Page 49 of Curse of the Wolf
“And the pathologically immature,” she added.
I snorted and looked toward Duncan again. He was gripping his chin and studying the case.
“Canyou still call upon the bipedfuris?” I asked softly, stepping close to him. “Or is it harder now that you’re…” I waved vaguely, not wanting to suggest he was weakened or diminished.
“I’m still fine,” he said dryly.
“Then there won’t be a problem changing to prompt the case to open?”
“I wish we’d brought some rattlesnakes.”
“We still don’t know if waving a venomous reptile over the case will also cause it to open.”
“Because we keep forgetting to try.” Duncan pushed a hand through his hair. “I haven’t turned into the bipedfuris since the battle at the cabin. I’m not sure if I should.”
“They don’t have another way to compel or manipulate you in that form, right?” I recalled that he’d been more susceptible to the control device as the bipedfuris.
“Oh, I certainly hope not.”
“But you’re not sure?” I raised my eyebrows.
“I didn’t see any evidence that they had a back-up device or anything of that ilk. But I’m a little… gun-shy, I suppose.”
“I haven’t noticed that you’re any kind of shy.”
“I have my moments.” Duncan glanced at Mom.
She and Lorenzo had stepped back to give us privacy but were watching, no doubt curious about what would happen when the case opened again.
“The artifact inside has healed me, but it’s also… I’m not sure how to explain it. Both times I’ve been the bipedfuris when that lid has opened, I’ve felt hatred from it. That it wants me dead. The first time, I was so busy fighting that I barely registered it. I even forgot about it until I felt it again.” He tilted his head toward the cabin.
“When you turned to see if it would help Mom.”
The artifacthadhelped her, but not in the way I’d hoped. It had healed the wound she’d received from a bear trap, not her cancer, or The Taint, as the wise wolf called it.
“Yes,” Duncan said.
“When you were pacing around and grabbing your forehead, I thought you were agitated because the control device had been activated, that Radomir was trying to summon you.”
“Oh, I did feel that, but I also felt hatred rippling from the glowing artifact inside.” He eyed the case.
“I suppose that’s not surprising. It was made to protect people from werewolf bites, among other things. Do you thinkthat’s why it zaps me every time I pick it up? Warning me that it’s not for us?”
“Maybe.”
“I should ask Bolin if it zaps him.”
He and his father had studied it when we’d first unearthed it.
“I’d assumed that was a defensive mechanism and that it zapseveryone,” I added.
“I don’t know.”
“It did help you before though.” I pointed at the medallion, though it had been my mother’s medallion that had been involved that day. “Giving you the vision so you could find it.”
“Thathelped me.” Duncan pointed toward Mom’s medallion. “I thinkthat—” he shifted his pointing finger to the case without making contact, “—was the catalyst. Its magic and magnetism woke up the medallion, but I don’t thinkitcared about helping me.”
“Itcuredyou when you were poisoned during the fight with Augustus,” I said. “And it healed Mom’s poisoned wound too.”
