Hellhounds

by Esther E. Schmidt

“Yes,” Eliana states, “he does. But I thought I’d swing by and say hi before it’s too late.”

  “Right,” Velma agrees. “Catch you boys later.

  Velma slides her hand in Eliana’s and steps around Gabriel, holding the door open so all of us can walk inside. The two dudes are hot on our tail. The smell of smoke, weed, stale beer, and sex assaults our noses.

  Fuck. This is something one might expect from a Hell Charter. Evil, dirty, nasty shit. Instead we’re staring at a place that is everything except for the perfection it should represent; Heaven.

  “Prez!” Gabriel bellows. “Prez, you’d better get in here.”

  There’s some noise before an older dude comes stumbling out of a hallway, pants on his knees, dick swinging left to right. He’s trying to pull up his pants while walking, and he’s either too drunk or too stupid to do so, because he’s standing in front of our women and he still hasn’t managed to tuck his dick in his pants.

  “I am going to be bleaching my eyes for the next few months but I’m sure that would scar me even less than the image that’s burned into my brain,” Eliana states. “For the love of God, what the hell is wrong with these people swinging their dicks around like it’s the polite way to greet people.”

  “You.” The guy, Dedrick Megalos, father of Eliana and Velma, sneers.

  Eliana raises her chin. That’s my girl, showing strength in the middle of a lion’s den. Or so to say. “Yes. Me.”

  Dedrick swings his head toward Velma. “Why the fuck did you bring this bitch? You wanted your future mate to fuck her, is that it? You brought fresh pussy for him to play with?” He looks over his shoulder. “VP, get in here, Velma brought you something.”

  With all the yelling and screaming, they’ve raised quite the crowd, and with a quick headcount I can tell everyone is in the room. Well, I count six women of the nine Petros mentioned, so I’m missing three of those.

  There’s a guy with thick blond hair stomping inside the room. He’s got a woman by her neck in a tight grip, dragging her along with him. Her top has been ripped off and her tits are swinging from left to right. He comes to a stop right next to his Prez and throws the woman on the floor next to him.

  “Great,” Eliana mutters, “if they aren’t swinging dicks, they treat you to a nice set of tits. And they are perky. No bra.”

  “I can see that,” Velma states. “I could never do that, mine are too big.”

  “Yeah, same here,” Eliana replies.

  Any other place in time I would have laughed my ass off. By the way Os is rubbing his mouth I can tell he shares that opinion.

  That is until Kagan, the VP, that’s still holding the woman opens his mouth. “Ah, that one.” He eyes Eliana before his eyes go to Velma. “I already had a snatch to pump, now you want me to do your sister too?”

  The idiot laughs but it’s cut short because his Prez hits him on the back of his head. “That disgusting piece of meat, tainted with human blood, is worthless. There’s no way that’s a part of me and she should never be referred as such. You should be throwing her to the ground instead of calling it her sister.”

  The next moment Dedrick drops to his knees, holding his head while he screams in pain. Confusion spreads like wildfire around the bikers in the room.

  “Who is the one that’s been thrown to the ground now, huh?” Eliana growls. “Still think I’m a worthless piece of meat that’s tainted with human blood?”

  “Kill her,” Dedrick manages to croak at his men.

  Some look at each other while about eight brace themselves to attack Eliana. Guess it’s time to show them who they’re exactly dealing with. Plan B, coming up.

  Chapter Sixteen

  ***Alastair***

  The guy on my left is about to lunge at Eliana. I grab her around the waist, ready to pull her out of harm’s way, but I’m too late.

  Eliana’s left arm swings up. Pointing, she says, “Stop.”

  The dude freezes in his tracks. Like seriously, not even breathing, caught in position midair. Everyone around us looks at each other.

  “Don’t just fucking stand there. Protect your Prez, our club. We’re under attack, kill the bitch,” Kagan bellows.

  “No,” Velma says, “from what I’ve been hearing and seeing it’s been under attack for years...only it’s been from the inside out. Changed for the worse by its own President. My father. A man who didn’t grieve the way others do, or respect his mate’s wishes. Nor did he continue in her vision. No. He chose to drag this MC down, tainting every inch of good it has built up through centuries.”

