Reclaiming Angelica

Chapter Five

Fifteen minutes, an hour? Raul didn’t know how long he prowled around outside. He hurt. He’d always believed one day he’d find his mother and say…what? I thought you loved me? If so, how could you just walk away from me like old furniture that you no longer needed? Or maybe he’d beg her forgiveness for ruining his parents’ marriage? Whatever the case, it no longer mattered, because she was dead.

Dead.

In the grand scheme of things, did knowledge of his mother’s death change anything? No. That acknowledgment settled his queasy gut but did nothing for the hollow feeling in his chest. Slowly Raul made his way back inside to hear the rest of what his uncle wanted to say to him.

Uncle Joey waited until he was seated before continuing. “You know, son, I’ve never liked speaking ill of the dead, but it’s past time you knew all of it. When the situation with your parents first happened, you were too young for us to fully explain. And later…well, you seemed to have adjusted so completely to your parents’ abandonment that none of us wanted to bring up painful memories. I’d always intended to revisit the issue when you became older, but whenever I tried to ease into the subject, you blew me off. Max finally convinced me to leave it alone. However, I’m guessing by your reaction tonight that was a mistake. I should have pushed the issue, not let it go.”

Raul shrugged. “For the most part I had, adjusted, that is.”

“But you blame yourself for your parents’ breakup and your father’s death.”

“Because it’s my fault. Poppa told me not to tell Momma what he could do, that it was a secret. I told. You saw what happened as a result,” Raul stated.

Uncle Joey said some uncomplimentary things regarding his father’s ancestry under his breath that Raul pretended not to hear.

“You know, your father wasn’t the only male in this family to mate with a human.”

Shock replaced guilt as Raul jerked his head up from contemplating his feet and made his uncle the focus of his complete attention. He opened his mouth to pepper his uncle with questions, but Joey held up a hand, forestalling him.

“You just listen now. You can ask questions after,” Uncle Joey instructed.

Raul bit back his questions and waited.

“I know because of your father you’ve got the belief that mating between shifters and human are doomed to fail. Maybe even forbidden, but that’s simply not the case.”

He leaned forward, ready to dispute his uncle’s claim. Uncle Joey lifted one dark eyebrow, nailing him with a look that said clearly as words, “Hush.”

Raul subsided.

His uncle tapped a calloused forefinger on the family Bible lying on the table between them. “The good book says a mate is ‘bone of my bone, and flesh of my flesh.’ That means she’s a part of me. Lying to her is like lying to myself. It will kill the love, destroy the relationship.”

“Where’s your mate?” The question burst out of Raul, unbidden.

Fortunately his uncle didn’t take offense. “My Lily died, victim of gang violence. She was at the wrong place at the wrong time, and a stray bullet took her life. Because of Lily’s death, I can better understand the pain your father felt at the loss of his mate. But the truth of the matter is that Paul brought it upon himself. In the ten years your parents were together, he had plenty of opportunity to tell your mother the truth. He chose, instead, to live a lie. That lie eventually lost him his mate.”

His steady gaze held Raul’s. “I know you believe it was your fault, but the truth would have come out eventually, even without your help. It’s impossible to live with someone and hide who you are. There will be tells. Son, you were only four. Your mother could have easily believed you saying Paul turned into a wolf was the result of a fanciful imagination, except your words, combined with all those tells your father couldn’t help giving, caused two and two to add up to four in your mother’s mind and she discerned the truth.”

Raul blinked, and for the first time in his life, a bit of doubt crept in. He’d always been so sure everything was his fault, but why had his mother believed him instead of laughing it off? He’d been four, and preschoolers were notorious for having vivid imaginations. Raul had been no exception.

His uncle was still speaking. “Even when confronted with the truth, Paul continued to lie, continued to hide.”

Raul flinched, reminded of Angel’s earlier accusations and his denials.

“No woman will accept being lied to her face, and so she left.”

“Why didn’t she take me if it was Poppa she was mad at?”

“I asked that same question. When she first left, she had no idea where she was going or how she would live. She left you with your father because at least with him you’d have a roof over your head and food on the table. Something she wasn’t sure she could provide. She was just getting on her feet when I brought her news of Paul’s death and well, you know the rest.”

“But you said Poppa wrote to her. That means she had a home.”

“No, son. When your momma first left, she spent some time at a women’s shelter before a good friend agreed to take her in. But that friend had children, a husband, and they were barely getting by. There wasn’t room for the both of you,” Uncle Joey explained.

For the first time, a hint of anger flickered to life inside Raul. “She should have just come on home and worked things out with Poppa like he asked.”

Uncle Joey sighed again. “Believe me, son, that she didn’t, that she chose instead to hold on to pride and anger, was a source of guilt and regret to her for the rest of her life. Between your father’s deception and your mother’s pride, they managed to mess up three lives.”

Raul pushed all that to the side to deal with later. “Your mate, did you reveal to her what we are?”

“Lily was as much a part of me as my wolf. Of course I told her the truth.”

In Raul’s mind, there was no of course about it. “How did she react?”

“With disbelief, initially. Then shock with a bit of fear once I proved it to her. I won’t say things didn’t get a little tense, but she loved me. In the end, that’s all that really mattered.

