“Did your job title change?” I ask Velma and I’m fucking curious what her answer will be.
Velma explained to Eliana what her job entailed. She’s a Guardian, one that protects the ‘good’ humans. She also mentioned to her earlier that a Hell Charter takes care of the ‘bad’ humans. Creating balance for mankind. The way her body tightens in my hold, I’m sure she’s suddenly very aware about the mess of things, if her job title indeed did change.
Velma closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. When they flash open again, she shakes her head. “No. Everything is still the same. But how can it be? I belonged with the Heaven Charter, now I’m mated, you’re doing a patch over…I don’t understand. I reach out to souls who are troubled, help them through their difficulties, prevent the good ones from their life coming to an end too soon. While you guys are there for the souls who can’t be saved, the tainted ones who are a threat to themselves and to others. I belong with you guys now, why didn’t my job title shift with it? It doesn’t make any sense.”
“She’s right,” Os quips. “Unless it’s not frowned upon to fraternize with the enemy.” He gives his mate a quick peck on the cheek. “Figuratively speaking.”
I run my fingers back and forth along my beard, thinking things through. “Enemies? I’ve never considered them enemies before. I mean we’ve never run into our counter parts…I’ve mentioned war before with the mess we stumbled into now…and yet…” Shit. It’s like moving around in the dark wearing blindfolds. “We need to dig into the archives and see what we can come up with. I’ve never ran into mated couples who each work for the other side of things, nor have I heard about it. Maybe our ancestors have. We handle the souls of the damned, the Heaven Charter handles all the others, the innocent so to speak. It’s the balance between life and death. Light and dark, ones who fight for the living, the others who hunt down the condemned.” I’m still scratching my beard, throwing out my thoughts and thinking out loud. “Maybe there aren’t any rules set in stone about mating between Heaven and Hell MCs.”
“What else are you thinking about, Prez?” Os asks after the room has turned to utter silence for a few heartbeats.
I connect my gaze with him while my thumb strokes my woman’s side underneath her shirt. “Remember the order I got before we rounded the corner at the station?”
Os nods. “Let the dice roll, your choice.”
“Right.” I let that little fact soak in and glance around my table so every one of my brothers realize what it means. “I could have picked her soul. But I knew when her scent entered my nose that she was destined to be mine. My mate. That’s not some setup deal, a trap, or a devious plan from above. It’s rooted deep inside us. We can’t choose our mate, we’re already connected the moment we take our first breath in this God-forsaken-world.”
“True. When Velma jumped inside our clubhouse I got a hint of her scent, that was when I knew she was my true mate. One whiff and my body went in overdrive,” Os quips.
“Some bloody warm welcome you gave me,” Velma mutters and glares at her mate, her mouth twitching and eyes twinkling. “But yes, same here.”
I take a deep breath before I give them the next words. “With the order given, all of you know we don’t have a choice in this. The patch over will happen.”
“But what about my father? The VP? All the other members? What? Did you get another ‘roll of the dice’? Are you going to be the one who determines what side the coin flips for who?” Velma is sneering her words with anger.
My whole body goes ridged. I can’t answer those fucking questions. Not only is it club business, but she won’t like what the job that was given to me is. It’s not like we can ignore a job once it’s been given. It also concerns the woman that’s mated to me. Fuck. I’ve had her in my life for the blink of an eye. Spitting out the truth can mean I will lose her trust, or even push her away. I can’t allow that to happen. Although it will be inevitable in the end. Why? Why the fuck is it that evil always hides in the inevitable? Lurking around the corner, no way around it, only a head on collision that awaits.
I feel my Old Lady’s fingers trace my beard while her body shifts. “That’s not something we have a say in, sis, and you know it.”
“How can you say that?” Velma gasps. “He’s your father too.”
My Old Lady snorts. “Maybe in the DNA department, but he basically told me straight to my face that I wasn’t anything special. Right before he sniffed me I might add. A damn look of disgust on his face too. Yep, that will get me all filled with warm, fuzzy, daddy feelings. And don’t act like he means the world to you because he’s been treating you like shit, you said so yourself.”
