by Cara Carnes
The man blinked awake, confusion evident in his unfocused eyes. His focus went straight to Ryker, who stood in the corner. Alert. Silent. Lethal.
“She’s dead. I couldn’t stop it. She’s dead.”
“Tell me what happened.” Thane forced Charles’s attention away from the enforcer.
“She’d dead.”
The man fractured. He writhed, contorting from man to wolf in half measures. His howling sobs shredded Thane’s heart. “I’d hoped to question him before Dani came around. She doesn’t need to witness this.”
“You said she calms him,” Colt said.
Thane glanced at Ryker and realized no choice existed. Either he woke her or the enforcer would. The pack’s future existed in whatever questions they obtained from Charles. If he wasn’t the killer, then he must’ve seen something to clue them in. If not, the Taos pack was at more risk than they’d initially realized. It’d mean a killer was still in Los Lobos.
He moved and sat beside Dani. Drawing her into his arms, he stroked her soft ivory cheek as he kissed her. Her lips were chapped but still tasted of mint somehow. She must’ve chewed on some on the way home. How hadn’t he noticed?
Home. The word boomeranged in his mind, as though a part of him didn’t understand the concept. Yet, holding her offered a foundation for the impossible. Somehow he’d give her everything she’d lost, or at least a fresh start.
Her thick lashes fluttered. She squeezed his arm and looked around. A soft sigh escaped her parted lips, which she licked. “I went out again.”
“You’re okay. We’re secure now. Charles is agitated.” She trembled in his arms at the latter. “We need your help calming him, sweetheart. The sooner we get the questioning done, the better for everyone.”
“He needs to rest. He’s been through too much.”
“He’ll have plenty of time to rest if we don’t like the answers he gives,” Ryker commented.
Dani bristled. “Was that a threat?”
“I don’t do threats.”
Thane suppressed the protective instinct rising within him. The enforcer had every right to control the situation, warn Charles and anyone else what would happen if things went south, not that everyone didn’t already know. But Dani was his mate, and he wouldn’t stand aside and let her be intimidated by anyone.
Dani’s fear scented the room. Growls intermingled with the mournful howls.
“It’ll be okay,” he whispered in her ear. “He’ll be okay. Just help calm him down.”
Unshed tears dampened her eyes, but she nodded and rose. Pride rose within him. She was stronger than he remembered, a worthy mate for a far better man than him.
“You’re okay, Charles. I’m here. Thane’s here. We won’t let anyone hurt you, okay?”
“I’m probably not the best one to mention. I’m not exactly his best friend,” Thane commented.
Dani ignored him and ran her hand along Charles’s cheek. Tears trekked down his dirty cheeks. Lower lip trembling, he stared up with watery eyes. “She’s gone, Dani. I didn’t save her.”
“It’s okay, Charles. You’ll be okay. We’ll get through it together, like we always do.”
“You’re my light.”
She blinked away the tears and nodded. “Yeah, sweet brother, I’m your light. They’ve got some questions. We need you to walk us through the day we lost Sonya. Can you do that, Charles?”
“She was so mad when she found out. I didn’t want her finding out on her own. I wanted to surprise her,” he whispered to her.
“Find out what?” Ryker asked.
Charles stared up at the enforcer. “Drew said it was okay; he said he’d clear it with you. I didn’t much care, as long as I had my Sonya, but she needed more.”
He sobbed against her. Hands trembling, he squeezed her hand and looked up. “She would’ve made such a good mom.”
They were adopting?
“We’ve got bad blood, sister. My Sonya didn’t believe, said it was nonsense, but you know I’m right. We fought and fought. She wanted a baby so bad and I didn’t want to lose her.”
“Was that the argument you had at Gee’s Bar?” Colt asked.
“I was going away. She wasn’t supposed to find out, but Sonya had her ways.”
“None of this makes sense,” Ryker growled.
“Why were you going away? Why was she mad?” Thane asked.
