Charger (The Protectors Series) Book #16

by Teresa Gabelman

  “Maybe I can, but you, I think not.” Kane chuckled with a knowing glance. “You aren’t fooling me, Charger. You may be able to fool everyone else around you, but not me.”

  Kane was right. No one knew him better than he did. That didn’t mean he poured his heart out to the bastard, but when it came down to it, Kane knew his turmoil’s, just as Charger knew his comrade’s, his friend. “I don’t want to talk about this, Kane. Drop it.”

  “She isn’t going to wait for you forever, Charger.” Kane ignored his “drop it” statement. “And I wouldn’t blame her. She’s waited long enough. This thing you have about respecting Jared is admirable but totally misplaced. She’s a beautiful adult woman who’s in love with you, has been in love with you forever, and you’re throwing it back in her face.”

  “What part of drop it did you not understand?” Charger growled, feeling his anger start to boil.

  “With an IQ of 160, meaning I’m one smart son of a bitch, I chose to ignore it.” Kane snorted with a shake of his head. “You don’t intimidate me, Charger. Never have. And I have no problem telling you when you’re wrong, and, friend, you are wrong.”

  “One sixty? Really? Damn.” Charger cocked his eyebrow at Kane. “What the fuck are you doing here, dealing with all this ‘keep the world safe’ bullshit? Shouldn’t you be finding a cure for the world’s deadly diseases or winning the Nobel Peace Prize?”

  “Nice try at diversion. And for your information findings cures or winning the Nobel is not off the table for me, fucker.” Kane replied, then sighed before going quiet for a minute. “I guess I like living on the edge of hell fighting demons and rogue vampires. What about you? Why are you still doing it?”

  “Because no one else will,” Charger answered without hesitation. It was true. He had thought about quitting so many times, but walking away was easier said than done.

  “The merge makes sense, Charger.” Kane flipped the conversation. “Things have changed in the universe. I think if it’s offered by Sloan, we should take it. That’s my opinion, even though you didn’t ask for it. Val said the unit he’s with just merged, and it was a smooth transition. The Warriors teaching their ways, and the Guardians teaching theirs so they can work as a unit. Apart we are strong, but together we are unstoppable.”

  “We’re already unstoppable,” Charger replied, starting up his bike. He pulled his sunglasses down off his head to cover his eyes. “Watch your ass out there.” He took off, knowing that Kane was shaking his head at his retreat, but he didn’t care. Merging with the VC was something he would have to think on, because that was a big decision, and of course he would take Kane’s recommendation into account. If Kane wanted to walk from the Guardians to merge, Charger wouldn’t stop him. Never would he keep anyone where they didn’t want to be. Letting Raven go was proof of that.

  Just the thought of her set him on edge. It was a fucked-up situation, one that he saw no way out of. Yes, he cared for her. He refused any other emotion. He almost had. Charger had been very close to taking her for his own, but stopped. Walking away from her while she was in his bed was the hardest thing he had ever done in his life. No, that wasn’t true. Making her believe he had no feelings for her had been the hardest thing he’d ever done in his life. But it had to be this way. Regret wasn’t something he often felt, but thinking of that night, regret edged into his mind whenever those thoughts surfaced, which was more often than not.

  Cursing, he sped his bike toward the bastard’s work again. He wasn’t going to give up on finding him. It kept his mind busy on other thoughts, and whenever Raven came to mind, he threw himself into anything—the more dangerous, the better.

  After pulling up in front of the building where the woman’s husband worked, he parked and walked inside. The same man from earlier met him, shaking his head.

  “Still haven’t seen him,” the man informed Charger. “Do you mind me asking why you’re looking for Ben?”

  “He beat his wife and tossed her over a bridge into the Ohio River.” Charger didn’t pull any punches. Didn’t give a shit if the man got fired, because after Charger was done with him, he wouldn’t need a job. Charger watched the man, who was obviously the owner and boss, closely. The anger he saw cross the man’s face was raw and real.

  “I always had my suspicions, but Ben only brought her around once during a holiday party. I knew then something was off,” the man replied with a shake of his head. “Don’t worry, if he comes here, I will call you immediately and make sure he sticks around until you get here.”