“It’s confusing.” Velma sighs. “It’s all I have ever known.” She glances around the table before she looks up at Os. “How is it you can have a full table while my dad’s MC is always working.”
Os looks confused, his eyes slide to me. I give him a slight chin raise as a signal to take the lead.
“Why is that, darling? Aren’t we working right now? Talking things through?” His voice is sweet, yet determined.
“My dad made sure every single biker has a task to fulfill. No matter the time of day. Well...except for the hours of sleep that were scheduled in, right next to the screwing around,” Velma spits out in disgust.
“Hang on,” I snap. “Lemme get this one hundred percent straight.”
“Yeah.” Velma waves her hand dismissively. “They have hours of fucking scheduled each day. Most are one night pickups, the only humans allowed for that single purpose.” She glances around the table, her eyes widen when she sees the shock of my guys edged on their faces. “What?” she almost whispers. “You guys don’t have a schedule?”
“So not only does he use human women on a daily basis, but he’s got his entire crew up and running all fucking day? Doing fucking what exactly?” I growl in utter fury.
“So that’s not normal?” Velma whispers yet again, turning white as a sheet.
I can feel the Hellhound inside me clawing. Yeah, buddy, I know this is bad. We need to take action sooner rather than later. The good guys aren’t good guys anymore, and he knows it too.
“No, darling,” Os answers her. “You are aware this country is divided into states, and therefore different Charters, right? There are many different Heaven and Hell MC Charters. Each getting their jobs to keep everything running cross country as smoothly as possible. Sometimes it’s busy, yes. Most of the time it’s easy sailing, in between jobs where we live our own lives. The girls who come here? They think we have a bar and will offer them a good time. If they stick around, they get the rules of the club explained. Their own free will and all that. We don’t go around trolling for a new load each damn day.”
“Oh, God.” Velma swallows. “I’m gonna be sick.”
“Yeah, you and God both, I’m guessing,” Os mutters as he pulls his Old Lady into his arms.
“Yikes,” Eliana mutters.
A smile tugs at my lips. Even with all this shit going on, I can’t help it, she’s too damn adorable. “What is it, gorgeous?”
She turns her attention to me. “Nothing seems to be either red or blue anymore, don’t you think?”
“Red or blue? Isn’t the term Black and white? What the fuck are you talking about?” Zikmund asks confused.
Eliana whips her head toward him and glares. “It’s the patches and color of the fire that’s linked to each, idiot. Hell Charter has the red, Heaven’s got the blue. Nothing seems either red or blue, good vs evil. It’s more like a purple, midway, merged. Not very clear.”
“The color purple? You throw that in there? Why? It’s because of the damned drama in that movie, right?” Zigmund shakes his head. “Steven Spielberg, 1985.”
“Thanks for the info.” Eliana glances at me and rolls her eyes. I can’t help the chuckle that falls from my lips while she explains to Zigmund. “Purple is what you get when you mix blue with red.”
“Ah.” Zigmund nods with an
evil smile on his face. “So you two Old Ladies are the purple ones. Gotcha. Might need to dissect you two, cut you right open to see what you’re really made of. If you bleed red, blue, or in fact…purple.”
My woman’s chest rumbles while a half growl, half scream tumbles from her amazing lips. I can barely keep her on my lap as I hold her down with two arms around her waist. She bends over the table and points a finger in Zigmund’s face, saying nothing but wrapped up in a stare off.
Seconds go by before Zigmund starts to tremble, his eyes bloodshot. “Make it stop,” he croaks.
What the fuck? I tighten my grip on my woman and swirl her around to face me. She immediately buries herself against my chest.
Zigmund rubs two hands over his face.
“What the fuck just happened?” I ask out loud, totally stunned.
Chapter Eight
***Eliana***
What did I just do?
“I have to go,” I croak, and try to stand up but Alastair keeps me pinned on his lap.
