There was so much more he wanted to say to Chrissten. But now wasn’t the time. He had a fight to prepare for. He was under no illusions Brian would be easy to kill. The male was a pureblooded alpha and Chrissten was his mate, but not by her choice. She’d given herself to Hank, freely and eagerly. They might not have all the details worked out yet, but he was determined to have a life with her. That would give him an edge in tonight’s fight. He was fighting for his woman, his very life.
He could feel Bethany’s eyes on him as he left the apartment. It wasn’t fair. He should be in bed with Chrissten, making love to her at least once more before passing the rest of the night simply holding her in his arms.
The short interlude they’d shared wasn’t enough. There hadn’t been time to talk about anything. There’d barely been time to make love and it had been quick. He’d had no time to savor every inch of her lovely body, no time to discover what made her sigh or laugh or groan.
He’d have that time. It was a promise to himself and to Chrissten.
His life used to be so simple and he’d liked it that way. Those days were gone and he gladly waved them goodbye. Chrissten was worth all the turmoil and upheaval.
Knowing what he had to do, Hank shoved all thoughts of Chrissten aside. There was no room for softer emotions. Not until the fight was over. That needed all his attention and concentration.
There was a werewolf in need of killing and he was just the male for the job.
Brian looked up from the papers he was perusing. “Yes.”
William was standing just inside the door with a gleam in his eyes. “We found them.”
Pleasure and anticipation shot through him in equal measure. He’d get to kill those wolves that had messed with him and his pack and he’d get his mate back. “Where?”
William turned the laptop he was holding in his hands so Brian could see the screen. “I found some old newspaper clips. Seems several men were killed in that area last year.” He glanced up at his alpha and smiled. “Looked as though they were mauled to death by wild dogs.”
“You don’t say.” Brian’s entire body was humming. The hunt was on and he had the prey in his sights.
“Aaron and Beck have already gone to check out the area. I figure it’s only a matter of hours until they come up with something. In the meantime, someone’s been searching through our property holdings.”
“Oh really?” Brian rubbed his hands together. Tonight he’d have Chrissten back where she belonged.
“I think I can backtrack and find out who it is.”
William was a computer hacker of the first order. Brian might hate technology himself, but he wasn’t stupid enough not to use the resources at hand. And William was the best. “You keep on it. I’m heading over to join the others. If you find out anything, call me immediately.”
William inclined his head. “As you wish.” He hurried off back to his makeshift office to work magic on his computer.
Brian headed down the stairs and out into the night. Cloud cover obscured the moon but it was there. He threw back his head and howled. Down the street, two men dashed inside an abandoned warehouse. Brian grinned. “That’s right, run you puny humans.”
He howled again and the two other members of his pack picked up his song and quickly hurried to his side. When they reached him, he grinned at them. “We’re going hunting, boys.”
Chapter Fourteen
Chrissten gave herself one final look in the mirror. Her body tingled in various places, a reminder of what she and Hank had just done. Her cheeks were flushed and her eyes glowed, but at least she didn’t look quite like she’d just rolled out of bed. She looked normal. Almost.
She gave a sigh of relief and turned toward the bathroom door. It was cowardly of her, but she didn’t care. She was so glad it was Bethany who’d come to check on her and not her brother.
She didn’t think Quinn would have let Hank leave as quietly.
The crumpled bed sheets and the smell of sex in the bedroom told their own story. One that was impossible for any werewolf to miss. Heck, anyone would be able to tell what went on in that room and they wouldn’t even need an enhanced sense of smell to do it. All they’d have to do was look at the bed or at her. In spite of her attempts to look normal, she felt as though she was wearing a big neon sign that said, Well-Pleasured Woman.
Her body still hummed and her skin was tender to the touch. She felt totally energized. Parts of her ached, but it was a good sensation, a reminder that she was a woman, a woman capable of having a physical relationship without fear.
She put her hand against her neck, covering the small love bite Hank had put there. Luckily, her sweater covered the mark, but she knew it was there. A visual reminder of what they’d done.
She and Hank had made love. And it had been spectacular. Sure, she’d had several human lovers but those experiences had been less than stellar. And Brian didn’t count. Biology aside, what he did to her was rape, pure and simple. This was different. Special.
Chrissten hugged the feeling tight to her heart. It wasn’t something she could explore. Not yet. Not until Brian was out of her life for good. She’d have to go downstairs, find Craig and start working on him. He’d know the details of tonight’s hunt. And if he didn’t, he could find out from Damek.
Only when the fight was done could she even begin to consider what was happening between her and Hank. The thought of tying herself to another male scared her. She wasn’t sure she could do it or even wanted to. Assuming that’s what Hank wanted. Maybe he was just interested in sex. They hadn’t really talked about it.
“Stop it,” she muttered. “It doesn’t matter. Not yet, anyway.” It didn’t make sense to get worked up over something that might not even happen. She could die tonight. So could Hank. Brian wasn’t going to go down easily and neither were the other purebloods with him.
They were killers, plain and simple. And she was their prey. She wasn’t sure what Brian might do to her now that she’d taken another lover. And he would smell Hank on her. Of that she had no doubt.
Brian might kill her in a fit of fury, but she was more afraid that he wouldn’t. Chrissten shuddered and rubbed her hands up and down her chilled arms. There was no way she could survive being raped by him again, not after Hank had shown her the way it should be between lovers. She’d fight to the death if he caught her again.
That’s why it was doubly important for her to find Brian first. If she could get him alone she might have a chance at killing him. She didn’t want Hank or her brother involved in the fight. Wishful thinking maybe, but she was determined. She had to protect her family at all costs.
She ignored the niggling detail that she now included Hank with her family. She wanted to protect all of the Haven pack. Yes, she wanted to protect the others, but Hank was special to her.
She needed to talk to Craig, but first she had to deal with Bethany. Hopefully she could prevail on the other woman to keep quiet about her and Hank, at least until after tonight’s confrontation. If Damek was right about Brian’s location, and she suspected he was, if she was still alive after tonight she could deal with the fallout from her and Hank making love.
She grabbed the door handle, took a deep breath and pulled it open. “Hey, Bethany—” Whatever she’d meant to say was lost as she stared at her friend. Horror filled her chest, making it hard to breathe. It was a scene from her worst nightmare.
Brian stood just inside the door, his thickly muscled forearm around Bethany’s neck. It would take no effort at all for him to snap her spinal cord and kill her. He smiled at her, showing a lot of very sharp teeth. “Hello, mate.”