Riley's Torment, A Moon's Glow Novel #2 (20 page)

“Why are you
helping me?” I liked him a lot, but I couldn’t forget we had just
met.

He stopped and
turned to face me. A bird shrieked above us, and he blinked at the
sound. “Because, I don’t have any friends here, and no one to run
with. Besides, what else am I going to do?”

“Look for a
job?” I suggested, jokingly. I had pushed my other werewolf friends
away, and I found myself getting attached to this stranger. Deep
inside, I knew that I could no longer deny what I had become, and I
needed companionship during this transition. And for so many
reasons, I couldn’t get it from the people I was closest to. For
now anyway, I needed Adrian.

“Soon. But
right now, I want to help you. I hope your friend is learning to
fight as well. It’s something that every werewolf should know.”

I started to
shrug, feeling relieved with his answer, when I remembered what he
said. I narrowed my eyes at him. “How do you know I have a friend
that is a werewolf? I never told you that.”

He lifted a
brow. “You’re not the first werewolf I scented around here—I just
haven’t spoken to the others yet.”

Even though I
wasn’t sure if I believed his explanation, what could he possibly
get out of helping me learn to fight? And I trusted him. I just
didn’t know why. “Okay, come on, we’ll get something to eat at my
house. And I can tell you right now it will be better than a raw
rabbit covered in fur.”

He chuckled as
he headed to his car.

“Did Mandy turn
into a boy?” Mona asked as I led Adrian into the kitchen. “You left
with her and returned with a new hottie. What happened to being a
hermit?” Mona was wiping down the counters, wearing a flowered
apron to protect her bright red blouse and black dress pants. Her
hair was in a braid today with strands falling out.

I rolled my
eyes. “Adrian, meet our cook. Ignore her—she’s just the help.” I
couldn’t say the words without smiling.

“Aren’t you
feisty? You were in a bad mood when you left, as you have been for
the last week. He must be a good influence on you.” She smiled at
Adrian, and then the smile faded. “As long as you’re not replacing
Nate, he’s my favorite.” She winked at my new friend, and he smiled
in return. Mona had won over yet another guy.

“Don’t worry,
we’re just friends,” he said, shoving his hands in the pockets of
his jeans. “I have my eye on another girl.”

“Ooohh. Maybe
Megan could help you with that. She needs something to do while she
learns to forgive whatever Nate did to her.”

Peeling a
clementine I stole from the fruit bowl, I mumbled, “Who said he did
anything to me?”

She quirked a
brow. “Why else are you home? You hate it here, always have.”

When I just
stared at her blankly chewing the fruit in my mouth, she laughed
and went to the fridge. “Okay, what do you want to eat?”

“How do you
know we’re hungry?”

“Because you’re
in the kitchen, and all you’ve been doing lately is eating.” She
turned away from the fridge, and faced Adrian. “She has a tapeworm.
I’m calling the doctor in the morning.” Adrian laughed, and even
though I tried not to, I joined him.

Mona was right.
I had been in a bad mood for too long, depressed over something I
couldn’t change. For the first time in a week, I almost felt happy,
and it was because of Adrian. There was something about him that
made me feel comfortable and relaxed. That is, until the image of
him practically naked hugging me popped in my mind, and my face
turned hot again. I moved to the windows so they wouldn’t
notice.

“Do we have any
burgers?” I asked absently as I watched Ben covering the cedar
bushes along the path of our back patio with burlap. He did it
every year at this time. When I was little, he told me he was
putting winter clothes on the trees. I smiled at the memory as I
spun to hear Mona’s answer.

“Yeah, I froze
some patties a few days ago when you started to eat like you were
about to die.”

I scoffed.
“You’re really funny. Could you make us each a couple? Or I can, if
you want.”

Horror washed
over her face. “Oh God no, I’ll do it. I don’t want to clean up
that mess.”

“I’m getting
better at cooking.” I pouted, popping a slice of clementine into my
mouth. The fresh tangy flavor exploded on my tongue. I handed
Adrian a few pieces. He took them from my hand with a small
smile.

Mona’s face
sobered. “You are,” she said unconvincingly. “But I like to cook
for you. I know you’ll smarten up soon and go back to Nate, and
I’ll lose you again.”

