Crave

CRAVE SHADOW BRED SERIES BOOK 4 GRACE MCGINTY CONTENTS Also by Grace McGinty Prologue Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 Chapter 31 Chapter 32 Chapter 33 Chapter 34 Chapter 35 Chapter 36 Chapter 37 Chapter 38 Chapter 39 Chapter 40 Chapter 41 Chapter 42 Chapter 43 Epilogue About the Author Acknowledgments Newly Undead In Dark River Copyright © 2023 by Madeline Young writing as Grace McGinty All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. *Cover Art by DAZED Designs. ALSO BY GRACE MCGINTY Hell’s Redemption Series: The Redeemable/The Unrepentant/The Fallen Damnation MC Duet: Serendipity/Providence The Azar Nazemi Trilogy : Smoke and Smolder/Burn and Blaze/Rage and Ruin Dark River Days Series: Newly Undead In Dark River/Happily Undead In Dark River/Pleasantly Undead in Dark River Black Mountain Mates: Hunting Isla Eden Academy Series: The Lost and the Hunted (Prequel)/Heart of the Hounded (Prequel)/ Rebels and Runaways (Book 1)/Sweethearts and Savages (Book 2) Shadow Bred Series: Manix/Frenzy/Feral/Crave Stand Alone Novels and Novellas: Bright Lights From A Hurricane/The Last Note/ Inside The Maelstrom Part 1 and 2/Sticks and Stone Omega Lottery: Tryst In The Dark For my mother, who reads all my books and is so damn supportive. Thank you. I love you so much! (But please don’t read between pages 178-190) PROLOGUE SUSANNAH Ten years ago My breathing sounded too loud in the darkness. I was running as fast as I could in my half form, my eyesight good enough that I didn’t trip and fall over the forest debris, but not as good as it would be if I went full beast. Quinn’s hand was wrapped tightly in mine as I tugged him along, our backpacks slapping against our spines in rhythmic thuds. They were loaded down with everything we’d need. We just had to get to town before anyone worked out we were gone. Then we could disappear. “Susannah, we should go back,” Quinn gasped, out of breath. “If your dad finds out he’ll kick your ass. If my dad finds out…” His words trailed off, but the fear in his words hung in the silence. I stopped, my sneakers catching on a stick. My shoes were too small; I was outgrowing them too quickly for my father to keep up. If he cared to keep up, anyway. I turned, dragging Quinn closer to me. He’d had a growth spurt last year when we’d turned fifteen, leaving me nearly a foot shorter. He loved finally being able to look down at me because I’d had an inch or two in height on him since we were three. We’d been perfectly on par, until yesterday. Just two Betas; ignored, allowed to run wild in our childhood. Sure, there’d be problems when we turned eighteen because Quinn’s mom was a bitch. But that wasn’t supposed to be a problem for another two years. We had time. Until we didn’t. Everything had changed. Time had run out. Not letting go of his hand, I gave him my best bitch stare. It was an art I’d perfected long ago. “I don’t care what your dad will do, Quinn. I can’t—no—I won't let you go. You’re mine. You’re not his. Not fucking Wilkie’s, no matter what your mom promised that creepy old fuck. And now… after this?” I waved a hand at his body. “You know what Wilkie will do. We can’t let that happen. You don’t want that, and I don’t want that for you. There’s a way; I know there is. We just have to get out of here. Out of Maxton. Out of fucking Montana.” Turning on my heel, I started to walk toward the lights of the town closest to Maxton, dragging Quinn along behind me. I should’ve known this would happen—the clues were all there. I moved faster until we were running again. There was a bus that passed through at four a.m. and I wanted to be on it. It was a long run from Maxton to town, which was how we liked it. Out of sight was truly out of mind for most humans, and we’d managed to slip under their radar for a long-ass time. But I knew the end of our anonymity was coming. How could it not when they had computers and video cameras and satellites? No one wanted to hear about that, though. Fuck them. Let them get caught with their pants down. Quinn and me, we’d go out into the world and never come back to this shithole town. I briefly felt bad leaving Raiden behind, but he’d be okay. He’d presented as an Omega right on schedule, though, without Mom around, Dad was just raising him to be another Alpha replica of himself. That was his default. Train us hard, and we’d be too tired to get into trouble. Didn’t really work for me, but whatever. Finally, we were in the woods outside of Ol’ Sam’s Bar and Grill, a divey drinking establishment on the outskirts of the nearby town. We shifted back to our human form, and Quinn held me against his chest protectively, as if I didn’t have a gun in my backpack and could shoot a man in the clavicle from twenty feet away. It wasn’t my weapon of choice, but you couldn’t fit a compound bow in your backpack next to your Doc Martens. Quinn was still looking over his shoulder, like he expected six Legion soldiers to appear behind us at any moment to drag us home. It