Addie (Pack of Misfits #1) - Raven Kennedy Page 0,59

the back of his arm. “Options?” he laughs. “Son, unless you want to join a pack of pussy misfit freaks of nature, we’re the only ones around here, and we’re a damn strong pack.”

Pussy misfit freaks? My fingers curl around the neck of my beer bottle in anger.

“Yeah, we heard about Pack Aberrant,” Herrick says carefully. He shoots me a look, telling me with his expression to calm the fuck down.

Curb cackles again, oblivious. “Yep. An embarrassment to all pred shifters everywhere. My alpha has been petitioning to get their pack dissolved. It ain’t right, havin’ a bunch of deformed and weak freaks with their own pack. They should be rogues like they’re meant to be. Picked off by the stronger packs.”

“That’s a bit harsh.”

Curb shrugs. “It’s natural. Prey shifters and fucked up outcasts shouldn’t be breeding. We don’t need that shit spreading in our genes.”

Red. All I’m seeing is red. The vein in Penn’s neck looks about ready to burst, and the assholes behind us are still fucking with that girl. My entire body is tense, every noise and smell furthering my disgust. If this is what a strong alpha pred pack looks like, I want nothing to do with it.

When the girl makes a noise, we all glance over to see that one of the shifters has gotten to his feet and is unbuckling his belt. “Good job, sugar,” he tells her, aiming to take her right then and there on the table while the other guys watch, while continuing to balance beer bottles on her naked body.

Curb notices the direction of our gazes and smirks at the display. “If you join us, that’s just one of the perks. Human whores to fuck and pred females to mate.”

Penn jumps to his feet like he’s going to punch the guy, but I quickly shove my bottle into his chest. “Good idea, bro. Go get me another one, too.”

Penn’s head whips over to look at me, nostrils flaring and eyes lit up with fury. I press my bottle harder into his chest and give the smallest of head shakes. “Get Herrick one too, will ya?”

Penn hesitates for another second, and then turns and storms toward the bar.

Fuck, that was close.

The last thing we need is to start a fight in the middle of their pack bar. We’re outnumbered and we’d have our asses handed to us in a second. Plus, we still need to find out information, and we can’t do that with fists.

Herrick and I exchange a look, and he clears his throat. “What about non-preds?”

Curb laughs. “Non-preds? None here.”

I frown. “That’s strange. I mean, I know pred-dominant packs usually mate with their own breeds and have pred offspring, but to not have any non-preds? That’s unusual. What about other Cane breeds? Some of your shifters must be mated to other types of Canes? Witches, vampires…?”

“Forming a mate bond outside our shifter breed is against Pack Rockhead law. Humans or other Canes—it’s forbidden. And as for our shifters having non-pred offspring...I didn’t say we’ve never had ‘em. I said there’s none here,” he says cryptically.

“Meaning?”

“Meaning we cut ‘em loose or…” he shrugs. “The problem corrects itself with the yearly challenges.”

I blanche. “Are you saying that you challenge non-preds that are born into your pack? You challenge kids?”

Curb shrugs. “We’re a pure pred pack. It’s the way it’s always been. Once a non-pred shifter comes of age, they can either face the challenge, or they can walk.”

I can’t believe what I’m hearing. What he’s saying is unheard of. Sure, shifters favor preds, but to turn away our own young? That practice is barbaric and unnecessary. Nearly everyone from our old pack was a predator. But every once and awhile, there were members who chose to mate outside of the norm, and take up with a witch or a non-pred, or hell, even a human. It wasn’t illegal, just frowned upon.

Even so, the children of those unions were never given the ultimatum to fight to the death or go rogue. The fact that Rockhead has done this for centuries makes the acid in my stomach churn and boil.

Curb’s obvious disdain for any kind of shifter other than a predator shows me exactly what we could become if we let prejudice rule us. When I steal a look at Herrick, I can tell from the horrified expression on his face that his train of thought is the same as mine. No wonder Addie looked at us with such contempt. We were acting