he wouldn’t be able to question me later now that Greybacks were found? Maybe he wanted another naked whipping session. Fuck that. If he ever tried it again, I’d cut his balls and prick off and have them shoved down his throat so fast, he’d choke before he could cry.

“Speed up.” Silas’ voice snapped through my thoughts.

I adjusted my grip on the steering wheel and pressed harder on the accelerator. When we arrived at the restaurant, Dominic ordered Silas to block all the exits and to wait until we were called in.

Following orders, I posted myself at the front door with Silas while Samantha and Jerry rounded the back, in case anyone tried to escape. Maera stood to the side of me, adjusting her dress. She had no intention of getting involved if a fight broke out.

While we waited, I thought about the two Greybacks. I doubted Jackson had approved them coming into the city. What if these shifters knew about my arrangement with him?

The front door flew open, startling me. Luke saw me first and opened his mouth as if to say something, but when he saw Silas, he shut it again.

“What?” Silas snapped.

Luke motioned us forward. “You can come in.”

Silas brushed by him, but when I passed Luke, his hand rested on my hip. I looked up, surprised. His gaze burned into mine as he pushed me forward, closing the door behind us.

His hand left my hip as soon as we were inside, and he rushed to move in front of me. The dining room was clear of customers and wooden tables had been pushed up against red booths. The staff huddled together in the corner, frightened, and whispering softly to each other. They probably imagined this to be some kind of disagreement between rival gangs. If only they knew who we really were. They’d be wishing for a gang fight.

Two Greybacks, one female and one male, sat tied to chairs in the center of the room. Both had already been beaten, their faces bruised and bloody. The man had a knife wound in his shoulder, and his blood ran down his large bicep and dripped to the floor. Dominic stood over them, his mouth twisted into a scowl. Silas stood shoulder-to-shoulder to him, opening and closing his hands as if he couldn’t wait to get in on the action.

Luke settled in just a step behind them. I joined Jerry and Samantha, who were coming in through the back door.

“Again,” Dominic said over his shoulder to Terrence. He moved out of the way so Terrence could step forward away from the other shifters.

Terrence slammed his fist into the woman’s face. Her head snapped back and blood sprayed from her nose. She whimpered, but gave no other reaction.

I narrowed my eyes, looking closer. They both stared into the distance, their eyes glazed over. The woman wasn’t even looking at Terrence. I nervously played with my ring. Something was wrong.

Terrence growled, rubbing his knuckles. He looked at Dominic expectantly.

“What’s the problem?” Silas asked Dominic.

“We can't get them to talk.”

Maera pushed through them, licking her lips. “Let me try.”

“I’ll do it.” Silas was already unscrewing the top part of his cane. He unsheathed a dagger from the long tube and squatted in front of the woman. "You have one chance. Tell me the location of your pack and your Alpha.”

He barely waited a second for the woman to respond before he rammed the dagger into her kneecap. I flinched as did several others. She didn’t respond, not even cry out, but her eyelids fluttered several times.

Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted Samantha over by the humans. She was calming them down, while also trying to block their view of the vicious beating.

Silas scowled and dug the knife in deeper, intent on causing more harm but she didn’t waiver in her resolve. He snarled and yanked back the dagger. “What's wrong with her?"

“Let me see.” Luke leaned down and peered into each of their eyes. He snapped his fingers, but they didn’t react. He