“This woman of yours, you say you love her and that she’s your mate. Is that the man or the wolf talking?” his uncle asked.

“Both.”

“Then you have to tell her. You won’t have peace unless you do. Mark my words, son. Don’t make the mistake your father did. Tell your woman the truth. Now go on, get outta here.” He made a shooing motion with his hands before rising to stand. “These bones aren’t as young as they used to be. I need my rest.”

Raul rose obediently and went to the door. His hand was on the doorknob when his uncle said, “Bring your woman around here to meet the family. Tell her we won’t bite.” He chuckled a little at his joke.

Solemnly, Raul asked, “Uncle Joey, why didn’t you tell me about your mate?”

Uncle Joey’s expression lost all humor. “How long you been with your woman, son?”

Raul felt the flush rise on his face and neck. His gaze dropped to the floor as he admitted, “Over a year.”

When he glanced up again, his uncle gave him a knowing smile. “I met her while you were in the service. She took me totally by surprise.” He shook his head. “Some things hit so deep there just aren’t words to describe.” In an abrupt change of subject, his uncle asked, “You two living together?”

“Yes, sir.” It wasn’t a lie. They had been and would be again if Raul had anything to say about it.

“Remember those tells, son. Your wolf, he won’t like being hidden away, not from his mate. Given a chance, he’ll force your hand. You tell her the truth and let the cards fall where they may. If she’s really your mate, she’ll accept you—fur and all. Now get on with you so this old man can get some rest.”

That got a smile out of Raul. “You’re not old, Uncle Joey. You’re barely fifty.”

“Well, I feel old dealing with you young pups. Bring your woman. Don’t make me come looking for you, and tell that pack of yours it’s been too long since their last visit.”

“Yes, sir. I will.” Raul shed the sweat pants and tossed them to his uncle before exiting the house.

Once on the porch, he breathed in deep, taking in the scents of the night air. This far out there was no traffic. Just the sounds of nature and all her creatures. When he was sure he was alone, he shifted to wolf and ran to where he’d left his car, stopping once to hunt down and eat a rabbit that had the misfortune to cross his hungry path.

As the wolf ran, the man pondered the advice—order, really—his uncle had given him. Tell Angel. A day ago, even an hour ago, the thought would have been inconceivable. But now…?

Raul could acknowledge, if only to himself, he’d spent most of his adult life afraid of loving and losing the way he’d lost his parents. It wasn’t just the words of warning spoken to him by his father about guarding their secret from humans. His mother may have stopped loving him because of what he was, but in the end it was his father’s desertion that hurt the most. Why hadn’t his poppa loved him enough to stay with him?

He’d never wanted to admit it, but deep in his heart Raul knew the truth. His poppa had been weak, just as Uncle Max had said. He loved Angel with everything that was within him, but when he’d found out she’d left, his first thought hadn’t been to sit and weep. It had been to hunt her down and drag her back where she belonged, by her hair if need be, like some damned caveman. Maybe if his poppa had grown a set of balls and done the same with his momma, none of the rest of this would ever have happened.

I don’t see you running to tell our mate about us!

His wolf spoke the truth. He had been a chickenshit, too afraid to tell his woman the truth about himself. Too scared to claim her the way he and his wolf demanded.

No more! It stopped tonight. Raul was going home to his mate, and before the night was over, she’d know exactly to what she was mated. No more hiding. No more lying, and by God, no more holding back.

Raul arrived back at his SUV, dressed, and cursed when he noted the time. Well after midnight. No wonder his uncle had shown him the door. He picked up his cell phone to call and check in when he noticed ten missed calls, all from Mercer. Not good.

He speed-dialed Mercer.

Mercer answered with a blast of music in the background. “Where the hell have you been? I’ve been trying to reach you for the last hour.”

“I’m sorry. I ended up at Uncle Joey’s,” Raul said loudly into the receiver.

“Well, get your ass down here quick. Your girl flew the coop about an hour after you left. We’re at the Warehouse.”

Raul’s claws sliced out. The Warehouse was a well-known vampire feeding ground. “You let her go in there? Alone?” he bellowed.

“Hell no, you know me better than that, but I couldn’t stop her from going inside, not without explaining why I’d been following her in the first place. I didn’t think you wanted her knowing you’d stuck a tail on her,” Mercer explained.

Raul let out a string of curses and ran an agitated hand through his hair. “Okay, let me think. Can you get inside?”

“Already am,” Mercer confirmed. “I latched on to a couple of beauties near the front of the line. They let me join their party. I ditched them once inside.”

“Did the guards give you any trouble?” he asked as he shoved the vehicle in gear, backed out of the brush, and eased onto the pavement.

“No, you know shifter blood is a delicacy. They watched me with hungry eyes, but no one made a move to stop me,” Mercer said.

“Nobody touches her. You hear me?”

“So far, it’s not the vampires you need to be concerned with. It’s the humans. I’ll drag her off the dance floor if I have to, but the way she’s dressed, it will start a riot.”

Raul growled, and his gums hurt. “I’ll be there in ten.”

