Dead Shifter Walking Read Free Page A

I
slipped the bright pink top on.
    “I know; could this color be more sick?” I
asked, looking down at myself, disgusted.
    “I was referring to the bullet wound on your
shoulder,” she said, not sharing my humor.
    “Still not as painful as the color,” I informed
her, pursing my lips out.
    She smiled warily, commanding the music to
begin.
    I loved this room and the release it promised.
High-level mages had warded this room to prevent our influencing
the rest of the house, or, in my case, the neighborhood.
    A relaxed smile full of mischief crossed her
face, rolling her shoulders and relaxing into the music that was
already pumping through the speakers. “Ready?”
    I smiled back, cracking my magic open and
drawing a braid out to wind around my limbs.
    Swinging her hips to the raging beat, I felt her
own magic intertwine with mine. As succubi, we made excellent
dancers. Kitten was the dance club Grams and I owned that provided
us enough revenue for keeping up the home and the demands of
raising our children, a few of whom were now in insanely expensive
colleges.
    Watching her in the mirror as the beat began, I
absorbed each and every move without having to mimic her first.
That was another kick-ass fact about being a succubus, although
there were plenty of drawbacks. I shuddered, having seen the raw
primal power our blood carried.
    Pushing those thoughts away, I focused back on
Kass. At twenty-six, she was the best dancer at Kitten before I
left on my latest adventure. I assumed she still was; otherwise,
there would be someone else here teaching me their latest dance
routines. We updated our shows every month, for the simple fact we
bored easily, running a different show Friday, Saturday, and
Sunday. The dance group was mainly succubi; although, the last time
I was here, there were a few vamps, shifters, and even one human,
if memory serves rightly.
    Sweat drenched my clothing, plastering the
obnoxious pink shirt to my back as we ran through the routine. It
felt amazing to let my power out; I hadn’t let it run this free
since… last month I guessed. There was a tangible difference in
forcing power at an opponent during a fight than reveling in it. I
missed it. I had been on my own so long, running from job to job,
hiding from the nightmares that were robbing me of sleep. I needed
to be here, to belong somewhere, and to know that what I did was
more than just killing; I was creating some good in this awful
world.
    Kass tossed a towel at me asking, “You good to
go for tonight?”
    I raised an eyebrow. “Tonight?” I asked
disbelievingly.
    “Yep, I have a hot date,” she smirked, toweling
off her sweat.
    I shook my head. “What time?”
    “Rehearsal starts at 8:30 p.m. with the show at
11:30 p.m. Just be sure to be there by 11:15 p.m. at the latest. I
know how you’re always on time,” she stated sarcastically.
    Throwing my sweaty towel at her, I skipped out
the room, gathering my clothing for a shower.
    “Hey!” she admonished my retreating back.
    Making my way to the second story where Grams’s
room was, I felt my thighs pull from the unaccustomed exercise. The
wing my old room was located on was currently under construction to
add a bathroom, update the plumbing and electrical, repaint the
walls, refinish the floors, everything.
    Knocking tentatively, I heard her voice coming
from the lush study. As I pushed open the cream panel double doors,
she waved me into the bedroom, cradling the phone between her
shoulder and ear.
    “That is correct, Governor Hash,” she stated
sweetly. Our ability to influence emotions completely dies on the
phones. She was using good old-fashioned manipulation, which Grams
had in spades.
    I stopped in my tracks, wondering if I should
stay and listen. I decide not to, mainly because I don’t have the
patience to listen to his constant and never-ending complaints.
    I walked through the enormous bedroom to the
equally large bathroom; I eyed the oversized bathtub with jets,
wishing