Hell To Pay: Hellhound Champions Book Two, page 10
“What are you thinking now?” Sol asked.
“Super soldiers. Can I call you Sarge?”
Sol scowled. “Not if you expect me to answer.”
“I can’t imagine you as anything else. I mean, Sarge just works. What do they even call lieutenants, anyway? Loot? That sounds dumb. Is that what Shaq is? Loot Shaq sounds ridiculous. But I don’t know what else he could be because even I know that generals are way too high up on the food chain for that to make sense. You can’t really be a super-secret general, can you? Oh, Captain. Cap’n Shaq. Totally works.”
“Cody?”
“What?”
“Just go to sleep already.”
Cody yawned. “I want to know what’s going on.”
“I know. But you’re safe now so get some rest.”
“Are you leaving?”
Sol made one of his complicated faces. Cody had never realized how complex his expressions were. He’d always seen grumpy and scowly, but there were so many more than that. “Do you want me to leave?”
He really didn’t.
“No.”
“Then I won’t.”
“What if Cap’n Shaq says—”
“He’s not a captain.”
“Damn. Lieutenant Shaq doesn’t have a great ring to it, you know?”
Sol huffed a little, but it sounded like a muffled laugh. “I think I like Sarge.”
“You would.”
“If Shaq needs me to leave, I’ll talk to you before I go, okay?”
“What if it’s an emergency and like the general calls and says he needs you right away?”
Sol gave him a look. “I wish I understood what was going on in that head of yours.”
“You don’t want to know.”
“I do.”
It was Cody’s turn to huff. He yawned and pulled Sol’s jacket up over his arms.
“Stretch out on the couch. I’ll get you a blanket.”
“I’m fine.”
Sol sighed. “Would you stop arguing with me?”
Cody shrugged. “Probably not likely, Sol, not gonna lie.”
Sol smirked a little, and Cody’s belly did a little flip. After giving his thigh another squeeze, Sol got up and went down the hall. He returned a minute later with a fluffy blanket in one hand and a pillow in the other. He put the pillow down and gave Cody a look.
Cody wanted to argue, thought about it for a second, but he yawned instead. “Fine, you win.”
“Miracles do happen,” Sol said.
“Shut it.”
He put his head on the pillow and curled his legs up onto the couch. Sol pulled his shoes off before covering him with the blanket. Cody thought about being nice and giving Sol his jacket back, but it was under the blanket with him now and he liked it. Besides, it kind of smelled like Sol and he liked that, too.
“Don’t leave,” Cody said.
“I won’t.”
“I’m going to figure it out, Sol.”
Sol ran his hand over Cody’s hair, brushing it out of his eyes. “You probably will.”
“It’d be easier if you just—” Cody yawned so widely his jaw cracked and his eyes watered, “—told me.”
“Can’t do it. The general would get upset.”
“Ha! I knew it.”
Sol grinned. His hand rested against Cody’s neck, and he knelt beside the couch. “Close your eyes.”
Cody grunted but he did. Because he was tired, not because Sol said so.
Solomon
It didn’t take Cody long to drift asleep. Solomon waited beside him until his breathing evened out before turning to his alpha. Shaq and Drew were both watching him, their arms wrapped around each other. Drew looked extremely smug, even though he also looked extremely worried. Sol walked over to the pair and tried to ignore Drew’s expression.
“What did Zaire find out?”
“Not a damn thing,” Shaq growled. “It was just like last time. The smoke stuff spewed out and then we had nothing. Chuck thinks somebody roofied him and is freaked out that he tried to hurt Izzy and Sophie. He sort of vaguely remembers talking to a guy at the bar and thinking he needed to talk to Izzy. But after that, it’s all gone.”
Solomon growled as well. His eyes sharpened with a red haze as he let go of the tight rein he had on his anger. “This jackass came after one of ours. Our humans. Our most vulnerable. What would have happened if Izzy hadn’t called me?”
