Charity Rising (Charity Series Book 2) (11 page)

imagined Levi was just then stepping.

“Please don’t take this personal, Charity,” Jordan said, shoving me into Hector’s arms. “Hector, get her out of here before we al get in

trouble.”

“No! I have to see Levi! Hector, he’s just right there! Let me see him!”

“Get her out of here before he sees her! Now!”

Hector turned and ran through the facility with me screaming and kicking the entire way. By the time we got back to his car I had lost al hope.

I was so close—so close I could almost touch him—see him, but it didn’t matter anymore. I wouldn’t get a second chance.

Sprawled across my bed in a heap of total despair, I felt a hand caress my back. I spun to see Raven. Without hesitation I went into his arms,

weeping—again.
Boy I was turning into such a baby.

“What is it, love? What has you aching this way?”

I somehow managed to speak through the tears. “Levi thinks I was with another man. I tried to tel him it wasn’t true, but he doesn’t believe

me.”

“And why would he think that?”

“He caught an unfamiliar scent on me, one that resembles his own, but they al say it isn’t.”

“Yes, I have to confess, I too have caught that scent. But I thought perhaps I was wrong. So who is it?”

“It was Levi! I couldn’t be with anyone else. He should know that by now.”

“Yes, I agree. He should.”

“Oh, Raven, what am I gonna do?”

He took my face in his hands and stared into my eyes. “Right now you are going to sleep—a very deep and dreamless sleep. And when you

wake you wil have hope once again.”

And sleep I did—very peaceful y as a matter of fact, just like Raven said.

When I woke, besides the ache in my heart, I felt good and rested. It was Friday and I real y wanted to stay home from school, but what if this

was the day Levi came back?

I stretched and noticed a note on my pil ow with the words elegantly scrawled:

BTW, you must shower as soon as you wake. You smell like a pile of dirty laundry. I do not want to know.

~ Raven

I smiled, stuffing the note in my bedside table. I stripped off my clothes and shoved them in my dirty-clothes basket. I jumped into the shower

and quickly dressed for school, but when I arrived, my heart sank—stil no Levi.

My phone vibrated, alerting me to a voice mail. It was Irena. I pressed the button and listened.

“Hel o, Charity dear. If you’re looking for answers, we have pack archives secretly stored in the lower level of the
Pack’s And More

Bookstore
in Frazier, North Carolina. The Frazier Pack owns it. They’re our al ies. Tel them I sent you. I love you, and I hope you find what you’re looking for.”

I hit the button ending her message. I wasn’t quite sure what to make of it. Did she know something? I listened to the message again, but

decided there was nothing to do about it at the moment but filed it away for later.

At lunch, Levi’s guys al looked unhappy and disturbed. Ashley sensed it too. I knew something was seriously wrong, but how could I get them

to tel me? Maybe I didn’t have to.

“Charity,” Toby said, “is Levi stil sick? He must have something real y bad, huh?”

I looked at Josh for help.

“Yes. He has the flu,” Josh said.

Not what I wanted to hear. I knew Levi couldn’t get the flu. Werewolves fight off normal germs.
What could be wrong with him? Is he just

avoiding me? Could he be well after all? Was I worrying for nothing? By the look on the faces before me—the answer was no. But what could I

do?

By accident I glanced down at my left palm and the symbol represented there. I gasped, jumping to my feet. “Oh no! No, no, no!” The tip of

my connection symbol was beginning to turn black. I glanced at Ashley in alarm.

“What is it?” she asked, her face mimicking mine.

The others also looked alarmed, waiting for my reply.

Tears fil ed my eyes as I leaned over the table, my face inches from Josh’s. “I have to see him, and I have to see him now. Right now.” I

raised my hand and stuck it in the air for al of them to see—not caring the slightest about what my others friends thought.

The guys took in sharp breaths at the realization of what this meant.

“What’s happening?” Toby asked in alarm.

“I have to get to him now, Josh, before it’s too late.”

He took my arm and escorted me away from the table, and away from curious ears. “Charity, you’re not to be al owed in the facility. I can’t

disobey the rules.”

