Charity Received (8 page)

“Hey, doll.” He greeted Hope with a tight smile before pulling the T-shirt over his head in an attempt to advert Hope’s quizzical gaze. She’d picked up on his less-than-enthusiastic hello. “What’s up?”

“You’re not going back out there, are you?”

He paused while tucking in his shirt, practically growling at the contempt in her voice. Christ, he was turning into Bale.

“Yes, I am.” His voice held a steely edge of warning. “And I will keep searching until I bring her home.”

“Home?” Hope challenged, arching a perfectly shaped blonde brow. “Aren’t you taking this protection thing a bit far?”

Kash shrugged, giving the appearance of nonchalance while inside he was seething.

But he had the good sense to realize the animosity he was feeling was not entirely his own. He was reacting to Charity’s feelings. Hope was his friend, and he forced himself to remember that. Unclenching his fists, he turned from her with a sigh.

“Hope, does this visit have a purpose? I really need to go.”

Hope reached out to touch him, but Kash jerked away.

“I don’t understand this, Kash. Charity tried to attack me, and you act like she is the one who was mistreated.”

Kash finally met Hope’s gaze. His refusal to accept her touch had hurt her.

“I was not lying to Remy when I said Charity is frightened. Your presence startled her, and she reacted.” Hope opened her mouth to speak, but Kash raised his hand to ward her off. “I’m not totally condoning her actions, Hope, but neither am I going to condemn her until I understand why. And she does regret it.”

With a snort, Hope asked, “How could you possibly know that?”

Kash observed her for a moment. Since Hope was Charity’s friend, it would be foolish not to use her to aid his search. Who could possibly know his mate better? If only he could get Hope past her anger over Charity’s near attack—and his mate’s sudden dislike of her roommate.

“We’ve bonded. I’m not certain how, but it’s a fact, nonetheless.”

“Oh my God.” Hope’s gaze centered on his neck, and Kash felt the urge to hide the bite mark she was tracing on her own neck. “You slept with her.”

And with those words, Kash went dangerously still. “I hardly think that any of your business.”

His tone would have sent most running for cover, but Hope only paled. “You don’t understand,” she whispered. “That is how wolves mate. They bite during sex. You are Charity’s mate.”

Kash fingered the four small bumps on his neck. It made sense. The bond had developed after Charity had bitten him. And it explained the substance Arak had sensed inside him. Her bite must have released something into his blood that helped snap the bond into place.

“That’s why you sense her.” Hope suddenly gave a humorless laugh. “God, this sucks. My next roommate is not coming within miles of any of you assholes.” Her eyes filled with longing and sadness, and then she glanced down at her hands. “And you… I hope we can still be friends.”

Kash had been lacing up his boots when her softly spoken words hit him. He looked up in surprise. “Why couldn’t we?”

“Shifters are extremely possessive. Charity might not like it. And if you turn out to be anything like that bastard my sister is mated to, you’ll do anything to make sure she’s happy.”

“Doll, Charity is your friend, and there’s no reason for her not to remain so.”

Hope shrugged. “I hope so.”

Kash reached for his jacket, then hesitated, Hope’s sadness giving him pause. He felt torn in two directions. “I’ve got to go. Will you be okay?”

Hope smiled weakly. “Yeah. Find Charity. She needs you. Not me.”

Kash nodded, relieved. He stalked quickly to the door, pausing only as Penny’s words came back to haunt him. “Hope, what is a typical shifter’s life span?”

She jerked, her eyes wide. She opened her mouth to reply, then snapped her jaw shut, her stare falling to the floor. “I don’t know, Kash.”

And even without Zeke’s ability, he knew she was lying. “Hope.” His tone held a warning. Though he suspected he wouldn’t like the answer, he had to know.

“About a hundred and fifty years,” she whispered, and he had to strain to catch her words. But catch them he did.

“Son of a bitch,” he snarled, then stepped out of the shop.

He jumped onto his Harley and sped out of the fortress. He almost wished he were headed for Seattle. With the rage flooding through him, he would have liked to have encountered a demon or two. A fight was what he needed, but he couldn’t be angry at his mate. It wasn’t Charity’s fault death would eventually claim her.

