Page 61 of Midnight Moon
My head snapped up. “You think someone did this on purpose?” I couldn’t believe it.
To intentionally turn a human into a mindless beast was punishable by death. No one would risk that fate.
Asher didn’t agree. “Iknowsomeone did this on purpose.”
His unfaltering confidence caused mine to waver. “How can you be so sure?”
“Because I do not believe in coincidences.”
“What do you mean?”
Instead of answering, Asher stepped up and held out his hand. Still weakened by my contact with silver, I placed my hand in his and let him help me to my feet. I let go immediately. My legs wobbled, but I locked my knees, determined not to collapse.
Asher watched me with a rueful smirk. Did he know how his closeness affected me? I bet he was used to flustering females. I was sure he had his pick of unmated females vying for his attention.
Donotgo there, Blair.
I cleared my throat. “Well? Are you going to explain what you meant?”And will you stop staring at me like that?
“First, your partner was shot. Now, you were attacked by a rabid shifter. Someone is very determined to take the Summit Pack out of this game.”
His words poured over me like ice water, dousing every speck of heat his attention ignited.
“Rabid shifters are mindless,” I replied, desperate to dispel Asher’s theory.
When Asher told me the attack on Hunter might’ve been intentional, I’d thought he was just trying to scare me to convince me to team-up with him. Now, I wasn’t so sure.
I continued, “Even if the shifter was instructed to do something, it wouldn’t have the ability to do so.”
“That is untrue,” Asher replied.
“No, it’s not.” I should know. I’ve studied the taboo creatures—just like I’ve studied everything about my race. As a future alpha, I needed to know it all.
My determined reply did not sway Asher. “You’re too smart to be in denial, Blair. Look at the facts.”
I resisted the urge to tell him not to act like he knew me. “The facts say rabid shifters cannot be controlled, not even by the shifter who bit them.”
“But they can be controlled by magic, just like everyone else.”
My budding objection died on my lips.
Not this again…
“A sorcerer? You really think a sorcerer would do this?”
The magical race had lived separately from us for as long as shifter memory could remember. What possible reason could they have to attack my pack?
“The winner of this game becomes the most prominent pack for the next five years,” Asher said, undeterred by my doubt. “The Graystone Coven will do anything to assert their influence. I would bet my ability to shift that they want a certain pack to win, and they are trying to ensure that is the case.”
“Graystone Coven?” I knew sorcerers associated with covens like shifters associated with packs, but I’d never heard a coven’s name before.
“They’re the most prominent coven,” Asher explained. “They dominate the Western United States. Nearly all sorcerers and sorceresses in this region are descended from their line.”
I questioned how Asher would know so much about the elusive race, but then I remembered his pack was…closewith magical individuals. His and Chase’s ability to wield charms and spells were evidence of that.
“I still don’t understand why sorcerers would try to hurt me or Hunter,” I told Asher.
“Why wouldn’t they?”
