Riley's Torment, A Moon's Glow Novel #2

by Christina Smith

  When his tongue slid over the curve of my neck, everything went still. The image of sharp teeth and blood flooded my mind, and I yelped, jumping up off the couch. The remorse shining in his eyes cleared my mind of the image, but the damage was already done. I felt so bad for my reaction. After he told me about Emma, I wanted to make him feel better, but instead, I only made it worse. His face was unreadable, a mask he used to keep me at a distance. I hadn’t seen the expression since we first met when he was fighting his feelings for me.

  “I’m sorry,” I whispered.

  “It’s fine. I understand.” His voice was void of emotion, mirroring the look on his face.

  We didn’t have time to discuss it more, because the library door opened, hitting the shelves filled with books behind it with a thump. I blinked, surprised to see Adrian standing in the doorway, with Lauren behind him.

  “I need your help,” he said desperately.

  “With what?” I asked, gazing at Nate, still worried how my reaction would affect him.

  “Charlotte has my sister, and she’s going to kill her.”

  Dread washed over me in a wave of exhaustion. I was so tired of werewolf drama. Would we ever have a normal life where girls were not kidnapped, and men didn’t bite your neck without permission?

  “How? I thought she was in Philadelphia.” I asked, worried for him. I knew he must be frantic because I knew how much he loved his sister.

  He shrugged. “I don’t know how, but I know she’s here.”

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Deception

  “How do you know she’s here?” I asked. The idea of bringing his poor sister into our crazy life was unacceptable. We had all gathered in the office and were standing around Adrian, waiting for his answer.

  Adrian’s shoulders slumped. “I don’t know. When I got home from the gym, I scented her in the house. I raced around looking for her, but she wasn’t there. Charlotte came out of her room, told me she had her locked up, and was going to kill her once and for all.”

  “Why?” I asked, anxiety flowing through my body. “Why would she kill her?”

  “She won’t. She’s just trying to scare him. She must want him to do something for her, and this is her way of controlling him,” Joe suggested from where he was standing behind me and Nate.

  Nate nodded, agreeing with the statement.

  “We have to go get her!” Adrian moaned, glancing around at each of us. The desperation in his face was heartbreaking.

  “He’s right. We have to help. His sister is innocent in all of this.” Lauren agreed, taking Adrian’s side.

  “Calm down, Lauren,” Will said, pushing past the rest of us to get to her. “You can’t just rush over without a plan.” He turned to Adrian. “Where’s this house?”

  While Adrian gave them the directions, I wandered over to the windows, feeling anxious and a tad claustrophobic from standing in the midst of the frantic discussion. I was terrified for his sister. She had been so young when her world was torn apart. Assuming she was with a good family as Charlotte had said, did she know about werewolves? And if not, to learn this way would be shocking.

  Everyone in the room was talking loudly. Lauren became Adrian’s advocate, now that there was a child involved. She was ten years older now, but still. The girl must be terrified. The others were calmer than Lauren, trying to soothe her. I suddenly needed fresh air to clear my head. I pushed the window open and sighed, closing my eyes when the cold air hit my face. My lids popped open as a scent drifted to my scenes.

  “WEREWOLF!” I screamed.

  Everyone froze and turned to me except Nate. He dove in front of Will just as a shot rang out. Blood poured out of his chest as Joe and Adrian rushed to the windows. Adrian jumped out of the now broken window to chase the other werewolves that were surrounding the house.

  “Is it silver?” Joe asked as he hesitated at the opening.

  “No, it’s lead,” Nate grunted with pain. Joe nodded and jumped to help Adrian. The sound of growling and fighting drifted through the open screen.

  I rushed to Nate, lifting him up as Lauren dragged a stunned Will to the back of the room.

  “Are you okay?” I asked Nate. The smell of his blood was overwhelming, and my stomach turned as I fought the urge to vomit. He sat on the edge of a chair looking down at the widening red spot on his chest.