She appeared to be only about twenty-five. So he could expect a little more than a century with her before she would be lost to him. Then he would charge one of his brothers with the ultimate sacrifice—to end his existence so he could follow her before her death drove him into Hell.

* * *

Zeke flopped down into the chair across from the couch Faith and Bale occupied. He had intended to resume his search for Charity when Arak had waylaid him. Another useless fucking meeting.

He should have listened to her reservations. If he had, she might not have freaked out and fled. Instead he’d steamrolled her like he did everyone else. Now whispers among the brothers pointed to their belief she was infected with whatever had plagued the other wolves. It was a notion Zeke was unwilling to accept.

He had gone tearing out after her once he’d learned Remy planned to send Jet. That brother was seriously fucked-up where females were concerned, more so than any of them. Jet would not have hesitated to end Charity’s life had she attacked him, no matter the reason for her actions.

Zeke barely listened to Remy drone on about the newest wolf attack that had occurred just before dawn, until their leader began handing out assignments. His name being paired with Arak pulled him out of his contemplation. Like hell he was going downtown.

“No,” he interrupted, ignoring Remy’s frown. “I’m going after Charity.”

Remy shook his head. “You will go with Arak, and Kash will hunt the little werewolf. She is his concern now.”

Zeke would have corrected Remy’s use of “werewolf,” because Charity didn’t like the term, but he was too focused on the last thing the other male had said. “And why is that, exactly? Kash didn’t even know Charity before last night.”

And he wondered just what had occurred in Kash’s forge to send Charity tearing out into the night. No one had been able to explain that to him. Deep in his gut, Zeke suspected Kash of some terrible misdeed that had caused him to proclaim the female under his protection. Guilt—pure and simple.

“I don’t know why you jackasses do half of the shit you do,” Remy growled. “But you know our rules. He has declared Charity under his protection. You did not. So she is Kash’s responsibility. If it was up to me, Jet would have settled this last night.”

Zeke opened his mouth to protest, but Remy’s harsh glare had him snapping his jaw shut.

“And these wolf attacks are yours. Stop fucking obsessing over the little werewolf and do your job. You can challenge Kash if you must once he returns with her.”

“I just might,” Zeke snarled. “These attacks are a shifter problem, not the Grigori’s.

And Kash has no business going after Charity. Who knows what the fuck he did to her to cause her to flee to begin with?”

“Enough!” Remy bellowed. “Your job is to do what I tell you, or have you forgotten who is in charge? Would you care to challenge me instead, Ezekeel?” Their leader stood, menace rolling off him, and he appeared to be readying himself for Zeke’s attack.

Zeke dropped his gaze to the floor. Even if he thought he could take Remy, he had no desire to be leader. And the other male was right. Kash had offered his protection first. He’d claimed her, and she was his responsibility until he reneged on his claim.

“I will not allow another female to come between any of us again.”

Zeke jerked his head up at Remy’s words, but their leader was already stalking from the room, obviously pissed. Zeke figured he should be glad the other male hadn’t taken off his head. But it was what made Remy such a good leader—his control.

He watched the others follow Remy from the room, some with looks of confusion, others reproach, until only Arak remained.

“What were you thinking?” Arak barked, his eyes filled with disbelief.

“I’m worried about Charity.” And the excuse sounded lame even to Zeke’s ears.

“You sat right here not forty-eight hours ago and insisted she was not your mate. I don’t understand this, Zeke.”

“And she’s not. But I do care about her. I wasn’t kidding when I said she is my friend. A very special friend.” Zeke paused, meeting Arak’s surprised gaze. And he acknowledged only Arak could truly understand what he was admitting. “Charity and I are alike in so many ways that sometimes it shocks even me. I would have taken her to my bed. In fact, I even asked her.” He gave a mocking smile at Arak’s gasp. “She turned me down, so never fear, the end of the world is not upon us.”

Arak chuckled, a mixture of amusement and sorrow. “I wondered for a moment.”

Zeke stood, shaking his head. “Let’s go and end this night so I can return to my bed and forget this evening occurred.”

He moved silently to exit the room, pausing only when Arak quietly asked, “Will you really challenge Kash?”

