Hell To Pay: Hellhound Champions Book Two, page 4
“Fucker!” Sol snarled as the beast bucked and he went flying. He really didn’t want to kill the thing, but it was looking like he had no choice. Bobby howled and the boar took off toward him. He leapt into a tree at the last second. “Bobby! I’m going to try to get it to chase me through.”
The wolf huffed his understanding. He was panting for breath, obviously not used to this kind of fight.
“Here, piggy piggy,” Sol said. He moved into the boar’s field of vision and let his eyes flame. He growled and the beast charged. Sol turned and ran, opening a portal and darting through it. His plan worked. Too well. On his home turf, the boar moved faster than ever. He caught up with Sol and butted his head into Sol’s side. His tusk snagged between Sol’s ribs, sending shooting pain through him. He slammed his fist into the top of its head and spun free. He closed the first portal and opened a second into the same clearing. He made it through in the nick of time. Sol had felt the damn thing’s breath closing in on him a second time.
Bobby shifted into his human form, staring with horrified eyes at the bloody wound on Sol’s side. “I’ll be fine. Go on back to your pack and tell your alpha that Meshaq appreciates your service.”
The wolf shifter didn’t look comfortable leaving him, and it pushed him up another notch in Sol’s esteem. Never leave a wounded pack member behind. It was ingrained deeply into them.
“Fine,” Sol said. If he didn’t agree, he’d end up with Bobby’s entire pack at the bar, checking on him and begging Shaq for forgiveness. No one wanted to risk offending Meshaq these days. It was both awesome and frustrating. He opened a portal behind the bar. Bobby grabbed his abandoned towel from the ground and wrapped it around his waist before tucking his shoulder under Sol’s arm and half-pushed, half-carried him back to safety.
“Stay here,” Bobby said when they reached the woods. “I’ll get help.”
Sol would have protested, but he’d lost a lot of blood, more than he first realized.
Bobby ran, and Sol leaned against a tree. Moments later the back door to the bar burst open and Shaq came running his way.
“Alpha,” Sol said.
“You’re good. I’m here. Let’s get you over to see Vaughn.” Shaq sniffed the air and frowned. “Fucking purple pigs.”
“Get Bobby home,” Sol grumbled. “He wouldn’t leave me.”
Shaq glanced toward the bar and smiled. “Good. I’ll make sure his alpha knows.”
“I’m fine,” Sol hissed. “Just a scratch.”
“Uh-huh.”
“Shaq!”
Drew called from the doorway, unable to see them. Sol groaned. “Don’t—”
“Over here,” Shaq called.
“Damn it, Shaq.”
Shaq smirked and pulled Sol up.
“Oh my goddess,” Drew gasped.
“He’ll be fine. Come on. We’re going to see Vaughn.”
Drew nodded and ran to them. “Cody and Vice have the bar. It’s busy, but they’ll manage.”
“Teague’s with the Jerricks at the moment. I’ll send him to get Bobby home, and then have him get back to the bar and help.”
“Bobby?” Drew asked. Then his brows rose. “Oh right, naked guy.”
Shaq growled as he opened a portal, and they moved quickly toward it.
“Don’t growl at me,” Drew said. “I’m human, after all. Well, mostly human I guess. Huh. Never thought about that before. But anyway, I’m allowed to look. Heck, I couldn’t avoid looking.”
Sol tried not to laugh at his alpha’s put-out expression. He limped closer to the clinic, and the senior Dr. Jerrick emerged. “Alpha,” Stuart said. “What do we have?”
“Boar attack. His ribs.”
“Get him inside,” Stuart ordered.
Sol liked Vaughn’s dad. He was as no-nonsense as his son. The Jerrick family had served as doctors to the supernatural world for decades, and their clinic was the best around. Sol had no doubt that he was in great hands.
“Uncle Sol!”
Ben came running when they entered the clinic doors. He’d be heading to campus in no time, but he’d been working in the clinic every spare minute since he’d first come to live with the Jerricks...Goddess. It had been just over ten years. Ben was no longer the scraggly fourteen-year-old he’d been when they’d found him.
“Ben, get me the white sage and black tourmaline tincture the coven left. I’ll also need sutures and bandages,” Stuart said.