“Make it five,” Mercer said and disconnected the line.

Six minutes later Raul strode to the double entrance doors of the Warehouse like he owned the place. He was tired, smelled of earth and sweat, and probably looked wild. The line of people he bypassed waiting to get in hissed and booed at him. Some hurled insults while others shouted out complaints.

He ignored them all, his attention on the two male vampires flanking the doors.

One held out a black-nailed hand, his long black hair pulled back in a queue, his body encased in head-to-toe black. “Get to the back of the line.”

Raul flashed canines and allowed his eyes to go wolf. “My mate’s inside.”

The younger-looking vamp, a blond appearing barely out of his teens, which meant he was probably old as fuck, nudged the larger one. “I didn’t see no bitch come through the line. Did you?”

Raul had the vamp dangling by the throat in an instant. “Watch how you speak about my woman,” he snarled.

The crowd, those close enough to see the confrontation, fell into an uneasy silence broken by a few muttered whispers. Some broke line and left, clearly not wanting to be involved in whatever trouble Raul was bringing.

The black-haired vampire made to move, and Raul’s head snapped around to pin him with a glare. “Don’t. I’ll rip his throat out before you can blink. I’m not here to cause a scene. I just want my woman, and then we’ll be leaving.”

The vampire met his gaze for a long moment, glanced at the claws currently embedded in his fellow security guard’s neck, then looked over his shoulder to the crowd that was growing more agitated by the moment. “Noel’s right. No she-wolf has come through the line.”

“You’ll forgive me if I want to see for myself.”

The vamp debated the wisdom of allowing Raul access.

“Oh look,” Raul taunted as more people broke away from the line and left, “more cattle are leaving. Make up your mind quickly before the rest of tonight’s dinner runs away.”

“Go, wolf,” the vampire snarled. “Find your bitch before someone makes a meal out of her.” The look in his eye said he hoped someone drained Angel dry. He pulled on the door and held it open.

Raul didn’t bother to correct his misconception by telling him Angel was human. He pulled a twenty out of his pocket and gave it to the larger vamp before turning his wolf gaze on the one still dangling by the neck. “Be careful who you taunt. It’s been a while since my pack had a good hunt.” With a casual flick of the wrist, Raul tossed him aside, wiped the blood on his jeans, then entered the club.

As soon as the door shut behind him, the noise and smell of the place overwhelmed him. Underneath the sweat, lust, and alcohol was the iron tinge of blood and the musty scent of sex. His nostrils twitched a protest. The booming bass and strident screech of electric guitars threatened to blow out his sensitive eardrums. He needed to find Angel and get the hell out of there as soon as possible.

He glanced around as he followed the direction most of the club’s patrons seemed to be headed. He didn’t see Angel or Mercer. There were too many people. This was the second time today Raul wished he’d completed the mating bond with Angel. Then he’d know exactly where she was at all times. After tonight the lack of a bond would no longer be an issue, he reminded himself.

He moved out of the flow of foot traffic, whipped out his cell phone, and sent Mercer a brief text. I’m here. Where is she?

Upstairs.

He automatically glanced up to the dark, glass-enclosed space above. Then he scrutinized the club until he noted the curving staircase leading to the upper level.

Upstairs was darker than the lower level. The smell of blood and sex intensified. Raul’s preternatural vision kicked in, turning the dark shapes into identifiable beings. This level was a mass of booths along the back wall, small round high tables that seated two intimately overlooking the dance floor below, another smaller bar doing brisk business, and dance floor filled but not overflowing with bodies like the ones below.

Raul glanced over the dance floor twice before he spotted Angel. She was dressed in a gold metallic halter dress that barely covered the essentials. Her breasts bounced and jiggled as she danced to the pounding beat. Angel’s long, curly dark brown hair swirled around her hips, drawing attention to her rounded ass. She was laughing at something the woman, obviously a vampire, dancing with her said. He started forward determinedly.

Two willowy arms wrapped around his neck as a skinny blonde stepped into his path. “Hey, handsome. Buy me a drink?” she slurred, pressing her body tightly to his.

Raul grasped her by the waist, lifted her bodily, and set her to the side. “No, thank you, and I believe you’ve had enough.” As he moved past her, he heard her wail, “Hey, where’d he go?”

He didn’t look back. His gaze was locked onto his target. A growl rumbled low in his chest when a male eased up behind his woman and ground his pelvis against her butt in a parody of sex, his hands placed possessively on her hips. He lowered his face to her neck and languidly drew his tongue from the base to just below her ear where the pulse beat steadily.

Hell no! No vamp was feeding from his woman. He’d rip the man from limb to limb. Wolf riding just below the surface of his skin, Raul shoved his way forward with no consideration for the dancers he dislodged to reach his goal.

In a quick move, Angel pivoted so that she was behind the male. To his immediate consternation, she didn’t shove Lover Boy away. Instead she draped one arm around his neck and wrapped the other his waist, her hand dangling perilously close to the male’s crotch. Then Angel tipped the male’s chin up and to the side, baring a long length of throat. Her mouth opened wide, revealing a dainty pair of fangs, right before she sank them into the male’s carotid artery.