“Mm.” He took her into his arms and held the cup to her lips, her gasp of pain bringing him full awake. “Oh crap. I’m sorry, little witch.”
She took a sip of the water and settled in against him. “It’s okay.” She shuddered, her face pale and drawn. “Everything hurts.”
“I have some ibuprofen Annabelle left for you in case you woke up, but she said you need to take it with food.”
She grinned up weakly at him. “I’ll wait while you fetch something.”
One brow rose. “Fetch?”
“Go, boy! Go!”
He shook his head at her. “How can you be making jokes right now?”
“We won.” Her bandaged caressed his cheek. “We’re here, and Cole isn’t.”
“But his family got away.” In the scramble to save Chris, the rest of the Godwins had gotten away. He wasn’t certain what punishments the other family would receive but one thing was certain. The Godwins were out of the running as far as the court of the wizard king was concerned. The fact that it had slipped everyone’s attention that Cole and his father were actually warlocks had several of their sages scratching their heads. The entries into the Registry were clear, yet no one had thought to check until Gareth had started wondering exactly who Cole was working with. Once he’d pointed the entry out to Daniel, it was as if a veil was lifted from their eyes.
There were rumors that the Godwins would suffer no consequences other than formal expulsion from the wizard’s court for all of their warlock family members. What Davis Godwin would do from there, Christopher didn’t know, but he had the feeling that this wasn’t over. With Cole’s death, the war between the Becketts and the Godwins had reached a new level.
“So you think it isn’t over?” She snuggled against him with a wince.
“No. I don’t. I’m sorry, little witch. I never meant to drag you into something like this.”
She shot him a disgusted look. “Yup, you just grabbed hold of my arm and pasted a sign on my ass that said ‘Warlocks Eat Free’.” He growled. She giggled, then gasped.
“Oh, remind me not to laugh.”
“I’ll go grab a snack for both of us. You settle back down and try to rest.” He placed a kiss on her forehead before heading for the kitchen.
A light was already on. “Hey, Gareth.”
“Chris. How’s Lana?”
Chris frowned when Gareth adjusted his sling. His older brother was in pain but ever since the fight with the Godwins he’d refused to take any of his medications. He said he didn’t want his brain fuzzed if he had to “wolf out”. “She’s hungry and wants some ibuprofen. She’s in a lot of pain, but at least she’s talking to me now and her eyes are open.” He reached into the fridge and pulled out some cheese and grapes, hoping they’d be easy on her stomach.
“It’s good that she’s awake.” Gareth spooned up some chocolate ice cream and reached for the chocolate syrup on the counter. “We’re looking further into how the Godwins managed to tamper with their entry into the Registry.”
“We?”
Gareth started to shrug but stopped. “Daniel and I.” Gareth stirred his ice cream and chocolate syrup together, making a sort of milkshake in his bowl. He’d been doing it since he was a child. “I think Daniel’s going to want the ring soon.”
Chris blinked. “Why?”
“Have you noticed how remote he’s become?”
“He’s always been a little aloof.” He thought back to Daniel’s recent behavior, the way he seemed to have closed himself off. “He’s been worse?”
“He’s holed up in his office or his house all the time now. He doesn’t leave except for family stuff like this.”
That sounded very familiar to Chris. He’d done the same thing before going to his father and begging him for the ring. “I’ll talk to him, let him know that the ring will be ready for him.” It gave him ideas on what sort of engagement ring he’d buy for Lana; perhaps he’d replace the family emerald with another one. He liked the look of Venus’s stone on her hand. Besides, now that she wore his mark, she no longer needed the ring. It would pass on to the next Beckett who was ready to find his mate.
“Chris?”
“Yeah?”
“He told me earlier he’s thinking about transferring to Philadelphia.”
Chris finished loading the tray with two glasses of milk. “Really?”
He picked up the tray and turned to find Gareth studying him closely. “You don’t sound surprised.”
Chris laughed wearily. “First off, I think I’ve used up all my surprise for the next month or so. Second…” Chris shook his head and headed out of the kitchen. “I don’t know. Something tells me it would be the right move.”
Gareth followed him up the stairs. “Isn’t it Lana’s job to go on instinct?”
Chris snorted. “Open the door for me.”
Gareth opened the bedroom door, but stopped Chris with a hand on his arm. “Hey.”
“What?” At this point Chris just wanted to crawl into bed with his mate.
“They did the right thing.”
“Who?”
“Lana and Zach.”
Chris growled.
“You don’t know what it did to Zach, Chris.”
He stopped growling. “You do?”
Gareth grimaced. “Let’s just say I don’t think he’ll ever be the same.” The sorrow on Gareth’s face had Chris rethinking a few things. “Just don’t be too hard on him the next time you see him.”
Chris nodded and, satisfied, Gareth let him go. “Good night, Chris.”
“Night, Gareth.” He entered the bedroom and pushed the door closed with his foot.
Lana was watching him with a frown. “What?”
“Did you give Zach a hard time?”
He sighed and walked to the bed, putting the tray down on the bedside table. “Don’t start, Lana.”
“You did, didn’t you?” She tugged on his arm, the movement casing her to hiss in pain. “You don’t understand.”
He placed his hand over hers, the bandage rough under his palm. “I understand that you didn’t have to go through this.”
“Oh yes I did!” She was becoming agitated, her legs moving restlessly under the covers.
He sat down on the edge of the bed and tried to calm her down. “Do you think this was worth it?”
“Yes!”
He gave her an ibuprofen, holding the milk for her while she swallowed it down.
“No. Seeing you in pain isn’t worth it.”
Her brow furrowed, her lips thinned, and her eyes flashed up at him. “I would rather go through this, knowing I’ll heal, than have you
“Hey. Mom doesn’t like to be called that.”
It worked; her eyes rolled, but her body relaxed. “You know what I mean, wolfman.
No way could I live with you dead.” She grabbed hold of him again, ignoring her own pain. “I can’t lose you.”
“You won’t.”
“You were bleeding so much.” She was beginning to cry.
“Shh.” The hell with Annabelle. Chris carefully pulled Lana into his arms. “I’m here.
Cole’s gone. You’re safe now.”
He was surprised when she punched him in the arm. “Idiot.”
“What?”
“Get it through your thick skull! You. Almost.
