Page 36 of Curvy Alpha Bride
“Speak up!” I yell, but everyone has turned their eyes away, refusing to look at me, let alone answer me.
“It’s alright,” Serra says, tugging a shawl around her shoulders. “Everyone can just calm down a little, and we’ll discuss this like civilized people.”
“Civilized?” I almost scream. “Did you fucking hear that? It sounded like someone having their skeleton extracted while they were still alive!”
Serra’s face pales, and she actually takes a step back from me.
“And the other sound…” I stutter, putting a hand to my head. “The thing that took her. Ugly, gnashing teeth, hungry…”
I shake my head, staggering away, holding my temples. The mocking laughter still rings in my head, as if the hunter, whatever it is, has taken up residence inside me, and now I can never be free of it.
“It’s making fun of us,” I whisper in horror. “Whatever it is… It’s playing with us.”
I look up at Serra, trying to clear my mind of the horrible cackling combined with the sick, wet sounds of flesh chewed between jaws as strong as sharpened steel. When I feel a hand on my shoulder, I jump so high, I almost fall. I turn around in a flash, ready to attack.
When I see only Aunt Finnah, I drop my fist at once. In that moment, I’m keenly aware that she’s the only mother I’ve ever had, and all the strength goes out of me.
“Mom?” I whisper, and she wraps her arms around me, stroking the back of my neck.
“There,” she whispers. “It’s alright. You’re safe now, back with us. Don’t fret.”
Her touch clears my head, and suddenly I’m not scared. Only my fury remains.
“Okay,” I say, my voice harsh as I turn around. “I want an explanation, right fucking now. What the fuck is going on, who was that screaming, why is the whole town out here arguing—and what was that fucking thing?”
Even though everyone is looking at me, no one speaks. A couple of people glance at Serra, and I see her take a deep breath as she turns her face away. Obviously, everyone is waiting for her to speak, and it pisses me off.
“Listen,” I say, my voice reeking with threat, “if you don’t tell me—”
A high, keening cry cuts through my words, so like the screams I so recently heard, it completely disorients me. I even turn around as if my taken pack member is returning to me, screaming just as loudly as they did on the way out.
That doesn’t make any sense.
Does any of this?
Further down the track, I see Mabel hurrying towards us, and I’m relieved that she’s not by herself at the cabin. The sun is rising swiftly above the crest of the mountain peaks, pale light angling down on her dark, gleaming hair, making her shine as if from within.
With the dawn, a sense of safety asserts itself, but it has a temporary feel to it. The hopeless wailing cuts through my senses again, and I turn around to see one of the women crying violently, striking out with her fists as the elders, Ninette, and Eileen try to hold her. The woman is caught somewhere between fury and loss, the force of those emotions practically ripping her in two.
“My baby,” she moans. “My baby.”
There aren’t any babies in this town?
“What happened?” I ask, reining in my voice at the last moment so I don’t yell at the poor, broken woman. “Tell me what’s going on!”
“Dove,” she sobs. “My sweet Dove. She’s gone—it took her! It took her right out of her bed!”
Her words sink in slowly, bringing first a cool wave of shock, then a red-hot flood of rage.
Something attacked us… took Dove!
I turn around to look at my pack members, ready to see fury and determination on their faces as they wrestle with their shock and put it aside so we can attack. But as I turn slowly around, taking in everyone’s expressions, I see something that makes my blood run cold.
No one is surprised. NO ONE.
Every face wears a look of resignation, fear… and shame.
They knew this was going to happen!
