Amber Silverblood: Rogue Wolf

By Adam Bolander

Amber has hit rock bottom. Three years have passed since her first Silverblood transformation, and the destruction of everything she once held dear. Now she’s forced to kill and steal for her worst enemy, the demon crime lord Hendricks, in exchange for protection from Majestic. But when a mission goes wrong, and a powerful magic weapon is stolen, Amber must venture into the outside world with Dex, the smart mouthed Majestic wizard, to get it back. Will they retrieve the item and make it back before the next full moon, or is Amber fated to go on another murderous rampage?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Adam Bolander
• Release date: Nov 25, 2023
• ISBN: 9798215028049

Adam Bolander

Adam Bolander grew up struggling with several learning disorders. All his life, he'd always had one dream: to be a well known author. Though it took him until his junior year of high school to actually begin writing, he has since then published three books, with several more on the way. All of Adam's books are appropriate for ages 12 and up. They contain no sexual content, no foul language, no drug use, and only mild violence.

Book preview

Chapter One

You are a monster.

I stood behind the closed door, eyes shut, repeating that sentence to myself over and over. It was like I was meditating, and that was my mantra. I was a monster. I had accepted that years ago. I hated it, but I didn’t deny it. That was why I did this every time I went outside. If I ever lost this feeling…if I ever stopped hating myself…then I would know I had lost the last bit of humanity I had in me.

What would I do when that happened? Hopefully I’d never have to find out.

My pocket vibrated, and I pulled out my phone even though I already knew what it would say. You have arrived. Taking a deep breath, I pushed open the door. It opened to the side of a busy city street, with a row of dilapidated buildings rising up in front of me. Stepping onto the curb, I looked back. What had been a wooden door when I’d gone through had turned into a car door, attached to a shiny black limousine. The driver grinned and wiggled his fingers at me.

The urge to kill him rose, not for the first time. Also not for the first time, I shoved it back down and slammed the door. He would wait here with the car until I was done. I turned, looking at the building he had dropped me off at. It was an old hotel, abandoned for decades. The smell of smoke was faint even to my supersensitive nose, but still there. It looked like it would collapse if I breathed on it the wrong way. Why hadn’t the city officials demolished it, I wondered?

No. No wondering. No thinking. I fixed my eyes on the boarded up doorway. Only work.

I walked up to the door and gave it a kick. The entire thing shattered like it was made of graham cracker, throwing up a cloud of old smelling dust. I waited for it to clear before stepping—

I froze. I could…feel…something. Far away, but getting closer by the minute.

The full moon.

Cursing under my breath, I pulled my phone out again and checked the time. Eight twenty five PM. Fifteen minutes before moonrise. The feeling faded as I went inside, putting a roof and walls between me and the sky, and I breathed a sigh of relief.

Jackwad! I typed, face burning. You did this on purpose. Again.

Send. It took a few seconds to buzz again.

I’m sure I have no idea what you mean, Amber. But you had better hurry if you don’t want to get caught outside with the moon up. Wouldn’t it be a shame if someone got hurt because of you?

I growled, the sound coming out more beastial than I’d meant it to, and shoved the phone back into my pocket. Fifteen minutes. Could I do this in fifteen minutes? It wasn’t like I had a choice, I guess. If I didn’t get the job done, I wouldn’t be surprised if he took the car away.

I squared my shoulders. I’d managed to stay out of the full moon for three years now. I wasn’t going to let that change tonight.

I rammed my shoulder into the door that led to the stairwell and raced up the steps. I could still feel the moon faintly, but in here I could control it. I let it seep into me, like I was some kind of lunar panel, feeding me energy that I used to run all the way up to the top floor of the old hotel. When I got there, kicking down that door too, I wasn’t even out of breath.

The wind whipped my long red hair out behind me. The fire that had ravaged this place must have started up here, because there were holes all over the walls and barely any ceiling. Again, the power of the impending moon hit me. My senses went into overdrive, and for a split second I could smell everything. Not just the soot stained air, but the people who had been here that night so many years ago. Burning flesh. The human part of me wanted to hurl, but something else latched onto that scent. Something I had done my best to bury over the past three years. It loved the smell of death, lived for it.

Like a shadow, it rose up inside me.

LET. ME. OUT.

I refused to speak to it. Maybe if I ignored it, it would go away. I knew that was stupid, since it literally existed inside of me, but…

The job. Right. Doing my best to shove the thing back down, I began to wander around the hotel. There was one good thing about this, I supposed, and that was my already superhuman sense of smell being ratcheted even higher. I resisted the urge to go down on all fours and sniff for him—I might not be able to get back up—and instead closed my eyes and inhaled deeply.

Yes. I wasn’t alone.

