N. Walters: Finding Chrissten

Inside the apartment, life was anything but normal. He couldn’t believe Chrissten was in his bed. Of course, he wasn’t there with her, but that didn’t matter. He had all the patience and time in the world.

No one would understand the instantaneous attraction he’d felt for Quinn’s sister. He wasn’t certain he totally understood it himself. He sure as hell wasn’t about to tell Quinn or any of the other males of the pack.

All he knew was that Chrissten stilled the restlessness inside him. She was like a missing piece of a puzzle, completing him.

It sounded corny as hell and he’d never say the words out loud, but they were true.

Hank had always relied on his instincts to guide him. Had done so long before he’d known what he truly was. And right now his instincts were screaming at him that this was his woman. His mate.

Problem was she’d been brutalized, held captive and claimed by another male.

But Hank had always been good at figuring out problems, and he wasn’t a quitter. He’d find a way to deal with all the myriad difficulties ahead.

The priority right now was Chrissten’s health.

His head jerked up and he stared at the open doorway. “How is she?” Craig came into the room and crept over to stand beside the bed, staring down at his older sister. His expression was one of love and concern. His eyes were red rimmed. He was still wearing the same shirt he’d worn yesterday and it looked like it had been slept in.

“She’s sleeping.” The minute they’d gotten Chrissten back home early this morning the women had taken over. They’d bathed her and checked her injuries before dressing her in a nightgown and popping her into bed.

He’d offered his apartment and bed for Chrissten as all the others were occupied. With all the new folks taking up residence here space was at a premium. He didn’t give a shit about sleeping on the floor. Wouldn’t be the first time. If his years in the army had taught him anything it was that he could sleep anywhere. It soothed the anger in him to know he was doing something concrete to help her.

Chrissten had been sleeping on and off ever since Meredith and Bethany had put her there. Hank glanced at his watch. The bar would be closing soon. In a few hours Chrissten would have been free for almost a day.

“She’s been through so much.” Craig swiped at his eyes. Hank’s chest tightened as he watched the younger man reach out to touch his sister only to pull back. They were all afraid to touch her. Her skin was mottled with bruises and needle marks punctured her arms, a testament to how much she’d been abused.

“She’s tough or she wouldn’t have survived. She’ll get through this.” Hank had to believe that. Anything else was unacceptable.

“Yeah, she’s always been tough.” Craig turned aside and sank down on the floor beside him. “What about Brian?”

They hadn’t talked about what their next step was. Hank assumed that Damek would be contacting them as soon as the club shut down for the night. Hank wanted to know what Damek had learned from the fucking crazy doctor, and he knew the rest of them wanted to know too.

“I’ll take care of Brian.” He hadn’t meant to say the words out loud. Not yet. He had no claim to Chrissten and might never have one. Chances were she’d never accept him or any other male. Not after what she’d been through. But that didn’t matter. He wanted her safe and that meant Brian had to die. Craig was her brother. Her blood. Hank wanted to prove himself worthy of Chrissten to her kin.

Craig stared at him, his gaze all too knowing for a human male. He removed his wire-rimmed glasses, polished them and slipped them back on. “I believe you will.”

Before Hank could respond, he felt someone else entering the apartment. Quinn’s scent wafted ahead of him. Damn room was getting more and more crowded by the minute.

Quinn had been back and forth checking on his sister every half hour. He’d sat by her side for the first eight hours, his eyes never leaving her face. It had been painful to watch.

Hank felt a twinge of jealousy, which shamed him. He’d wanted to be the one sitting by her, holding her hand and reassuring her when she woke.

Thankfully, Bethany had come to his rescue when she’d come to drag her mate away to rest. Chrissten’s recovery wasn’t going to happen overnight. They were all in this for a long haul.

Hank had agreed to take a turn watching her, reminding them he could nap anywhere, even standing up, thanks to his stint in the military. They weren’t leaving her alone, not for a minute. Not with Brian still on the loose.

If Chrissten were his mate he’d stop at nothing to find her. Of course, the difference between him and Brian was that he’d never do anything to hurt her. Males like Brian sickened him. You couldn’t force love and acceptance. They were gifts that, when offered, were to be treasured and guarded with your life.

“She’s still sleeping.” Quinn sounded worried as he strode across the room. He reached down and tugged the covers more fully over Chrissten, tucking them carefully around her.

“It’s going to take her time to recover,” Craig pointed out.

Hank felt like an interloper with the rest of her family here. As much as he wanted to stay, he forced himself to his feet. “I’ll go downstairs and help with closing. I’ll be back later.”

Quinn nodded but all his attention was on his twin. Hank could feel Craig’s eyes on him as he silently left the room. He closed the apartment door behind him and hurried down the stairs to Haven.

The music had stopped but there were still some patrons milling about, chatting and finishing their drinks. Hank helped Kevin and Isaiah herd them toward the front door. It took another twenty minutes, but finally they were gone. Then came the long wait while the few human employees on staff got their coats and said their goodnights.

Meredith slipped her arm around his waist and rested her head on his shoulder. “How is she doing?”

He shook his head. “Sleeping. I guess that’s probably the best thing for her right now.”

“She needs to eat more.” Meredith mothered them all and had slipped into the role naturally with Chrissten. Quinn had managed to wake her long enough to get a bowl of soup into her earlier today, but other than that, she hadn’t eaten a thing. They were all concerned.

“We can try again later. Maybe some of those nutrition shakes or something like that, to help build her energy.” He should have thought of that earlier and run out to the store.

“That’s a wonderful idea.” Meredith gave him a squeeze. Hank leaned into her for a minute, kissing the top of her head. She’d taken him into her home when he’d been lost and treated him like a son. She’d given him a place to belong and he loved her for that.

“Are you okay?”

That was the problem with someone knowing you so well. Even though outwardly he was the same, she sensed his emotional turmoil. “Yeah, I’m fine. I want to know what Damek found out.”

She nodded and took a step back. “We all do. He should be here soon.” Thankfully, she seemed to accept his explanation at face value. He didn’t want anyone to know what he was feeling for Chrissten. Not yet. It was too soon.

Work was the way to take his mind off things. Hank had never been afraid of hard work and pitched in with closing down the club. It didn’t take the pack long to have everything in order—kitchen and bar shut down, floors and tables scrubbed cleaned.

With the lights dim, they all sat around several tables, waiting. Hank listened with half an ear to the various conversations floating around him while he wondered how Chrissten was doing.

Kevin and Meredith were discussing food and liquor shipments. Isaiah, Michael and Benjamin were speculating on what Damek had found out. Teague was trying to coax Neema upstairs to bed.