“None of that. Explain what just happened.” His voice isn’t filled with anger. Something I strangely expected because...
“I think I might have tried to make him choke on fire? Boil him from the inside out?” The words tumble from my mouth in a whisper.
Yet with all of them having enhanced hearing, a whisper might as well be a full-blown screaming party.
“That’s exactly what it felt like,” Zigmund states, with somewhat of awe in his voice.
My gaze hits his, I don’t understand...shouldn’t he be angry with me?
Zigmund gives me a tight smile. “Purple fire, darling. Purple. Damn. Fire. Not showing on the outside, yet all your power lights up on the inside. Who fucking knew? Our Prez’s Old Lady is a unique paranormal in her own way.”
“We really need to fucking dive into the archives. She’s a half-blood and mated with a Hellhound. There are two bloodstreams inside her body that clearly have merged into something new and unique.” Alastair’s words fade because I can’t control the laughter that erupts from my throat.
Velma shifts uncomfortably, as if she wants to speak up but instead she’s slowly shaking her head.
All eyes are on me when I’ve wiped mine from my tears of laughter. “Sorry. It’s just ironic, you know? My father dismissing me because I’m nothing, that guy over there and Alastair calling me unique.”
I try to keep a straight face, because in all seriousness? This is insane and...shit.
“I know, gorgeous,” Alastair tells me in his soothing voice that flows through my head, letting me know he heard my unsaid fears. “Don’t worry, we will keep you safe. Not one word about your ability leaves this room.” His gaze slides around the table. “Am I clear?” he growls.
Hands slap hard on the table along with fierce growls.
Alastair’s fingers slide over my skin, a touch of comfort. “We have a few other things to take care of before I give everyone a task. Why don’t you take your sister and...”
Before he can say something as crude as ‘show her the kitchen, get some cooking done so you can feed us,’ because we’re clearly being dismissed at this point in their meeting, I jump up and smile at him before I turn to Velma. “You coming, sis? We have loads to discuss, just like our guys need to discuss some things.”
Velma follows me out the door while wearing a devilish grin. Gosh, I love how we’re always in tune with our thoughts. Not like the solid link Alastair and I have, but close enough. She knows I’m dismissing them before they dismiss us.
It wasn’t a complete lie, we need to discuss a lot of things. It’s going to be heated enough because it’s her family. Okay, he’s my father too, but that man is only genetically connected to me. But for Velma…even if she wasn’t treated right…it’s still all she’s ever known.
I follow her to the room that Os and Velma are staying in. Velma closes the door. She starts to pace and it’s then that all her worry starts to flow. Or maybe it’s anger by the look on her face, I’m not quite sure.
“Okay. Spit it out already, it’s just you and me in here, the rest of those guys have their ears locked on the stuff that’s going on in Church,” I tell her with my hands on my hips.
She releases a deep breath and comes to a stop right in front of me. “I don’t know about anything anymore. And you…you’re the Prez’s Old Lady. You’re devoted to him now. Anything I say to you will end up in his head, or easy enough for him to pick right from yours.”
My head rears back. “What the hell, sis? Are you telling me straight to my face that you don’t trust me? Because that’s all I’m hearing right now.”
“Shit. That totally came out wrong.” Velma’s voice softens and is now filled with defeat. “Like I said, I don’t know…a patch over? That’s some serious stuff when it’s from the same Charter…but from opposite sides? We’re caught in the middle here…and it’s not just you and me. Some of those guys are as sweet as they come but only follow their Prez’s direct orders. What if those sweet souls end up with the short end of the stick, huh? That shit tips the balance and will have consequences.”
“Well…what would you do?” I hold out my arms, stretching wide in question. “I mean, it’s not like we have a manual we can grab and follow some three step plan to success. This is some serious MC stuff. They wouldn’t even let you in on club business. And the way Kagan treated you? And our Dad? There’s no way you, me, or us together can make a change. It’s out of our hands. And somehow, I don’t think Alastair would just kill everyone in that MC. Remember he got the all clear at the station but didn’t kill me? These guys have a nose for who’s bad, and most definitely who’s not.”