Sol couldn’t help but smile proudly as Ben immediately switched into doctor mode and hurried to do as he’d been told. All of them were so proud of how far he’d come, and Sol hadn’t been surprised at all when he found out Ben had decided to follow in his alpha’s footsteps to become a doctor. Shaq hauled Sol into one of the treatment rooms while Drew hovered nervously beside him.
“Drew, I’m fine,” Sol said. It was only a little lie. He was actually starting to feel kind of loopy.
“You aren’t fine. Shut up. Focus on keeping your blood inside your body where it belongs.”
Shaq leaned him up against the table before stripping his jacket and shirt off. He couldn’t help but hiss when the fabric pulled clear of the wound. He glanced down but quickly looked away again. “That’s….”
“Horrifying,” Drew said. “Shaq, get him on the bed and get his jeans off. I’ll get his boots. They’re using tourmaline, which means they’re worried about magic. They’ll want him clean.”
Shaq smiled proudly at his mate even as he did as ordered. He helped Sol stretch out on the table while Drew began unlacing his boots. He lost a few minutes and next came aware when Dr. Jerrick stepped up beside him. He smelled like that weird soap they used when they were getting ready for surgery, and he had his gloves on. Ben had scrubbed up as well, and he watched his grandfather as he began poking at the hole in Sol’s side.
Drew stood on his other side and held his hand tightly. “You’re going to be fine,” Drew said quietly.
“Yeah. Just a scratch.”
Ben huffed and handed what looked like an over-sized pair of tweezers to Stuart.
“I think the tip of the tusk broke off. It’s why he’s bleeding so much.”
“Makes sense.”
“It hit bone,” Sol said dopily.
“Body armor,” Drew said with a glare at Shaq. “Full body armor.”
Shaq grimaced but didn’t argue. When Drew was in this mood, it was best not to.
“Dammit. It cracked a rib. This is gonna hurt. Ben, help Shaq keep him still.”
Shaq moved to his shoulders and pressed down. Ben added his hands to the mix. Sol’s eyes locked on his alpha’s. They flared red. “Breathe in and hold still.”
Sol complied. His alpha had spoken.
Pain exploded in his side, and he fought to obey the command.
“Got it,” Stuart said. “Ben, the tincture.”
Ben grabbed the bundle and handed it over. Stuart put it into the hole in Sol’s side. Pain raged, even worse than before as the tincture absorbed the magic left behind.
“Hold,” Shaq commanded. “He’s almost done.”
Sol focused on his alpha and let out a breath when the pain began to ease.
“Got it,” Stuart said. “His healing is kicking in. We’ll wrap him up, but it’ll probably take a few hours.”
“Understood,” Shaq said. “We’ll stay with him.”
Stuart nodded. “Ben, come on. Help me write up notes. What did you see?”
Ben gave Sol one more look and seemed reassured that Sol’s healing was indeed taking place. He patted Sol on the leg before following his grandfather from the room. “The wound was bleeding more than it should, especially for a hellhound.”
“And what did that indicate?”
Sol stopped listening, knowing they’d slip further and further into medical mumbo jumbo he could care less about. He had something else on his mind.
“I need food.”
Shaq rolled his eyes.
“We can get you food. What do you want?” Drew asked.
“Well…”
“No,” Shaq said.
“Aww, come on. I took one for the team.”
Shaq smirked. Drew looked back and forth between them until the lightbulb came on. “You want him to make Walt cook for you even though the kitchen’s already closed for the night.”
“I would never.”
Drew scoffed. “Liar. What do you want? Shaq’ll get it for you.”
“Hey!”
“Honestly, anything he’ll make for me.”
Drew squeezed his hand and smiled. “I’ll take care of it. Shaq, come on.”
Shaq scowled, obviously knowing he was going to do exactly what his mate wanted and not happy about it. “We should stay.”
“Shaq, honey, he’s fine. He needs to eat and regain his strength.”
Shaq gave Sol a dirty look over Drew’s head before turning his attention to his mate. “You know I don’t like—”
“I know. You like to stay with them until they’re better. We won’t be gone long. The sooner we leave, the sooner we can be back.”