My eyes burned
with tears at her words. Despite my love for the cottage and my
desire to return to Nate, I really did miss Mona. She was my real
mother. She was the one who cared for me, fixed my cuts, and tied
my shoelaces.

“If I do go
back, I’ll visit more, okay?” I quickly wiped away a tear.

Mona blinked
with watering eyes. “Okay. Now go sit down. I’ll bring you some
food.”

After
downing two burgers each and freshly cut fries, we helped Mona
clean up before heading to Adrian’s car.

“What took you
so long?” Nate asked Joe as he watched him turn off his car and
climb out.

Joe
shrugged his shoulders. He was wearing cargo pants and a black coat
that was open, exposing a gray sweater. His hair was messy, and
there were creases in his clothes.

Nate smiled to
himself, wondering what had happened after he left. The grin that
spread on the werewolf’s face told Nate the answer. “I take it
things went well with Lauren?”

Joe’s grin
turned smug as he got closer to Nate and stood before him. “It went
really well. Thank you for giving us time alone.”

Nate couldn’t
help but grin himself. His friend’s happiness was a long time
coming. The ache in his heart for Megan didn’t take away the joy he
felt for them. “She finally gave in to your Irish charms?”

“Was there ever
any doubt?”

Nate chuckled.
“Yes, there was.”

Joe winced. “I
know, I thought she’d never give in. But, we’ve a date tonight, so
let’s get on with it. What’s going on? You didn’t say much in your
phone call.”

Nate leaned on
his car and pointed to the barbeque restaurant. “I found three of
Charlotte’s werewolves in there having lunch. I want to follow them
when they leave.”

The lot they
were in was far enough away that they wouldn’t be seen, unless
someone was specifically looking. And the fountain in the center of
the square was hopefully enough to hide their scents.

Joe leaned on
the car next to his friend. “How long have they been in there?”

Nate glanced at
his watch and sighed. “A half hour. But when I left, they hadn’t
gotten their food yet.”

“Did you speak
to them?”

Nate nodded,
not taking his eyes away from the restaurant door. “Yes, they
wouldn’t give up her location. I was tempted to beat it out of
them, but there were too many witnesses.” A gust of freezing wind
blew a few pieces of garbage in front of them; the debris whipped
around in circles. “One of them is my nephew James.”

Joe spun to
face Nate. “What?”

“Have you ever
heard of James Riley, Will’s cousin?”

Joe shook his
head as he glanced at a girl riding past on a bike. The shrill
sound of the bell echoed across the square. “No, the name’s not
familiar, and I thought I knew most of the family.”

Nate’s face
clouded with guilt. “James, Will, and I were close. I think you
were out of the country somewhere doing an opening. I was in town
for a few months visiting the family. Will and James were just
finishing college. We used to go to bars and talk about the
different sides of the family business. He was eager to join the
company. Unlike Will who wanted to work in the department stores,
James was focused on the income properties. He couldn’t wait to
start. James’ father was in charge of our holdings and was excited
for his son to join him.

“The week
before they both graduated, we went to celebrate, and we had a
blast. It was rare that I let myself get too close to my family,
but I had been away from them for a long time. I told myself I
would leave as soon as they graduated.” Nate paused as a group of
people exited the restaurant and took a few steps forward. He
relaxed when he realized it was just a woman and her two young
children. Joe waited patiently for Nate to continue. “After the
graduation ceremony, I got a call from Will’s father John, warning
me of some trouble. Apparently, Peter, James’s father, told his son
about me, and it didn’t go very well. James called me a monster and
was contacting all the relatives, trying to get backup to kill me.
John wanted me to leave town just in case James found the help he
was looking for.”

Joe’s face
fell. “That’s awful, Nate! Why didn’t you tell me?”

Nate shrugged.
“I’m not sure. I didn’t want you involved in our drama, and for the
first time in a long while, I felt like an outsider. My father had
always tried hard to make me part of the family, even when I tried
to distance myself. When my immediate family members died, they
each asked me to look over their children. I promised I would and
have tried my hardest ever since. But when James wanted to come
after me, it really hurt.” Nate stopped speaking and stared off in
the distance. He swallowed a lump in his throat as he remembered
that night. He was afraid his own family, that he had vowed to
protect might want to kill him. It was a low point in his long
life, and one he didn’t like to remember. He cleared his throat and
continued.

