Free Cursed (Howl, #6) by Jody Morse, Jayme Morse Page A

start to get windy, it just had to be when she was trying to eavesdrop on an important conversation.
    “I think we’re ready to do this tonight, though,” Darren went on. “It is important for us to welcome this member with open arms, as he is someone who’s close to Samara McKinley. Oh, wait, excuse me. It’s no longer Samara McKinley. It’s Samara Davenport now. She is now married to Lucas Davenport, grandson of James Briggs. The ironic thing is that James Briggs was murdered by Joe McKinley!” His laughter roared loudly into the night.
    What’s he saying, Sam? I can hear him laughing from all the way over here, Luke said.
    Samara hesitated. She decided not to mention that Darren was making fun of the fact that her grandfather had murdered Luke’s grandfather. She knew that it would only spark an argument between them. Even though Luke had seemed excited about the possibility that Grandpa Joe might be alive—just like everyone else was—Samara knew that he had to hold a grudge against him, deep down.
    He said someone who’s close to me is going to become a member of their pack , Samara said. I have a feeling it’s Rocco. I think Darren used me to help win Rocco’s trust, and now he’s going to use him against me.
    That would make a lot of sense. I knew we shouldn’t trust Rocco. I’m sure the Shomecossee would love to become Vyka members, too, since they’re not the strongest of packs , Luke said.
    A man who was sitting in the front row raised his hand. “How do we know that we can trust this member? If he was close to Samara Davenport before, doesn’t that mean he could be a traitor now?”
    “Oh, I assure you, a traitor is the very last thing this person is,” Darren replied, shaking his head vigorously. “I have been in talks with him for a while now, as we tried to come to an agreement in regards to what we should do about Samara. He has a lot of good ideas—ideas, I might add, that I might have never thought about on my own.” A smile tugged at his lips, revealing his white teeth, which gleamed in the moonlight. Darren stared over the heads of the people in his pack, as he gazed off in the direction of where Samara was perched on the ground.
    She felt her heart skip a few beats, and her breath caught in the back of her throat. Shit, I think he might have just spotted me.
    Okay, we’ll go get the candles out of the car, then, Luke told her, and she felt a sense of worry wash over him. It only intensified her own worry, which made her heart beat even quicker. 
    No, wait, not yet. Don’t make any sudden movements , Samara said, noticing Darren’s eyes drifting away from her and back to the members of his pack. I don’t think he saw me.
    Oh, good , Luke said, and Samara heard the sigh of relief that he breathed aloud through mind-speak. Some of the worry left his body, and by default, Samara found herself feeling slightly less worried, too. It was frustrating how her emotions mimicked Luke’s because she always felt what he felt.
    “So, if there are no more questions, we can get on with this pack initiation.” Darren glanced around and waited to see if anyone was going to object . He grinned. “Splendid. I can promise you all that you won’t be disappointed about this. It will help us to get rid of Samara as quickly as possible. And remember, the sooner we can eliminate Samara, the sooner we can get our hands on that talisman.”
    So, Darren and his pack weren’t the ones who had somehow gotten their hands on that talisman. Samara had wondered if it might have been them, since it obviously wasn’t her grandfather who had taken it. But who did that leave who could have taken it?
    Darren glanced over to the other side of the circle, which was concealed from Samara’s view by the shadows. “Please come forward.”
    Samara watched as a dark figure rose to his feet and continued through the shadows. Once he was standing at the center of the circle, next to D arren, he took his hoodie