“You’re laying a whole lot of faith in that man of yours, Eliana.” Velma sighs and shakes her head.
“Yes,” I snap, getting angry because my gut tells me this is the only way. “He’s my mate. I will have his back in whatever his decision might be. Because I know he will chose wisely and not go all guns blazing without thinking things through.”
“You just met the guy!” Velma seethes.
I close my eyes and inhale deeply to calm myself down before I pop my question. “What’s really bugging you, Velma? Because you’re acting weird.”
Velma’s eyes bounce around the room. She stalks over to a desk and grabs a pen and a piece of paper. “Okay. So…this is one thing I overheard lots of times with these asshole bikers. A mate can get into your thoughts, but the brain locks some parts out that are private…like stuff that involves…I dunno…like peeing, farting, needing to change underwear, you know, private discussions with yourself, or things so routine it’s automatic to think about that stuff that makes it static to your mate, skipping over those parts. It takes some training but you can do it…place information in that working section of your brain that’s out of reach for your partner.”
“You do realize that farting can make noise or smell and then he’ll still know about it, right? Because holding stuff back is close to lying.” I bite my nail because she’s making me very nervous.
A little noise slips over her lips that sounds like she’s getting frustrated with me. “Pay attention, Eliana, this is important.”
Christ. Sometimes I think she’s the oldest, not me. I roll my eyes, yeah…I know, still not a very mature action. “Okay, okay…so I have to, what? Think it’s personal hygiene or something before I hear or spill a secret? What’s the trick in concealing something?”
“Just concentrate, emphasis the fact that this is between us.” She gives me a stern look.
One that makes me swallow, dammit. “This is between us.”
Velma nods. “Ready?”
“Yes,” I answer.
Except…I’m not following this shit. I can’t see the point in keeping anything from Alastair and I don’t think I like the idea of him keeping stuff from me. Well, other than club business because there are some things in life I don’t need to know. Work is work and there is a thing called oversharing.
Velma starts to write on the piece of paper. When she’s done, she keeps it clutched to her chest, eyeing me. I close my eyes and give a shake with my head as if to say…come on, throw it out already and stop with the bullshit. I mean, I know these guys have highly sensitive hearing…that’s the whole reason for her writing it down instead of…she turns the paper…then she writes another note…
I take in every single letter she’s written down and with that my heart beat speeds up. This cannot be happening. It’s a lie. It’s…
“No,” I gasp.
“Yeah. I haven’t told you about it because you didn’t know and it never came up. I heard him talk about it the night I found out about you…it didn’t make sense then, but it does now. Understand why I wanted you to shield this from our Prez?” Velma quips.
The door swings open. “Keep what from your Prez, exactly?”
We both gasp as Alastair fills the doorway, he’s got a thunderous look on his face.
I squeeze my eyes shut while I chant, “Pee, farts, dirty underwear, pee, farts, dirty underwear.”
“What the fuck are you doing?” Alastair’s growl is close, his breath a heated lash on my mouth.
“I should have known you guys would eavesdrop. How could I have been so stupid?” Velma mutters.
Alastair glares her way. It’s then that I notice Os leaning against the wall. His arms are locked in front of his chest and he’s got a disappointed look on his face. No. That’s not exactly it. Betrayal. Shit. He thinks Velma betrayed him…okay, I have to admit it does look like that…except…
I step toward Os. “She didn’t betray you or the club.”
His upper lip tips up in disgust, yet he doesn’t give me one word. He just glares at me.
“Hey,” I snap. “You don’t get to act like this when you don’t know shit. Just barging in here all judgmental.” I spin on my heels. “You too!” I add, making sure to pin Alastair with a fierce stare. “Remember who kicked who out of Church a moment ago. And I damn well said Velma and I had things to discuss.”
Hellhounds Page 5
