Charity Received (13 page)

“I hope someday you will forgive me,” she whispered, unable to resist caressing his cheek with her knuckles. “I’ll take care of her, I promise. We’ll be okay.” Forcing herself, she turned from the only one who would ever complete her and silently crept from the room.

Charity was surprised when she reached the carport and found her SUV gone. She stopped and wondered how she was going to get out of here. When her gaze settled on Zeke’s Charger, she paused a moment before climbing behind the steering wheel.

Relieved to find the keys just where Zeke had said they would be—in the ignition—

she started the engine, praying Zeke would forgive her. Then, thrusting the car into drive, she eased on the gas, panicking when she came to the gate that blocked the sole exit. But to her immense relief, it swung open at her approach, and hitting the gas hard, Charity roared through the opening.

Her good luck held until she got inside her condo and entered her room. The place appeared to have been tossed. But Charity didn’t have time to consider who had done it or why. She wasn’t about to risk running into Hope.

There were few things she wanted, and she immediately fell to her knees to reach under her bed, but she couldn’t feel the one truly important thing she owned.

Confused, she bent down to inspect the space with her eyes. The box was gone. Fuck!

She knew she couldn’t leave town until she’d talked to Prue. Quickly she grabbed some clothes, not really caring what, and shoved them all into a laundry basket.

Then, after tossing in the only two other things she cared about—the ring and photo that had belonged to her father—she grabbed the basket and headed for the front door. On the small table inside the foyer were her purse and the keys to her SUV.

Praying her car was in the parking lot, Charity rounded the side of the building.

Sure enough, there sat her silver Cruiser.

She drove to a nearby park, then stopped to leave a message for Zeke on his cell phone. She knew he would freak over his missing car when he woke, and though she would probably never see him again, she didn’t want him to be mad at her for stealing his baby. As soon as she heard his voice, the tears began to flow, and the words just poured out. God, she would miss him. She’d never let anyone get that close to her except for Prue and Tempy.

Zeke was heading for the front door of the main residence when Penny stopped him in the foyer. He really wasn’t interested in making small talk—or any kind of talk, for that matter. Cell reception inside the residence sucked at best, and he’d found upon waking that Charity had left him a message. Desperate to find out where she was, he brushed past Penny, barely indicating he heard her question. He didn’t give a shit if there had been dogs howling outside the gate last night.

Her voice, clogged with tears, drew immediate concern.
“Zeke, I can’t stay here and
be the other woman. And I won’t come between Kash and Hope. Please don’t worry.

I’ll be fine. I know it seems I freaked out the other night, but everything is okay. I
promise. I just have to go. I have more than myself to think of now. And please, don’t
be mad about your car. I just couldn’t stay. You’ll find it at the condo.”
Her voice got quiet for a moment, and she sniffed softly.
“I love you, you big lughead. Don’t hate
me. I couldn’t bear it.”
Then there was silence.

Suddenly it all made sense—why the night Charity had been attacked by the wolf she’d mentioned Kash in connection to Hope. The stupid joke the pair had bandied about must have gotten back to Charity, and all this time she’d thought… Christ, he was going to kill them both.

As he strode across the bailey, Zeke noted that yes indeed, his car was gone, and for once, he didn’t care. Instead he continued past the carport, and his anger only rose when he stepped into Kash’s apartment, the smell of sex overpowering him. Fists clenched, he swore he would tear the other male apart if he found Hope in his bed.

His storming into the bedroom immediately woke Kash, and he rolled to the other side of the bed as if he were protecting someone. He looked perplexed when he found the spot bare, and his gaze swept the room. And when he softly called Charity’s name, the tension in Zeke’s chest eased.

“Did you not tell Charity at some point while you were fucking her about your little joke with Hope, you asshole?”

Kash’s eyes filled with anger, and he lunged from the bed. “Where is my mate?”

Zeke found himself pinned against the wall, Kash’s fingers tightly gripping his throat. Who knew the fucker had it in him? “She’s gone. But what did you expect?

She thinks Hope is your mate, you dumb bastard.”

Kash eased the pressure on his neck, his face a jumble of confusion as he tried to process what Zeke had sneered. “How do you know that?” Kash finally asked, releasing Zeke and backing away from him.

