Dead Shifter Walking Read Online Free PDF

fellow dancers pulsing in my veins, mingling with my
own power sliding over my skin and amplifying every sensation. My
skin was tender where the leather halter-top didn’t cover and my
breathing felt labored from more than just the exertion of
dancing.
    I lost myself in its touch, becoming one as I
unbraided the power, slowly losing conscious awareness of my limbs,
trusting they would still keep rhythm and dance.
    Eventually, as the music stopped, I had to
abandon my blissful escape flowing through the music and crashed
back to reality, pulling in my braids of power; I was disappointed,
but the show must go on. Exiting with the rest of the dance crew
below the stage, we worked our way back to the dressing rooms,
changing makeup and costumes for the rest of the evening’s
dances.
    I had minor parts in the rest of the dances;
didn’t mean I kicked out less power, just less noticeably. We
finished the sets, waived goodbye to the crowd, and retired to the
dressing rooms. Checking my phone, I found a text message from
Jerry, out back when ready.
    I texted him back, give me 10, I smell.
    He responded, good lawd take 20. I just got the
Beast detailed.
    I laughed. He called the SUV "the Beast"? We
clearly had things to discuss.
    Leaving at 3 a.m. with wet hair wasn’t the
brightest idea; I was tired and wanted to catch up on the sleep I
missed yesterday. Truthfully, I should have known that wasn’t
possible. There is no rest for the wicked. Exiting from the back of
Kitten, my hopes of a quiet evening died, seeing Mark leaning
against the beast, talking with Jerry. If I were lucky, he was just
picking up on my driver, which was beyond fine with me. Just
because I wasn’t getting any, didn’t mean they shouldn’t enjoy
themselves.
    I had just about convinced my delusional self
that I was correct; Jerry threw his head back, laughing full force
at something Mark said, and Mark sported an equally playful smile.
I even gave myself a mental pat on the back when Jerry casually
touched Mark’s forearm and Mark leaned forward to hear him better.
I actually stopped dead in my tracks, wondering if I should leave
them alone a little longer.
    As was customary in my life, this tender moment
of love and joviality was soon disrupted. Darren jumped out of a
limo that I didn’t notice behind the SUV and demand loudly, “Is she
out yet?”
    What the fuck was he doing here? I groaned as my
limbs grew cold hardly containing my desire to stomp my feet on
Kitten’s concrete steps, seeing my dreams of a fluffy bed dying a
bloody death.
    Mark pulled back from Jerry’s window, equally
annoyed and embarrassed; even Jerry looked a little red. Oh hell,
he might not be my favorite person, but I was fond of Jerry, and if
he could bring tight-ass Mark around to enlightenment, I was going
to help, not hinder.
    “Over here, Blondie,” I yelled, just as annoyed
at him as I began moving again. “What part of closed for business
do you have trouble with?” I taunted. He was taller than Mark but
where Mark boasted the shoulders of a linebacker, Darren was lean
with bleached-blond hair matching his store-bought tan.
    He stormed over in his custom-fit suit. “I have
been waiting all night for you.”
    Crossing my arms over my chest, I shifted my
backpack, kicking a hip out. “Sorry, some of us have to work for a
living, spoiled ass.”
    It was his turn to sport some frustrated red
now.
    “I don’t have time for this,” he said, grabbing
my upper arm and pulling me behind him. That was a classic mistake.
I had his armed pinned painfully behind him before he moved more
than a step.
    “No touching,” I whispered in his ear as I
pushed him forward and away from me, ready to lay steel down in
this ally.
    “Shit, Darren, back off,” Mark warned, now fully
recovered from his earlier embarrassment. “She doesn’t know.”
    “And what, pray tell, should I know?” I asked,
curious, but still annoyed.
    “It’s his daughter,” Jerry answered, coming