Shifter In Ascent (Louisiana Shifters) Read Free Page B

street. Taking advantage of a long line
    of people leading into a coffee shop, Jace tucked his lean 6”4 frame into a pocket of shadow near the building’s bright orange clapboard corner and peeked down the street where the girl had gone.
    He scrubbed a hand over two days’ worth of dark stubble on his chin and cheek before raking his hand through his roan brown hair. He’d recently had it cropped just above his ears, and had developed the habit of running his hand through it when he was thinking, or selfconscious. If he had to approach the girl, she was probably going to take one look at his wildman hair and disheveled clothes and run for the hills. If she was smart, at least.
    Don’t worry about what the damned human thinks. Worry about the man that’s about to abduct her, Jace reminded himself.
Jace followed after the girl, passing endless rows of multi-storied shops and houses interspersed with shadowed, verdant courtyards set back from the street and guarded by massive wrought-iron fences. Usually every street in the French Quarter was teeming with life, from tourists snapping pictures and bicyclists enjoying the weather to black-uniformed locals heading to their service industry jobs. Unfortunately for Jace, it was a Catholic high holiday, the feast of someone or the other. That meant that the largely-religious local masses were crowded around St. Peter’s Cathedral to watch the procession of high-ranking priests entering the church. Such a large gathering would have been quite helpful had it not been at least twelve blocks away. Jace didn’t have twelve blocks’ time to intercept Jasper.
He could see the girl strolling down the street about half a block ahead. She was holding a sleek black phone to her ear and frowning. If she was talking to someone, her voice was too soft for even Jace’s hypersensitive ears.
The girl had a tumble of blonde curls that complemented her pale skin and light eyes. She was tall for a female, but fleshed out in just the right spots.
She wore an eggplant-colored skirt, a white lace blouse, a yellow cardigan sweater, and simple yellow flats. She would have caught his eye even if she didn’t smell lovely, but he would have dismissed her immediately; he longed to do so now. But she was human, and therefore helpless. Also very self-absorbed if her inattention to her surroundings was any clue.
Just like a human. Pretty outside, brainless inside. That’s why I don’t mess with human women, Jace thought. Even the Ascendant ones.
Jace scowled as he followed the girl. He couldn’t decide if he wished she would get off the phone so she’d realize she was being followed, or if he wanted her to stay on the phone and remain oblivious. It was possible that the other wolf would wait until the human was off the phone before attacking. They were not far off from the bustling part of Decatur St., so there was a slim chance that the girl might make it without noticing the men following her. It was always better to let humans think they were the only species occupying their little world.
Jace scanned the street again, searching for the infamous Jasper McDonough, supposed rapist and killer extraordinaire. Like Jace, Jasper might have looked human, but they were rapist and killer extraordinaire. Like Jace, Jasper might have looked human, but they were
    definitely a breed apart. Jasper was nearly feral, and even surlier than Jace himself. At least he had been the last time they’d seen each other, a few years back by now.
Where the hell is that crazy bastard hiding? I certainly don’t want him creeping up on me.
Jace couldn’t see Jasper at the moment, but the other wolf’s scent was all around. Jasper McDonough was no idiot, but his hot temper had led him to expose his nature to outsiders before. This wouldn’t be the first human Jasper’s pack had hurt, either.
Seeing as how Jace had been following the pheromone-laden trail of this female Ascendant for almost a week, he wasn’t about to