Chapter 10

10

D amien stared at the text message he just received. Yesterday he had sent an inquiry to a man he knew in private investigations.

When he told Danika that he’d find out who had done this to her he had meant it. He had no name to go on, but he had gotten Danika to tell him a physical description, where the party had been, and the rest he could have his guy figure out.

Boris was a skilled tracker, had been with the Shifter Operative Trackers for the last twenty years to get the whereabouts of dangerous men.

Compared to the shit Boris had done on the battlefield for their government and kind, this was child’s play.

It was dark, and Damien sat in his vehicle in front of the party this motherfucker was supposed to be. He stared at the guy’s name again: Robert Mitchell.

Damien’s blood boiled at the sound of his name playing out in his head. He was seconds from shifting, so close to losing control that it was taking all of his willpower to hold his animal back. Then he saw the fucker he was about to beat come out of the house.

He staggered across the front lawn, his drunken focus on his car keys. Damien got out of the car and started following the punk as he made his way away from the party to his car that was parked in a secluded back alley.

When Robert dropped his car keys he cursed, and Damien felt his claws lengthen further as the images of what had been done to Danika flashed through his mind.

Once they were in the alley he curled his nails into his palms and breathed out. “You fucked with what was mine,” Damien said in a low voice, seething with anger and ready to shift and kill this asshole.

Robert slowly turned around, blinked a few times, then curled his lip. He was either fucking stupid for not showing any fear in the face of a shifter, or too drunk to realize what in the hell he was up against.

“I fucked with what was yours?” Robert slurred out, and turned his head to spit. “Get the fuck out of here with that shit. I take what I want when I want, no matter what it is.”

Maybe Damien should have felt some kind of control over himself because this dick was drunk, but he didn’t and still planned on kicking his ass to teach him a lesson. He took a step closer, and Robert shook his head.

“You’re a ballsy asshole. I was varsity football in high school.”

Damien could have laughed at that. The kid couldn’t be much older than Danika, but he was big with an athletic body. It wouldn’t help him now, because he would be the victim in this scenario. “You tried to take something from my woman at a party, pressed her up against a bathroom wall, and you got your ass handed to you even then.”

Robert looked like he was thinking, and then he started laughing. “Oh yeah, that bitch was uppity as hell.” Robert charged forward and slammed his body into Damien’s, or as much as he could given his pathetic human strength.

Damien took the force and moved with it so it was on Robert now. The other male stumbled back, but came forward again swinging. His actions were slow and sloppy, a result of him drinking all night and his anger. Damien brought his fist up, clipping Robert under the chin.

He stumbled back again, blood immediately spilling from his mouth. Damien could have easily taken this fucker out without even blinking, but this was more fun. Robert turned his head and spit out a mouthful of blood.

Damien was pumped with adrenaline and endorphins, and his lion wanted out. It snapped and growled, clawing to be released. The fight was half the fun, half the rush. Damien sensed a few people close by, but he didn’t pay them any attention.

The shadows claimed most of the alleyway, and he wasn’t about to stop this because there were people watching.

Robert had a crazed expression on his face, but something inside of Damien snapped, and his lion pushed forward even more. He wrapped his hand around Robert’s neck and growled, hoping to have the little asshole piss himself.

“You fucked with my mate, my woman. You dared to lay a hand on her and think you could take something from her that isn’t yours.” He slammed his fist harder and faster into Robert’s face.

“You lion shifting fucker.”

He slammed his knuckles into Robert’s face, heard the bone break, and felt the blood spray on his neck. “I don’t want to even think about all of the females you have taken advantage of, but this will be your last time.” Damien tossed him across the cement. Robert tried to get up, but he was bloody, had broken bones, and his strength was gone. He felt no sympathy for the man that thought hurting a woman made him superior. Damien walked over to him, and said in a low voice only Robert could hear, “If you even think about my woman again, or I find out you ever did this to any other female, I’ll hunt you down and kill you.”

He kicked Robert hard enough that his body skidded across the pavement. Damien turned, kept to the shadows, and saw a man and woman stop to see what was going on.

They couldn’t see him, and he doubted they could see the bastard on the floor either, not unless they wanted to come deeper into the shadows. He left and headed back home.

He needed to shift and run this extra energy out of his body, because right now he was so fucking dangerous he even scared himself.