Page 76 of Knot Cursed

“Did you do a single bit of investigating to see if I was even around the omegas in question? I know I’m an easy target, but you’re here to protect us. Not accuse someone because it’s the easy route. This whole situation feels lazy to me.”

It might have been a few words too far but I didn’t give a single fuck anymore. They couldn’t bring me in every time something went awry. They knew what they signed up for with this job.

Tonight, I’d been focused on my pack and feeling like I had a handle on my life for once. My curse was behaving, my magic had been strong and controlled, and then this happened.

“No,” Magistrate Lorcan admitted.

“Of course, you haven’t,” I muttered, more to myself than them. I was trying not to say another smartass comment that would end up with me thrown in a dungeon somewhere.

“You can hardly blame us for assuming, seeing as how you’re the only one who consistently can find herself before us!” High Magister Barlow boomed, quieting the murmurs between the others.

He definitely didn’t like being accused of not doing his job properly, but if the shoe fit that wasn’t really my problem.

I, clearly, wasn’t the only one who saw it, either. From Rook’s words earlier it sounded like they were having some major oversight issues and now, apparently, a heat curse to keep under control.

“You’re dismissed for now, just know we’ll be keeping an eye on you.”

I held back an eye roll, but my mouth finally couldn’t hold back its snark any longer.

“I look forward to you finding out you were wrong. Can’t wait for our next meeting. You do seem obsessed with me.”

Then I turned and walked away. Someone laughed, but I doubted the others found me very funny.

Good.

I wasn’t trying to be.

Moonlit Grove was home. I loved it here and all its quirkiness. But they were crazy if they thought we weren’t going to look for a way out of our curses. We deserved freedom.

This town was a prison in its own way.

Before I could walk past the receptionist, she stopped me with a smug, little smirk on her face.

“Excuse me, but you’re going to have to leave a few more details for us. The magistrate wants to ensure we can get a hold of you when more of this outbreak arises as we all know it will.”

I didn’t even bother to defend myself to this assistant who knew nothing about me. Instead, I gave her a bored look and stared long enough to make her uncomfortable. She huffed then handed over a fresh contact info sheet. Probably just to annoy me because it wasn’t like they couldn’t walk by my shop and find me at any point during the day. They also had my address.

I shifted uncomfortably as my pen scrolled across the paper. Each word I added, the temperature in the room seemed to rise. My skin was starting to feel too hot and my head throbbed painfully.

Even as I suffered through the information, I kept my eyes on the paper, not giving her the satisfaction of knowing I was stressed.

Or whatever was going on.

As I finished the paper my head gave a painful throb and a familiar ache formed in my abdomen. Then my perfume exploded in the room. The cloud of pure omega pheromones had everyone turning toward me in horror.

The heat curse. Fuck.

“I’m leaving,” I said frantically as slick started to drip down my thighs. Someone here was responsible. Coming to the magistrate building clearly infected me with the exact curse they were accusing me of spreading. But it couldn’t be my problem now.

Leaving was my only choice.

I burst out of the front doors, desperate for fresh air.

“Dorian!” I screamed out, not bothering to look around to see if anyone realized what was happening. All I wanted was to go home. “Rook! Merrick!”

“I’m here,” Dorian said as he ran up the path to meet me. His voice was a rough growl and at the panic in my voice he was starting to sprout hair along his arms and cheeks. His tail flickered anxiously behind him, fangs poking out of his mouth so he couldn’t quite close his mouth all the way.

“The magistrate accused me of spreading a curse. Apparently, it’s a heat curse,” I explained frantically, sweat was starting to drip down my skin. His nostrils flared before I even finished speaking.