Page 14 of Wolf's Forbidden Curse

I sat across from him and put my hands out in front of me, palms up.

“Let’s see what we have.” He took his glasses off and set them aside.

I noticed that when the light caught his eyes, they were a little milky around the irises. I wondered how well he could actually see without the help of his lenses. Then again, the glass on his eyewear looked like it badly needed to be cleaned, so they might not have aided him at all. Was this part of the gimmick? A fortune teller with terrible vision?

He picked up my right hand and stared down at the lines. “Hmm. Very interesting. You are an avid traveler. Have been all over the world.”

“I wouldn’t say I’ve been all over the world. I’ve seen some cool parts of it, though.”

He smirked. “Of course, you wouldn’t say that.” He winked. “Because I also see here that you’re a bit of a secret keeper. You play things close to the chest. Did you know that every lie you tell leaves a physical mark on the body?”

“Yeah, right. Then some people would be covered head to toe in these markers.”

“They are.”

I rolled my eyes.

“The marks aren’t visible to everyone,” he said, looking up at me for a moment. “But I can see them. All of them.” He ran his thumb softly along the edge where my hand met my wrist. “This is where I can usually see something about your family.”

I stiffened.

He laughed softly. “But I won’t go down that path if you don’t want me to. It’s obvious this is an area of your life where you carry a lot of stress. A lot of pain. There’s no need for me to delve into that until we get to know each other a little better.”

I said nothing. I had no intention of coming back to this shop and getting to know this man any better.

He smiled and reached for my left hand. “You don’t think you’ll be back, but they always come back.” Despite my dislike for him, I felt myself giving him the other palm instead of getting up out of my seat and storming out of there.

“And in this one, I see—” He drew back with a sudden jerk of his body, and I was snapped out of the sort of trance that I’d felt coming mere seconds ago.

“What?” I frowned. “What is it?”

“Oh dear…” He took a moment to once again study my palm, eyes more alert and wider than before. Then he closed the fingers of my left hand into a fist and patted it gently. “Sweetheart, you have been messing with things that you shouldn’t have. Didn’t anyone warn you of the dangers?”

“Wha—” I shook my head. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. I haven’t messed with anything.”

He clicked his tongue. “Then perhaps someone meddled in the unknown on your behalf, although someone would have to really hate you to do something like this. Do you have any mortal enemies? Foes? A betrayed lover seeking revenge?”

I snorted. “No! I—I’m a normal person. Normal people don’t have ‘mortal enemies.’ Do you have any idea how crazy you sound?”

The man stared at me for a moment before sitting back in his seat with a heavy sigh. “This reaction tells me that you haven’t experienced it yet. In some ways, that’s good. I caught you before it happened, so I can help you get through it.”

“Experienced what exactly?”

“The full moon.”

“The full moon?” Now, I was really starting to lose my patience. This guy was clearly a quack, drawing on classic ‘spooky’ lore to try and keep me engaged longer, or maybe because he was about to sell me a crystal that would help me ward off evil. “I’ve seen a full moon before. I realize that I look a little young for my age, but I’ve been around the earth a couple dozen times. I’ve seen my fair share of the moon in all its stages.”

“Yes, but this time, it will be different,” he said, standing up out of his chair. “And it’s happening tonight, in case you weren’t keeping track of the moon stages this month. I always do for this exact reason.”

“What are you talking about?” I asked again.

“It’s good to know what sort of things might be happening in town, what sort of creatures might be lurking about. I’ve never claimed to be a loyalist to the people of Solara Bay, but that doesn’t mean I want to see any of them torn to pieces either.”

“Torn to pieces?”

“I’ll explain everything,” he said as he started to walk away from the table. “Just wait right here. I have some things in the back that I need to get for you. They will help you make it through the night without too much trouble. Once I’m back, we’ll come up with a game plan. You’ll want to call your boss and let them know you won’t be able to go in for your shift tonight.”

“Wait, what—” but he had already disappeared behind the beads again.

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