Zeke glanced back at his brother—his best friend—and he gave a slight shrug. “I guess it depends on Kash. He has claimed her, and I expect him to live up to those responsibilities. I will not sit by and watch him carrying on with Faith’s sister—not at Charity’s expense. She’s been hurt enough, and I will not let another male do so again, brother or not.”

Zeke watched Arak nod, knowing his friend couldn’t really understand. If Zeke could confide about Charity’s lost mate, Arak would feel the same way he did, but it was not his tale to tell. So he would bide his time and wait to see how things panned out.

Once Charity was safe, then he would act. If it was required.

* * *

Hope didn’t step out from behind the two-hundred-year-old set of armor until Zeke and Arak had passed. She felt sick to her stomach. Charity was Kash’s mate, but from what Zeke had said, he wanted her too.

Tears gathered in her eyes. She had denied any feelings she harbored for Zeke for so long that now that she knew she had no chance with him, they came flooding to the surface. She had to get away from the abbey and the males living within the giant structure. Far away before she did something incredibly stupid—like beg Zeke to feel for her even the tiniest fraction of what he felt for Charity.

No. She had to leave before she made an ass out of herself. And before she ruined her friendship with Kash by taking her disappointment out on Charity. Or even worse, by revealing to Kash all Zeke had said about his mate, pitting brother against brother. Because either way, Hope would only hate herself. And so would those whose lives she’d ruin.

Faith stepped out of her office, and a sense of calm swept over her when she saw Bale. He was busy scanning the interior of the club even as he drank his beer. Bale was worried. Not only about the recent wolf attacks, but about Charity, Kash, and Zeke. None of the brothers had ever challenged Remy so blatantly, especially not Zeke. Apparently he’d never given much of a shit about anything to bother.

And there was still the threat of Raym hanging over their heads. It had been six months since that fateful night when Raym had attacked her in the parking lot of Club Dominus and taken her hostage. Six months of living in fear. Even though the archdemon Beelzebub had learned she was of no use for whatever he had planned, he had ordered her death, and Raym had been more than willing to carry it out. Just because Bale had rescued her in time didn’t assuage the chilling fear he would be back to finish the task.

She longed for the days when her only concern had been how to get out from under her father’s control. Now she just wanted one day where she could be that carefree again. That wasn’t to say she had crawled into a corner and stopped living. She was finally back, managing her father’s club on a full-time basis, and she was patrolling with Bale, hunting demons and searching for any sign of Raym.

After moving behind the bar, she observed her bartender, Prue, flirting with a human male who was wearing thick black eye makeup. Prue fit right in with the clientele of Club Dominus, her many tattoos and piercings not out of place with the Goth crowd. Of all her employees, Prue was the only one Faith could really call her equal. She was friendly with everyone she hired, but only Prue knew most of her secrets. The only thing she’d ever held back from the other female was the truth about Bale and his brothers. Prue was still of the belief they were all feline shifters, and the brothers liked it that way. It was easier than explaining what they truly were—fallen angels. It still sometimes boggled Faith’s mind.

“You getting ready to head out?” Prue asked, leaning back against the counter behind her and glancing at Faith.

“Soon. Bale is really worried about these attacks. All the brothers are. He wants to be out patrolling, just in case.”

Prue nodded absently. “They have Tempy concerned also. And speaking of wolves, have you heard from Charity? It’s been a couple of days, and I’m getting nervous.”

Faith chewed on her bottom lip as she looked away. What could she say that wouldn’t only raise Prue’s concerns?

“Faith, spill it.”

She sighed. Prue knew her mannerisms too damn well. “She was patrolling with Zeke the night before last, when they were involved in an attack. She was injured, but shifted, healing the wound.”

When Prue rolled her eyes, Faith added, “Don’t give me that look. I wasn’t there.

Zeke was concerned, so he brought her out to the abbey for Arak to take a look at it.

Charity freaked out, Prue. I’d never seen her so out of control. She shifted in her clothing. We found it scattered all over the bailey.”

Prue’s violet-eyed gaze narrowed as she considered Faith’s words. “Why?”

Faith shrugged. “That’s not even the most disconcerting part. She bit Kash and tried to attack Hope.” Prue started to shake her head, and Faith nodded vigorously.