  He nodded, as he peeled off his shirt. I watched in awe as the bullet literally pushed its way out of his chest. The blood was the only evidence that he had been shot.

  He yanked at his pants and rushed to the window. “Stay here,” he ordered, before he jumped out. He leapt into the air and exploded into his wolf form, diving onto the back of a brown wolf who was attacking Adrian. Joe was fighting the other brown one. Charlotte and James just stood watching the fight. James was focused on the window with a gun in his right hand. It was lowered but ready to make another shot at the first sight of Will. He wanted to get in the house, and he was waiting for the brown wolves to clear the way. By the look on his face, he wasn’t going to let two failed attempts stop him from getting what he wanted; he was determined.

  “Where’s the gun?” I yelled to Will. We needed protection from this psycho.

  Will was standing behind Lauren, watching the scene outside. “It’s in my safe,” he called out. “I’ll get it.”

  “Get down! James is waiting for you to show yourself.”

  Will crawled behind the desk, and by the sound of beeping, he was putting in the code. The door popped open, and he tossed me the gun. With my new reflexes, I caught it easily. I wished I had thought to practice target shooting as part of my training. The last time I shot a gun, I couldn’t hit my target.

  “What’s going on?” Lauren hissed loudly from her position of guarding Will who had returned from the safe.

  I focused on the fight outside and held the gun out the window, prepared to help in any way I could. But I didn’t need to. Both brown wolves were now lying on the ground in a pool of their own blood.

  “Two of the other wolves are down,” I called out as the growls stopped outside.

  “Charlotte and James?” Lauren asked hopefully.

  I shook my head no and watched the scene outside.

  Joe turned back to a human and held up his hand to me when he saw me with the gun. I tossed it to him looking him strictly in the eye. He used the gun to finish off the brown wolves. The two loud booms echoed through the air. With two of the werewolves out of the way, Joe pointed the gun at Charlotte and James. They were now surrounded by Adrian and Nate in their wolf form. Charlotte and James were eyeing the wolves as if they were contemplating trying to make a run for it. But by the way the wolves were glaring at them and growling, they wouldn’t have much of a chance at escape.

  “Drop the gun, James, and step into the house. Both of you.” Joe’s voice was a command, but neither of his targets moved. He pulled the trigger and hit James in the shoulder. James howled, the noise sounding like a dying animal. Blood dripped from the wound, and the gun in his hand fell to the ground. Nate moved to stand over it. It was all he could do without opposable thumbs.

  “MOVE!” Joe yelled, louder this time.

  “Joe,” Will said in a warning tone from next to me. I was so engrossed in the scene in front of me, I didn’t sense his approach.

  “Shut up, Will. Let me handle this,” Joe barked back at him, never taking his eyes from Charlotte and James.

  James was the first one to step toward the house and climb though the broken window as he pushed his hand over the hole on his left shoulder, right above his heart. Blood leaked out between his fingers, streaking down his hand.

  Nate growled, showing his crimson fangs to Charlotte as she took a step in the direction of the woods that surrounded the property. She froze as he stalked towards her. His yellow animalistic eyes were filled with hate. She glanced at him and then at Adrian who was stalking her from the other side. You could see she was starting to realize that she wasn’t
getting out of this, not with two wolves right at her heels. She could never outrun them, and by the look of defeat in her eyes, she knew it.

  “Fine, Joey, I’ll come in. Thank you for asking so nicely.” Her voice was dripping with politeness as if Joe had just asked her to tea.

  “Next time, don’t try to kill my friend, and I’ll send you an invitation,” he muttered dryly.

  She stepped through the window, one high heel at a time. She was wearing a pair of painted on black jeans and a black leather coat. She sauntered over to stand next to James and then smiled brightly at all of us. Her gay eyes were so much like Joe’s. It was the only resemblance I could see, besides the similar hair color.

  Once they were all inside, Lauren stepped up to Joe and handed him a pair of jeans. She must have slipped out and gotten them. I hadn’t noticed her leave. He handed her the gun as he put the pants on.

