Cursed Wolf

by Stacy Claflin

  Relief washed through me. Not much could stand in their way with an angel of death protecting Victoria.

  “Sit,” Laura said. “How’s your hand?”

  “Fine.”

  “Covered in hearts?” Bobby teased.

  I glared at him, but the corners of my mouth twitched. As annoying as young werewolves tended to be, I had to admit I enjoyed their playfulness.

  “Just you wait.” I sat. “Someday, you’ll have silky hearts of your own.”

  Bobby brought his hands to his heart and blinked quickly. “I can only hope.”

  Some of the others imitated him.

  My phone rang. I held it up. “Saved by the call.”

  They continued teasing me as I rushed out of the room. Once in my office, I accepted the call.

  “Toby!” Soleil sounded out of breath.

  My chest constricted. “Oh, no. What happened?”

  “Victoria disappeared!”

  “You let her out of your sight?” I exclaimed.

  “No. You’re not listening to me. She disappeared. Into thin air!”

  Chapter 9

  Toby

  “What do you mean, she disappeared into thin air?” I shouted into the phone.

  “It was almost like she teleported,” Soleil said, “but she didn’t.”

  “Where were you? What happened, exactly?” I paced, pulling on my hair.

  Pack members filled the doorway. I waved them away, but they remained in place.

  “Let me head back there, and I’ll tell you.”

  “No! Tell me where you are. I want to see this for myself.” I released a string of profanities.

  “There’s nothing to see. She’s gone!”

  “Where are you?” I demanded.

  “East of the Faeble. It’s hard to explain—we went through some really thick brush.”

  I swore again. “Why’d you go there in the first place?”

  “We were following the stone.”

  “You’re kidding me!”

  “No.”

  I picked up a snow globe and threw it across the room. It shattered and sent shards of glass and glittery water in all directions. “Meet me at the Faeble and take me to where Victoria disappeared!”

  “I’ll be waiting outside.”

  “Great.” I ended the call.

  Jet cleared his throat. “I hate to ask, but—”

  “Then don’t!” I shoved my way through the group of werewolves and stormed to the front door.

  “Let us help.”

  I spun around and narrowed my eyes at Jet. “Okay. Step up and act as alpha while I’m out. Talk with Gessilyn and try to figure out what’s going on. Sound good?”

  He furrowed his brows. “Yeah. Got it.”

  “Just take care of the pack. I can’t think straight.” I grabbed a coat and stormed outside. If ever there would be a good time to be able to shift, this would’ve been it. I was half-tempted to go around back and try one of the rings again. Instead, I broke into a run for the woods.

  Before I reached the Faeble, I saw Soleil leaning against a tree. She ran over to me so fast, I nearly didn’t see her move. “Follow me.”

  We darted off the path and into an area thick with trees and dense brush, needing to push aside branches and thorns. Soleil stopped in the middle of a patch of wildly overgrown huckleberry bushes.

  “What are you doing?”

  “This is where she disappeared.” She spread her arms, gesturing toward a space next to her.

  “Into thin air?”

  “Yeah. She was here, talking to me and then mid-sentence—poof!—she was gone.”

  “Poof? Did she explode?”

  “No. It was more like watching someone teleport. She just vanished in the blink of an eye.”

  I studied the area, hoping for a clue, but found nothing. Not even a trace of her scent. “You’re sure it was right here?”

  “This very spot. I was right here, and she was next to me. Then, she just wasn’t.”

  “It had to be that stone.”

  Soleil held my gaze. “Oh, it very much was.”

  “Did you get a chance to study it before she disappeared?”

  “For a moment, until it shocked me.”

  I grimaced. “I know all too well about that.”

  “Why didn’t you two go to the Faeble like you’d planned?”

  “It was leading us here. I wanted to see what it had to show us.”

  “Leading you?”

  She nodded. “It glowed brighter and pulled, actually lifting the chain and yanking on her neck.”

  I took a deep breath to try and calm my racing heart. It didn’t work. “Should we wait here? Do you think she’ll reappear here?”