“To get the baby, of course.”
“She didn’t want the baby?” Colt asked.
“She didn’t know!” Charles screamed. “Aren’t you listening?”
Dani bracketed his face with her hands. She pulled him up until he sat. Wrapping her arms around him, she rocked. “You were surprising her with a baby.”
“Drew said it was okay, said he’d make it right with Ryker.”
“Make what right?” Dani asked. Ryker was strict, but no one hated babies.
“The baby!” Charles screamed.
Thane growled and snagged him from her embrace. “You yell at her again and we’re going to have a problem.”
Her brother cowered, wilted beneath the rage.
“Tell us about the baby, Charles. Please. It’s important.”
“She was a surprise. I got in so much trouble with Sonya, but I had to go away. I never lied to her. She was my mate. She got mad ’cause I wouldn’t tell her why I was going away for so long without her. She thought I was upset ’cause she wanted my baby.”
“You’re telling me you were leaving pack lands without telling your mate so you could bring back a baby for her?” Colt prodded.
Charles nodded.
“That’s why you three were out at the barn?”
Her brother whimpered and began rocking.
“Charles, tell us about the barn,” Dani said.
“We know you argued at Gee’s,” Thane added.
“She’d heard I was leaving, followed me there. I stopped to ask Gee to look in on her, tell you after I left.” Tears ran down his face. “I was stupid, Dani. Wanted the surprise so bad I upset her, but I knew everything would be okay when I brought the baby back.”
Her heart broke. So many what-ifs might’ve kept her alive. “Where were you going?”
“Gee knew someone, heard about an orphaned shifter pup without a pack. He helped me speak with Drew and get permission. All I had to do was go get her.” Charles wilted. “I didn’t have a car.”
“That’s why you were at the barn,” Colt finished. “Transportation.”
Charles nodded. “Sonya followed me out there, showed up before Drew. We argued. I was about to tell her about the baby when everything went dark.”
“You had an episode?” Thane asked.
“I can’t remember,” Charles wailed. “I smelled so much blood. She wouldn’t wake up. I should’ve protected her.”
“And Drew?” Colt asked.
“What about Drew?” Charles looked around. “Where is he?”
The men regarded one another silently.
“Honey, someone shot him. He’s in a coma.”
Charles shook his head. “No. No. He wasn’t there. Sonya came. She yelled. I needed her gone before he got there. Then everything went dark. He wasn’t there. No.”
“You wore those clothes,” Ryker stated.
“What are you thinking?” Colt asked.
“Smell him.”
“Hard not to,” Thane muttered.
Colt leaned in then drew back. “Damn.”
“What?” Dani asked, clearly missing something important. Thane repeated the other man’s action and cursed.
“I was so damn obsessed with getting her safe and him here, I hadn’t even noticed.”
“Noticed what?” she screamed.
“There’s no carbon, sulfur, or nitrate scent on him,” Ryker stated as he stood.
“So?”
“So he didn’t shoot Drew,” Thane answered.
“But….” She di
dn’t want to argue the statement of innocence, but she didn’t understand. How could they know for sure? Charles had been gone a long time, in the woods and so much more. Everything coated his skin. Surely the scent had worn off.
“Nitrate sticks to skin a long time, sweetheart. He hasn’t switched clothing. We can smell everything. He didn’t shoot Drew.”
Did that mean he was clear for Sonya, too? Hope rose in her as she regarded the men, too afraid to ask the question as they did the whole staring thing all over again. The intensity rattled her, made her want to crawl into the flooring and burrow down. Shouldn’t they be happy he wasn’t guilty?
“Some twisted psycho is still out there,” Thane stated. “What now?”
“Get your asses out there and find him,” Ryker ordered as he headed toward the door. “And lock her down, Thane. I see her wandering around pack lands unprotected again, I’ll come after you.”
Chapter Eight
She sat woodenly beside her brother, reconciling the discussion to Ryker’s abrupt departure. Charles was safe. Now what?