“Your obedience could be the death of him—and me—and your pack. I am your alpha female, and I’m tel ing you to override this decision.” I

looked him square in the eyes, anger replacing fear, and used my ful authority as alpha female. “I’m not asking you—I’m tel ing you. You wil take me to him right now.”

He peered anxiously over my shoulder to Ashley. I knew her wel enough to know that she was nodding in agreement.

He nodded in submission, signaled to the others, and led us quickly from the room.

“What’s happening?” I heard Toby stil asking behind us, but no one replied.

Ashley and I were fol owing the guys, headed past the school and in the direction of the Drake House. We rounded the corner of Second

Street, Josh’s green Camaro barely in sight.
Dang! Why did my Civic have to be so slow?

“Charity! There is Levi right there!” Ashley cal ed in surprise.

“What?” I turned in time to see Levi sitting on a bench in front of the Music Box talking to a pretty girl. I slammed on brakes, causing an

almost pile-up, and flew into the closest parking spot I could find. I jumped out and ran, my mind in ful -attack mode.

I stopped in front of him, taking a minute to register just what I was seeing. Levi wasn’t sick at al . In fact he looked amazing in his dark jeans, blue Polo shirt, and sunglasses. He was laughing at the girl’s squeaky giggle. When he glanced up and saw me, he pul ed his sunglasses down to

the tip of his nose and stared at me.

“Hey, Bel . You’re looking good today.”

“Don’t you Bel me, you creep! Here I was al worried about you—thinking you were dying, rushing off to the Drake House to heal you, and

you’re here flirting with this bimbo!”

“Hey!” the girl said, standing.

I turned to her. “You real y don’t want to do that. As a matter of fact, I think you want to be leaving!” I pointed down the street.

She looked me over for a second and then must’ve decided I was right, and stomped off in the direction of my pointing finger.

He looked alarmed as he stood, taking his glasses off and glaring down at me. “What do you mean you thought I was dying?”

I help up my hand, exposing my darkening symbol to him.

He grabbed my hand and stared at it in alarm. “I never meant for this to happen, Bel ! You have to believe me!”

“I’m never believing you again! And I never want to see you again!” I cried.

“You don’t mean that! Charity! Say you didn’t mean that! Charity!” He cal ed after me as I ran away, Ashley, who I hadn’t even realized was

there, fol owed closely behind.

We got in the car and I jerked the car into reverse, peeling out of my parking spot. Levi was there, trying to open my door. I quickly locked it,

put it in gear, and sped away, leaving him standing there in total shock.

I angry-cried al the way home, banging my fist a few times on the steering wheel. I didn’t even bother to drop Ashley off, and she didn’t try to

encourage me. I guess she knew the situation was as bad as I did. Instead she cal ed Josh so he’d know what happened to us.

“Hey, Josh…..Yeah sorry about that, but we spotted Levi on Second Street talking to a girl. We pul ed over and confronted him…….What?

Of course I’m sure it was Levi. I was there. Charity told him off and said she never wanted to see him again, and then he tried to stop us……No,

we’re not coming there. Why would we?......What? That’s not possible—we just left him……I’m tel ing you the truth, Josh……Fine, don’t believe

me!” She snapped her phone closed.

“What on earth was that about?” I asked, curiosity eating me alive.

“Josh said Levi was at the Drake House, stil locked in his bedroom.”

“What? Why would he say that?”

“I don’t know. And to tel you the truth this whole thing is driving me crazy. I’m guessing Levi snuck out of his room, making the others think

he’s stil in there, but why?”

“I’m not sure what game he’s playing, or what’s wrong with him, but I’ve just got to find out.” I thought for a minute. Irena’s message flashed

before my mind, and I was suddenly real y glad it was Friday.

I turned to her, my expression lightening. “Ashley, feel like a road trip?”

“Okay, now that we’re packed and on the road, are you final y gonna tel me where we’re headed?”

I handed her my phone. “Listen to this message.”

She put the phone to her ear and listened. “So we’re headed to Frazier, to this Rack’s and Pack’s bookstore place?”

I laughed. “Yep, we’re going to Pack’s And More Bookstore.”

“And just what are we looking for exactly?”

“I have no idea, but I’ve got to do something. I think Levi is in serious trouble. Something’s real y wrong with him. What if he’s sick?