  “Your guess is as good as mine. She was gone close to a day last time.”

  “I know.” I sighed in defeat. “I hate that this keeps happening, but I’m not leaving this spot. She’ll probably return here, don’t you think?”

  “It doesn’t matter what I think. There’s no way of knowing.” She paused, looking deep in thought. “Gessilyn and I will study the essence stone as soon as Victoria comes back. Do you want us at Moonhaven, where everyone is enamored by her, or should we take her somewhere else?”

  “I think this—” I spread my arms around the bushes where she disappeared. “—shows what a bad idea leaving is. We’re two for two as far as her taking off and then disappearing.”

  “Yeah, I agree. Probably should just stay home until we get this figured out.”

  Boom! Crash!

  The loud sounds rippled through the air. Pain shot through my ears. I covered them until the rumbling stopped. Once it did, Victoria materialized right where Soleil had said she’d disappeared. Again, her clothes were dirty and torn, and her hair stuck out in every direction. She stared at me, her eyes wide.

  I pushed through the bushes and wrapped my arms around her, never wanting to let go. “Where were you?”

  “How long was I gone this time?” She clung to me.

  “An hour, maybe?” I glanced at Soleil.

  “That’s about right.”

  “It doesn’t make any sense,” Victoria said. “Last time, I was there just a short time and you say I was gone a day. This time, I was there for almost a day, and you say I was gone an hour.”

  I stepped back, keeping my hands on her shoulders. “Where? Where did you go?”

  Her eyes widened even more. “Carter! He…” Her voice trailed off and her expression turned confused. She rubbed her temples and shook her head.

  “Carter was there?” I exclaimed. “Did he do this to you?”

  “No, the other Carter.”

  “What other Carter?”

  Victoria gave me a double-take. “How’d you get here? I was just trying to…” She glanced down at her clothes. “Oh, no. It happened again, didn’t it?”

  “Yep.” I wanted to hit something. “You don’t remember anything?”

  Frowning, she shook her head. “Nothing.”

  Soleil put a hand on her shoulder, moving me aside. I stepped back.

  “Close your eyes and relax,” Soleil instructed. “Maybe you can remember something.”

  Victoria closed her eyes.

  I held my breath and clenched my fists.

  She opened her eyes and shook her head.

  I turned around and punched the nearest tree. Unfortunately, it was a thin one, and it buckled.

  “We’ll get this figured out,” Victoria said.

  “How?” I demanded. “That stupid stone is ruining our lives! I’d rather be forced to shift at every full moon for the next several centuries and just have you at my side.”

  The stone lit up brighter than I’d ever seen it. A sharp pain ran through my body just as I flew backwards. I crashed into a tree and crumpled to the ground.

  I glared at the stone. “Right back at you!”

  Victoria came over and offered me a hand. Grumbling, I took it and stood up.

  Soleil
marched over. “Let’s head back. I just texted Gessilyn and let her know what’s going on.”

  “If you two can’t figure anything out, I say we get in contact with that secret society you found, Victoria.”

  “The one that spent centuries looking for the stone?”

  “Do you know of any other secret society?” I snapped.

  She stepped away from me and looked down.

  Regret washed through me. I took a deep breath. “I’m sorry, sweetness. I didn’t mean to speak to you like that. It’s not your fault. I’m beyond frustrated with everything—that stone, the moon rings, your new curse. It infuriates me that I can’t do anything about any of it. I want to fix it all, but as far as all of this goes, I’m helpless.”

  Her eyes widened and she stepped closer, cupping my face and holding my gaze. “You’re not helpless. Toby, you’re the strongest, sexiest man I know. We just need to figure out what to do, and like you said, we probably need to find out what the secret society knows. I may have been the one to find the stone, but they’ve been dedicated to studying it for hundreds of years. Trying to contact them is a brilliant idea.”

  I opened my mouth to speak, and Victoria pressed her mouth on mine, kissing me deeply. I closed my eyes and pulled her close, pressing her against me.