  Nate jumped into the window behind me with Adrian following; both of them were fully clothed. Nate had told me often that he had clothes stored all over the property. Since he was a werewolf, he never knew when he’d need them.

  “Where is Adrian’s sister?” Nate asked Charlotte.

  She laughed. “How should I know?”

  Adrian pushed past me, brushing my arm with his. He stood right in front of her, blocking my view with his broad shoulders. He smelled of fresh, crisp air and chocolate. I shifted to the side so I could see.

  “You said you have her,” he roared, the panic in his voice rang out loud and clear.

  She reached out and patted his cheek. “Oh, dear boy. That was just a way for you to distract these people, so James here.” She gestured with a perfectly manicured finger to James who was trying to dig the bullet out with his fingers. “Could take back what was supposed to be his.”

  Adrian blinked. “But I smelled her.” His voice had softened, and now instead of fear or anger, his tone was edged with confusion.

  Her grin was so cold it could freeze the hot blazing sun. “No. You smelled the shirt I had sent to me from a contact in her hometown.”

  Relief settled over my bones, making me breathe for the first time since Adrian showed up.

  “Where is she?” he growled between clenched teeth.

  “Do you really think I’m going to tell you and just let you walk away? After I found out you’d been meeting with her.” She pointed at me. “I knew you needed a reminder that a human life is fragile. You betrayed me. If your sister was here, she’d be dead right now.” She lifted a shoulder. The expression on her face was pure boredom. “Sure, I could give the order, but it would be much more entertaining to do it in front of you.”

  A low growl came out of Adrian’s chest as he lunged for her, his teeth lengthening and his eyes turning yellow.

  Joe grabbed him and shoved him to the back of the room. “I’m sorry, Adrian, we understand how you feel,” Joe said to him, glancing at Lauren and me. “But we need to settle some things.”

  Nate stepped closer to face his nephew. He was now wearing a simple black t-shirt and faded blue jeans. “James, you cannot kill Will.”

  At that moment, James pulled the bullet out of his chest with a roar and let it drop with a plunk. It rolled on the floor until it hit the wall by the window and left a tiny red line in the shiny oak surface. James’ face was showing pain and then disgust when he turned to Nate.

  “If I get out of this, I will not stop until you are both dead. You ruined my life.” He pointed a bloody finger at Nate.

  “Then you have to die.” Nate’s voice held so much pain; it hurt me to hear it.

  “No,” Will gasped.

  Nate’s head spun on his other nephew. “Will, he won’t stop. He’ll be like Charlotte, hunting us for the rest of our lives. He lives for revenge, like her.” He nodded to the woman that had made so many people suffer.

  I could see the fight go out of Will as he finally agreed. And so did James.

  While all of our attention was on Will, James shoved Charlotte into Joe, who still had the gun. It fell to the floor with a thump, and everyone scrambled for it. It hit my shoe, and I picked it up, whirling around to point it at James just as he jumped up, about to dive through the window. I pulled the trigger without thinking. There wasn’t time for that, he was escaping. The sound of the gun shattered my eardrums, and the impact pushed me into Nate, who reached out to steady me. James’ body slumped onto the jagged broken glass, and more blood oozed out of him.

  Joe rushed forward, looked him over, and then gazed at me. “Directly into the heart.” That shouldn’t have made me happy since I had just taken a life, but since the last time I shot a gun had gone horribly wrong, I couldn’t help but be proud of myself. It felt good saving lives. Joe reached inside James’ denim jacket and pulled out an envelope.

  “What is it?” Will asked.

  “The wills from Nate’s safe,” he replied after he sifted through the contents.

  Charlotte didn’t even spare a glance at James lifeless body. Her face became calculating. “Listen, I understand why you wanted James dead. He tried to kill…this human,” she said, looking at Will with revulsion. “But all I did, was make your mates immortal. You should be thanking me!” Her voice was shrill, filled with desperation.