  “Bull-fucking-shit, bitch. You need to shut your fucking mouth. You don’t know shit. Our club has functioned better in these last few years than ever before. So use that mouth for what it’s been created for; chatter up loonies so you can save their soul. Or better yet...I think it’s time you took my cock up that flaming mouth of…”

  Kagan doesn’t get a chance to finish his sentence because Velma slaps him across the face, using her paw with claws instead of her hand. Blood is dripping from his face. We all seem to be at a standstill in this moment. Before things escalate even more, I reveal myself.

  Os visualizes after me. “That was the last damn time you talked like that about, and to, my mate.”

  Kagan does a double take for a few breaths before Os’ words seems to sink in. “Your mate? She’s mine and how the fuck does that happen when you’re not even born into the same…”

  I cut the idiot off who doesn’t have the right to utter one single word anyway. “Shut your mouth about pure-bloods and Hellhound mating Hellhound, because this here is my mate and it’s not the fucking family tree I respect but the goddamned brilliant woman that she is.”

  The guy Eliana froze midair falls to the floor. Her father is still holding on to his head but it seems my words have affected Eliana so much, she’s stopped her magic. Shit. I fucking hope she can do it on command because she seems to only be able to when she’s angry or holding the grimoire. Seeing the book is still at the clubhouse...

  “You can’t have my daughter,” Dedrick sneers.

  “Oh, fuck, no,” I growl. “Now that you’ve seen she has abilities, you forget all about her human part, huh? Just like you use women for a quick fuck and be done with them. Objects to use before disposal.”

  Kagan slips forward.

  “Don’t move, asshole. Don’t even so much as twitch or I’ll have my VP rip you to shreds because he’s been itching to do so ever since he laid eyes on Velma.” I turn my attention back to Dedrick because I’m not done yet with giving the fucker a piece of my mind.

  “Aw, hell. How could I not have seen that angle?” Dedrick mutters. “It’s the mating that triggers all their abilities.”

  “Could you just stop with your insanity? Everything you’ve been doing goes against everything we stand for!” Velma snaps.

  “Wasn’t that what your mother died for? She spent her whole life giving the humans everything she could, and in the end? What did they do? What did The Orderly do? Nothing. Everyone does what they want in the end. Selfish and personal gain to rise above. Stepping on others to become the one who’s in control. It’s man who wants to be king, except even that throne and the kingdom that goes with it will never be enough. They all seem to have a few tricks up their sleeve to handle everything. Never again will one of mine be faced with death. I will make sure we are the ones with the bigger tricks.”

  “Shut. The. Hell. Up,” Velma seethes. “How can you even say such nonsense? All you do is vomit words without meaning because you can’t even see that you’re placing yourself on that throne to rule that kingdom. You have done horrible things. There is not a single excuse in the world that would even come close to rectifying what you see as a wrong. What happened to mom? It was one incident. One single person that lead to her death. Think about all the others she saved, what she worked for, what she died for.” Tears are streaming down Velma’s face.

  Os can’t stand it and pulls her agai
nst him. Kagan’s eyes flare and his hands turn into claws, blue fire dancing over them.

  “Hear my words, for I will say and offer this only once.” My voice is hard and loud. “This is a patch over. Those of you who stand for what they believe in, and with that I mean the true function of a Guardian. The one that comes with the job of belonging with the Death by Reaper MC, the fucking Heaven Charter, because Velma here is one of us and still has her own function.”

  This starts up a wave of disbelief where people look at each other and mainly glance at Velma with a questionable look on their faces.

  “It’s true. Nothing has changed for me. Other than some things have become very clear, mainly about how things around here haven’t been right for a lot of years,” Velma states.

  “Enough with this. There will be no patch over. You two can piss off. Leave our women and walk away, or the Death by Reaper MC Heaven Charter will gladly slaughter two Hellhounds and reap their souls,” Dedrick barks.