  “I appreciate that.” Charger gave him a nod. “You wouldn’t happen to know where he might be hiding out, would you?” Charger figured now that the man knew what was going on, he might be forthcoming in any clues that could end this search of the bastard quicker.

  “Ben didn’t really talk much about anything other than work. He kept to himself, but he did have a temper, and I smelled alcohol on him a few times. Even warned him about it.” He frowned. “Maybe try a few local bars.”

  “Thanks, will do,” Charger replied before walking out.

  Getting back on his bike, he glanced at his watch. Each minute that went by without finding that asshole, the worse it was going to go for him. One thing about Charger always remained the same: when he set his mind to something, nothing interfered with him getting the job done.

  Just as he was getting ready to start his bike, his phone rang. Grabbing it out of his pocket, he saw it was Sloan.

  “Yeah?” he answered with his usual greeting.

  “You anywhere near University?” Sloan asked without any greeting. Typical Sloan Murphy.

  Charger glanced toward the way to the hospital. “Yeah.”

  “I sent Raven over there to keep guard on the woman, felt it was better than sending a male,” Sloan informed him. “Just got a text from her saying there wasn’t a guard there.”

  Charger frowned. Fucking cops. They should have a guard there until this asshole was found. Once again, it was the VC who picked up their slack. In truth, this was a human issue, but Charger had taken the whole situation personally, and that didn’t bode well for the bastard he was hunting.

  “I guess it’s hit the news by now.” It wasn’t really a question, but a statement of fact.

  “Yeah,” Sloan replied without hesitation. “I told Raven to keep her guard up because I’m sure her husband now knows she’s alive. I’ve had to pull most of the Warriors off this for other issues that have come up. This is a human issue, but with you involved, you have our full support if needed.”

  “I appreciate that, Sloan.” Charger said and meant it. “I’ll—"

  “Hold on.” Sloan cut him off.

  Charger heard Duncan talking in the background but couldn’t make out his words. Whatever it was sounded urgent.

  “Fuck!” Sloan said as he got back on the phone. “Pam is with Raven. Duncan just got a text. The husband is at the hospital. Duncan is heading their way.”

  Charger didn’t say anything as he hung up and shoved the phone in his jacket pocket. Without delay, he started his bike and took off, sliding sideways out of the parking lot. He knew Raven could handle herself, especially with a human, but he had dibs on the fucker, dibs he planned on collecting himself.

  Chapter 4

  Raven was conflicted when she heard the commotion down the hallway. An angry male voice demanded to see his wife. She could easily diffuse the situation by leaving the room, but leaving meant she was abandoning Cheryl and Pam, who didn’t have her full eyesight.

  “Go, Raven,” Pam urged as she stepped by her side in front of the door. “I’ll guard her with my life.”

  “Yeah, that isn’t going to happen.” Raven glanced over at Pam.

  “I’m not handicapped,” Pam shot back, a little attitude in her tone, which made Raven smile.

  “Didn’t say you were.” Raven tilted her head, trying to hear the voices in the hallway. “But your mate terrifies me. Now close this curtain and move Cheryl’s bed to
the furthest wall.”

  “Bullshit,” Pam hissed and placed her hand on her hip.

  “Thought you said you weren’t handicapped?” Raven chanced a look at her friend with a cocked eyebrow.

  “Not that. I can move the bed, smartass.” Pam snorted. “I mean, bullshit that you’re afraid of Duncan. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you scared of anything.”

  Heavy footsteps headed their way as Raven gently pushed Pam toward the curtain. “Hurry.”

  Pam did as she was told while Raven stood her ground. The man’s voice became louder when he started shouted his wife’s name.

  “Cheryl!” His voice echoed into their room. She heard Cheryl mutter a cry as the noise of the bed being moved started and then stopped. “Cheryl, I know you’re here. I’ve checked every hospital in the area, and this is the last place. Come on, babe. Where are you?”

  Keeping her anger at bay, because anger caused mistakes, Raven stepped into the hallway just as the man came out of a room with a distraught nurse trying to stop him from going further. He just pushed her down and out of his way. His eyes found her, then went from her to the room that Cheryl was in.

  “Cheryl!” The man made a move toward the room, but Raven stepped in front of him, effectively stopping him.

