51

Wolf shifters, in particular, are even more hostile towards part-wolf hybrids. The twelve years I spent with my mother in her pack have done a good job of ravaging me inside. Twelve years of taunts—of being harassed while the adults watched or turned the other cheek—was enough to damage a child. And then to be exiled from the pack when it was proven that I could not shift was somehow worse.

Even now, all these year later, that insecure child rears its head.

Which is why I loathe wolf shifters.

And fear them.

However, despite my aversion to them, it seems that the Alpha might not feel the same way. Throughout the evening, I can feel his eyes lingering on me. What’s worse is my own reaction to him.

Whenever I accidentally meet that predatory amber gaze, I feel this strange itching under my skin, and my normally sturdy grasp on my magic wavers.

Is it because I’m attracted to him?

I shake off the thought as soon as it flickers through my head because it sounds ridiculous. This man is not the first person I have been attracted to. Normally, my taste in men is shit, so the fact that I am lusting after an Alpha—and a wolf Alpha at that—just goes to show my poor judgment in men.

I keep scratching my skin, however, and when I look down after an hour, my brows furrow at the mess I’ve made of it.

“Allergy?” Gina, one of the new night hires, asks.

Gina is part elf, with a human mother. But that’s elves for you, planting their seeds in every unsuspecting human female they come across. That’s one of the reasons I hired her, because of her hybrid status. However, elves have a habit of embracing their kind, hybrid or not, so after a few more years, her father will probably come searching for her and whisk her away to his village.

“Seems like it,” I mutter, wishing that my mother could at least have had the good sense to get pregnant by an elf rather than a warlock.

I let out a whimsical sigh, and Gina stares at me. “You drunk?”

I glance at an open bottle of whisky that a customer just abandoned. “No. But I have plans to do so when I get home.”

Gina looks over my shoulder before hollering. “Marty, can you move any slower? It’s been twenty minutes!”

I hear the cook curse back and Gina grins at me, “Sorry. But the couple at table twelve have asked me twice about their pasta and it’s embarrassing at this point. Besides, do you really want to get drunk? Don’t you have to waitress at Benny’s in the afternoon?”

I groan. “Yeah. I forgot that.”

I’m about to say something else when she nudges me. “Table six is trying to get your attention.”

I look over at the group of wolf shifters, and when the Alpha meets my gaze, he gives a small smile. There’s no mistaking the hunger in his gaze. Only this time, I know he’s not hungry for food.

My abdomen tightens and Gina whistles softly. “Somebody’s got his eyes on you.”

“He’s a wolf shifter,” I say tightly, and Gina’s grin drops.

“Oh.”

There’s only a handful of people who are aware of my situation, Gina being one of them.

“You want me to go—?”

“No.” I shake my head. “I’ve got this.”

I nod at the other bartender, who nods back. Sliding out of the go-between door, I adjust my apron as I walk over. “What can I get for you guys?”

One of the shifters grinned. “We just wanted to introduce ourselves since you’ll be seeing a lot of us from now on.”

Their Alpha is silent, but it still feels like his eyes are piercing into my soul. Just what is he trying to do? Xray me with his eyes?

“You mean at the bar?”

“And around town,” the shifter smiles. “We bought the abandoned building the next street over. Some of us are good with bikes and cars, so thought we might as well put our skills to use.”

Super-friendly, this lot.

“So, you’re setting up a mechanic shop?” I ask, slowly.

“Yeah. A few of our younger males showed interest in the local college, so they’ll be signing up for that.”

Hmm, not much about the females.

“I see.”

“I heard you’ve already met Austin, our Alpha. I’m Jason, his second in command. That’s Ray and Seth, and this here is Lexion. We call him Lexi for short.”

“Fuck off, Jason,” the burly shifter growled.

“Language, Lexi,” Austin orders sharply, and I blink.

Was that for my benefit?

“Well, it’s really nice to meet you all.” I smile, not really trusting their friendly nature. I know I’m biased, which is wrong, but I have to protect myself.

“I have to get back to work now, but the next round of drinks is on me.” I curve my lips at them. Better to part on nicer terms.

They don’t stop me, and I let out a sigh of relief.

Hopefully, they stay away from me.

However, as much as I want to not think about Austin, I can’t get him out of my head.

It’s the early hours of the morning after I’m done cleaning up. I grab my bag and change into street clothes before picking up the trash bags. I exit through the alley door and lock it before making my way to the large trash bins.

I toss in the trash bags and begin to close the lid of the trash bin.

I hear the sound first before I look up, only to feel something thin pierce my neck. Almost like a small needle.

My hand instantly goes to my neck, and I feel something thin sticking out of my neck.

“Crap…what…”

I yank the thin dart out and instantly feel a wave of nausea.

I grab the edge of the trash bin and look towards the entrance of the alley. I can make out a few figures approaching me. It takes me a moment for my vision to clear, and I recognize the panther shifters from a few days ago.

“Cowards,” I spit out. “Can’t even take on one woman without trying to drug her.”

But it seems that these idiots don’t know what I am.

If I was a warlock alone, the drug the dart contained would have left me in a drooling, mindless state. But my wolf side, weak as it is, is struggling to burn through the drug, giving me enough awareness to know that I’m in danger right now.

It’s days like these when I find myself grateful for the Lycan blood flowing through my system. I can feel it fighting off the effects of the drug that can be fatal to most warlocks.

But the panther shifters aren’t waiting around, and I see deadly intent in their eyes as they approach me. I don’t have to speak to summon my powers and I touch the ground, making them all jump in pain at the jolt of electricity striking them.

But it’s weaker than normal.

One of them darts over the trash bins, lined against the wall, and runs towards me. I try to avoid him, but his hand has already shifted into those deadly claws and he slashes at me. I hiss in pain as his claws score against my neck and chest, tearing cloth and puncturing my skin.