Page 50 of Cursed Wolf

He let the breath out in a huff, raking a hand back through his dark hair. “The vast majority of people in Vargmore are the wolves.”

I narrowed my eyes, confused. “You mean the wolf population outnumbers the humans?”

“Yes, I mean, no. Not in the way you’re thinking. Fuck, this is hard.”

“Tryn, what are you trying to tell me?”

He huffed out another breath and said slowly, “The people are the wolves, Emmaline.” He touched a hand to his chest. “And the wolves are us.”

I stared at him and blinked. “What?”

“We, the people native to Vargmore, have two forms. Human and wolf. We can change between the two.”

He looked so serious, so desperate for me to believe him. And still, an uncomfortable laugh escaped my mouth. “Tryn, are you okay?”

“Yes! Look.” He took his phone from his pocket and began scrolling. “You met Aria and Fallon, right?”

“Yeah, the two wolves.”

He held out his phone for me to see. “This is also Fallon and Aria.”

On his screen was a picture of an adorable couple sitting on a motorcycle. The woman sat behind the man, her arms hugging around his waist, her lips pressing a kiss to his cheek. The man was grinning, leaning his head back toward the woman, his hands covering hers on his stomach. They looked sweet, but I didn’t recognize them. They weren’t among the people in the tavern.

I looked at Tryn. “So you named the wolves after these people?”

“No,” he sighed, putting his phone away. “I guess it’s better if I just show you.”

“Show me what?” My tone was exasperated. I didn’t understand what he was trying to say at all. Surely not people actually turning into wolves, right?

“I have to take my clothes off for this.” He pulled off his shirt and quickly began undoing his pants.

“Tryn!” I stood from the couch, unable to peel my eyes away from his bare skin despite how weirded out I was. “Listen, I’m not in the mood. I don’t want to do anything?—”

“This isn’t a sex thing, just watch. And…just remember.” He paused, staring at me imploringly. “I would never, ever hurt you. This is going to be weird as fuck, but please don’t be afraid. No matter what you see.”

“Tryn, what the fuck is going on?” I kept my gaze on his face, even as he stripped his jeans off and stood completely naked in my living room.

He didn’t answer, just took in another deep breath and closed his eyes.

Then, something started happening to his body.

“Oh my God!” My hands clapped over my mouth, eyes wide in horror as I watched.

Tryn’s body was changing shape. His hands grew black claws, teeth growing long and sharp. His golden-brown eyes turned all the way to gold and became…something not human. Meanwhile, dark fur also sprouted all over his body and…was that a tail behind him?

Too much was happening at once. While he grew fur, teeth, and claws, the popping of bones and connective tissue filled the apartment. Tryn’s shoulders popped from their sockets, the bones rolling freely under the skin. The same thing seemed to happen to his femurs from his pelvis and he fell forward.

“Oh God, Tryn!” I started forward, then stopped dead in my tracks. The shifting of bones looked so painful that I wanted to help, but I was also terrified. I’d never seen anything like this in my life. “Tryn, what’s happening? What can I do?”

He seemed unable to speak, his nose and lips elongating into something like a snout. I reached for him but again, stopped frozen. I was caught between concern for the man I was falling for and abject terror. What the hell was this? And what could I do for this poor man on his hands and knees?

Wait, not hands and knees.

Paws. Four of them.

Large canine paws tipped with black claws.

It was quiet now, the migration of bones apparently finished.

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