Rejected (Shadow Beast Shifters Book 1)

“Still sweeping, I see.”

This was the third time Angel Face had spoken directly to me. For once, I was the cranky one, my wolf clawing at my chest as the need to shift pressed against me.

I snarked back. “Still moving food about your plate without ever putting any of it in your mouth, I see.”

She smiled, dropping the bread she’d been tapping against her plate.

“We don’t need to consume food in my world, but I love the scent, so I sit here to enjoy it as much as I can.”

I stared at her. “You don’t eat?”

She chuckled at the obvious incredulity in my tone. “We don’t eat food, no. This is not what sustains my race, but it smells so enticing.”

I slammed my hands on the table. “Are you shitting me?”

Amusement danced through her stunning eyes. “Humans have always been my favorites when it comes to a delightful turn of phrase.” She regarded me closely. “And you… You are special.”

I sniffed. “Trust me, I’m not special. I’m just bubbly. All of you supernatural creatures are so broody that when someone comes along who genuinely enjoys life, you think she’s some unusual creature that needs to be studied.”

Angel shook her head. “No, it’s something more than that. From the first time you sat near me, not even realizing that no one ever sits in my section, I felt a buzz of energy from you. My curiosity over you has grown with each lunch we share…”

My wolf chose that moment to surge forward, sending me into a half-shift before I got her under control. Shooting to my feet, I gripped the edge of the table. “Not to be rude, because I’m loving our new bonding moment, but do you know of a place I can shift and run?”

She didn’t miss a beat. “I do, actually. Would you like to visit my home?”

I blanched. “Is that okay? I mean… I was warned not to leave here.”

She was standing too, a head above me, looking like the goddess to beat all goddesses. One would feel insecure if one weren’t in the middle of fighting her wolf soul.

“Are you afraid, little wolf?” she asked me.

Another shudder and wave of energy. “No. Just… take me to…”

No more words were needed. Angel wrapped her hand around mine, and then we were in the library, standing before the beautiful door of the meadows. Inky, who must have been nearby even though I hadn’t seen him in the dining hall, swelled up into a huge mist to try to block us.

Angel waved it away. “I will watch over her. You know you’re not welcome in Honor Meadows, and I don’t need to remind you that it’s not in your best interest to get in my way.”

Inky started sparking, synapses visible inside the smoke, but Angel showed no fear. She just waved it aside. “We’ll return soon,” she said, opening the door.

The brightest light I’d ever seen had me shutting my eyes briefly, and I wondered how this was my life now. About to step through a random doorway into a new world, with a being who had done little more than grunt and glare at me for weeks.

But none of that mattered. This was my first taste of freedom in a long time, and my wolf and I were so ready for it.

Honor Meadows had a calming feel in the air, the light and warmth reminding me of late summer in Torma. It smelled good too, giving me vibes of grandma’s cookies, fresh-cut grass, and rain lingering on the horizon. Maybe this land was all about providing the perfect ambience to feel at peace. Because that was exactly what was happening.

“This is my home,” Angel said, waving her hands to encompass the pristine surroundings, which included a long field dotted with flowers in shades of muted gold. “You can run here as your wolf,” she said, her face more relaxed than I’d ever seen. “I’m the last of my family line and will fly above to keep you safe.”

On instinct, I hugged her. Again, there had to be something wrong with me to keep doing this, but thankfully, Angel’s power didn’t shock me into a new reality. Our energies met and mingled, and I felt a buzz across my skin. It was both stimulating and soothing at the same time.

When I pulled back, I waited for her scowl to return, but instead, she looked upon me with wonder. “Unusual,” she murmured, but it was too late to ask more as I lost the battle with my beast.

A howl built in my throat until I threw my head back and released it to the world. There was only time to strip my clothes off before the change broke my bones and rebuilt me as a wolf. A very excited wolf who felt right at home in this land, prancing and yipping as she butted against Angel’s legs in a typical canine way.

We took off, racing through the light, fresh air. It was obviously different to Earth; we could even move faster, with far less fatigue. When I bounced high across the ground for the second time, Angel laughed.

“We have less gravity,” she shouted from above, her wings fully expanded as she stayed with me. “Run like the wind, wolf walker.”

I did, and it was the best time I’d had in… as long as I could remember. Just me, my wolf, and a guardian angel above. I never did reach the end of her golden grassed field, and I never saw anything else in this land, not even a speckle in the saffron-hued sky.

When we were exhausted and the clawing need to run had faded, we flopped down, resting our head on our paws, allowing the dual nature of our minds to drift as we enjoyed this perfect temperature. After a short doze, we woke to find Angel sitting nearby, staring out into the distance. As always, she looked beautiful beyond this world, and… a little sad.

“Ready to return home, little wolf?” she asked when I lifted my head. “The beast will be raging, so it’s probably best we don’t annoy him any further.”

I nodded, getting back to my feet and following her as she opened a doorway into the library. Like Shadow, those with access seemed to be able to just open a doorway wherever they wanted.

She didn’t follow me through, and I glanced back to find her framed in the door, the glow of Honor Meadows behind her. “See you at lunch,” she said, and then the door was firmly closed.

Not feeling any great urge to return to my human form—and we’d forgotten our clothing anyway—I decided to give my wolf more time to stretch her legs. We padded through the shelves, going where instinct led, and it was nice until I caught sight of Inky up ahead, swelled almost to the size of one wall. It was still in “pissed off mode” and I had a sneaking suspicion I should lie low for a minute. Give it and Shadow time to calm down.

Ducking my head, I darted through the first set of shelves, following the wall until I made it back to the front veil, exiting into the white hallway. My wolf was somewhat in control at the minute, and she had the urge to get back to Torin… to the one we were bonded through fate.

I, on the other hand, had no such fucking urge, but the wolf was leading the way.

Before we reached the point where you could step to Earth, a white door distracted us. Or my wolf, more accurately, since I was confused as fuck about what we were doing.

She pressed her nose against it, and without any effort, it sprang open. When we moved inside, it was dark, just the light from the doorway splashing through, but not enough for me to see deeper than a couple of feet.

We should leave.

My mental urge was ignored by the stubborn bitch that was my wolf, and as she stepped farther inside, I let my own curiosity have wings—seemed I didn’t really want to stop her anyway.

As we padded deeper into the room, the darkness cloaked us completely, and I knew we weren’t alone. I felt something hovering just out of sight, and it was only when a familiar bellow shattered the silence that everything became startlingly clear.

The abervoq. The shadow creature. My wolf had walked us right into its prison, and she was now beelining for it, head thrown back as she howled in return. What the actual fuck?

Our eyes adjusted enough that its large shape came into view, its limbs restrained by thick chains. And still, the wolf padded closer without hesitation, and then, to my fucking shock, she lay down against the fur of the creature. The abervoq let out one final bellow, but it didn’t claw us to death. Instead, a paw draped across us, almost protectively, and once again, safe from the wrath of the Shadow Beast, we slept.