“You called an Uber?” the driver asked, sable hair floating down to partially obscure equally dark and mysterious eyes. Despite myself, I leaned in closer to harvest a sniff. Soap, smarts, confidence. The scent was intoxicating.
The driver was human, though, which in this era of extreme shifter secrecy meant he was also entirely off limits. Forcing my head away from the open window, I bit my lip and squashed the hum of lupine interest threatening to rise up through my human throat. Never mind the rules—there was no point in considering a relationship with a one-body when I had no intention of mating outside my pack.
My wolf whimpered within my stomach, chastened by the reminder. But it was the muffled shriek—just distant enough to be indiscernible to a normal human—that pulled me back to the present with a jolt. “I forgot something down there,” I said hurriedly before twisting my arm to gesture awkwardly at the suitcase by my feet. “Help yourself to a cupcake,” I added, “and I’ll be right back.”
Hoping the treat would keep my driver occupied while he waited, I took off at a run just barely slow enough to appear human. Then even that pretense fell away as shadows settled around my furless skin and shielded me from view. I’d made one mistake already in letting the stranger off scot-free. I had no intention of allowing him to harm a human on my watch.
Still, even as I raced down the dark alley intent upon rescue, my mind was attempting to assemble a puzzle whose pieces didn’t quite add up. I was new to this city and unfamiliar with local customs, but it made no sense for a shifter to be attacking females willy-nilly. After all, the Greenbriar alpha would be acting under the same mandate that guided Dad’s governance—the imperative to keep the peace within his pack while also ensuring werewolves remained hidden from prying human eyes. Moral implications aside, Chief Greenbriar would have to be an idiot to allow underlings to draw attention to themselves by breaking one-body laws.
Shivering despite the warmth of the night, I allowed my wolf to rise up and join me within our human skin at last. She wasn’t concerned about the inconsistencies presented by this city’s rotten underbelly. Instead, her attention latched onto the renegade werewolf who’d cornered a human woman in the shadowy enclave between a metal dumpster and an unyielding brick wall.
Despite the darkness, my shifter senses made the scene all too clear. And I winced as I realized the attacker had taken yet another step into the unthinkable during the moments he’d spent alone. Because he wasn’t a wolf now. Instead, the male was two-legged and naked, presumably having transformed right in front of the young woman he was currently attempting to maul.
Unsavory repercussions flew in front of my mind’s eye in one jumbled heap. There was no wiggle room in this particular law. No way to save a human who had been privy to a shifter’s transition from wolf to man. Instead, if this woman had been able to discern her attacker’s shift despite the darkness...well then, she’d have to be killed for the sake of werewolves everywhere.
I’d just have to hope the woman’s eyesight wasn’t up to the task.
The victim didn’t need night vision, though, to be terrified. Not when her attacker had ripped open the front of her blouse, his other hand fumbling with the buttons of her jeans. “You’re fertile,” the male murmured, his words more wolf than human. “Ripe, round, ready.”
And despite my former intentions not to make waves, I abruptly saw red. This wasn’t the way werewolves acted. Forget the mandate not to show ourselves in public, this was uncivilized.
Uncle Hunter would have punched out the attacker’s lights. Dad would have shifted into lupine form and torn into this stranger with tooth and claw. Right now, either option seemed like a good one to me.
But stumbling footsteps in the alley behind my back marked the approach of my Uber driver, his advance slow but steady. Darn his cute face, the guy was too chivalrous to allow me to be assaulted in a dark alley on his watch.
Which meant, unfortunately, I didn’t have the wiggle room to assault anyone in a dark alley either.
So, instead, I readied the talent I’d rejected earlier as akin to killing a mosquito with a sledgehammer. This time around, I figured the bug in question deserved to be squished. “Go home,” I ordered, my voice too quiet for either human to hear.
The stranger, though, not only heard but felt. Predictably, he jerked like a puppet whose stage manager had pulled the strings and bade him to dance. But the shifter didn’t flee immediately. Instead, the bastard tried to fight against my overt command, swiveling around to glare at me over one naked shoulder as he fought against the compulsion to obey.
