White Knight Read Online Free

but she wasn’t being given enough to eat. Not in order to maintain a loup garou’s metabolism.
    The dim, single-room apartment gave her little light. All of the windows had been painted over and barred. She had managed to scratch away a bit of paint in one corner, which gave her a view of a brick wall. It was all the natural light she’d had in ages.
    She switched on the table lamp and blinked hard against the yellow glare. It illuminated her prison, chasing out the real shadows and doing nothing for those lingering from her dreams. Beyond her cot was the crib and the source of the crying that had woken her. She stared at it, trying to remember what she was meant to do.
    Stop the crying. Keep her calm.
    Shay shuffled across the bare wood floor until she reached the scarred crib. Tiny fists jabbed up into the air. Tears streamed down red cheeks. Her thatch of black hair was sweaty and damp. Shay picked up the squalling creature and held her against her chest. The baby settled quickly, the cries becoming whimpers.
    She slowly paced the sparse length of her prison. The corner farthest from the cot had a small stand with bottles, formula, and several jugs of water. Next to it was a tiny refrigerator, and beyond that the bathroom. No door, giving Shay no real privacy. Not that she had frequent visitors.
    The hybrid sisters had broken into the McQueen house while the majority of the town was occupied by a fire. Shay had heard the commotion downstairs, heard Colin yelling. Then Winston. A woman had screamed in anger. And then a black-haired pixie of a teenager had turned the corner and jumped on Shay before she could defend herself. Bit her neck. Drank enough blood to make her pass out.
    She’d woken up alone in this room.
    Hours had passed. She had raged, pounded the walls, tried to find a way out, and failed. Failed because of her lack of strength. They had attached a leather collar around her neck, the soft material woven through with thin chains of silver. None of the silver directly touched her skin, but she couldn’t remove it and the proximity prevented her from shifting.
    At her kidnapping, she had been a month from her quarterly. Every one-hundred-one days, a loup garou endured a biologically forced shift that lasted from sunset to sunrise. The loup often became violent, so they were caged for the night. Without the quarterly, a loup garou could go mad.
    My time is soon. Too soon.
    She’d tried to explain the quarterly to Allison and Desiree separately, because the pair never came together. Neither of them understood. They’d never felt the power of the quarterly shift. They didn’t care. All they wanted was for Shay to look after the baby. Nothing more, nothing less.
    A baby with no name.
    Who are your parents, little one?
    The child had no answers, only a vaguely familiar scent Shay’s addled mind could never place.
    Her beast, long quiet these last few days, stirred from the deep place she’d gone to hide from the silver. They both knew her quarterly was close. If she wasn’t allowed to shift . . . Shay wasn’t certain what would happen. Physical pain. Emotional stress. Madness. She could potentially hurt the baby she’d been told to look after.
    Maybe the hybrids would understand that. If she explained the collar would make her attack the baby, maybe they would listen and release her. She wanted to go home so badly her chest ached with it.
    Oh Knight, I miss you. I miss you so much.
    The baby’s tears had stopped, but Shay’s had only just begun.

Chapter Two
    Inside of the large, three-story McQueen house was the only place that Knight received any measure of privacy, and he often found it in the conservatory off the rear of the house. Luke and Tanner backed off, one of the two usually taking a break to sleep or eat, or do whatever it was that robots did when not guarding their charge.
    Okay, so the robot thing was a little mean. They were overdoing it a bit with the protecting, but Knight wouldn’t