Charles (Darkness #8)

C
opyright © 2014 by K.F
. Breene

All rights reserved. The people, places and situations contained in this ebook are figments of the author’s imagination and in no way reflect real or true events.

C
harles is
a guy that likes to play the field. He's highly sought after in the Mansion, both for his prowess, and his position. He's content to stay the playboy for life, too, steeped in the culture in which he was raised.

That is, until he finds himself on a mission with Ann, trying to figure out why shifters are mysteriously going missing. Suddenly things that were so clear cut, get muddled.

When Ann succumbs to the danger that is plaguing her kind, all bets are off.

T
here are so
many people who’ve helped me along the way with this series. Of those, a few have been constant. Keri Frey, Casey Harris, Fiona Wilson, Donna Hokanson and Heather Spenser have either given unflinching advice, had a hand with each book, helped with reviews and promotion, or just blind, unwavering support.

Then there are those who’ve been with me from the beginning, finding me with straight romance, reading paranormal, and then taking a chance on light fantasy, all because I wrote it. I’m actually get teary just thinking about it. Kelly Degenhardt, Kelly Doster, Nikki Holcomb, Brittany Ozmore, Katrina Lanzer, Heather Kuebler, Kerri Fitzgerald and Jessica Leonard I know by name. As a person who never knows names, it means I see these gals around a lot for everything from banter to promotion. And let’s not forget Gina Moody, who has brought more people than I can count into the world of my books. She has not just pimped me, but pushed my stuff into people’s faces until they’ve said “uncle”.

But the real thanks goes to the readers. Those people like you who have read this series from the very first word until the very last. You might not have liked a character or two, or approved of some of their actions, and you might have wished I took a left when I actually went right, but you stuck through it. To you, I give my warmest, deepest thanks. You have made this series a success, hitting USA Today, hitting #1 in Amazon’s genre lists multiple times, and finding new readers. To you I say THANK YOU!!

J
essica Brodie Diaries
(Contemporary Romance)

Back in the Saddle, Book 1 – FREE

Hanging On, Book 2

A Wild Ride, Book 3

G
rowing
Pains (Contemporary Romance)

Lost and Found, Book 1 - FREE

Overcoming Fear, Book 2

Butterflies in Honey, Book 3

Love & Chaos; Cassie’s Story

S
urviving
Love
(Contemporary Romance)

D
arkness Series (Paranormal
Romance)

Into the Darkness, Novella 1 - FREE

Braving the Elements, Novella 2

On a Razor’s Edge, Novella 3

Demons, Novella 4

The Council, Novella 5

Shadow Watcher, Novella 6

Jonas, Novella 7

Charles, Novella 8

W
arrior Chronicles (Fantasy
)

Chosen, Book 1

Hunted, Book 2

Shadow Lands, Book 3

C
harles separated
himself from the tangle of limbs and staggered away from the bed. He looked down at himself before trying to wipe off his chest in heavy pats. Glitter sparkled on his pecs and abs like a disco ball.

This is what it had come to. Glitter. How he thought glitter had been a good idea, the Gods only knew.

He snatched up his clothes and headed for the door. The girls on the bed didn’t even shift. They wouldn’t notice his absence until the evening, and wouldn’t even care that he was gone when they did.

Charles made his way through the mostly empty Mansion as daylight wrestled with the heavy curtains, some sneaking through to splash the walls and floor. Only a few humans wandered through the corridors, keeping watch. All Paulie’s hires, the humans were thick, robust dudes with guns, swords, and shifty eyes. Many had prison tats, very few could do magic, and all would take an axe to an intruder’s head just to spice up their weapon choice. Given that they weren’t the most violent in the Mansion—Jonas probably still held that title—they fit in just fine. Real nice guys when a male got to know them, actually.

Charles let himself into his room and heaved a tired sigh. His dick hurt.

He looked down at the tired soldier, resting peacefully among meticulous man-scaping.

What had his world come to when sex became mundane? He’d screwed his way through the Mansion these last couple weeks trying to find the joy he had once held for constant sex. A single partner wasn’t really doing it for him, so he’d tried two and three girls at a time. That was just a lot of work, so he’d tried a guy, which had been uncomfortable at best.

Lately, he’d let girls deck him in chocolate, or glitter, and last night, he’d almost said yes to wearing an animal suit.

An animal suit.

Charles dropped his clothes and put his phone on the nightstand.

“Something’s gone very wrong when you’re thinking about roaring like a lion in a leotard just to get off.” His voice sounded unnaturally loud in the silence.

He jumped in the shower before sliding into bed, noticing a few sparkles still glimmering on his chest. He’d never get that shit off.

No more glitter.

As his body started to relax, he took a moment to go over the things he was thankful for in life, and as always, lingered on the children, even though none of them were his. Jonas’ little girl had just started walking, teetering around with a beautiful little face just like Emmy. She was the sweetest thing Charles had ever seen, loving cuddles and being held tightly. She offset Sasha’s two villains, who were constantly getting into mischief, working together to create more havoc than any two kids should. Paulie’s little boy was more of a watcher, studying the room before getting a wild urge to sprint through, often barreling into things without fear.