Then the Uber driver was in the alley behind us. His flashlight shone across the wall and dumpster before glinting against the woman’s eyes...and that was all the illumination the latter needed to raise the canister of Mace she’d been clutching in one white-knuckled grip and spray it directly into her attacker’s face.
My shifter dominance would have done the trick eventually...but I have to admit the effects of pepper spray were far more satisfying. Because the attempted rapist yowled as if his victim had stuck a knife through his groin. Then he was running down the alley in the opposite direction, air humming with electricity as he shifted into lupine form just out of sight.
Breathing a sigh of relief, I crossed my fingers and hoped the two humans didn’t realize they’d just sighted the impossible—a person able to transform into the body of a wolf at will. Because if they put two and two together, the law said I had to put them down.
I definitely didn’t have enough cupcakes on hand to deal with that sort of catastrophe.
Chapter 3
To my relief, neither human appeared to notice anything beyond the obvious—that a terrified woman had finally found safety once her attacker was chased away. My luck continued to hold, too, when the victim made it all the way to the sleek sports car before collapsing into a tearful heap in the leather-lined safety of the small back seat.
The female didn’t respond to any of my condolences, though, suggesting that she needed a little time to collect herself. So, after offering yet another unnoticed pat on the back, I glanced up and caught the Uber driver’s gaze in the side mirror instead.
In stark contrast to my own suitcase-top perch outside the car’s open door, the driver was visibly distancing himself from the feminine gaggle behind his back. Not that I blamed him—he probably needed to get back to making a living. Figuring it was only fair to let him off the hook, I smiled grimly and offered the driver an easy way out.
“I’m sorry,” I began. “I think this is gonna take a while. It won’t hurt my feelings at all if you need to go find another fare....”
And in response, a wave of emotion so intense I could smell it from outside the car flickered across the driver’s chiseled face. “Are you serious? You think I’m going to leave you two here alone in the middle of the night when there’s a potential rapist on the loose?”
The male’s tone was as curt as any alpha werewolf who thought his pack mates were in danger. And despite the driver’s complete inability to change forms, testosterone sizzled through the air while barely banked rage attempted to break through his cool facade.
Huh, guess I had him pegged all wrong. Here I’d thought my driver was irritated and uncomfortable with the crying woman parked in his back seat. Instead, the human was furious about the events that had come before. In fact, I got the distinct impression he wanted nothing more than a chance to pound that potential rapist into the pavement.
Well, that makes two of us.
As quickly as the rage appeared, though, the man’s face smoothed and I was left wondering if I’d merely imagined the strength of his former reaction. “I’m here for the duration,” the driver continued, twisting his body sideways and reaching into the space between the seat and door so he could shake my hand. “So I guess I might as well introduce myself. I’m Sebastien Carter...and you’re Ember Wilder-Young.”
“How...?” I asked, the human’s firm grip short-circuiti
ng my already weary brain. Close up, Sebastien’s odor enveloped me like a warm hug, the faint addition of sandalwood-scented sweat lingering beneath his more signature aromas. My companion smelled like adventure and danger and hidden potential...and I wanted to transform into a wolf so I could jump into his lap and lick his square-jawed face.
Releasing the large hand a tad too quickly for the sake of politeness, awareness fled in an instant as my usual perspicuity returned. Of course my name would have been listed on the user profile when I requested a ride. There was nothing magical about an Uber driver knowing who I was.
“And I’m Harmony Garcia,” the woman beside me interjected, straightening at long last in response to our more-intimate-than-intended exchange. As I finally got a good look at her, I realized that she must have been on her way home from work despite the late hour. Because a black pant suit hugged her trim curves while carefully applied mascara remained pristine despite her recent sob-fest.
Impressive on both counts. Perhaps I’d underestimated the average human woman’s inherent spine.
