A Shifter's Curse, Raven Steele [the top 100 crime novels of all time .TXT] 📗

Silas motioned the girl forward. She looked around nervously but jumped when he yelled at her. “Get over here!"

Jackson and two other men stepped forward and blocked the girl from going to Silas.

"Silas, please.” Jackson held his hands up as if trying to soothe an angry dog. "We can fix this."

Silas glanced back at Lilith and nodded his head once. She grinned and stepped forward, an invisible, powerful force swirling around her. Her eyes turned a brilliant white and a gust of power burst from her, lifting the hair on my arms as if she had surged electricity into the air.

Jackson dropped to his knees and clutched his head in pain, along with the other two men.

The pack reacted, springing into action. Several of them began to shift, but one by one they, too, fell to the ground, writhing in pain.

Silas called out to those who remained frozen in place. “Anyone else want to feel like their brains are being scooped out of their skulls with a spoon?"

When no one responded, he added, "Come forward, she-wolf."

The girl’s blue eyes watered, but she lifted her chin and maneuvered her way through the crowd, ignoring hands that reached out as if to stop her. She stood face-to-face with Silas and stared him directly in the eyes, folding her arms. “Whaddaya want?”

Silas glanced at Ryder. "Remove her shirt."

Several of the women burst into tears and fell to their knees, their shoulders trembling. Every muscle in my body tensed, and I took a step forward, but Gerald pulled me back into place.

Ryder’s chin quivered as he pleaded with Silas. “Please, Sir."

"Do it."

With trembling hands, Ryder unbuttoned the girl’s flannel shirt, his eyes on the ground.

A man from the crowd, most likely her father, sprung forward, shouting in protest. He made it only two steps before he collapsed to the ground, his body twitching uncontrollably. I yanked my arm out of Gerald’s firm grip and steeled my eyes forward, ignoring the cries of the men and women twitching and screaming in agony.

"Stop hurting them, and I will do what you say.” The girl’s voice was small and trembling, but it was loud enough to gain Silas’ attention.

He moved closer to her, his hand on his ear. “What’s that?”

She swallowed hard and spoke again, her voice louder. “I promise. I’ll do what you say, just stop hurtin’ them.”

He eyed her for a moment, then called back to Lilith. “You may release them, but if anyone makes a move toward me, you can do what you want.”

Lilith nodded her head, grinning as if she was watching a show on the comedy channel.

Jackson’s body relaxed, and he gasped for air. The rest of the pack groaned and brushed at their heads as if swiping away remnants of the witch’s magic. Only Jackson seemed unfazed by the after-effects. He stood back on his feet, straightening tall, and a dark anger pulsed from him, like the onslaught of an approaching storm.

But he made no move to stop Silas.

"Get on with it,” Silas said, his voice impatient at Ryder’s slow movements.

When Ryder finished the last button, he pulled off the girl’s shirt, and it fell to the ground. Wearing only a white bra, she stood before everyone looking anything but ashamed. Whatever punishment Silas handed out, she was prepared to receive it for the pack.

Silas flipped his cane upward and caught it in the air with his other hand. Methodically, he began to unscrew the top handle. "I really do hate that it's come to this. There was a time when our packs were friendly with each other.” He sneered, looking up at Jackson. “But then you became power hungry, didn’t you?"

He popped off the top off his cane and removed a shiny, silver blade. "I know my actions today may seem rash, but I have thought long and hard about what punishment would be best."

Ryder stepped back behind Silas and gratefully took his stance beside me. By how pale he was, I feared he might pass out or throw up. I slowly pressed my shoulder to his to offer my unsaid support.

Silas moaned as he traced the blade up the girl’s bare arm. Goosebumps broke on her flesh, and a fresh tear ran down her cheek, but she remained silent.

I swallowed my own bile threatening to expel itself from my throat.

I couldn't watch.

Instead, I found the face of a girl about ten years old, the same age I was when I was thrown into the well. Her mouth was agape with wide green eyes. Like me, she would remember everything that happened today. The images would raid her dreams, robbing her of prettier and happier things.

Silas began talking about honor and brotherhood among wolves, all the while his silver blade continued to trace the girl’s skin until it reached near her neck. I thought this would be the end, and he would slit her throat, but the silver moved upward, finally slowing near her narrow cheekbone.

He paused there and looked back at Jackson. "I've decided to show your pack mercy. The girl will not die."

There was a collective sigh of relief from the crowd, and even Jackson managed to mumble a thank you. But before the words had fully left Jackson’s lips, Silas stabbed the knife into the girl’s left eye.

She screamed an unintelligible word, a noise so terrible it made me tremble. It was a sound I'd only ever heard from my own lungs.

Others screamed with her and rushed forward, but once again, they fell to the ground, convulsing. The scene shook me to the core, and I bit down, clenching my teeth until I thought my jaw would break.

Jackson lunged for Silas, fangs fully grown within his large mouth, but before he could reach him, Lilith mumbled a word, and he dropped to the ground, his back arching painfully. He wasn’t convulsing like the rest of the pack. Instead, every bone in his body contorted, bending unnaturally and several sickening cracks filled the air.

Silas stared down at the great Alpha’s body appreciatively. He said nothing for almost a full minute, only watched Jackson’s bones break one by one. The girl continued to wail behind him, the sound like a horror show meant for society’s most depraved.

Silas finally looked away. “You may release him now, Lilith.”

Jackson’s body fell limp. He lay there panting, unable to move, but through chattering teeth, he growled, “I will kill you. I swear it.”

Silas smiled, the kind reserved only for devils. "Is that so?"

He walked back to the crying girl and without hesitating, he stabbed the blade directly into her other eye. Abruptly, the girl’s cries halted, and she fell to the ground, not dead, but unconscious. Blood pooled on the ground, staining the side of her face.

Silas glanced back at the once noble Alpha lying in the dirt. His voice was harsh, his eyes narrow. "Remember that the next time you threaten me.”

My legs weakened, and it was sheer willpower that kept me in place. Ryder, however, had dropped to his knees. I placed my hand on his shoulder, feeling his immense sorrow through our blood connection. It was so powerful and heart-wrenching, I almost burst into tears. Stay strong.

A woman crawled toward the girl, fighting