I let the scents wash over me, painting a picture in my brain without having to open my eyes—and then spun around and charged down the hallway! I had him, but I needed to act fast. Not just to escape the moon, but to keep him from escaping again. I didn’t even bother with the door this time, plowing straight through the old brittle wall instead. A cloud of dust and plaster filled the room, but not before I saw my target huddled in the corner. With a scream, I pounced on it—

That wasn’t him.

I could tell as soon as my hands touched his—its—body. My target was a full grown man, but this felt like…a puppy? It squirmed, but I kept a firm hold on it until the dust and plaster settled and I could see what I’d caught.

What the hell? I asked out loud.

It looked just like a fox pup. I knew that wasn’t possible because, 1. how did a baby fox get to the twentieth floor of an abandoned hotel, and 2. since when were foxes born with two tails?

I clutched it between two hands, holding it at arm's’ length. I could plainly see the terror in its eyes, but there was also intelligence in there. I didn’t know what the hell I had found up here, but it wasn’t just a common animal.

My fingers tightened around it, making it whimper. He wouldn’t want any witnesses. My common sense was screaming in horror that I would even consider something like this, and yet that deep, dark part of me was whispering how easy it would be. A quick jerk of its head. A little bite on the…

It was almost a relief when I got punched through the wall.

I blasted into the next room over, head spinning, and realized I had dropped the pup. The small amount of moonlight I was absorbing cleared my head after a couple seconds, and I stood up. The little fox was back in the room I’d been in before, cowering behind the fuzzy hooved legs of the one I’d come here looking for. The satyr raised a fist, the metal gauntlet he wore glowing with scarlet runes.

Reya, run! he said. The pup bolted from the room.

I turned to face him, and he held the gauntlet out warningly.

Stewart Doss? I asked, already knowing the answer.

He grunted.

I pointed at his metal glove. You have something I want.

You just tried to murder a child, he said. You’re the last person I’d give it to.

I flinched a little. I wanted to tell him that hadn’t been me, but that would have been a lie. It was a part of me. It had been since the night Stark had attacked me and my dad. And unless I took a swan dive off the hotel tonight, it would stay part of me for a long time.

I checked my phone. Ten minutes to moonrise.

I attacked.

Chapter Two

You wouldn’t expect a guy with a name like Stewart to be a good fighter, but that didn’t stop him from punching me through another wall.

He balled his fist, making the glowing red runes flash, and drove it into my stomach hard enough to hurt—and since I’m at least three times stronger than a normal human, that means a lot. I was thrown off my feet, and I crashed through the wall behind me like it was made of eggshell. I twisted in midair, landing on my feet in what I would have described as catlike if something wouldn’t have taken offense to that. The faint moonlight immediately set to work repairing the damage, but it wouldn’t be enough. I’d still have a nasty bruise later.

It doesn’t have to be that way, I thought, standing up and charging at Stewart again. I could wait just a few minutes, and the moon would—

No! I wouldn’t let that monster have control of me again, even if it meant being in pain. Not tonight, not ever!

I screamed, pouring my frustration into my next attack. I didn’t have a weapon, but like I said: werewolves are stronger than humans. That goes for things that are only human from the waist up, too. Stewart threw another punch, aiming for my head this time, and I ducked underneath it before ramming my shoulder into his stomach.

He cursed as I crashed into him, throwing us both to the floor. His hard-hooved goat legs kicked at me, and I winced when they hit my stomach where he’d punched me. He raised the gauntlet to punch me again, but I grabbed him by the wrist and forced his arm to the floor, my superior strength coming in handy again. Then, with my other hand, I grabbed him by the throat. Stewart sucked in a hasty breath before I squeezed, cutting off his air.

There. I just had to keep him like that until he suffocated. Easy enough, even with him kicking me in the stomach a hundred times a second. His face turned red, then slowly darkened to purple. Panic began to show in his eyes. Part of me felt sorry for him, but I pushed that down where it couldn’t distract me. There was no pity, no sympathy in the world I’d become part of.

A world of monsters.

The life began to fade from Stewart’s eyes, but I didn’t let up on the pressure. How much time did I have left before the moon came up? Hopefully I’d be able to grab the glove, run downstairs, and jump back into the limo. If I didn’t…well, no use thinking about it. Just a few more seconds, and Stewart would be—

The fox pup appeared out of nowhere and sank its fangs into my arm.

Son of a— I yelled, flinging it away. It struck the wall twenty feet away and yelped before falling to the floor, unconscious. Then my brain kicked into gear. It had bitten my left arm. I was strangling Stewart with my right, which meant…

I cried out when a second magic punch hit me square in the face. It launched me into the air, and I did a flip before landing painfully on my back hard enough to shake the rotten old floorboards. The world spun around me. Coughing and hacking, Stewart got back to his hooves and came at me again with the glove. The runes flashed, and he swung downwards, intending to punch be straight through the floor.