Still, even with the steely inner strength Harmony displayed, recent shock pinched the corners of her lips and grayed her skin. She needed a little boost to fully brush off the close call with a werewolf. Good thing I had just the ticket right here on top of my suitcase....
The woman’s lips curled upward into a hint of a smile as I silently offered the cupcake carton in one outstretched hand. And after perusing the selection with all the intensity of a stock analyst choosing where to invest her retirement income, Harmony plucked out the strawberry-flavored confection I’d made with someone very much like her in mind.
Now it was my turn to grin as Harmony inhaled half the pastry in one great gulp before leaning back against the seat with a sigh of relief. Success. My greatest weapon—the mighty cupcake—had come through at last.
FIGURING HARMONY WOULD fare even better if not forced to eat alone, I held out the nearly empty carton to Sebastien next. And to my surprise, the Uber driver plucked the triple-chocolate overload rather than the raspberry-crumble I’d figured would be in his wheelhouse.
Huh. We both have the same favorite flavor? What are the chances of that?
But before I could verbalize my surprise, the chime of my phone reminded me that I had far more important matters on my agenda than psychoanalyzing humans based on their cupcake selections. Because even though the name on the screen—“Top Dog”—wasn’t one I recognized, the associated text message sent a shiver running down my spine.
No greeting, no small talk. Just a street address and a deadline. Midnight, the final word read, curtness evident in the truncated command.
Reading between the lines, I could only assume that my hosts had noticed my uninvited presence in Greenbriar territory far sooner than I’d anticipated. I’d considered calling ahead and using diplomacy to find a legal way into this city, but in the end had decided it was better to ask forgiveness rather than permission.
Actually, I’d kinda hoped I could find my brother and hop back onto the bus before anyone was the wiser. No harm, no foul. Perhaps I’d send Chief Greenbriar a fruit basket once I was safely back in Haven.
Only that wishful-thinking bubble now burst like a Yorkshire pudding falling flat as soon as the pan left the oven. Chief Greenbriar had discovered my intrusion far faster than I’d estimated. And now I possessed twenty short minutes to achieve the lair of this region’s alpha before my neck would be on the chopping block...perhaps quite literally.
Despite the need for speed, I felt a strange aversion to the idea of running off and leaving these humans behind. Instead, I watched wistfully as the color returned to Harmony’s cheeks while the male in the driver’s seat leaned inward to shield her body from imagined danger. Strawberry and chocolate go well together, I reminded myself, ignoring the flutter of disappointment that rose in my chest at the very thought of leaving my Uber driver to take the other female home.
Still, I did what had to be done. Snapping the nearly empty cupcake container back into place, I yanked up on the handle of my suitcase in preparation for making tracks.
But I wasn’t quite quick enough. Sebastien’s door opened and his large hand clamped down around my luggage-handling wrist before I even saw him coming. The guy was nearly werewolf fast.
“Where do you think you’re going?” the male demanded.
“Sorry about the fare, but I just realized I’m running late,” I answered, words tumbling all over themselves in their rush to exit my mouth. “If you don’t mind, can you take Harmony home and charge the trip to the credit card I have on file?” Then, glancing backwards at the aforementioned female, I added, “It was a pleasure to meet you! Have a good night.”
Finally, I pulled away, thoroughly expecting Sebastien’s hand to fall free as I exerted myself. But instead, I found myself swinging back around to face the human, his iron grip refusing to budge. “No,” he said simply.
My brows drew together. Really? Dude thought he could keep me from going where I wanted to go?
And even though I was predisposed to like anyone who opted for a chocolate cupcake, muscle memory took over as soon as I found myself restrained. Dropping my weight into a semi-squat, I bent my elbow and pushed forward with all of my might.
Sure enough, Sebastien grunted and let go. In a contest between muscles and skillful use of physics, physics won out every time.
Thank you, Uncle Hunter, I thought silently, ignoring the grumbling of my wolf at the less-than-savory parting.
But I had no time to apologize, no time to make nice with the humans. Instead, turning on my heel, I ran down the sidewalk into the night.