  Was it wrong that I enjoyed seeing the fear in her eyes as she glanced at each of us? She was looking for someone who she could wrap around her little finger, like the minions that were just killed. Finally, she settled on her brother as he strolled over, handing the envelope to Lauren, and then taking the gun from me.

  We all watched as he walked toward the windows silently gazing out at the night, flipping the revolver end over end in his hand. He was quiet for some time. The silence stretched in the room as we all stared at his back. Charlotte was surrounded by us, and she had no way of escaping. Finally, he turned back around and gazed at his sister, holding the gun, barrel facing the floor.

  “You want us to thank you for kidnapping our girlfriends and terrorizing them? For giving them your DNA without their knowledge, so they had no idea what was happening?” he asked softly. The expression on his face could only be described as disappointment and regret. After all this time, he still cared for her.

  She smiled at him, gaining more confidence as she clearly thought she had won him over. “I admit, it might have been a tad dramatic on my part, but all is well, right? No harm, no foul.”

  I scoffed. “Do even know what Lauren went through?” I shrieked.

  “Megan, don’t,” Lauren whispered behind me.

  I pressed my lips together, cutting off my next words. I didn’t know why she wanted that kept secret, but it was her business, not mine.

  Charlotte eyed us curiously, but before she could say anything, Joe spoke. “Why is it that you find the need to terrorize others, big sister?”

  The innocent look vanished from her flawless face as she took a few steps away from us. We didn’t stop her because there was no way she could get away.

  “It amuses me,” she said smugly with a lazy shrug of her shoulders.

  Joe’s face fell, and he shook his head. “You know, I defended you. I told them that if I gave you over to Stephen that you would change. He could show you the proper way to live.”

  The fear in her eyes was replaced with hope. “You defended me?” Her voice was filled with feeling, as if his sticking up for her meant so much.

  His brow furrowed as his face washed with dread. “Of course I did. You’re my sister. I hoped that there was still some good in you. But after what you just said, I know you will never change.”

  “I can change, I know I can.” She glanced at Nate. “I regret making you a werewolf. I didn’t know you would hate yourself so much.”

  There were more than a few exasperated sighs. No one was stupid enough to believe her. Actions spoke louder than words. “In fact,” she began, reaching into the inside of her coat. We didn’t get to hear the rest of her sentence, a loud boom, blasted throughout the room, making everyone jump—ex
cept Charlotte, she collapsed onto the floor, blood leaking out of her heart.

  “Nooo!” Adrian shrieked rushing toward Charlotte’s body. He bent down and felt her pulse and then glared up at Joe. The rest of us did the same.

  He was holding the gun out in front of him, smoke floated from the barrel.

  “Why did you do that?” Adrian asked, his voice filled with defeat.

  “She was pulling a gun out of her coat,” Joe said.

  “A little warning would have been nice,” Lauren complained, holding her ears gingerly.

  “She’s the only one who knew where my sister was.” Joe face washed with apology but didn’t respond to Adrian’s words. I stepped towards him and pulled him away from Charlotte’s body.

  “Don’t worry; she probably has her whereabouts somewhere in her belongings. You’ll find her.” I said, hoping to reassure him. He didn’t say anything, only sunk into a leather chair, and stared at the floor.

  Nate’s brows drew together, ignoring the rest of us as he still focused on Joe, and then he leaned down to pat Charlotte’s chest. He stood up quickly. “There’s no gun.”

  Sorrow clouded Joe’s face as what he did sunk in. “There wasn’t?” he gasped, guilt rang out clearly in his voice.

  Nate stepped up to his friend, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. “No. But she needed to die. She would never change, you know that.” He turned to Adrian. “And Megan’s right. We’ll help you find your sister.”

  Adrian smiled at Nate, relief flashing in his eyes. I’m sure he was relieved to be rid of Charlotte and also grateful to have friends who would help him finally get Marisa back.