Devil Takes His Innocent

by Emma Anderson

  “Calm down, man! Jason was punished in the worst possible way. His son rejected him because of his heavy-handedness with Gabby. Those two definitely formed a bond in that short period they were together. Gabby refused to allow any of us to take Bobby back to the pride lands until she had been convinced that the boy was going to be treated the way he deserved.” Judge beamed. “She definitely is a special woman.”

  “Yes, she is,” Devil concurred, pushing his chest out in pride. “She has me intrigued.”

  “Then, pray tell, brother, what the hell are you doing here?” Viper asked.

  “She kicked us both out of the house.” Devil’s explanation was met with laughter from Viper and Chaos.

  “I think it had something to do with her friend, don’t you?” Judge suggested.

  “Yeah. Did you see the look in her eyes? She was scared.”

  Judge nodded. “Yes, I saw it. She seemed fine until you put your hands on Gabby. She had been flirting with me the whole time I was there tonight, but I could sense that if it got serious she would’ve pulled away. That girl has suffered at the hands of some man, and I personally would love to get my hands on him. Nikki is a sweet woman who deserves better. Gabby’s another one who deserves a good man, Devil. The question is, are you that man?”

  “It matters little. She’s mine, and I have no intentions of giving her up.”

  “I really need to meet this woman and her friend,” Viper interjected. “I have never seen you two so taken by anyone, the way you are about Gabby and her friend. Two of the biggest playboys I know, and look at the pair of you, you’re not even talking strategies of getting into their pants. That’s wrong!”

  “And you won’t try it either, Viper,” Judge warned.

  “Like I would with my future sister-in-law!”

  “Or Nikki. She deserves better than you,” Judge added.

  “What the hell’s that supposed to mean?”

  “Nikki needs a man who’s willing to fight for her and be there for her,” Judge stated. “I don’t know what her story is, but something bad has happened to her to make her so wary, and she doesn’t need the likes of you to hurt her further.”

  “Listen to me, Judge. I will see whomever I want, Nikki included!” Viper retorted angrily.

  “What’s your problem, Viper? Calm down,” Devil said, trying to diffuse the situation.

  His brother was acting out of character and it worried him. Devil could see that Viper was visibly shaking with his anger. Never before had he seen him like this, not when it concerned a woman, except for maybe their adopted baby sister, Jewel.

  Shaking his head, Viper seemed to be forcing himself to calm. “I’m sorry, guys. I don’t know what’s got into me. Maybe I should head upstairs,” he apologized. “I’m glad you’re back, Judge.”

  “I wonder what that was all about,” Chaos said as they all watched Viper’s huge form making its way toward the exit.

  Devil shook his head. “I don’t know. It’s not like the things said were new to any of us. And only last week he was telling me how he had no intention of stopping playing. He wouldn’t play with one of Jewel’s friends, and I presume the same rule would apply to any other female in the family, which now applies to Gabby. So why would he be making such a big deal about Nikki?”

  “I’ve never seen him fight for the right to see a female before, either. He’s never really needed to. It’s as though they know him by his true name, Conquest, and just fall at his feet,” Chaos added. “Weird!”

  “It’s got me beat,” Judge admitted. “And talking about being beat, I want to make an early start tomorrow, catch up what I’ve missed over the last two weeks. I need some shut-eye.”

  ****

  Gabby dragged her weary body from her bed, careful not to wake Nikki. As expected the nightmares had returned, so neither of them had had much sleep. Gabby could concede that her friend’s nightmares were only part of the reason her body was denied its required sleep. Devil had also played a large role in her restless night.

  The man who took her virginity was now claiming to be a vampire and her mate. Was she ready for that? Did she have much choice in the matter? Deciding that she was too tired to contemplate any of this at the moment, she went in search of her phone. Several missed calls glared at her from the screen, many of them from the same number.

  Just as she was dialing the voicemail number, her phone rang. Once again it was the same number. She warily answered it, “Hello.”