In desperation, I did the last thing I wanted to do: I opened myself up to the moon. Its power flooded into me—or, rather, trickled. This was nothing compared to what I’d used to feel, but it had been so long that even this pitiful amount felt like a dam bursting in a dry, parched desert.

My body drank in that power, and I moved! It took less than a second for Stewart’s fist to hit the ground, but I was already gone. The floor shattered under his blow, blasting open a gaping hole below, and I lunged for him. I grabbed him around the neck again, but didn’t stop there. The moonlight was awakening the bloodthirst in me again. I didn’t just need to beat Stewart, I needed to prove my dominance.

So I threw us both down the hole he’d made.

Stewart managed to land a punch on me while we fell, blasting me through another wall while he plummeted to the floor. The boards cracked and groaned when he landed, but didn’t break. I scrambled back to my feet and charged at him before he could get up.

Now that there were walls and a ceiling around me, it was easier to ignore the moon. I still had plenty of energy roaring inside me, though, so I kicked Stewart hard enough to lift him off the ground and fly into the wall ten feet away. While he was still disoriented, I grabbed him by the shoulders and hauled him upright. He tried to punch me again, but his movements were coming more slowly now and I leaned easily out of the way.

Why? he managed to ask, blood leaking from between his lips. I paid him back!

I don’t know, I answered. And I don’t care.

"I…was going to use it…against them!"

I blinked. I’d just met Stewart—if you could call this meeting him—but I didn’t need to ask who he meant by them. The men in the black coats, the ones with swords. A chill ran down my back, but I shook it off.

Not my problem, I said.

Stewart looked at me, then smirked. Of course it isn’t. You’re working for him. He doesn’t hire people who give a crap about us.

I looked him in the eyes and saw fear. He knew I was about to kill him, but he still didn’t back down or beg for his life. I balled my fist, but couldn’t make myself raise it. I clenched my teeth and cursed.

Look, I finally said, just give me the stupid glove and I’ll let you go. He doesn’t have to know you’re still alive. Okay?

Stewart looked surprised, but then that surprise turned to anger.

No.

Before I could react, he raised his fist and slammed it into the wall, shattering it—and exposing me to the moon.

It had barely risen, just a sliver on the horizon, but it hit me like a freaking semi-truck. My body exploded with power and ecstasy, sensations that I hadn’t felt in three years.

YES! LET! ME! OOUUUUUTTTT!

Chapter Three

I stood there, staring at the moon like an idiot. I couldn’t help it. I was like a drug addict getting high for the first time after a long, painful rehabilitation. I knew it was bad, but it just felt so freaking good. It wasn’t until my body started straining against my clothes that I snapped out of it and ducked back into the hallway, towing Stewart with me. He punched me with his gloved hand, the red runes flashing, and his mouth fell open in surprise when I didn’t even stumble.

That’s what you get, I growled, my voice already losing its humanity. By getting out of the moonlight I had slowed the transformation, but this place was still exposed enough that I couldn’t stop it completely. It was getting hard to think. "That’s what you get that’s what you get THAT’S WHAT YOU GET!"

I grabbed him by the throat and raised him up off the ground. The muscles in my arms threatened to burst out of my sleeves, and I held him up a good six inches higher above the floor than I could have a minute ago. His face went white with terror.

BITE. TASTE BLOOD. EAT.

No, I wouldn’t do that. I wasn’t that far gone yet. Instead, I grabbed the gauntlet with my other hand and pulled on it. He clenched his fist to keep it from coming off.

Give! I yelled.

No!

So I tore his arm off.

Stewart howled in pain, but the gauntlet slid right off his limp hand, so mission accomplished, I guess. I set it down on the floor. That still left me with a one armed satyr to deal with. What to do with him? He had stopped screaming, but the strangled gasps he was making now were almost worse. I was tempted to leave him here, force him to take my offer of mercy whether he wanted it or not.

Is that what you are now? I asked myself. Has he gotten to you that much?

I shuddered. No. Thug, assassin, delivery girl, whatever I was, I wasn’t going to leave him here to suffer.

"Sorrrrry," I growled, barely able to form words anymore. My hand was still around his neck, and with my newfound strength I tightened my grip. His eyes widened for a second before—SNAP!

I dropped him just as another blast of moonlight hit me. Ripping sounds came from the back of my shirt as I grew another inch or seven. I was out of time. Stepping over Stewart’s body, I ran for the steps. My skin was starting to itch all over. Fur. I’d forgotten how uncomfortable it was to grow fur under my clothes.

NOOOO! the monster yelled as I sprinted down the steps seven at a time. LET ME OUT!

