Captured by Wolves (Shifter Moon #1)

A hacker witch with a price on her head, three wolf princes without a throne, and a destiny none of them expected. 

Tonight’s the night. One last job and I am out of here. After years of being an indentured witch, hacking and stealing for the mob, I am done.

But I won’t be leaving empty handed…

I’ll be taking a large portion of my boss’ cash while also relieving him of my magical marker that’s he’s held over me for years. And I won’t be leaving alone apparently, because when I break into his secret dungeon, I discover a man in chains. He’s a tall, dark, and tragically wounded, and based on the security around him, he’s pretty valuable, so I take him too.

Imagine my surprise when he opens his eyes and shouts, but not in fear—he’s carrying on about how he’s found the one. I think he might be crazy because I think he might mean me.

I’d leave him behind if not for his eyes… they are full of deep pain and raise a longing within me like I’ve never known. I should be long gone, but abandoning him is not an option. Then his brothers arrive and I find that I am leaving, only now in the rear of a panel van with my hands tied behind my back.

Not exactly what I had planned.

I’m not supposed to be here, but they look at me like I am exactly what they ordered—their appetizer, dinner and dessert. All I wanted was my freedom. But there’s something about the three of them, something I can’t deny.

I never expected this. I never expected them.

- - - - - - -

Captured by Wolves (novella) is the first book in the full-length paranormal reverse harem romance Shifter Moon series from USA Today bestselling author Fiona Starr. Fall into the world of Shifter Moon where magic reigns, wolves run wild, and prophecies foretell the destiny of all.

THE SHIFTER MOON SERIES
Captured by Wolves (Novella)
Awakened by Wolves
Mated to Wolves
Crowned by Wolves

DANA

I watch on the monitors as the six men dressed in black sneak up under the cameras at the location across town. The closed-circuit security system is state-of-the-art as far as tech goes, but it’s still no match for a magic user with hacking skills like mine.


“Ok, Witch. We’re at the first door.” Dmitri’s voice is thick with his Russian accent, his slow manner, and his contempt for my kind.

Contempt I’ve grown used to hearing from him and so many people all of my life. None of these wolves likes working with me, and the feeling is mutual. 


But I’m their best kept secret—a prisoner with magical security-busting skills. A woman-in-the-chair who cracks firewalls, steals data, and opens secure doors for these wolf thieves without tripping alarms.


They complain to their boss that I talk too much and that I won’t sleep with them, but Malovich takes care when it comes to me. He can’t let them treat me the way I’ve seen so many other women be treated here by these men. He can’t afford for me to lose my edge or risk making me that unhappy. 


I close my eyes and push my awareness forward, reaching through and feeling around inside the bank’s security network until I locate the wire I need. With a flick of my wrist, I send the magical spark through the internet. I can feel it traveling along cable and air, over wireless and wired connections. My spark soars up into the atmosphere where it is bounced along the satellites with so much other digital noise. It dives back down and into the bank, following my guidance to a certain wire where it blocks the signal, effectively killing the sensors and the alarm on the door. 


I open my eyes because I have to see them to keep track of where they are, but it makes it so hard to concentrate on the hack when I have to keep up with all of this visual input. 


“First door is clear,” I whisper into the mic on my headset. 


The team scurries like a bunch of black ants through the door and across the screen where they stop and wait.


“Second door, Witch.” Dmitri’s breath is slow and steady—the man doesn’t get nervous. He isn’t concerned about getting caught—that’s my job. A job I take seriously, because if anything happens to him or his men, then it’s my life that’s over. 


It’s a slow process breaking them into the vault because each section of the bank’s security network is separate from the others. The system works like dominoes, one alarm tripped will trigger the rest, so I can only hack one node of the complicated web at a time. 


A few more doors and a few more wires and then it’s the big safe. Sweat trickles down my back as I balance the spells required to disrupt the security system while also unlocking and moving the gigantic, electrified steel door to the vault miles away. 


From this distance across town, it’s taking everything I’ve got and pushing me well beyond what I thought were my limits. 


“Vault opening. Step back.” My voice is shaking from exhaustion, but we’re almost there. They’re almost in.


The huge door swings open and my monitor fills with harsh green light from inside the vault. I squint, watching the men. They whisper soft whoops and cheers as they hurry inside and start loading their bags with cash and jewels and priceless art. 


Dmitri strides through the vault to the wall at the back. This is the bonus prize. The thing Malovich wasn’t sure they would find. He lifts the lid of a large wooden trunk, filling the vault with the eerie pastel pink glow that only fae magic has. 


