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

Lynx dropped us off at Fire Ridge, fussing over Ryder before she left. Why she worked at a clothing store and not as a nurse was beyond me.

Remnants of the party the night before lay scattered across the lawn. Sunlight glinted off the surface of broken glass, and I had to be careful not to step on the shards of beer bottles hidden in the grass.

No one would ever know it had also been a funeral. These shifters moved on quickly.

“What happened?” Ryder asked, eyeing the destruction.

I stopped, realizing I hadn’t told him about Toby yet. I chose my words carefully, not wanting to upset him further. I didn’t know how close he’d been to Toby, but I knew they were at least friendly with one another.

He took the news as expected. Swallowing the pain instead of dealing with it. One of the ways our world was so different from humans. Maybe that explained why so many of us were filled with rage. We could all benefit from a full time psychiatrist.

Before we walked through the front doors, Ryder asked, “Tell me the full story. How did the meeting with the Nocs go?”

“It was... interesting. There was some negotiating, some fighting, people died, obviously, but in the end, everyone got what they wanted.”

He shook his head. “Blood runs freely and without restraint for those who seek power.”

I glanced at him, surprised. That was something my father used to say. It made me like Ryder even more.

“Come with me,” I said, and moved past him. “Dominic will want to see you.”

He nodded his head slowly. He looked a lot better this morning. The cuts on his body, the shallow ones, had healed, but while he had been changing this morning, I noticed he still had a huge purple bruise and the word “traitor” still visible across his chest. They were angry red marks over his heart, and they wouldn’t heal easily. Wounds like that go beyond the flesh.

I inhaled a deep breath and opened Dominic’s office door. Terrence came barreling out from the room, as if he were upset. I had to jump out of his way to avoid being run over.

Dominic scowled at my intrusion. Silas, sitting on the opposite side of the desk, mirrored the expression, but when both their eyes found Ryder, their expressions darkened.

"I retrieved Ryder from the Greybacks,” I said quickly, giving them a pointed look. "Just like you asked me to."

Dominic glanced from me to Ryder, as if he were trying to figure out my angle. Ryder’s eyebrows lifted like a hopeful puppy seeking praise. He needed to feel wanted, especially after what his own father had done to him.

Dominic caught on, and his expression lifted in mock joy. He slapped his hands together. "It's so wonderful to see you back!"

"We've been worried,” Silas said. The words were right, but they held no weight. He may as well have been talking about the weather.

Dominic stood and walked around his desk to Ryder, saying, “I knew Briar was the perfect choice to be your savior.” He leaned in and, resting his hand on Ryder’s shoulder. “We’ll get those bastards for what they did to you. I swear it."

"I would prefer it if we could just move on,” Ryder said, his voice soft. “It would only harm both packs if we retaliate. I heard what happened to Toby. I don't want any more bloodshed."

Dominic gripped him by the back of the neck and stared into his eyes. "If that is what you want, then we’ll honor your request. But if Jackson decides to attack you, or anyone else in our pack, all deals are off, and we will make them suffer."

Ryder nodded his head in agreement.

Dominic turned to me, his gaze turning dark. "Ryder, give us a minute, will you?"

Ryder looked at me questioningly, but after I nodded at him, he left the room and closed the door behind him. I squared my feet beneath me.

Dominic paced the room, his hands behind his back, while Silas clicked his tongue, as if preparing to scold someone for being tardy to class. Me, the naughty child. It made me furious, especially when I did what they should’ve done themselves.

I couldn’t hold back. ”What? I saved a pack member. You should be thanking me."

Dominic turned his back toward me, but he unleashed the power that made him Alpha. It was a force, like the wind in a hurricane, and it pushed me back. The unseen pressure sucked the air from the room. The walls quickly closed in on me.

I inhaled, forcing myself to breathe through the sudden tightness squeezing my chest. My wolf bristled beneath my skin, sensing my sudden anxiety. His power increased, and the invisible pressure wrapped around my spine just before jerking it hard. I gasped in pain.

"I told you to wait to get Ryder,” he snapped and turned, his eyes glowing a deep red. “But you didn't obey."

Still sitting in his chair, Silas picked at a cuticle on his forefinger. "You can't have pack members who don’t follow the rules."

“What about the pack rule of protecting one another?” I rasped out, barely able to breathe through the force pushing against me.

Dominic hissed. “There was no proof he had been taken.”

I pushed against his power, only enough to get my words out. “They would've killed Ryder if I hadn’t gone there. You should've seen what they were doing to him."

Dominic's eyes slowly moved to mine, cold and cruel. "The point is, we can't have pack members disobeying me. It sets a bad tone for the rest of them. Ryder’s life or not, my orders must be followed."

"But—”