Chapter 4
Despite my haste, I paused just out of sight and listened until the murmur of voices ceased and two car doors slammed shut. Sure enough, Harmony had accepted Sebastien’s offer of assistance, her throaty voice reciting a street address that I quickly keyed into my own phone...just in case.
Then my human companions were gone and I was left to chart a course through the unfamiliar neighborhood by myself. And even though the mapping software on my phone would have come in handy to ensure I made no wrong turns on the way to my intended destination, my gut told me I’d be better off taking this trek unencumbered. So I made a short pit stop first.
Heaving my suitcase into a storage locker in the antechamber of the bus station, I then emptied my pockets until all I had on me was a t-shirt and jeans. Even my phone went into the keypad-locked metal box, the gesture essential if I didn’t want to be tracked by a shifter who had already found a way to hack into my supposedly untappable phone.
The mystery of that cleverness would have to wait, though. Instead, I slithered up a tree, scampered across a balcony, then chinning my way onto a low rooftop that would serve as a stepping stone to those levels higher up. This part of the city was so densely packed that it was feasible to turn buildings themselves into an aerial pathway...as long as I didn’t mind making running leaps over alleys from time to time, that was.
My wolf definitely wasn’t fazed by the necessary loss of contact with the earth. In fact, I barely managed to squash her howl as we embraced freedom together, sprinting across the wide open spaces and stretching legs that had been pent-up within the squashed confines of that dratted bus for far too long. The ability to run unfettered was pure bliss.
After a few seconds, though, we got back down to business. Beneath our feet, humans clomped by entirely unaware that a predator could drop down upon them at any moment, and I had high hopes that any nearby shifters were equally oblivious to my current MO. Still, I wasted a few precious minutes looping the loop until I was certain no one trailed my current movements or accidentally stumbled across my path.
Only then did I dig into my memory of the city’s map and begin making my way toward the location Top Dog had ordered me to attend. My destination was relatively close by....but I still began second-guessing my own navigational abilities as I neared Top Dog’s designated inters
ection.
Because this wasn’t the wealthy and polished neighborhood I’d expect to find housing an alpha werewolf. There were no park-like expanses of trees, no fenced mansions to keep prying eyes at bay. Instead, human hookers posed on street corners while boys far too young to be out and about so late at night sold small baggies of illicit substances to an endless stream of easy marks.
As I passed unnoticed above all of their heads, a clock tower tolled proof that my evasive maneuvers had already put me behind the designated hour. I’d need to apologize for my tardiness now as well as my cheekiness in arriving unannounced...but who was supposed to grant me amnesty when I hadn’t smelled a single shifter since leaving the bus station behind?
Then I saw them. Three wolves lounging beneath a basketball hoop where the streetlights just happened not to shine. Gray fur blended easily into the silver moonlight, explaining why they felt safe walking four-legged while one-bodies worked nearby. Their camouflage was good. Still, I suspected Dad wouldn’t have allowed this level of overt wolfishness to fly.
But threats to shifter secrecy weren’t the largest issue currently on the table. I’d hoped to keep roof-running as a backup plan in case the upcoming meeting went south, but the wind was out to get me. Even as I began planning a circuitous descent, a gust of summer trickery carried my scent down toward the pavement. And as one the trio tilted their heads to peer upwards into the dark.
I’d been sighted. Now, there was no going back.
I HESITATED, CONSIDERING flight for one short second. But my brother was still out there, somewhere, waiting for me to answer his digital plea. And I had other aces up my sleeve even if the roof was no longer my personal playground.
So, using an awning to slow my descent, I landed gracefully on two human feet even as strange wolves came padding up to greet me.
Okay, so perhaps “greet” wasn’t the right verb. Instead, as soon as I hit the ground, the pack was chivying me deeper into the shadows and further away from human eyes. The largest male led the way while others nipped at my heels, brushing against my legs hard enough to make me stumble.
Shifter Origins (Series-Starter Shifter Variety Packs Book 1) Page 36
