Chapter 5

Rhen

“I’m starving,” Leon groans as we step into the strip club. His blue eyes look hungrily at the barely clad, half-naked girls on stage. The red ring around his irises glows brightly, confirming his hunger more than words ever could. His bloodlust is insatiable, since he is the only hybrid among the four of us. Thane likes bringing him here. Sure, he could feed from us, but like Leon says, eating the same thing every day gets boring, so we don’t mind if he indulges. Hell, we all do. We may be mates, but we still have urges and don’t mind sharing a woman now and then.

The strip club is one of a few local businesses that owes Thane money, and Talon is really starting to push the limits of Thane’s generosity. As we step into the dimly lit place, Brianna, one of the girls who works here, rushes over as soon as she spots us, glancing nervously to the office upstairs.

Talon knows Raidon likes her. Raidon is a sucker for big boobs, and she is not lacking in that department. The beaded bra she is currently wearing barely covers her nipples, and Raidon grabs her the moment she comes over to bury his face in her chest with a growl. Thane, however, has one goal in mind, so he pushes past her, heading for the office.

“He isn’t in!” Brianna shrieks, escaping Raidon and chasing after Thane. I move to follow them up the spiraling staircase to the VIP section. Thane turns once he reaches the top and storms toward Talon’s office, kicking the door in. Talon would be dead by now if he wasn’t Leon’s cousin. I sigh and lean on the banister overlooking the bottom floor, listening to the grunts from the beating Talon receives from Thane. Brianna chews one of her nails nervously, glancing at the door every once in a while, petrified for her sleazy boss, while my eyes roam the floor. Something smells exceptionally sweet here tonight.

The pheromones that pump through this place always make the air sickly sweet, but this is different. This smell is pure. And suddenly my eyes lock on the girl behind the bar pouring drinks.

“New girl?” I ask Brianna, and she glances over the banister to where I’m pointing.

“Um... no, she sometimes works here,” Brianna says before her eyes dart back to the office where we hear a loud bang and the frosted glass windows rattle behind us, followed by a garbled grunt.

Sniffing the air, I can’t sense what the girl is. The mask covering her eyes covers most of her face, except for her plump lips and little nose, but her scent instantly awakes my senses. I can even smell it above all the pungent scents in this vile place. I glance around the room below to find Raidon and Leon sitting in a booth, their eyes locked on the girl as she serves someone. She flinches when the man tries to grab her wrist, the girl pulling away just in time.

“She’s a virgin?” I ask, finally picking up why she smells so sweet.

“She isn’t one of the working girls,” Brianna answers before rubbing her face where the mask itches. The door opens behind me before Thane comes out and drops a hand on my shoulder. He has a wad of cash he must have grabbed from Talon’s safe.

Gargled grunts sound behind me, and I look at my mate as he peers over the banister to see what captured my attention. No doubt he can feel Leon’s hunger through the bond, and Raidon’s suddenly piqued interest. Thane rolls his sleeves to his elbows and leans on the banister while observing the floor below.

“New girl?” he asks, and Brianna quickly recites the same thing she told me.

“Leon and Raidon want her,” Thane says, nodding toward the booth they are in.

“Oh, she doesn’t work the floor. She sometimes cleans dishes,” Brianna butts in quickly.

“Werewolf?” Thane asks her, and Brianna nods.

“She smells odd,” Thane muses.

“It’s just the pheromones,” Brianna blurts, and I pull away from the banister to stare at her. Her eyes are locked on the girl with what appears to be worry.

“Is she one of your friends? You don’t seem very keen on us going near her,” I ask, raising an eyebrow at her. Brianna presses her lips together.

“What’s her name?” Thane asks.

“Z. You know we don’t give out real names here. Defeats the purpose of the masks,” Brianna says, and I raise an eyebrow at her. I know her real name.

“I’m different,” Brianna defends quickly. Yeah, she is; Brianna has her side tricks. She is one of Leon’s favorites to feed on, and they are friendly, but it still irks me that she refuses to tell us the girl’s name.

“She is a sweet girl. Z isn’t like the rest of us here.”

Sweet? She didn’t look sweet. In her little hot-shorts, her soft curves and large bust look like sin. Turning back to the railing, I watch her. There is something else about her. I try to put my finger on what it might be, when Talon walks out of his office. He leans over the railing, fixing his suit jacket, dabbing his bleeding nose with a tissue before using a fresh handkerchief to wipe the blood from his face.

“That girl,” Thane says, pointing at the woman.

“Z, and she is not working the floor,” Talon says in a shaky voice.

“Leon wants her,” Thane replies, but I’m curious if he does, too. He has never shown any interest in the girls here before. He mainly likes watching us destroy them, and he’s never asked for a specific one.