  “Where have you been? I’ve been trying to get a hold of you for over a week now. I’ve been worried about you.”

  If she had the energy, Gabby would have laughed at the comment. Grant only thought about himself. Other people only entered into his scope of interest when he needed something from them. Remaining apprehensive, she played along with his game. She wanted to see where it led.

  “I’ve been away for the last two weeks, Grant,” she said. “There was no service where I stayed.”

  “As long as you’re okay,” he replied in a way that had her almost believing he cared.

  Maybe he’d heard what their father had done. Just maybe, he truly was worried about her. It would have been nice to think that at least one of her only living family members would be concerned for her well-being. It was just a little too hard to believe of this man.

  She knew she would regret her next words to Grant, but still she found herself asking, “Was there something in particular you wanted?”

  “Well, I was hoping we could catch up for dinner sometime? Maybe tonight?”

  So he wanted to ask for money in person, then leave her to pay the bill. That wasn’t going to happen! “I don’t think that’s a good idea, Grant. Whenever you or Jeffrey contact me, it’s always because you want something from me. So let me put you straight. I have no money, so there’s no point asking.”

  “Please, Gabby, give me a chance. I’m not asking for money, I promise. I just want a chance to get to know my little sister, that’s all,” came the confusing reply.

  He sounded genuine, but still she asked, “What’s changed?”

  “I know I haven’t made a good impression on you so far. Let me make it up to you. You won’t even have to pay the bill. I’ve got it covered.”

  “Let me think on it, Grant. I’ve only just got back from holiday and I start back at work tomorrow. I have a lot to do today,” she replied, unsure whether she was actually going to consider the invitation at all.

  “Think on it, Gabby,” Grant urged. She thought she heard a hint of impatience in his voice. “I’ll cancel the reservations for tonight, but don’t keep me waiting too long.” With that said, he hung up.

  Before she had the chance to fill her coffee cup, her phone rang again. Not even bothering to look at the number, she answered it, assuming she knew who it was. “Look, Grant, I told you I would think about it,” she said impatiently into the phone.

  “Who’s Grant and what are you thinking about?”

  “Oh sorry, Judge. I thought you were my half brother.”

  “Is he as shonky as your father, Gabby?” the mountain lion asked. “If so, I want you to be careful. Devil told me how you two met.”

  “He told you?” she asked, tightening her grip on the phone.

  “Devil’s a good guy, Gabby. Don’t hold the circumstances behind your first meeting against him, or you’ll be denying both of you an amazing future.” Judge seemed to be pleading.

  “What future, Judge? To him I’m a call girl, nothing more nothing less,” she pointed out, trying to keep the hurt from her voice.

  “He knows what you are, Gabby,” Judge replied defensively. “Since meeting you he has done very little but think about you.”

  “Ah, the poor thing. Has his conscience been haunted by his treatment of me?” she taunted. Her sleep deprived brain lacked the energy to censor her words.

  “Gabby, I understand your anger at the situation. But he has been trying to make amends for his actions since that night. Man
y bunches of flowers have been rejected in your absence. And that was even before he had discovered that you were his mate,” Judge cajoled. “According to my brother Viper, he has been impossible to work with. His thoughts and actions all seemed to be centered on finding you, his mate.”

  “Pff,” she scoffed, ignoring the excitement running through her veins at the thought of Devil’s attention. “So he’s worried that his call girl mate was off servicing other men. Big frigging woop!”

  “He knows that you’re a nurse. He’s pissed off at himself for believing your father’s lies.”

  Slumping in defeat, too tired to fight, she finally let her anger go and said, “It doesn’t really matter anymore, Judge. What’s done is done! Tell him to move on with his life. That’s what I’m trying to do.”

  “You’re his mate, Gabby. He won’t give up on you.”

  Placing her hand over her heart in preparation for what she was about to say, she spoke the words that she suspected she didn’t mean. “Tell him I’m not interested.”