She looked around what’d once been their home—the one she’d failed to keep in the family—and allowed the acidic thoughts Charles’s words awakened free rein. What if he was right? What if they had bad blood?
Heavy footsteps fell on the creaky flooring. Thane settled in front of her, his focus on Charles. “Let’s get him to your place, clean him up, and go from there. Once word gets around, I’m sure he’ll have quite a few people coming by, offering their condolences.”
“They should’ve done that already.”
“Impossible to offer condolences when he bailed. Let the anger go, sweetheart. Family forgives and, whether you accept it or not, everyone in Los Lobos is family. You’re pack. Same as me. They’ll all help get him through this. You aren’t alone. You’ll never be alone again.”
The sentiment healed wounds she’d poked and prodded since he’d left. Every time he spoke of the future, her never being along again, she mended. What about Charles?
Sadness for her brother left her melancholy as she guided him out of the homestead and to the small one-bedroom home on the edge of town. In a way, having Thane here, in the home she’d opted for when she realized she’d never have her passel of little Thanes and Danis running around, hurt real bad, awakened the rage she’d first felt when she’d seen him back.
With Charles clear, she could scrape off the dregs of the shitty hours since his return and settle things between them once and for all. Thane took possession of her brother and took him around back of the small house.
Guilt kept her silent as she heard the pained yelps and whimpers as Thane forced her brother to scrub down and wash off. She should probably go find a healer, but until word got around that Charles was indeed innocent of hurting Drew and killing Sonya, Dani suspected not many of the pack would have much to do with them.
The small generator hummed to life, and she made quick work of making a fire and getting the sofa ready for her to sleep. Charles would be better off in her bed, away from any trouble which may come from unwelcomed visitors via the sole entrance to the small cabin. The fact she even had to worry about such things agitated her.
Then again, Thane would handle anyone who meddled, assuming he stayed.
Enough time elapsed for a small amount of water to warm, so she stripped and showered, scrubbing away everything from the past hours. Days. How long had it been anyway?
By the time he entered with Charles wrapped in a blanket, her brother was beyond words. Exhaustion plagued her, and she could see the lack of sleep in the way Thane moved. They fell into a comfortable silence, working alongside one another in the small kitchen. Canned soup and sandwiches would do for now. Tomorrow, she’d make a big breakfast, assuming Charles would eat.
“What brought you back? Now? After all this time?” The question came out before she reconsidered. Focused on the spoon she stirred with, she waited.
“I heard Drew had the pack turned around. The storm was calm enough for my presence not to endanger you.” He grabbed a tomato and started peeling.
So he remembered she didn’t like the skin. Big whoop. Something fluttered inside her; her pulse rattled around.
“Magnum threatened me? Is that why you left? Earlier you said something to Charles about him knowing how far you’d go to keep me safe. What did you mean?”
“I’m pretty sure you’ve put things together for yourself. Do you want a confirmation now, when the answer’s sitting at your dinette table barely coherent?” Thane looked back at Charles, who’d begun rocking back and forth again. “Where did the rocking come from?”
“He used to rock me whenever I got upset, said our mom used the trick to calm us.” Mention of her family awakened the concern from earlier. “Do you think he was right?”
“About what?”
“The blood. The baby. Do you think I have bad blood?”
Thane set the knife down and dragged her from the soup she stirred. Flicking the burner off, he turned her toward him. “Should I go over and tell Betty the baby in her is bad blood?”
“Don’t you dare! Why would you even think….” Her anger drifted away as the significance of his question impacted her. “You always knew exactly what to say to get my mind situated quickly.”
“For the record, you’re going to be a wonderful mother.” His hand splayed on her lower stomach as he drew her against him, facing away. Hot breath fanned her neck when he leaned down to kiss her pulse point. “And a passionate mate.”
Mate? Before she could respond, he settled her away from him and pointed at the soup. “You and I have somewhere to be. Let’s get us fed and Charles down. Colt will be here soon.”
