Caught in Heat [Half-breed Shifter Series Book 1] Read Free

He’d find that boy and kill him.
     

 
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Chapter One
     
    Fifteen Years Later
     
    Branches slapped at Riley Bane as she darted between trees and vines. The forest floor, littered with all variety of foliage, ripe and flourishing from the summer heat, provided even more obstacles to dodge. Yet that did not slow her. Panic propelled her forward; her paws whispered on the ground as they raced over nature’s debris.
    Twigs tangled in her fur. She’d have a hell of time combing them out once she stopped.
    That didn’t slow her, either.
    Her time ran short. The fever had come upon her quickly. She hadn’t realized it would happen this fast. But her body’s response to the change was prompt and potent. It urged her to turn around, return to her jamboree, and ease the boiling needs already sweltering inside her.
    Her head, however, still contained a rational, functioning brain that refused to obey the laws of her kind. She would not give in to her body’s desires simply because her hormones demanded it was time.
    Humans could control their baser instincts, and half of Riley remained very-much human, so she’d control this. She’d resist the draw thrumming through her bloodstream, growing more impatient with each step she raced.
    She quickened her pace, all four feet eating up the ground. The night rushed past her in a dark blur. Only a crescent moon lighted her way, but in this form, she didn’t even need that much illumination. She saw better, moved faster, reacted instinctively when shifted into her animal. And tonight was all about speed and precision.
    But a need unlike any she’d ever experienced before possessed her, pulsing through her cunt until she growled low in her throat. She struggled to concentrate. The sanctuary was purposely well-hidden. It was nearly impossible to locate when one was working on all four cylinders. With the roar rushing through her veins and muddling her thoughts, though, she’d require a miracle to find it.
    She’d already stopped three times to massage her pussy to the point of release, but that only seemed to double the strength of her yearning when the fever returned. If she’d stayed home, she probably would’ve climaxed her way through a dozen males by now. And loved every second of it. The need to come again grew and expanded inside her; she just wanted to—
    No! She would not let the fever consume her. She’d prevail. She’d find the sanctuary and—
    The ground under her hind leg gave way. Riley twisted to compensate and pull herself free of the hole, but sharp teeth clamped around her ankle, biting all the way to the bone.
    She howled. Her earsplitting yet scratchy cry that pierced the night could no doubt be heard by every predator within a five-mile radius. Not that she cared. The agony was brutal.
    As her body went into distress, she shifted into her natural shape, and the hairy paw caught in the trap turned into a smooth, human female foot. Naked, drenched in sweat, and panting, she curled into the fetal position until she could focus past the pain.
    She needed to free herself and escape as quickly as possible before every curious creature in the forest found her exposed and vulnerable. And ripe for the feasting. She tried to shift back into her animal, gritting her teeth and straining, but it was useless. The pain immobilized her.
    The only good thing about remaining human was that she had fingers that worked.
    She reached down in the dark, fumbling for a latch to release the spring. Moaning as each move dug the razors deeper into her ankle, she patted the cold metal trap until she found a hinge. Her fingers investigated the area. When she discovered a padlock preventing her from pulling the metal jaws apart, she whimpered, fear clogging her windpipe. This was no simple animal trap. It had been specifically designed to catch and keep prey with a functioning brain and working fingers.
    Prey like her.
    Someone was hunting shapeshifters.