“But she did, Sol.” Drew touched his arm gently, but it was less than comforting. Anything could have happened. Sol could have been on a call for the goddess and unable to answer. Chuck could have managed to break into the door before he got there.
Drew made a little noise and caught both of their attention.
“What is it?” Shaq asked.
“They knew Izzy would call you, Sol. Well, you or Shaq. But they knew you would come running if one of us called.”
Sol nearly choked. “And that we’d gather together to protect the pack.”
“Fuck,” Shaq growled.
“Calli, Teague, Achim, Jedrek, and Vice are all out in the neighborhood. They haven’t caught wind of anything. We’d know if they did.”
Drew looked at them both. “Something’s not right, Shaq. I can feel it.”
It wasn’t the first time they’d been manipulated, but the last time had been to separate them. Taking on their entire pack would be suicide, but Drew’s instincts weren’t something to be questioned. Sol trusted them as much as he trusted Shaq’s.
“Then we move,” Sol said. “We can get everyone to my cabin. No one knows where it is but us. If anyone had watched us for any length of time at all, they would know where you live. It wouldn’t be hard to figure out. My cabin isn’t as easy. Plus it gets us out of the public eye. If they’re going after humans, they’re not going to be afraid to come to suburbia.”
Shaq growled again. “You’re right. I’d have known if someone was watching me, though. Mason’s security team would have picked up on it, too.”
“They knew to come after Izzy, Shaq. And they had enough time to hunt down her idiot ex.”
“What the hell is going on?”
His alpha was as frustrated and angry as Sol was.
“I don’t know. It doesn’t make sense.”
“But I know something isn’t right,” Drew said. “I can’t explain it.”
“You don’t have to. We trust your instincts,” Shaq said. “I need to talk to the goddess.”
“I’m going with you,” Drew said.
“Drew—”
“No, Shaq. Don’t try to tell me it’s not safe. You said you trust my instincts. They’re telling me to go with you. We need to find out what’s going on. Why was Izzy a target? This magic stuff…I don’t understand it, but I saw what it did to the alpha who was after me. I was lucky. The Mother helped me get to you. But what if there are others like me out there who aren’t so lucky? We need to understand so we can do what we’ve been tasked with doing as a pack. Our job is to protect the secrets and keep both humans and the supernatural world safe. We can’t do that without information.”
Our job.
Sol couldn’t help but reach out and touch his alpha’s mate at the words. Shaq had his arm around Drew and looked at Sol with pride on his face.
“Then we’ll go together and see what we can find out,” Shaq said.
“I’ll get everyone to the cabin,” Sol added. “We should call Mason and see if he can cover the bar for us for a few days. They owe us a favor or twelve.”
“Make it happen,” Shaq said. “We’re going to go now and see if our goddess will help us. I don’t like this, Sol.”
“I don’t either. I’ll keep them safe.”
“I know you will,” Shaq said. “You have everything you need at the cabin?”
Sol nodded. “For a few days, anyway. I’ll raid your fridge before we go so we don’t have to stop.”
Drew grabbed Sol’s wrist and squeezed. “Take anything you need. The freezer is stocked, too.”
“We need answers,” Shaq growled.
“And the goddess is where you’ll find them.”
Shaq grabbed Sol’s neck and tugged him close. His eyes flared red and Sol’s did the same. “Bring them into our world if you need to. Don’t hold back. Be careful, but they are pack. If they need our secret, you have my permission to tell it.” Shaq growled low once more and squeezed Sol’s neck.
“Thank you, Alpha. I’ll use my best judgment.”
“I know you will.”
“I won’t fail you, Shaq. I’ll take care of them.”
His alpha growled and gave his neck a squeeze. “I know you won’t fail me, but I don’t like leaving you. Not with this unknown.”
“You need to go to the goddess. There’s too much at stake. We need to know how to combat this kind of magic and put a stop to it before someone gets hurt. She’s the only one who can help us.”