Someone’s got to know something. Irena wants us to go there, so that’s what we’re gonna do.”

“Wel , it’s not like there’s much we can do at home, so we might as wel .”

“Thanks, Ash.”

“You know you should probably cal Hector and let him know where we’re going so he won’t worry.”

“I’l cal him when we get there, otherwise he might try and stop us. I’m appointing you to be my go-to-map girl. It’s in the console. Get it,

would ya?”

She pul ed it out and studied it for a few minutes. “Okay, it looks like we’l stay on 40 until we come to 93. It should take us right into Frazier.”

“I’ve never heard of 93.”

“Wel , we’ve never been to Frazier before, now have we?”

“Fine, but you just keep your eyes on the signs.”

“I can do that,” she said, turning on the radio. She flipped through the channels until she found a song she liked and then started singing, very

poorly mind you.

I moaned. “If I was a werewolf I’d be howling right now. Do you have to sing, or whatever it is you’re doing?”

She smiled and continued to bel ow noises from her lips like a wounded animal needing to be put down.

I opened my glove box and retrieved a pair of earplugs I keep handy for such times as these. Stuffing them in, I smiled, as the painful sounds

became a distant hum.

We passed the time by playing stupid road games. “Hey,” Ashley said, “look there.” She was pointing to a mountainside where someone

was growing a Christmas tree farm. “Look at those beautiful red trees. How do you think they make them red like that?”

I peered at her, her face glowing with wonderment. “Those are dead,” I said flatly.

She gasped, looking at me in surprise. Then we both burst into laughter.

“Ash, we’ve been traveling for two hours, shouldn’t we be seeing signs by now?”

She was talking, but I couldn’t hear her.

“Oh, sorry, I forgot I put my earplugs in again.” I gently pul ed them out. “Say again.”

“I said we should be seeing them any time now.”

Another hour passed and stil no signs. Ash was busy making the hand signals, trying to get the Mack trucks to honk. “You know, I think

they’re ignoring me on purpose,” she said, sticking her arm out the window and pumping it up and down.

“Hey! Don’t make me regret taking off window lock.”

She pumped her arm faster, a last ditched effort to get a honk, and it paid off. “Oooo!!” she squealed and then burst into a fit of giggles.

I rol ed my eyes…….hard. “Can you check the map again? I think we’re lost.”

She pul ed her arm in and fumbled with the map. “Don’t be sil y. We’re not lost. I know how to read a—oops.”

I jerked my head to glare at her. “Oops? Don’t say oops! What have you done?!”

“Uh, wel 93 upside down is 36. We were supposed to take 36.”

“36?! Highway 36 was two hours back!!”

“Hey, you were the one that insisted I be the go-to-map girl, remember?”

“You have got to be kidding me!! And 93 isn’t 36 upside down.”

“Oh yeah?” She turned the map upside down. “Hmm, whatayaknow. So I’m dyslexic, shoot me.”

“Don’t tempt me.”

“Look at the bright side, now we get to stop for some chow. I’m starving.”

I rol ed my eyes. “Please, God, take me out of my misery before I do it myself.”

She laughed and popped her gum loudly.

I huffed and shoved my earplugs back in.

“You know for someone who said they were starving, you sure didn’t eat much.”

“Yeah wel , I guess I wasn’t as hungry as I thought and besides the food didn’t look al that appetizing.”

“I thought it was delicious,” I said.

“That’s because you don’t have a good sense about these things.”

“Oh please. I do so.”

“Look! There’s the first sign. Highway 36 is just 10 miles away.”

“Thank goodness. I was beginning to think we were lost again.”

We made it, turning left onto Highway 36. Not too many miles later we realized there wasn’t much to look at. We passed a town but then

nothing.

We drove for 30 more minutes when I noticed my gas light was on. Another smal problem with my little red Civic, it doesn’t let you know

you’re low on gas until you don’t have any.

“Ash, we’d better come up on a gas station soon. We’re almost running on fumes.”

No sooner had I said that than we spotted a rundown gas station up on the left. The sign was big and red, but rusty and dusty. I pul ed

alongside the decrepit old pump and cringed. “Ash, I don’t think they take debit cards here. How much cash do you have?”