  Soleil cleared her throat. “I’m, uh, just going to head over to the Faeble. Meet me there. No rush—just a crazy curse that keeps making Victoria disappear.” Leaves rustled as she walked away.

  A warmth ran through me as I continued kissing my bride. All my frustration and fury melted away. The only thing that mattered was her—protecting her and keeping her happy. I pulled away and ran my thumb across her mouth. “I don’t know why I got so upset with you. You’re perfect and didn’t do anything wrong. I love you.”

  “I love you, too, but I can’t help thinking it’s the curse talking.”

  “Never. It may intensify what I feel deep down, making me more easily profess the love and adoration I already hold for you, but it doesn’t make me see you any differently. It puts you front and center of my universe, just like you should be.”

  She pressed a kiss on my lips again. “We should get back to Soleil.”

  I backed her up to the nearest tree and stared into her eyes. “Or we could stay here and enjoy our time together after you were gone for what you said was a day.”

  Her face fell. “It’s definitely the curse talking. Trust me, Toby. You would want us to head over to the Faeble and see if Tap can get us in contact with the secret society.”

  “Why are you talking about me as though I weren’t right here?”

  She kissed my cheek. “Come on.”

  “Is that what you want?”

  “Very much so.”

  “Then let’s see what Tap can tell us.”

  Chapter 10

  Victoria

  Tap rested his elbow on the counter behind the bar and smiled as he held my gaze. “Anything I can do for you, Victoria? Travel to a faraway mountaintop to find a rare plant needed for a spell? Dig up a rare buried treasure? Name it, and it’s yours.”

  I carefully considered my wording. “Actually, all I need is some information on the secret werewolf society.”

  His eyes lit up. “The one in search of the wolf essence stone?”

  “That’s the one.”

  “Oh, that’s easy. Stay right there.” He jumped from his stool and ran toward the door down to his living area.

  Quinn came over, carrying a tray of empty glasses and plates. He set them in the sink and turned to me. “Victoria. Wonderful to see you again. Can I get you—?”

  “No! No, thank you.” I didn’t want to waste any more of Tap’s ancient wine. “Just waiting for Tap. You can help the other customers.”

  He sighed dreamily. “Are you sure there isn’t something I can do for you?”

  Toby came over and handed me a pile of clothes. “You can change into these, sweetness. I couldn’t find any in the cubbies, so I ran home to get these.”

  My mouth dropped. “You didn’t have to do that.”

  He tilted his head. “Oh, but I did. I couldn’t have you wearing torn, dirty clothes.”

  Quinn smiled at Toby. “Isn’t she amazing?”

  “The best.” Toby put his arm around me. “I’m living a life of bliss, that’s for certain.”

  “You sure are—you lucky dog, you.”

  They both laughed at the werewolf reference. I held back an eye roll. The sooner everyone returned to normal, the better.

  Quinn leaned against the bar. “I’ll never forget the first time I saw Victoria. She—”

  “Excuse me while I change my clothes.”

  Toby kissed my cheek. “If someone’s in the bathroom, let me know, and I’ll remove them for you.”

  “No, I can do that.” Quinn stood tall. “It’s in my job description to care for the customers.”

  Toby rose from the bar stool. “I’m her husband. It’s my job to—”

  “Boys!” I put my hands out in between them. “Enough. I can wait if someone’s in there.”

  “You shouldn’t have to wait,” Quinn said.

  “I’m fine. Really.” I forced a smile and hurried over to the bathroom, which fortunately, was empty. No need for Quinn and Toby to get into a brawl over something so insignificant. I undressed, throwing away my ruined clothes, and put on the matching red velour pants and hoodie before heading back out to the bar.

  Toby, Quinn, and Tap were in the middle of an intense conversation at the bar and Soleil sat with Gessilyn and Frida, one of Gessilyn’s sisters. I went over to the ladies.

  “Going for a run?” Soleil teased, glancing at my outfit.