“I know.”
They both knew, but Sol could only imagine how torn Shaq was. An alpha didn’t leave their pack unprotected, especially when their most vulnerable members were at risk. But if Zaire didn’t have answers, there was only one other option: they needed their goddess to help them.
“Take Drew and go, Alpha,” Sol said quietly. “I swear to you I’ll do what it takes to keep them safe.”
Shaq pulled away and nodded before turning to his mate. “Let’s go.”
Drew gave Sol’s wrist one last squeeze before he clasped Shaq’s hand, and they walked outside together. Shaq opened a portal, and they were gone.
Sol gave himself a moment to breathe and gather his thoughts before going into the garage and pulling down the big coolers Shaq stored there. He’d just opened the freezer door when the door from the house opened again and Walt walked into the garage. He frowned at the coolers and at Sol.
“What are you doing?”
“We’re moving locations.”
Walt snarled. “Why?”
Sol didn’t care for the tone at all. He flashed his eyes, and Walt grumbled before sucking in a breath and letting it out again.
“I’m sorry. My control is shaky.”
“I know. Help me get this cooler loaded. Shaq and Drew have gone to speak with the goddess. I have no idea how long they’re going to be, but I don’t think they’ll be back anytime soon.”
“This is some scary shit, Sol.”
“I know. I’ll keep us safe, Walt. All of us.”
Walt pulled in another shaky breath. “I know.”
“We’re going to the cabin. All of us. For at least a few days.”
Walt scowled once more, but this time it was at the contents of the cooler. “I’m going to need to make a shopping trip. I can’t feed us on that.”
Sol smothered a grin. This was his cranky friend, not the shaky young hellhound who’d dared to question his pack’s second in command. “I want to keep us together.”
Walt made a snarling hissing sound that was completely human. He bent down and picked up an oversized bag of frozen french fries. “I can’t work with this.”
Sol looked at his packmate and made a snap decision. He needed Walt to be calm and in control at the cabin, and that would mean letting him work in the kitchen. If he kept busy, he’d be able to keep his control.
“You have one hour. Meet us at the cabin. If you are even thirty seconds late, not only will I be pissed, but I’ll put Calli on cooking duty.”
Walt sucked in a breath. “Seriously?”
“Your time started thirty seconds ago. Take Vice. Go.”
Walt ran out of the garage like his ass was on fire. Sol laughed and continued loading supplies into the coolers. Shaq had started a ridiculous stockpile when he found out Drew was his mate, and it consisted of the strangest things. Like french fries. And tea. What had made Sol laugh at the time, made him thankful now. He couldn’t tease his alpha for wanting to make sure he provided for Drew when the result was allowing them to provide for the entire pack.
The front door opened again and a moment later Calli appeared in the doorway of the garage. “I didn’t know Walt could move that fast,” she said.
“He can when he has the right motivation.” Not that Sol was foolish enough to tell her he’d used the threat of her in the kitchen to terrify Walt into moving his ass.
“What’s the plan?”
“We’re going to the cabin. Drew and Shaq have gone to see the goddess. Neither of them feel like we’re safe here.”
Calli’s eyes flared for a moment. “They targeted Izzy.”
“I know.”
“Sophie was in the house.”
“I know. It made the lines in the sand very clear. They’re going to break the rules, so we have to be ready.”
“We should tell them.”
Sol closed the cooler lid and pushed to his feet. “We can’t. Not until we have to. That is the code.”
“Bullshit, Sol. You know we do what we think is right. That’s the code.”
“And you think it’s right to terrify Izzy after what happened tonight? You think Cody wants to find out he’s working with hellhounds and not whatever crazy scheme he’s cooked up? Shelly handled it like a champ, Cal, but you know that’s not always the case.”
Calli huffed and looked away. “I know. They find out when the time is right. I know that.”