  “Lady, if my wife is in there, nothing is going to stop me from going in.” He growled at her; his eyes narrowed in fury.

  “There’s something that will stop you.” Raven once again sidestepped, blocking his path. “Me.”

  He pulled out a gun and aimed it right at her forehead. “Oh, is that so?” His laugh was on the edge of hysteria and flat-out insane. “What are you going to do now, girlie?”

  When Raven just stood there without saying a word, the man moved his aim from her forehead down her face to her chest and then back up.

  “That’s what I thought,” he said with a hiss, then waved the gun in a “move out of my way” motion. That was his first of many mistakes.

  Raven struck out, knocking the gun out of his hand. The surprise on his face would have been comical if he hadn’t dived toward the gun, but Raven was quicker, and her long legs gave her an advantage as she kicked it down the hallway.

  When he glanced up at her in shock, she smiled, showing her fangs. “What are you going to do now, asshole?” She threw his words back at him.

  He scrambled for the gun, crawling on his hands and knees, but it was useless. Raven reached down, grabbed him by the back of the neck, and slammed his face on the floor before picking him up and heading back in the direction of the nurses’ station.

  Blood poured from the man’s nose and mouth from the contact of the hard tile floor, but Raven ignored it. She ushered the stunned man down the hallway, halting in front of the nurse’s station.

  “Oh my God,” one of the nurses stated before starting to head around to assist.

  “He’s fine.” Raven’s tone stopped the nurse instantly. “I need you to call the VC Warriors and tell them to send someone to the entrance of the ER.”

  The asshole began to get his wits back and struggled. Without a blink of her eye, she slammed the man’s head down on the white counter of the nurse’s station. A few of the nurses gasped in shock at the violent act.

  “You’d think he’d learn.” Raven sighed as she started to usher him away toward the exit. Seeing a phone charger cord, she reached for it. With expert quickness, she tied the man’s hands behind his back using the cord. Thankfully, it was one of those extra-long ones. Reaching in her pocket, she pulled out forty bucks and tossed it where the cord had been laying. Glancing up, she saw one of the nurses staring at her with her hand on her hip. Raven nodded toward the money. “Payment for use of your cord.”

  “You’re going to regret ever crossing me, bitch,” Cheryl’s husband said with a growl, spitting blood on the floor.

  “Yeah, okay.” Raven snorted, giving him a push. “You’re lucky I don’t find a private room and let not only your soon-to-be ex-wife but any other woman who wants to take shots at you, go ahead and whoop your ass.”

  He continued to rant and carry on, but Raven ignored him. Her focus was on getting him away from civilians. That way, if she did have to take him out, there would be no witnesses. Sloan seemed to frown on shit like that. Charger, on the other hand, wouldn’t care. Hadn’t cared who was around when they did their job. The differences between the VC and Guardians were stark in quite a few ways. Though it was the same in what they were all trying to accomplish.

  Finally outside, she pushed the idiot away from the doors into a more secluded spot to wait for someone to pick him up. Knowing Charger as well as she did, he would be the one to deal out justice. Glancing at the piece of crap, she cringed when she got a good look at his face. His nose was definitely broken, and a large diagonal slash on his forehead continued to bleed down into his eye, causing him to glare at her with the other eye. Not intimidating at all.

  “So what, we waiting on the cops?” The guy spat more blood, then looked up at her one-eyed. “I got me a good lawyer. I’ll be out in a few hours and I will be coming for you.”

  Raven laughed, then cocked her eyebrow at him. He must have still been in a daze when she told the nurse to contact the VC. “As tempting as that sounds, it’s not the cops coming for you. The person who saved your wife was a Dark Guardian.”

  “What the fuck is a Dark Guardian?” Confusion colored his words.

  Raven wasn’t surprised by his question. The Guardians weren’t as well known as the Warriors, which was fine with them. “You know who the VC Warriors are?” Raven was growing bored waiting, and she hated to be bored. That was the only reason she was entertaining even talking to this dickhead.

  “I’m not stupid.” He tried to use his shoulder to wipe the blood from his eye.

  “Yeah, you are,” Raven commented, then continued. “Well, a Dark Guardian is like a VC Warrior, except for one thing.”