I wouldn’t, though. I hadn’t let it out…I hadn’t transformed…in three years. Not since the night it had taken everything I loved from me. Now I would take everything from it. It wanted freedom, so I would keep it locked inside me. It wanted to hunt, so I would keep it away from anything it’d consider prey. It wanted OOOUUUUTTTTT! so I would keep it IIIIIINNNNN!

My feet carried me faster than I should have been able to go, even being what I am. Everything was a blur as I raced down the old hotel steps until I reached the bottom floor. I didn’t bother using the door, instead smashing straight through the wall. The door leading to the street was right in front of me, and through the dusty, faded glass I could see the limo parked outside.

Now came the hard part. To get to the limo, I had to go outside. No walls or ceilings to separate me from the moon. I growled in frustration, not even sounding remotely human anymore. I couldn’t stay in here. There was still enough moonlight seeping in to change me, eventually. My only chance was to get to the one place I knew of where no light could ever reach.

I put my hand on the door and dragged newly grown claws down its murky glass. It sounded like dragging nails on a chalkboard, and I winced when the sound attacked my supersensitive ears. The monster retreated for a second—and that was all I needed. Bracing myself, I plowed through the doors, showering the sidewalk with bits of wood and glass, and sprinted for the car.

The moon hit me harder than ever. It felt like it was focusing all its energy on me—my own personal Death Star. I felt the bones in my legs snap into digitrade forms, and I stumbled. Somehow I managed to stay on my feet…if they were even feet and not paws anymore…and kept heading for the limo. The bald, gangly man in the driver’s seat was giggling at my plight.

KILL HIM. TEAR HIM APART!

You know what? I thought back. I just might.

Something burst from my spine, just above the hem of my pants. My tail. It wagged agitatedly, even though I tried to keep it still. I was holding the changes back as much as I could, but they were coming more and more quickly anyway. I had seconds, if that, to get out of the moonlight.

I reached the car and desperately slammed my right hand against the door, watching helplessly as it shrank to become a paw. No! I couldn’t give in now, after working so hard! My other hand was still a hand, even though the thumb was rapidly disappearing.. I hooked it into the handle and heaved backwards, praying that he hadn’t locked it as a joke.

He hadn’t.

I dove inside, the sounds of the city disappearing behind me. Instead of landing on the leather seat of the limo, though, I found myself in a dark, damp old mineshaft. Turning, I could still see the moonlit city on the other side of the door. I got to all fours—I couldn’t stand on two feet anymore—and slammed it shut, severing the connection with the outside world.

The moon’s relentless assault vanished. Slowly, I felt myself shift back to human form. The fur beneath my clothes receded, my legs and spine snapped back so that I could stand up again, and—most importantly—the monster inside me retreated to my subconscious, furious that it hadn’t been let out. Again.

Suddenly feeling exhausted despite the energy coursing through me, I sat down on the hard stone floor. A couple of old fashioned lanterns hung from the wall, providing meager light. Just the way he liked it.

I laid down on my back, feeling like I could sleep there on the floor for at least a month. That had been too close. A few more seconds, and…

I opened my eyes to find a pale faced, black eyed monstrosity looking down at me. He grinned, revealing his razor sharp, shark-like teeth.

Welcome back, Amber, said Hendricks. I trust you’ve had a pleasant evening?

Chapter Four

Hendricks grinned down at me, and I glared up at him. I could still remember a dark underground cavern, a waterfall that broke the silence, and a voice as slick as oil and as cold as ice.

"I can offer you protection. Let’s discuss the terms of your employment."

It had been the day after I’d gone through my first Silverblood transformation. The night I had rampaged through Stark’s house, and…I still couldn’t think about poor little Kimberly, lying in a pool of her own blood with her arm bitten off, without wanting to puke. You can understand why I hadn’t been thinking straight, right? But I was desperate.

Desperate enough to agree to work for him.

In my defense, what choice did I have? My only other option was to live on the streets until Majestic’s goons caught up to me. They’d bring me back to their headquarters, where they would educate me on the joys of needles and surgical knives. Hendricks may have been behind half of what had gone wrong with my life, but at least he hadn’t started the whole thing. He was an opportunist. A sadistic, evil monster, but still an opportunist.

I hated what he had turned me into, but not as much as I hated what I already was.

He clicked his cane on the floor and turned to walk back the way he’d come. He didn’t say anything, but I knew him well enough by now to tell that he wanted me to follow him. Reluctantly, I got up. My clothes sagged a little more than they had before, my partial transformation having stretched them out. I was lucky they were still in one piece. A few torn stitches, nothing I couldn't sew up myself. God knew Hendricks wasn’t going to buy me new clothes. Seeing me prance around his lair naked would probably make his freaking day.

I see you were running late, he said with a knowing smile.

I know what you were doing, and it didn’t work, I snapped back at him. You can’t make me change.

"Young lady, I have