  I glance around the room. “As the President of a Hell Charter, you might expect those words from me…slaughter for a patch over, raise hell...yet it’s the opposite; the President of a Heaven Charter is voicing these words. Deep down you know the Hell Charters don’t slaughter innocents. We take the souls of the damned and The Orderly has given me the assignment to collect your President’s soul, your VP’s, and those who have fallen to their standards. So remember what I said. You can walk out right now and no harm will come to you.”

  “Thank fuck,” the biggest guy in their midst says before he pushes his way from behind a few other guys and leaves.

  Four others follow him. The rest stay right behind their Prez. I see the moment Dedrick decides to attack. I push Eliana behind me. The next step is made as my Hellhound, coming face to face with Dedrick who’s now a massive white version of a Hellhound. Blue flames wrap around him. One head snaps at me, the other one on his tail.

  There is one instant of hesitation in his eyes when he assesses the fact that I have three heads in total. Then fury as no other flames in his eyes and even the blue of his fire around him fades to a hint of orange on the tips. He’s clearly passed the point of saving. He lunges toward me but we collide midair.

  It’s a large clubhouse but even with the open space there’s not enough room for massive hounds to fight, even more so because there are now fifteen of them. We roll, I’ve got a good grip on his neck and attack with my other head. My tail battles his while I can feel three others jumping on me.

  Slight panic fills me for a moment when I think about protecting Eliana, but I need to focus because my grip is slipping and the pain of teeth sinking in draws me back to the fight at hand. I thought I would feel the burn of the blue fire, yet I only feel the pain of teeth and claws. It’s probably through my connection with Eliana, where my fire can’t hurt her, the Heaven’s part in her made sure I had the same ability.

  I can’t say the same for the other guys though. I boost the fire that surrounds me and the howling enhances. It’s empowering to know I can resist the blue fire because of my mating to Eliana; she’s the one who gives me strength. Not only from the ability to withstand their flames, but from the woman who makes my soul complete.

  Sounds of shattering wood and glass ring out and I feel weight shift off of me. The teeth are gone from my back, and suddenly Dedrick is the only one I’m fighting. My guys, along with Jagger’s, are joining the battle.

  Dedrick’s got a full grip on my neck. His teeth are lodged in deep as his nails dig deeper, pressing into my chest as he shakes his head in an effort to rip it off. It’s useless to ignore the pain that’s stabbing through me. I can’t falter in my attempt to do exactly the same to him.

  Closing my jaw some more, I start to shake. I feel skin ripping from his tail as I manage to get an even firmer grip on his snout with my other head. His snarls turn into howls as I rip it clean off. Dedrick’s teeth and claws leave my body as he stumbles and lands on his back.

  Looming over him, I have him right where I want him; me in a dominant position, him submitting, ready to finish this job. But his submission doesn’t make any difference. The job given is to reap his soul. He needs to die. I’m about to behead him again because both heads need to be severed from his body for this immortal to die, when I hear my woman scream.

  Chapter Seventeen

  ***Eliana***

  “Stooooop!” That’s not right. “Stop. Help. Somebody.”

  One of those idiots from the Heaven Charter is attacking the woman Kagan dragged with him. Why would he do that? My heart is beating so fast and I have no clue what to do. Everyone around me is fighting. Why can’t I use my magic? How do I use my power? What if I use it and my hand turns black?

  There’s a flash of black jumping by me. Alistair. In one move, he’s ripped the white Hellhound’s head clean off. I’m still trying to swallow that vision when Alistair gets jumped from behind. Even though Alistair is covered with black fur and red flames, I can clearly see the blood he’s covered in.

  The large white beast that has blue flames with orange tips at the end has some serious wounds. There’s only ripped flesh on his tail where his other head is supposed to be, yet I can see it healing while I’m staring at it. That’s not even the strangest thing. Everyone around me is fighting and getting jumped on…yet I’m standing here, in the midst of it all. Like I’m in a bulletproof glass cage no one can enter.

  Oh, shit. Two more jump on Alistair’s back. Why isn’t anybody helping? I’m somebody. Swallowing my fears away, I raise my hand forward and picture myself throwing one of the white Guardians that is sinking its teeth in Alistair. It works and the white beast knocks the wall so hard, it yelps and crashes to the floor.