“It was a
reminder that I wasn’t part of the family, just a dirty little
secret. I left that night, and Will told me later that the family
turned James away when he wouldn’t give up his quest to kill me.
I’ve always felt guilty—that I was the reason he lost everything.”
A weight fell on his chest, threatening to smother him as all the
memories resurfaced.

Joe’s face was
hard. “It was James’ choice to turn on you, and I’m sure he was
shown your father’s will. So he had to know what the consequences
were. It was his choice, and you did nothing wrong. Stop feeling
guilty for everything in the world, Nate. It’s not good for
you.”

Nate couldn’t
completely agree with Joe but allowed him to continue.

“So how did
Charlotte get her clutches into him?” Joe asked.

“All he said
was that after the family shunned him, he met a pretty red head.”
Nate gave a sheepish shrug.

“She really
does like to stick it to you, doesn’t she?” Joe ran his hand
through his auburn hair. “Do you think she knew you were
related?”

Nate smirked at
his friend. “We have the same hair and eye color and the same last
name.”

“Right,
gotcha.” Joe shifted his weight and glanced around. The area was
beginning to fill with people. Some were wandering around shopping
and others sitting on the edge of the fountain hovering in their
coats for warmth. The sporadic snowflakes were bringing out early
Christmas shoppers. “They’ve been in there for a while. Is there a
back door to the place?”

Nate spun to
face Joe, his eyes wide. “Damn it,” he growled. “Go look and call
if you catch their scents. All three were at the island.”

Joe nodded, and
he rushed away.

Nate watched
Joe cross the busy street. He wasn’t the only one watching. Two
young women who were sitting on a bench in front of a coffee shop
smiled as he passed. Joe didn’t even notice them. He only had eyes
for Lauren.

Five minutes
later, Nate’s cell rang. The high pitched ring was cut off
immediately as he answered the call. “Did you find the scent?” he
asked, his voice anxious.

“Yes, all three
exited the building back here. By the strength of the scent, I’d
say they left soon after you did.”

Anger sliced
through Nate but not for the three werewolves they were hunting,
but for himself for not thinking to check for a back door. “I’ll be
right there,” he barked, before ending the call and heading for the
back of the restaurant.

Joe was waiting
against the Dumpster with his hands in his coat pockets when Nate
appeared. Sure enough, the scent was there.

“You ready?”
Nate asked Joe.

His friend
nodded, pushing himself off of the garbage bin. “Should we
run?”

That would
definitely be faster, but as Nate glanced around, he noticed a
worker up ahead unloading goods off a truck. He turned at a
tinkling sound and spotted a woman walking a dog, its tags jingling
as it trotted along. “No, too many people.”

They started to
walk forward, sniffing the air for the scent. It was there, and it
went along the back of a strip mall through a four story parking
lot. They climbed the four floors and walked to the back and down
another flight of stairs to the main level again. “They’re playing
with us,” Joe muttered, as they exited the closed parking garage
into the fresh afternoon air. Nate agreed, but there was little
they could do about it. If they wanted to find Charlotte, they had
to see this through.

The scent led
to the hub of downtown and to a door. “Is he serious?” Joe asked
looking up at the sign in front of the building. James had led them
to Riley’s Department Store.

A feeling of
dread formed in the pit of Nate’s stomach. James had been gone for
twenty years and in all that time had never contacted the family.
And now he was back as a werewolf with Charlotte. Nothing good
would come of this.

The scent went
through the main building, and one of the men veered off into the
women’s underwear section. Nate knew it was one of the brothers,
but he couldn’t place which one. All he remembered was that both of
their names started with a C. Nate and Joe stayed with the main
scent knowing that the young men were screwing with them. Finally,
it led to the stairwell that went up to the offices. When Nate and
Joe entered, a few heads turned from their computers. The stairwell
door opened into a small work room, and the men and women in the
room smiled at the sight of them. Some of them glanced at them
curiously. Nate and Joe simply nodded as they continued on their
mission.