“Blurting it out isn’t the way. It’s never been the way. But if we get to a point where you think it’s time, we’ll do it.”
She sucked in a breath and let it out again. “Magic sucks.”
Sol laughed and lifted a cooler. He shoved it into her arms. “Take it to the cabin, and take Jed with you. Sniff around and make sure it’s safe. Have him stay there to keep an eye out, and we’ll drive out when you get back.”
She nodded and disappeared a moment later.
The problem was, she wasn’t wrong. Magic sucked. It had Shaq and Drew spooked. Sol was spooked. They could handle out of control creatures. They kept the supernatural world in check on a daily basis. The task their goddess had given them wasn’t easy, by any means, but it had never been like this. Out of control. Unknown. Changing. Magic users had always laid low. Zaire and her coven had never advertised their abilities. Shaq kept their location hidden from everyone. It was always the way. They kept the covens safe, and in return, the coven provided magical resources for them. Just like they kept their pack safe. It may not be the directive the goddess handed them, but it was ingrained deep into their makeup, their instincts. Protect the pack might as well be the first lesson they’d learned.
But none of them had seen magic like this before. It should take an entire coven to do what had been done to Izzy’s ex and the alpha who’d come after Drew. Zaire didn’t think a coven was responsible, though. They’d been hunting for whoever had been messing around with magic for over a decade, ever since they’d first seen the signs of someone tampering with magic. Sol would never forget the night they found the Jerrick cubs. Hurt, scared, abused, and trapped by magic in a house of horrors. He and Shaq had turned over every rock, used every resource they knew of, and then hunted down some they hadn’t. But they’d never found anything to lead them to the magic users responsible.
And now, a decade later, the same magic was rearing its ugly head again.
Sol packed up a few more things from Shaq’s house before going to the couch and kneeling next to Cody. He’d been so amused by Cody’s earlier confusion. Vampires and mob enforcers and super soldiers. They weren’t bad guesses. His mind was amazing. The time was getting closer when Cody would learn the truth. Humans didn’t always react well. In fact, most of them didn’t, and Zaire had to work her magic to make sure they didn’t remember. It was often for the best. Sol had seen it happen many times over his years in service to the goddess.
The thought of losing Cody, though, was more than Sol could imagine. And he didn’t know when or how or why he’d suddenly become completely infatuated with the pain in the ass human who’d driven him insane for years, but something had definitely changed. It was as if they’d been magnets, each pointing the wrong way and pushing each other away. But then something changed and now they were drawn to each other.
Sol ran his hand softly over Cody’s hair and his eyes fluttered open.
“Sol?”
“We need to move.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Shaq doesn’t think it’s safe for us here. We’re taking everyone to the cabin.”
Cody sat up and ran his hands over his face. “Okay. I’m up. What can I do?”
Sol held Cody’s neck gently in his hand as he continued to wake up. “You’re doing it. We’ll be leaving soon, okay?”
“Fuck, I’m tired.”
“I know. You can sleep when we get to the cabin, okay?”
Cody stretched and the blanket fell off his lap. “I know I’m going to take a shower in that gorgeous bathroom of yours. Don’t deny me that luxury, Sol. Don’t do it.”
“I would never.”
Cody grinned and stretched his arms over his head. His shirt rode up, baring a strip of pale skin. Sol couldn’t look away, not even when Cody lowered his arms again. Cody grabbed his shoulder, much like Shaq always did, and Sol forced his eyes up.
“We’re going to be okay. I trust you.”
Sol stared into his eyes and saw nothing but truth. It was what he needed to hear. “Okay, we need to get the girls up. Can you help?”
“I’m on it.”
Sol left Cody to the task and went outside where Teague and Achim were still keeping watch. “We’re moving soon, to the cabin,” Sol said.
They both nodded.
“We heard,” Teague said. “I can drive Shaq’s truck. If we have trouble, we can handle it while you keep going.”