  “Yeah?” He didn’t sound so confident now. “And what’s that?”

  “They have no rules,” Raven said, letting a smile spread across her face, aware her fangs were gleaming. “Looks like your abusing days are over.”

  His eyes rounded, and it was the first true fear she saw in this asshole. She wondered how many times that same fear crossed Cheryl’s face. He began fighting against the restraint, and some evil part of her hoped the charging cord would snap so she could once again slam the asshole’s face into the concrete.

  “I swear to God I’m going to kill you.” He hissed and spat while fighting the restraints. “What I did to my worthless wife is nothing compared to what I’m going to do to you. Worthless, the lot of you are worthless bitches that need to learn your place.”

  His voice grew louder, gaining attention from those walking to and from their cars. Raven rolled her eyes at his theatrics, ignoring the stares they were getting. “If you don’t calm down, I’m about to make you my bitch,” Raven warned, not caring who heard her.

  Thankfully, Raven was observant and fast, because the spit he shot her way barely missed her. Raven’s eyes narrowed in rage. There was nothing more disrespectful than to spit on someone. Without thought, she reared her head back and headbutted him as hard as she could. He dropped like a dead weight, instantly knocked out. A few people clapped, obviously hearing his crude remarks.

  “Damn,” a male voice sounded behind her.

  Raven glanced over her shoulder at Ryker and grinned. “What?” She shrugged her shoulder. “He’s still breathing, for now. But if the bastard tries to spit on me again, he’s dead meat.”

  Ryker threw his hands up as if surrendering. “Hey, I’m on your side.” He gave her a crooked grin. “I meant, damn, I’ve never seen anyone deliver such a perfect headbutt. And not a red bump on your forehead. I’m fucking impressed.”

  “I’m a professional,” Raven replied, her grin growing wider. Ryker was a pretty cool dude. He had helped her a lot with her training as a Warrior and she appreciated his efforts. Didn’t feel as if
there was an ulterior motive behind his help. That’s one thing Raven had run into most of her life. When someone helped her, they wanted something in return. With men, it was usually a quick fuck. They learned quickly that Raven didn’t do quick fucks, so then she was called a cold bitch. That wasn’t far off the mark. She could be one cold bitch when the need called for her to be. “You here to collect this piece of shit?”

  “Sloan called us out for backup. Pam called Duncan, so I’m sure this parking lot will be full of Warriors in about…” They both heard the sound of motorcycles in the distance. “Now.”

  Raven’s eyes went to the entrance just as a dozen bikes roared into sight with Charger leading. Their eyes met before Raven glanced back down at the still knocked-out asshole.

  “Pam?” Duncan’s deep voice caught her attention.

  “She’s with Cheryl in the ER,” Raven answered, glancing his way before looking back down. “Four rooms down from the nursing station on the right.” Duncan took off immediately but peered at the man on the ground with a frown before he left.

  “You kill him?” Charger’s voice had her gaze rising to his. To this day, his voice affected her, and she hated it more than she hated the out-cold bastard on the ground at her feet.

  “Not yet,” Raven replied, then toed him with her boot. The guy’s body moved like jelly. “I don’t think.”

  “It was a pretty hard headbutt,” Ryker added, looking down at the man.

  Charger leaned down and checked the man’s pulse. His eyes lifted to Raven. “He’s dead.”

  “Holy shit.” Steve whistled in awe. “You killed him with a headbutt.”

  Raven frowned, also leaning down and checking his pulse herself, but found none. “Shit,” she whispered, her eyes meeting Charger’s.

  “Get out of here,” he ordered her as he stood, his eyes scanning the area for witnesses. “I’ll take care of it.”

  Raven also stood, shaking her head. “No.” She knew the consequences of killing a human. Even being a Guardian or Warrior, which she was now, killing a human for a crime such as domestic violence could send her away for a long time. Which was bullshit because domestic violence in her mind was one of the worst crimes someone could commit. But these two people were humans which meant that the police had jurisdiction, not the Warriors or the Guardians. If one of them would have been a vampire then no problem, but that wasn’t the case and now she had Charger glaring at her. “I’m not your responsibility… anymore.”