“She doesn’t work the floor,” Talon repeats.

“She does tonight. Make it happen,” Thane says, leaving no room for argument and heading toward the VIP section.

Brianna makes a strangled noise, and Talon moves to stop Thane with a hand on his arm.

“That girl has never worked the floor. Brianna will be happy to assist you,” Talon tries to tell Thane.

“They don’t want Brianna. Get the girl, Talon,” Thane says, dismissing him.

Brianna glances down to the bar where the girl is still serving drinks, and I turn to look at Raidon and Leon, who are watching her with such focus that they struggle to remain in their seats.

I nod toward the VIP section when they notice me, and they instantly get out of their seats and head upstairs while I follow Thane. We step into a curtained-off booth, and Thane takes a seat with a sigh. The others come in moments later.

“Leon,” Thane says, his eyes lifting to our youngest mate. Leon smiles seductively and saunters over to him before Thane grips his wrist and jerks Leon onto his lap. Thane grips his face between his huge hands, and the tiny points of Leon’s fangs slip past his upper lip. Thane observes him briefly, searching his eyes and tugging on the bond. It makes me curious, and Thane’s next words make me wonder if I’m right about his interest in the girl downstairs.

“You won’t kill her,” Thane growls, his tone cold and commanding. Raidon falls into the booth beside Thane and chucks his arm over the back of the seat behind him.

“He’ll behave,” Raidon says, leaning into Thane and whispering to him. Thane growls but raises an eyebrow at Leon, wanting to hear it from him. Leon groans and pouts.

“Fine—” his words stop as the curtain is drawn back, and the girl from downstairs steps inside the booth. Leon’s entire body tenses, and the girl freezes like a deer in headlights. She swallows and looks like she’s about to run back out. Her plump lips part as if she is about to say something before swiftly turning.

I catch the movement as she starts to second-guess coming in here, and I am behind her instantly, blocking her exit. Her petite body hits my chest before she stumbles backward, only to bump into Leon, who has just jumped off Thane’s lap. The girl freezes, stunned, as he trails his nose across her shoulder and up her neck before his hand moves to her hip and he purrs.

Her eyes flutter shut, and I tilt my head, observing her reaction. Most women would run at that sound, yet it seems to subdue her, before her eyes fly open, almost as if she realizes the strange reaction she’s having to Leon. Only Omegas have that reaction to Alphas, yet Leon isn’t a full werewolf. He is a hybrid.

My eyes flick to Thane and Raidon behind them, both watching her almost as if hypnotized. I have never seen Thane interested in any of the girls here, yet the obviously straining in his pants as he moves tells me he wants to fuck her at the very least.

Leon purrs and runs his tongue up her neck and behind her ear before pressing his fangs against her neck. The girl shudders and whines. Still, she reacts by turning to putty in his hands. I sniff the air. Besides her sweet virginal scent, she smells like a regular wolf. The moment his fangs prick her skin, she jolts, shoving him away. Her heart rate picks up as she looks around us, trying to find an escape, but Raidon moves to catch her wrist and yanks her onto his lap.

“Please, I change my mind. I want to leave,” she whispers, and Raidon lifts his hand to her face, brushing his thumb over her jaw while Thane watches him toy with her. Her pulse thumps in her neck, and Leon groans, sweeping her light brown hair over her shoulder.

“He won’t hurt you. Leon just wants to have a little taste,” Raidon purrs, and this time, Thane observes the same reaction I saw the first time. He watches her with avid curiosity as her breathing hitches and she turns languidly in Raidon’s arms, melting backward against Leon, while he sinks his fangs into her neck from behind.

She gasps, trying to pull off Raidon’s lap. She is caged in, and Raidon palms her breast through the thin crop top she wears. His thumb circles around her nipple while Leon’s arm snakes around her torso, tugging her closer as he feeds on her. Arousal smashes into me through the bond when he pulls his fangs from her neck and groans loudly.

“Omega!” he purrs, licking his lips, and my lips part, my eyes darting to Thane, who snarls and shoves her off Raidon’s lap. The snarl that leaves his lips makes my stomach drop as he abruptly stands. Raidon growls at the girl who clutches her neck, trying to stem the bleeding. No wonder she is such a fucking whore! Just like the rest of the fucking gold-digging Omegas.

All Omegas are. Despite her being a virgin, we all know why she came in here. The last Omega nearly tore our business out from under us and destroyed our bond, yet it explains our allure toward her. Thane snarls, storming out of the room. The girl sits on the floor, still clutching her bleeding throat. She looks like she is on the verge of tears.

We won’t fall for her little Omega tricks. We see through them. Gripping Leon’s shirt, I rip him out of the room and follow my mates.