We’ve been planning this job for nine long months. When it’s finished, it’s going to take one of the rival wolf families off the map, making room for Grigory Malovich and his organization to move in and take over as the new head of all the crime families who claw for power and territory in this city. 


I watch on the monitor, waiting, making sure I see all the men. Sweat runs into my eye, making me blink and lose count. I have to start counting again. I touch my screen as I go, careful not to miss one or count the same man twice. I need them all to be completely inside the vault. 


Ticking off the mental list, I name them as I go. Dmitri, Viktor, Stefan, Leo, Volga, and Mikhail. That’s six. That’s all of them. 


Holy shit. 


My pulse explodes in my chest. Sweat runs down my spine and between my breasts and soaks through my shirt under my armpits. 


This is it. 


It’s time. 


My mouth has gone dry.

I grab hold of the table to steady my shaking hands and send every ounce of my magic through the network and into the bank. 


The vault door eases closed on silent hinges, coming to rest with a gentle clang that echoes in the empty space like an old grandfather clock. I can no longer see the men. The camera is outside the vault. 


I spin the wheel and send the thick metal bars into their locked position, reconnecting the metal which lets the electric charge course through once again. The door gives off a tiny hum as it locks in place, which is sure to be heard by the men inside. 


“What the fuck?” Stefan sounds confused. The door isn’t supposed to close until they confirm they are clear of the vault. They can’t touch the door once it’s closed because it is electrified and will kill anyone who dares.


“Open the vault, Witch.” Dmitri’s voice is a growl.


I slip off my headset and grab my bag, ignoring the sound of their questions that escalate quickly into threats and pleas from the earpiece.

I don’t have much time.

I have nine minutes, to be exact. Nine minutes to get my marker and grab enough cash and get the hell out of here for good. I have to disappear. There is no going back from this.


While Dmitri and his team are locked inside, Grigory Malovich and the rest of his crew are not. They are on site, waiting outside the bank. They might as well be on the moon for all the help they can give their team. Without me, they can’t disable the alarms. Without me, they can’t open the vault. Without me, they can’t do anything. 


Well, that’s not entirely true. 


In a moment or two Malovich will hear from his men and understand what I’ve done. He’ll race back here to his headquarters in the old castle on the edge of the city. He will force me to hack back in and free his men. Then he will probably kill me and take his sweet ass time doing it. 


Malovich has owned me ever since he caught me stealing from him. I was sixteen, homeless, and desperate enough to take from the crime boss. It wasn’t my fault his security was shit. I could’ve hacked it in my sleep. But that cocky attitude made me careless, and he caught me fair and square. 


Thanks to some fast talking and his ability to see my value, I managed to keep my head attached to my shoulders, but in exchange I became his indentured servant for life. He owns me, owns everything I do. He ruthlessly put my hacking skills to use for seven years. I’ve been stuck here for seven fucking years doing his bidding. Forced to work my magic, enabling him to lie, cheat, and steal his way to the top of the wolf mafia.


The failure of this job is going to set him back—a lot—but he will recover. 


When the plan for this job was shared with me and I realized all his men would be together—away from here and away from me—including Malovich himself and his private security detail, I knew it was my only chance to break free. 


But this is a one-shot deal. Because as soon as he realizes what I’ve done, he’ll be coming for me. He’ll race here at top speed. He’ll run red lights and mow down anything in his path. He won’t stop for anything or anyone. And that race across town will take almost exactly nine minutes. 


Nine minutes to get my marker and disappear. 


My part in the endless drama with these wolves who would be kings is almost over. The thought that I’ll never have to smell a roided-out raging wolf ever again means that I could die a happy woman tomorrow. 


I take the stairs two at a time and press my hand to the handprint scanner that calls the elevator. My palm is sweaty, but I have no choice—with everyone waiting at the bank, I will never get this kind of access again. 


The elevator opens and I slip in the keycard I stole from Grigory himself right before he left for the bank. There are no buttons in the elevator, only a card slot. I slip in the card and glance at my watch. 


Eight minutes. 


I can’t tell if it’s the elevator or my stomach that drops as I descend. But when the door opens, I don’t think. I just run. The narrow hall is like a maze, but I have memorized the way. Long hall. Left. Another hall. Left. Halfway down the next hall, then right. Door at the end of the hall. 


I push the door open and step into the darkness, racing across the room to the safe hidden in the stone wall. I spin the dial on the safe, pausing on the combination digits until it unlocks with a solid click.


Seven minutes.