Shaq threw up his hands and left the room.
Drew rolled his eyes and turned to Sol once more. “If you so much as move, I will be pissed. You hear me?”
“I hear you. I promise, I won’t move. Will you get me my phone, though?”
“Why? You need to rest.”
“Please?”
Drew gave him another dirty look.
“Drew! Come on!”
“Fine, but only because he’s cranky.” Drew grabbed Sol’s jeans from his pile of clothes on the floor and dug around in the pockets for the phone.
“Thanks, Drew. And, uh, rabbit food isn’t really food, you know?”
Drew rolled his eyes as he handed the phone over. “Fine, I’ll check on Cody while I’m at it. One of these days, you’re going to explain what’s going on to me.”
“I know. I will.”
Drew huffed and started for the door before Shaq came to get him. He heard his alpha grumbling his complaints about leaving, as well as Drew’s low words right back. He let out a sigh and opened his phone. He didn’t have any messages from Cody, but then again, he wasn’t expecting any. The bar had been slammed before he’d been called away, especially once Shaq and Drew had made their appearance. He wondered if they should fly a flag above it, kind of like the queen did in England. The flag only flew when Shaq and Drew were in the building.
Sol smirked at the idea then opened his message thread with Cody. He would pass out after he ate, so he typed out a quick message to Cody, letting him know he’d be late for their promised chat. He dozed off and on, even as Ben came into the room and sat with him. They wouldn’t leave him alone for long. It wasn’t their way. Shaq and Drew returned, and the smell of Walt’s wings was enough to pull him back to awareness. He glanced down at his side and realized it was mostly healed.
Drew handed over the basket of wings before giving a second one to Ben. “I told Walt you helped.”
Ben blushed and looked down. “Thanks, Drew.”
“You’re welcome. Tell me about school.”
Sol glanced at Shaq and found his alpha standing at the door of the room. Guarding. Protecting. Their eyes met and Shaq gave him a proud nod before crossing his arms over his chest and pretending he wasn’t listening with rapt attention to Ben’s excited explanations about school and his new friends. It had been a very difficult transition for him, but he seemed to be doing a lot better now. Sol finished the wings and tentatively stretched. His side was much better, but he had a feeling it would be sore for a day or so.
“Don’t even think about it, Uncle Sol.”
Ben had suddenly stopped talking and was giving him a frown. Coming from Ben, it was an angry shout.
Sol sighed. “What?”
“You’re not going back to work. Go home. Rest. No heavy lifting for at least three days until you are completely healed. And I do mean completely, Uncle Sol.”
Sol tried to glare at him, but it was impossible. “Damn it, Ben.”
Ben stood up at moved closer. “You had a really close call, even if you won’t admit it. Fae magic is dangerous to shifters with fire magic like you.”
Sol grumbled.
“Your powers might be off for a day or so. I doubt your goddess will call you while you’re healing, but you should make sure another hellhound goes with you if you do get the call.”
“I’ll make sure of it,” Shaq growled.
Sol glared at his alpha and got a scowl in return. They’d done it on purpose, siccing Ben on him like this. They knew he wouldn’t argue. He’d have ignored Jerrick, Sr.
“Come on, Ben.”
“No, Uncle Sol. Do what I’m asking, okay?”
Like he could say no to the kid. “Fine.”
“Thanks. I’ll call you tomorrow to check on you. Please rest and let your body heal.”
“Fine.”
Ben grinned at him. “Go on home. I know you’re itching to get out of here before Ollie realizes you’re here. You’re lucky it’s the middle of the night, and Papa has him corralled in the house.”
Drew snickered. “I love that kid.”
“Let’s get back to the bar,” Sol suggested while the mood was lighter.
“Or, you go home and Drew and I will go back to the bar,” Shaq said.
It wasn’t a request.
Drew, however, glanced up at his mate. “Shaq?”
His alpha’s sappy expression when he looked at his mate was truly ridiculous. Sol couldn’t imagine ever looking at anyone like that.
“Yeah?”
“Would you mind if Sol came with us for a bit? I want to keep my eye on him a little while longer. Would you mind?”
Shaq scowled, but it was directed at Sol and not at Drew. He glanced at Ben, who shrugged.