Charles smiled as his heart warmed, wishing he’d gone to Sasha and the Boss’ house tonight. He was in a good spot as the beloved uncle, getting all the love and smiles without the responsibility, but he’d be lying if he said he didn’t miss them when he was away. When he left, it was to his own room and solitude.

Maybe he just needed new partners. A vacation to another territory with all new females might drum up his desire again.

He settled deep into his pillows, letting the tiredness overcome him.

Whatever he needed, it definitely wasn’t glitter. He’d have to try and scrub off the rest of it before he saw Jonas or Paulie or he’d never hear the end of it.

“
I
s that glitter
?” Jonas prodded Charles’ neck with a heavy finger.

Charles couldn’t help a gag from where the poke landed. “Bro, not cool. You can’t go around trying to choke people with that hammy finger.”

“I can if they’re trying to impersonate a thirteen year old girl. You’ve got glitter on your neck.”

Charles, Jonas, and Paulie walked out the back door of the Mansion, making their way to the area where the Watch was going through some training exercises.

“Just trying to please the ladies, bro,” Charles said as they neared. He noticed a couple of the larger humans who’d recently come to the Mansion to be trained in magic. They both had red-level power, but could probably push up a level with training. What’s more, they had martial arts training. Good additions, all of them.

Paulie snorted. “Pleasing a chick for the night is nothing. Half the time they don’t say nothin’ when you fail—they expect it. Pleasing a chick you have to live with…” Paulie shook his head. “Mine stopped pretending to come. But Christ—chicks are a lotta work. Is it God’s joke that they are so hard to get off? She wants it every day—I don’t got it in me, man. Too much work. Rather just take a hand to it half the time—quick and easy.”

Jonas sniffed. “It takes a real male to please his female. It takes a halfwit to parade around in glitter with a swinging dick, and a useless male to bitch about getting it every day.”

“Useless, huh? Talk to me when you get it every day again. You’ve got a six-month old—your lady isn’t
trying
to deal with you,” Paulie growled. “But I got some time—why don’t I beat the shit outta you right quick? Let’s see about
useless
.”

Jonas turned toward Paulie. His muscles flexed up and down his thick frame, hearing the challenge and ready to answer. Paulie stared back, fire fueling his eyes.

Charles rolled his eyes as Mick, one of the strategists who worked with Jameson, strode toward them. He hoped the nerd wanted to talk to Jonas or Paulie rather than to him. “We all know you’re not going to fight until the more advanced Watch trains later tonight. Like you do every night,” he said. “What’s the point in staring at each other? It’s annoying.”

“The human is trying to get his courage up,” Jonas said, turning back to face the training.

“Must suck to admit to people you got beat the fuck up by a human…” Paulie rasped as he turned back to the training too.

Paulie had really come into his own in the last year or so. He’d made great strides with his magic and advanced dramatically with his hand-to-hand combat. In his fights with Jonas, he now won as often as he lost, which was quite an achievement.

“He’s used to it,” Charles said as he watched the sword-work of the humans. “Sasha blasts him with magic on a regular basis.”

“Not as much as you,” Jonas retaliated.

“Charles, sir…” Charles sighed and turned to Mick, too stiff and proper by half. The night was off to a rocky start. “The Boss requests your presence in the Purple Library.”

“Why didn’t you bring a formal invite?” Charles asked sarcastically as he glanced at Jonas. Jonas gave him a nod, acknowledging his leaving.

“I didn’t realize you could read, sir. I will in future.” Mick led the way with small steps.

“Funny guy. How funny will you look hanging from your ankles, I wonder?”

“Not as funny as walking around with glitter on my arms, I would imagine.”

That was the problem with smart guys—they weren’t easy to pick on.

Mick stopped at the side of the doorway to the Purple Library and gestured Charles ahead of him. Charles walked in to find the Boss sitting in the far corner. In the chair beside him lounged Tim, the alpha of the shifters. His big, brown eyes matched the color of the giant Kodiak bear he turned into. Only six feet tall as a human, Tim was stocky and coordinated, but easily taken in a fight. It was that bear form, though, that gave a male the shivers. That beast was a giant slab of muscle, violence, and death, lumbering around a battlefield with razor sharp claws and a vicious growl.

A few other shifters loitered around the edges of the room, eyes alert but bodies relaxed. Ann leaned against the far wall with a shock of blue hair, her cupid’s mouth turned up into the easy smile she was known for. She gave Charles a wink in welcome as he caught her gaze.

The annoying brainiac, Mick, left Charles to join Jameson on the far side of the room.

One person was missing. “Where’s Sasha?”

The Boss looked up at him. That dark-eyed stare, filled with power and authority, was enough to make Charles’ spine tingle in warning.

“Here.” Sasha strolled into the room with a swollen belly and a surly expression. “Stefan still insists on weekly checkups by both a human doctor and a clan doctor. I’m barely six months pregnant—I’m not that fragile.”