Zeke tossed his cell at Kash, who caught it. He watched his brother pale as he listened to the message.

“Christ. So it’s true. Hope was right. Charity did believe…” Kash ran a hand over his face, the phone falling to the floor unnoticed. Tears cascaded down his cheeks, and for the first time Zeke considered that Kash really could be Charity’s mate.

“Where would she have gone, Zeke? Please. I can’t live without her.”

“Prue. That obnoxious bitch would know.”

Nodding, Kash grabbed the crumpled jeans off the floor. He slid them over his hips, then looked around for his T-shirt. When he couldn’t find it, he went to the dresser and pulled out a new one. Once dressed, he pierced Zeke with narrowed eyes.

“Do I need to bring my sword to keep you from hurting Charity over your damn car?”

Zeke snorted as Kash stared at him defiantly. “I don’t care about the car.” At Kash’s stunned expression, Zeke rolled his eyes. “But if you tell anyone I said that, I’ll have to kill you.” He paused a moment, studying the other male. “So Charity really is your mate?”

Zeke knew he hadn’t been able to keep the slight trace of disbelief from his voice when Kash frowned. “Yes. Do you have a problem with that? I know you claimed Charity as your friend, but I hope it wasn’t more than that.”

Zeke cocked a brow, his gaze settling on the bed behind Kash, and said, “You should know better.”

“And exactly how do you figure that?”

“Because we both know Charity was a virgin.”

Kash’s face lined with anger. “How the hell would you know that?”

Zeke shrugged and turned for the door.

“Damn you, Zeke. Answer me!”

He paused but kept his back to his brother. “We discussed it once when Charity told me about her mate.” He glanced over his shoulder and returned Kash’s glare. “You know, when she was mourning. She didn’t want to die a virgin.”

Kash’s looked away from him and down at the floor. “You cannot blame me for that.”

Zeke snorted again and turned to Kash. “No. But what of everything after? You took her to your bed without even telling her the truth about Hope.”

“Fuck you, Zeke. You can judge me when you accept your own mate.”

Zeke folded his arms across his chest and sneered. “I don’t have a mate.”

“Keep telling yourself that. What are you going to do when Hope’s Transfiguration hits?”

Like a punch in the gut, that one word had Zeke clenching his fists. Transfiguration was the nasty process all vampires went through in their midtwenties, turning them from human to vampire. Faith’s had hit her early, after she had been mortally wounded by a demon. Bale had been the one to get her through it, but it had left Faith dependent on him, unable to accept the blood of any other. They still didn’t know if that was due to Bale being Grigori or if it was something about Faith. But if it was Faith, then with Hope being her twin, it was possible the same anomaly could occur. And in just a few months, Hope would be twenty-five.

He couldn’t even think about it and remain sane, so without uttering a word, Zeke turned and headed down the stairs.

“She won’t wait for you forever, Zeke.”

Zeke spun on Kash, desperation rising like bile in his throat. “Even if I wanted her,”

he growled quietly, “I don’t have it in me, Kash, so stop this right now. Hope is far better off sticking with her little vampire friends. Let it rest.”

When Kash nodded, Zeke barely bit back his sigh of relief. He knew he was running out of time and could only hope he wouldn’t be forced to make a decision that would change him for all eternity. Either way, he would have to pay a price far too great, but as long as Hope was spared, he could live with the repercussions.

* * *

At the house Prue and Tempy shared, it was Tempy Charity encountered, and she couldn’t have been more relieved. Prue would have blamed the turn of events on Kash and Hope, when none of it was their fault. And she certainly wouldn’t have seen the final outcome as a blessing, but for Charity, it was her salvation.

“What could be more important than your mate? It’s what you’ve waited a lifetime for.”

Charity glanced away from Tempy before speaking of the event that had likely rescued her from a bleak oblivion. “I went into heat.”

Tempy gasped sharply, reached out, and grasped Charity’s hand tightly. “Are you okay, sweetie? Were you hurt?”