  “It doesn’t work like that. Once we find our mates we can never let them go. You are Devil’s mate, and the sooner you accept that, the better it will be for both of you,” Judge replied gruffly.

  “I see, so it’s okay for him to dismiss me after taking my virginity, but I can’t do the same to him?”

  “He didn’t know you were his mate when he first met you. He wouldn’t have been able to let you walk away if that was the case,” Judge informed in a gentler tone. “You see, vampires discover their mates like shifters, through their exceptional sense of smell. Your perfume did too good a job that night. It masked your scent from him.”

  “So how can he be sure that I really am his mate?”

  “Let me ask you, even after what happened, when you’re alone where are your thoughts?”

  “With him,” she conceded, recognizing the truth in her words. No matter how hurt she had been by his actions, her heart wouldn’t see any other man in her life.

  “Then what do you think?”

  “I think you’re saying that I’m destined to spend my life with the Devil.”

  “Apart from Devil and me, you’ll meet two other men. We consider ourselves brothers, though no shared blood runs through our veins. We have all earned ourselves certain reputations and similar names. But know this, no matter what you hear about Devil, as his mate, he will always put you and your needs above all others. There will be times that you disagree with his methods, but his sole purpose now in life is to ensure you’re protected and healthy.”

  “What about happy? Does that even enter into the equation?”

  “Gabby, we are hard men who have lived through times when survival of the fittest was tested every day. It’s in our blood to fight for our continual survival. You need to remind Devil that it’s acceptable to be happy and enjoy life,” Judge said. “I fear we have all forgotten how to relax and play.”

  “How can you say you need to learn how to play? You forget, I’ve seen you flirting with anything in a skirt,” Gabby challenged.

  “I’m sharing this with you because you’re now part of the family. The way I am with my pride mates is all part of an overall strategic plan to maintain my control over the pride,” Judge admitted. “That’s not to say I don’t like the company of a woman. I do. Just on a short-term basis.”

  “What would you have done had I been your mate?”

  “I would have claimed you, then and there. And then looked forward to a long life with you.”

  “What about love?”

  “Damn it, Gabby, you’re really pushing my human side now,” Judge grumbled, but still he answered her question. “Positive emotions don’t come easy for any of my brothers, myself included. We were raised to fight for our lives, take care of your own, and show no weakness. According to our upbringing, love was the biggest weakness there was. That doesn’t mean we don’t feel it, but we rarely show it, and if we do, it’s not the way a man of this era would display it. Be patient with Devil. He needs your soft, gentle heart, as much as I believe you need his hardened, unforgiving one.”

  “Are you sure that’s what we both need?” Gabby asked, unsure whether she was strong enough to cope with a man like Devil.

  “Yes, and I’m not the only one, either. The fates paired you two for a reason, and let me tell you, they are never wrong. So stop doubting yourself and the power you hold within you,” Judge replied, accurately reading her. “There’s something I don’t understand though,” he said after a moment. “Why would you go along with Jeffrey and hand your virginity over to a stranger?”

  “I had little choice.”

  “How?” came the growled reply.

  “If I didn’t go, Jeffrey was going to send Devil to Nikki,” Gabby explained. “I didn’t know anything about the man, not even his name. And I can only assume with that amazing nose of yours that you smelled Nikki’s fear last night. I had to protect her.”

  “Yes, both Devil and I did, and we didn’t like it.”

  And in that comment, Judge just proved his point about his inability to verbalize his emotions, yet still he was showing he cared for Nikki’s well-being. “She’ll be okay. She just got spooked by Devil’s heavy-handedness. Not unlike you and Devil, not every person has had a rosy past, which is why she knows nothing of Jeffrey’s threat, and that’s the way it shall stay. That’s all I’m willing to say on Nikki. If she wishes to share her story, then that’s up to her.”

  “Okay, I get the point. You really are a mama bear, aren’t you?” he said, laughing. “Devil’s not going to know what’s hit him.”

  “Laughing at my expense, Judge. Really?”