Charles felt a surge of protectiveness—a natural response to a female carrying a child for their kind. The Boss, who must’ve felt ten times the protectiveness since it was his child, stood and turned all of his focus toward her. He took her hand and led her to a cushioned seat next to him before resettling, leaving his hand on the arm of her chair protectively.

Charles grabbed the chair facing them and turned it around so he could sit next to her, too.

“I’m not in a touchy-feely-kind of mood, Charles,” Sasha warned.

Undeterred, he waited until Sasha was distracted with the Boss’ presence before sneaking his hand onto her belly. He loved feeling the baby move. It was a trip.

A bolt of electricity sizzled up his arm and zinged into his body. All his muscles tensed and his jaw clenched shut with pain. “Damn it, Sasha. You have to share!”

“Get your own woman to knock up,” she retorted.

“And be tied to a nutcase like you?”

“Charles.” The Boss’ deep voice claimed Charles’ focus. Just barely. “Tim is having a problem with shifters going missing in the Headland Foothills.”

“We’ve sent in two teams,” Tim said, moving in his seat to turn his shoulders toward Charles. “The first was a few months back. We still haven’t heard anything. The second went in two weeks ago tomorrow. Same as before—phones went off the grid, as did GPS trackers. We haven’t heard a word.”

Charles slid his hand onto Sasha’s chair arm, sneaking it closer so he could move it to her stomach when she wasn’t paying attention. He turned his focus to Tim, thinking over what was said. Who said males couldn’t multitask?

“What kind of people are you sending in?” Charles asked. “And why did you send anyone in the first place? What tipped you off?”

“We have occasional patrols in mountain areas for shifters who are going through the change, or have gone through it and are staying away from humans. We try to find these people and incorporate them into our faction. The patrol went missing, which happens occasionally—some of the wild ones are powerful and dangerous. I then sent in a group of ten preparing for a hostile response. Those ten were highly trained, experienced, and ruthless. They are always prepared for the worst, and wouldn’t engage if they were outnumbered. Their last check-in was normal. They’d seen no sign of foul-play. Two hours later, their tracking devices vanished. We haven’t heard anything from them since.”

Charles calmly extended his hand to Sasha’s belly as his gaze switched to the Boss. “That’s way beyond our territory—have you heard anything from the neighboring clan?”

The Boss glanced at Jameson, who had a map laid out on a table. “I called. They haven’t had any problems.”

“
Any
problems?” Charles asked.

“Anything out of the ordinary. Their scuffles for territory with the neighboring clan don’t extend into the mountains.”

“Any reason they wouldn’t fill you in if they did have problems?” Tim asked the Boss.

The Boss shook his head. “They’re trying to stay in my good graces. Since I took over the territory to the north, they’ve been happy to work with me.”

The clan leader to the north had been a real dick. After killing Andris, the Boss had naturally expanded to take over the unoccupied territory. It was his right, after all. He and Sasha were the ones who had taken out Andris, so by rule, Andris’ territory should go to the winning party. Logic.

The weakling leader from the north had seen an opportunity, though, and tried to take it for himself. Charles had been there when the Boss attempted to handle the dispute diplomatically. The leader had challenged.

Now he was dead.

It didn’t pay to underestimate the Boss, especially with Sasha at his back.

“So you’re requesting aid?” Charles affirmed.

Tim nodded once.

“But you’re not requesting aid from the clan in that area because you’re not on great terms with them?” Charles verified.

“Amazing powers of information recall, Charles,” Sasha said in a dry voice. “That’s only been the case… I don’t know… for
ever
.”

Charles stopped the retort as it was about to leave his mouth. If he gave her sass, she’d blast his hand and probably send him reeling across the room.

“How many of the Watch are you requesting?” Charles asked.

“One. For now.” Tim’s eyes hardened. “We’re blind in that area. I don’t want to send any more people than we have to until we know what we’re up against. I was hoping your magic, or your ability to influence humans, might make the difference. I’ll send one of mine with you. All we need is reconnaissance and a safe return. That’s it.”

Charles took his hand from Sasha and leaned forward, looking at the Boss. “And you’ve elected me.” It wasn’t a question.

“Tim is sending Ann,” the Boss said. Ann shifted in the corner. “You work best with her. I realize Paulie is better with magic than you are, and he and she get along, but he is half-human and lacks pheromones. You’re the next best bet.”

“What else do we know?” Charles glanced at Jameson.

On cue, Jameson stepped forward. “Satellites aren’t covering that area, so we have no idea what could be up there. As Tim’s technology is cutting out, I have a feeling it is something with advanced facilities. That smacks of government forces or highly funded private organizations.” Jameson’s gaze hit Tim. “I’ve not heard of any humans going missing in that area. The newspapers would jump on that story. There have been a few new clips in the tabloids about werewolves. Tabloids cash in on popular rumor, which means people are talking. I wouldn’t be surprised if the genetic mutation that allows humans to shift into animals has been suspected. This situation is probably shifter-specific.”