  I try again, but with the large wounds that are gaping all over Alistair’s body, fear grips me again and it’s then I realize...my power is in my emotions, or better yet, I let it control my emotions, or it’s linked with one. Anger. I need to become angry. That’s not so difficult because that’s my mate they are trying to kill right in front of me.

  The single thought of losing him is enough for me to let a wave of despair go through me, making everyone around me shift back. There are no more Hellhounds or Guardians, only normal looking human appearances all around. Even the vampires’ teeth aren’t showing anymore. Holy shit I did that. Shock goes through me and everyone around me is thrown back as if there’s just been an explosion.

  I use the distraction and run to Alistair, grabbing his head to make sure he’s okay. His fierce gaze hits mine but he jumps up and grabs me in his arms, twisting in the air. He holds me close to his body with one arm wrapped around my waist while he’s holding my father by his leather cut in the other.

  “Need a hand?” A voice from behind my father says, right before my dad’s head is ripped from his body and lands on the floor in three thuds.

  Jagger smiles from behind the headless body. Alistair releases his hold and the torso sags to the floor.

  “Thanks,” Alistair rumbles.

  “No one moves or I’ll rip her head clean off,” Kagan bellows.

  Fear grips me because I don’t even have to turn his way to know he’s holding my sister in a headlock. Except knowing and seeing are two very different things. His arms are covered with white fur, blue flames dancing around them. Claws as sharp as knives are at Velma’s throat.

  “I said don’t move, fucker. Think I care about this one? I don’t have any interest in her cunt now that I know she isn’t pure anymore. She means nothing except for my ticket out of here. Now, all of you are going to stay right here and me and Velma are going for a walk. Nice and easy. Once I’m out, I’ll drop her and we’ll be done with everything,” Kagan instructs us.

  “No,” Os growls. “We won’t be done with it because your soul still needs to be reaped.”

  Oh, no…what the hell is Os doing? Talking like that will get Velma killed. I push away from Alistair’s grip and tighten my fists, directing all my anger at Kagan. I can see his
hands starting to tremble, one claw going for his head while the other slides down Velma’s body around her waist, in an attempt to hang on to her.

  A black flash jumps forward. Kagan’s head disconnects from his body while at the same time his claw slices through Velma, making her insides tumble straight out.

  “Noooooooo,” I scream at the top of my lungs.

  Velma crashes down, but Os catches her before she can hit the floor. “Come on, baby, give me your Guardian, show me dammit. Shift. Now,” Os growls.

  I watch my sister being consumed by pain. Os is repeating what he said, even angrier this time.

  “Stop it, dammit, she’s hurting,” I yell at Os, dropping to my knees at her face, but Os pushes me away.

  Alistair drags me up and holds me in a tight grip while I struggle with all my strength. “She’s dying, let me go, I need to be with her.”

  “That’s it, baby, good girl,” Os croons as he stares at Velma’s white fur covered body.

  I feel like my heart is being ripped out when I see my sister gasp for her next breath…then nothing. Her chest doesn’t rise or fall. Her tongue is hanging from her mouth. She makes no movement at all. Os is holding her, not a damn show of emotion on his face.

  “What the fuck is wrong with you people?” I cry. “She’s dead! How can you act like that?” Tears blur my vision and I turn in Alistair’s arms, needing his strength to keep a little of my sanity intact in this moment.

  Soft strokes on my hair are followed by Alistair’s gentle voice. “It’s okay, Eliana.”

  “No, it’s never going to be okay,” I croak.

  “Yes, love,” Alistair tells me, his voice laced with utter tenderness. “We’re immortal, her head is still on. She just needs time to heal, look.”

  Hope sparks within me as I turn. Velma is still in the same position; being held by Os while he’s looking at her. No. He’s waiting. Her front paw twitches. Her chest starts to move up, it’s barely noticeable, but it’s there. With each breath it seems to pick up. Suddenly she howls and flashes up. Standing on four paws she shakes herself in one go, from her head to her tail a wave flows through her body.