“As long as he’s not actually working, it’s fine. I can grab him a clean shirt since his other one is destroyed.”
“Thanks, Ben,” Shaq said. His nephew left the room and Shaq turned to Sol with a deeper scowl than before. “Not one finger will be lifted or not even my mate will be able to save you. You hear me?”
“Understood.”
“And you,” Shaq said, turning his attention to Drew. “I love you, but stop it with the eyes already. I swear.”
Drew smiled and wrapped his arms around Shaq’s waist. “Thanks, sweetheart.”
“Ugh, stop being so mushy.”
“Shut up, Sol,” Shaq and Drew said simultaneously. They grinned up at each other like they’d done something particularly amazing.
He groaned and pushed himself up so he could test out his ribs before he tried to get off the bed.
“Someone want to hand me my jeans before I get up?”
“Sure,” Drew said. But he didn’t move. He stood there with the dopey look and the silly grin.
Sol thumped his head back against the exam table. Ben returned with a T-shirt, glanced at Shaq, and turned to Sol. He held the shirt out and helped Sol into it before grabbing his jeans. They were covered in blood. “Let me go get you some scrub pants. You sure you don’t want to go home?”
He thought about it. He would look ridiculous. But he couldn’t. Not right away. “You think someone at the bar is brave enough to say something stupid to me?”
“Teague. Achim. Vice. Probably Walt. Definitely Shelly. Did Cosmo show up tonight? Because totally Cosmo.”
Sol groaned. “Fine. You have a point.”
“So what’s it going to be, Uncle Sol? Pride or…”
Sol cursed under his breath. Pride wasn’t what held him back. He wanted to see Cody. But if he did, Cody would realize something was wrong the moment he saw Sol in his ridiculous outfit. “Fine. I’ll go home.”
“Good choice.”
“What’s going on?” Drew asked, finally emerging from his daze.
“Uncle Sol has decided to go home. I think he finally realized he’d scare the humans at the bar if he showed up all bloody and terrifying.”
Drew turned to Sol, and the look he got was one of those significant eyebrow looks. Sol hadn’t quite figured out how Drew always knew what he was thinking. Sol didn’t want Cody to see him in his current condition.
“Okay. We’ll get you home,” Drew said gently. “But I reserve the right to check on you first thing in the morning. And don’t be surprised if Shaq shows up at your house to see you with his own eyes the moment we wake up. There’s only so much I can do.”
“Hey,” Shaq protested.
Ben handed over a pair of scrub pants and bagged up Sol’s bloody clothes. Shaq guided him outside and opened a portal to the little house Sol rented not far from the bar. He had chosen it because it had woods around and wasn’t too far from his alpha’s house. They helped him inside and settled him in bed before leaving once more.
Drew gave him one final look before he left Sol’s bedroom. “I’ll watch out for him.”
“Thanks, Drew.”
Drew nodded and followed his mate outside. Sol listened for the sound of the portal opening and closing, before picking up his phone. Cody would be home soon, and Sol wanted to hear from him himself to make sure he was okay.
Cody
Cody managed to make it home without falling asleep. He was both exhausted and wired at the same time. He had no doubt that once he took a shower, he’d be ready to sleep, though. But he really wanted to chat with HellBent. He’d been slammed all night and hadn’t had time to think about him while he was working. The bar had been packed, but something had been going on so half the guys left and were unable to help him out. Cody hadn’t complained, but it had meant he’d worked himself ragged. He hadn’t missed the fact that Shaq had put extra cash in his tip jar, even though he’d tried to be sneaky about it. His boss always made it up to him when he left him in the lurch. The extra hundred would pay his electric bill. He appreciated it.
He put his phone beside the sink and stripped down before starting the shower. He tried not to worry too much over the fact that Sol never came back from where ever it was he went. Once under the hot water, Cody let it pour over him, releasing the tension from his stiff muscles, as he thought over the strange occurrences of the night. It wasn’t weird for one or more of the guys to randomly disappear. If they weren’t so out of date, Cody would think they had pagers or something that went off. He never saw any of them look at any other phone or anything, but somehow, they just got up and went. So that hadn’t been any weirder than it normally was.