“Colt? Why? He isn’t taking Charles away, is he?”
“No. He’ll be sitting with him, making sure no one comes around.”
“Why? Where are we going?” Anticipation threaded in her pulse. “We probably shouldn’t leave Charles.”
“He’ll be fine. Let’s go.” He plated the sandwiches and carried them in one hand with the pot of soup in the other. Dani followed behind with glasses of milk and no clue what to think of his announcement.
The pile of food seemed massive, but Charles and Thane both made quick work of the sandwiches. Dani chewed on her first half of turkey and Swiss. The bread gummed at the roof of her mouth as she watched the man she loved more than anyone tend her brother, filling his plate and bowl whenever it grew empty.
Eventually, Charles leaned back in his chair, gaze unfocused, head lolled to the side, eyes drifting shut. Thane’s chair scraped along the floor before he stood and guided him into the bedroom.
Her bedroom.
Her pulse beat wildly. Thane was in her room. Near her bed.
A loud rasp against the door startled her. She opened it without thinking, realizing her error when she heard a growl rumbling from her bedroom. She winced and peered up at Colt.
“Sorry, I’m thinking he didn’t want me answering.”
“Probably best he answers doors and assesses intentions until word gets out and we track down the real killer. Not everyone’s going to believe your brother’s innocent until they hear it from Drew or we find Sonya’s killer.” Colt wandered in and settled at the dinette table. Snagging a sandwich, he made himself at home.
Thane wandered in. “Didn’t your mate feed you?”
The man grinned. “Go before I forget why I agreed to leave her in our bed. Alone. Make it quick, lover boy. I don’t have all night.”
“Two hours.”
“One, which will start after you shower and change. You stink.” Colt motioned toward a pile of stuff Dani hadn’t noticed him set down. “Change of clothes for your mangy ass. Glad you’re back, man.”
Thane gave him another one of those looks only men understood and disappeared into her bathroom. She fought the realization a naked Thane was wet in her shower. The longer he was gone, the more aware she was of his
presence here and what it meant.
“You keep thinking whatever you’re thinking and we’ll have a problem when he gets out,” Colt commented. “If I was out of the room and came back to find my mate like you are now, I’d rip into whoever was around her. I’m not feeling like a fight tonight, Dani.”
Mortified by his words, she rounded up the dishes and focused on cleaning them and the kitchen. Strong arms wrapped around her waist as she was drawn against a hard body.
“Let’s go before I forget I should give a damn if anyone else is around.”
Unsure where they were going, she followed him out of the house and down the trail leading out of town. “Thane, we probably shouldn’t wander around. You need rest. What if Charles wakes?”
“He’ll be fine. You heard Colt. He gave us an hour.”
Anticipation batted away any exhaustion she’d felt. Arousal flared to life when she realized where he was taking her. Their spot.
By the time they arrived, she was an emotional mess. The moment he turned to face her she launched herself at him. Arms wrapped around his shoulders, legs about his waist, and she claimed his mouth in a hungry kiss. He growled, she groaned.
Cool air brushed along her back when he removed her shirt, but she didn’t care. She removed his and nipped playfully at his earlobe. Strong hands settled her on the rock as he pulled her pants down.
“I wish to hell I had the control to make this slow and sweet like you deserve, Dani.”
“I don’t need slow and sweet, Thane. All I need is you.”
He touched her pussy, plunging a finger into her wet heat. “You’re so wet for me.”
“You in my bedroom then in my shower,” she whispered.
“Spread your legs nice and wide for me, sweetheart. I need to fuck you so you feel it all night while we sleep.” She whimpered and clung to him.
He thrust in exactly as he promised. Her pussy clenched, milking his dick as he kissed and taunted her sensitized skin.
“Tell me again.”
“Tell you what.”
“No one else has had you. You’ve always been mine. Only me.” He powered into her in fast, strokes meant to claim. Brand. Command.