  “Only over the phone. I wouldn’t dare do it in person. You’d probably have my balls hanging from your car’s rearview mirror before I could get I’m sorry out of my mouth,” Judge replied. A phone suddenly began ringing in the background. “Look, Gabby, I have to take this. I’ll speak to you soon. And remember what I said about Devil.”

  Remember! That’s all she managed to do for the rest of the day. The conversation continued to play over in her head as she thought about the interactions she had had with Devil. Judge had managed to soothe some of the hurt associated to Devil’s treatment of her. It spoke volumes that he had attempted to apologize even before he had discovered what she was to him. But was that enough to allow this man permanently into her life? Her heart screamed yes, while her mind suggested a wait-and-see approach. She suspected she wouldn’t have long to wait.

  Chapter Seven

  “Devil, we’ve got a problem,” Judge said as he walked into the office.

  “What?” he asked, hoping this issue wouldn’t interfere with his plans for the night. He and his mate were going to have a long overdue talk.

  “A woman was playing blackjacks this afternoon. She won more than she lost.”

  “How much more?” Devil asked, knowing Judge wouldn’t be bringing this up had it not been unusual. All four of them had been in the gambling game long enough to know how true the saying “you win some, you lose some” was.

  “She was on her fifteenth hand when I began to approach her, and from what I had seen, she had only lost once.”

  “What did she have to say for herself? Did she admit to card counting?”

  “That’s the problem. When I got near her, she collected her chips and left. She didn’t even collect the winnings,” Judge explained. “I have watched over the last few day’s footage. She’s been in the last three days, and the first two times, she stayed for twenty hands exactly. Both days she lost only twice and walked out of here with at least two grand each day. I don’t think she was card counting. Her accuracy was too good. The hands she did lose on, she bet small compared to those she won with.”

  “Shit, how did we miss this? And how the hell did she escape you?”

  “I suspect she has someone taking point. As for missing it, she made sure she didn’t place large bets, losing a couple of hands and then leaving after a sh
ort period of time. She played it smart,” Judge said, a hint of pride in his voice.

  Out of all four of them, Judge was the card shark. He knew all the possible cheats, which was another reason why he was the head of security. He had spent many hours with the dealers, showing them what to look for, helping them identify the cheats.

  “I take it she went to different dealers each day?”

  “Yep,” Judge replied. “See what I mean? Smart.”

  “What about the point man?”

  “I’ve got people combing the footage from around the floor and bar area. As you can guess it’s a big job.”

  “Do you want a hand searching?” Devil asked, looking at his watch.

  It was only four o’clock in the afternoon. Though he was tempted to leave now, he had decided to give Gabby until six before he went over to her house. He intended on staying at her place, so he wanted to ensure he had put some hours in at work first.

  “Actually, brother,” Judge said, pulling Devil out of his ponderings. “You have another issue you need to deal with.”

  “Oh, and what’s that?” Devil asked, raising an eyebrow.

  “I spoke to Gabby this morning.” Devil growled at Judge’s comment. “Quit grumbling, you’ll be glad I did. I found out a few things.”

  “Spill them, Judge, before I spill your blood.”

  “Firstly, we were right about Nikki. She has lived through things that no woman should endure. I don’t know the story, but it’s bad enough that Gabby would do anything for her friend, including giving away her virginity to a stranger to protect Nikki.” Judge went on to explain what Gabby had told him over the phone. Devil’s hackles rose, and he was suddenly wishing he had done more damage to Jeffrey Harrison. His attention was drawn back to Judge when his brother added, “And now it seems Gabby’s half brother is bothering her.”

  “What?”

  Devil forced himself to remain in his seat until he had heard what Judge had to say. The more he heard, the unhappier he got. “You need to forget the card cheat for just know. Leave your men on it, but she’s unlikely to return for a while if she’s as smart as you think she is. I need you to find out everything there is to know about Grant Harrison. Including what he had for breakfast this morning. That fucker isn’t getting anywhere near my mate.”