Page 43 of Wolf Cursed
“That’s it?” I asked. “The big reveal is that your town is different?”
“It’s the truth.”
“You know what, forget it.”
I turned for the door, and frustration flashed in his eyes.
“We don’t allow outsiders for this exact reason,” he grumbled. “Explanations get complicated.”
My eyes widened. “You’re making this my fault?”
“No, I’m not— I don’t know where to start. What to say.” His expression softened, and for just a moment, I could see he was trying.
I swallowed some of my panic and said, “How about you start by telling me how it’s possible that Kai Stone just turned into a werewolf.”
“First, we prefer the term shifter,” he said. “Werewolves are a product of Hollywood, but we were born this way so—”
“Wait.We?” I echoed.
He nodded; his expression wary now. “I’m the same as Kai. And so are the other wolves you saw.”
My heart thudded, but it wasn’t anything I hadn’t already guessed. Oscar being there earlier could have only meant one thing. He’d known the wolves would be there.
Except that now he was saying hewasone of the wolves there.
“You’re saying all of you turn into wolves,” I said. “Shifters.”
Oscar nodded.
I frowned, my thoughts careening in a direction I knew I couldn’t return from. Oscar seemed to understand and simply waited while I put the pieces together.
“But if you were born that way, does that mean your entire family line was too?” I asked, not sure I wanted to know the answer.
Oscar nodded, slowly, deliberately. His eyes never left mine, and I knew he was gauging my reaction as the truth sank in. What he’d said about my dad being one of them… It finally made sense. And I wasn’t sure how I felt about that.
“My dad was a shifter,” I said.
He nodded again.
For some reason, it was a relief. Having an explanation for the monster he’d become. It looked nothing like the wolves I’d seen tonight. It had been much grislier. Less formed. More stunted. And definitely angrier.
But somehow, they were the same creature.
At least, I could dismiss the idea he’d been possessed by a demon.
That left only one question.
“And me?” I asked quietly.
He nodded again.
I blew out a breath and slowly sank onto the stool he’d offered.
“You don’t look nearly as surprised as I expected.”
Oscar’s words shook something loose. The words bubbled up and out of me, probably more from holding them in than wanting to trust Oscar in any way.
“The night my dad died,” I began, “before they shot him, he…he changed. Became something else.”