Her wolf sensed Tempy’s sudden spike of fear, and for just a moment, Charity found herself back in those woods, running for her life. Sucking in a deep breath, she forced the memories away. Even though it had been the first time for her, she and Tempy were both aware of the consequences. The scent of a female wolf in heat could attract males from several miles away. And if the female didn’t have a male to protect her, she could be repeatedly raped until she conceived. Or died from the abuse. Luckily for Charity, it had not come to that.

“Kash found me before they could hurt me.”

“Oh God, Chari.”

She met Tempy’s look of shock and let the culmination of events fill her. It had been worth it, every last second of pain. “I’m pretty certain I’m going to have a baby in about seven months.”

Tempy squealed loudly, and Charity laughed at Tempy’s joy. She cradled her abdomen, protective of the life that lay beneath. When she’d believed Kash to be dead, she’d thought any chance of happiness beyond her. And while raising her child without her mate would be daunting, she would never regret her choice.

Tempy stared down at Charity’s stomach and frowned. “Oh sweetie, are you sure you should still leave?”

Charity rose and began pacing the room. Memories tried to assail her, but she pushed them back with a frustrated growl. She wouldn’t let the past rampage through her mind. “I will not allow my child to grow up the way I did—unwanted.

And if I used her to hang on to Kash, none of us would be happy, least of all my child.”

“Her?”

She smiled sadly at Tempy’s teasing tone. The likelihood was slim, as wolf shifters rarely produced females, but she longed for a daughter. It had all been a dream: a mate, children—all of it. And while it hadn’t turned out as she had hoped, this dream she would keep alive until she was forced to give it up.

“And I will give her enough love for an entire pack.”

Tempy joined her and wrapped her arms around Charity. “No.
We
will.”

Charity nodded as she laid her head on Tempy’s shoulder. She could only pray it would make up for Kash’s absence. She’d been forced to endure her own father’s absence after he’d died, and her mother hadn’t even attempted to fill the void.

Neither had her mother’s pack. Had her father lived, her life would have been different. It was a future she would give her daughter. Nothing would touch her and Kash’s child, not while there was still breath in her body.

“Now what?” Tempy asked softly.

“I thought I’d visit Merceline.” Charity moved away from Tempy and stopped before the large picture window, the woods behind the house calling to her. Crossing her arms, she turned her back on them. Once they had provided safety, but no longer.

“You know Prue is going to go ape shit over this for a multitude of reasons, right?”

Rolling her eyes, Charity sighed. Yeah. Prue hated her cousin. And it would only get better when she learned the sword was missing. “That’s why we won’t be telling her about the baby. Not now.”

Tempy tucked her streaked brown bob behind her ears. “Do you really think she still won’t be all over Faith, and your mate too—if she can find him?”

“She has no reason to be running into Kash, thank God. And I was really hoping you could control her.”

Tempy snorted at that. “When have you ever seen me control Prue in all the time you’ve known us?”

Charity frowned. Tempy did have a point. On good days, Prue could be a whirlwind.

On bad ones, she was like a tsunami, destroying everything in her wake. “Shit.”

“Exactly.” Tempy grinned.

“You don’t have to be enjoying yourself here,” Charity mumbled.

“Chari, don’t fool yourself into thinking I won’t enjoy Prue ripping the bastard’s balls off. Baby or no, he took something from you, then chose Hope instead of fulfilling his obligations. And God only knows why. Hope isn’t exactly a prize.”

Charity vigorously shook her head. “Don’t. Hope holds no blame in this. I knew upfront he was hers.”

“And Kash?”

Charity turned away because she had no answer for that. If she was honest with herself, it was an answer she also wanted. A male shifter wouldn’t have been able to touch another if he had a mate. And she’d never heard of a situation like hers, where a wolf found her soul mate, but he was mated to another. Yet neither Kash nor Hope was a shifter, so how they had determined they were mates was beyond her. Before all this, she hadn’t cared enough to ask Hope. And now she couldn’t.

“It doesn’t matter. There is a more important issue I need your help with.”

Tempy looked skeptical. “More important than your mate?”

Charity inhaled deeply to calm her racing pulse, because what she was going to say would send the other female into apoplectic shock. “The sword is missing.”

Complete silence reigned for several seconds, and Charity swallowed nervously.