  “You know it.” It was so nice that these three weren’t affected by the annoying curse. I took a seat in between Frida and Soleil. “So, what’s our plan of action?”

  Frida leaned closer and studied the necklace. “You still can’t take it off?”

  “Nope.”

  “Do you mind trying again? Just for kicks?”

  “Could you place a protection spell on me or something?”

  “Is it going to hurt you?” she asked.

  “No, but then maybe I could actually get it off.”

  Frida pulled some blonde hair behind her ear. “Just try. I want to see this for myself.”

  I took a deep breath. “Okay.”

  They all stared at me like I might explode.

  “Really, it’s not that exciting.” I unzipped the hoodie until the entire stone showed. My hand shook but I managed to pull on the chain. The stone cemented itself against my skin, pressing hard against my chest. A couple bones popped. I let go, and the necklace fell loose again.

  “Can I try?” Frida arched a brow.

  “It might zap you.”

  “Or it might not.” She reached for the chain. It cemented itself against my skin again, but it didn’t send her flying like it did Toby.

  “Does it just not like Toby?” I asked.

  Gessilyn reached over her sister and put a hand on my arm. “I think it has more to do with the fact that it doesn’t have the same effect on witches.”

  “Or valkyries.” Soleil smiled.

  Frida let go of the stone, and it fell loose.

  I looked at each one of them individually. “Is there anything you can do while it’s on me? Read into it? Figure out a way to get it off? Anything?”

  “We already know I can’t extract essence from it,” Soleil said. “I can try to read it again, but I think they’ll have better luck.”

  A glass pitcher flew through the air and shattered on a wall near us.

  “Perhaps we should take this outside,” Gessilyn said. “It would make it a lot easier to concentrate.”

  I glanced over at Toby and Tap, both staring my way. “And it would help them to focus. They can’t seem to do anything with me around.”

  A djinn came over to the table, ran his hands through his hair, and winked at me. “Can I order you a dri
nk?”

  “We’re just leaving, but thanks.”

  “I can order you something to go, beautiful.”

  “My husband is right over there.” I gestured toward the bar.

  The djinn glared at Toby. “Lucky son of a gun. Well, if you need anything, I can help.” He held my gaze for a few moments too long before going back to his table.

  “That was weird.” Frida stared at him. “Creeper, much?”

  I cupped the necklace. “It’s this. Only witches and valkyries, remember?”

  Frida shuddered. “Let’s get out of here and fix this.”

  “I’ll meet you outside.” I went over to Toby and kissed his cheek. “Did you find anything out?”

  “About what, my gorgeous bride?”

  Tap leaned over the bar. “Can I get you a bottle of—?”

  “No thank you.” I forced a smile. “Just tell Toby everything you know about the secret werewolf society, please.”

  “Oh, that’s why we came here.” Toby chuckled. “With you around, I just can’t think straight.”

  I squeezed his hand. “I feel the same way about you, but we need to focus. The witches are going to look at the stone. Find out what you can about the society. Then we’ll meet back at Moonhaven. Sound good?”

  “Whatever you want, my sweetness.” He tilted his head and sighed. “You’re so pretty.”

  “Werewolf society. Remember that.” I ran my fingers through his hair and gave him a quick kiss. “Do you want to write that down?”

  He shook his head and then kissed the back of my hand. “I’ll remember.”

  “Let’s hope. What are you going to do?”

  “Think about how amazing you are.”

  I threw my head back in frustration. “I’d better write it down.”

  Toby laughed. “Kidding. The society.”

  “See you at Moonhaven.” I hurried out of the bar before the spell could make him forget again. The others waited for me near the cubbies. “Let’s get as far from here as possible. This annoying curse seems to reach pretty far.”

  “Toby’s looking into the werewolf society?” Soleil asked.

  “If he can focus long enough,” I grumbled. “Do you guys know anything about it?”

  “Never heard of it,” Frida said.

  “Nothing beyond what you guys have told me,” Gessilyn agreed. “They must be pretty good at keeping it a secret.”