Page 55 of Cursed Love
Brandy: If you saw Ryan, you wouldn’t be thinking about air.
Andrea: Picture or he doesn’t exist.
Brandy: I’ll see what I can do. You okay?
Andrea: I’m better now… had a nightmare and needed to know you were okay.
Brandy: Nightmare?
Andrea: You died.
Brandy’s feet stumbled as she came to a halt. Someone bumped into her shoulder and snapped, “Hey! Watch where you’re going!” as she stared at the words on her phone. Chills ran down her skin at the two words.
She forced her eyes upward and around as she rubbed the goose bumps covering her arms. Random people now walked on both sides of the sidewalk. One couple laughed about something, and the others were engrossed in their phones.
Brandy: …WTF?
She took one step and another, her eyes darting from the phone to her surroundings. If not for all the sudden people, she would have used the cloaking spell.
Andrea: Yeah, I don’t remember anything about the dream but that. It was so weird, and it left me shaken up. Please be careful.
Brandy: Always. I lead a boring life. You know that.
Her heart squeezed as she typed out the lie. If Andrea really knew how exciting Brandy’s life had become in a matter of weeks, she would have Brandy locked behind closed doors until the threat was gone.
Andrea: Love you… Don’t forget to send a picture of Mr. Sexy Pants.
Brandy: Love you too! I’ll work on getting you that proof.
Tucking the phone in her pocket, she sped up. She had never been afraid to walk the city by herself. She had been cautious, but everything had changed in the last couple of months. Everything kept pointing to her death between the curse and the attacks, and now even Andrea was having dreams.
Two blocks later, she turned, choosing the quickest way back to Peter’s condo. She kept a steady pace, looking over her shoulder and studying those she came across. Even though the people she saw looked safe enough, her internal alarms cranked up.
The smell hit her with no warning. She knew better. She should have noticed it sooner. If she survived the mistake, she would not repeat it again.
She watched him sniff the air as he stopped in front of her. The wry grin on his face made her skin crawl. “You’re a hard little witch to find.”
“Witch? Are you okay, sir?” she asked, giving him her best concerned expression. Brandy scoured through Peter’s and Ryan’s lessons, hoping to get out of this without garnering anyone else’s attention.
His eyes narrowed, and his nose flared when he took in another whiff of her. She did what she could to stay relaxed, pretending he was a strange man rather than the werewolf she smelled.
“The boss wants to chat with you,” he said, stepping closer.
Brandy shook her head and stepped back. “I’m not sure who your boss is, but I think I’ll pass.”
His eyes glowed, and her heart stuttered when his teeth elongated into sharp points. She was in more trouble than she could have imagined. Between his mention of a boss and the scary way he could control his form, she realized she was in serious trouble. He was no werewolf. He was a lycan, who reported to a demon. One who wanted tochatwith her…
“What’s wrong?”Ryan asked.
Brandy calculated how far she was from the condo and nearly whimpered at the distance. She’d seen Peter run in and out of his werewolf form. He was fast… super fast. There was no way she could outrun a lycan. Peter had described lycans as juiced-up werewolves. As if they needed any advantage…
“Lycan. Fourth Street and Benton, help!”she said.
She felt Ryan’s anxiety shoot up at her words. Pushing it aside, she focused on the lycan before her. The boys had trained her for a moment like this. Plus, it was time to make her parents proud. Sure, a heads-up about this part of the world, her powers included, would have been nice, but the past could not be changed.
Its fingernails thickened and lengthened, and fur coated his hands—and his body, if she were to guess. Shaggy hair sprouted on his head, but he managed to control the rest of his change. Brandy cocked her head in awe. Peter had been all or nothing, unlike this guy.
He struck out fast, catching her off guard, and his claws sliced through the fabric at her stomach.Whoa, too close,she thought to herself. It was time to focus before she ended up on some missing witches list. If there was such a thing.
