THE PROTECTORS
ADAM
Copyright 2014 Teresa Gabelman
All rights reserved. The right of Teresa Gabelman to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. This is a work of fiction and any resemblance between the characters and persons living or dead is purely coincidental.
Gabelman, Teresa (2014-6-25). ADAM (THE PROTECTORS SERIES)
First Edition.
Editor: Hot Tree Editing
Photo: www.bigstockphoto.com
Cover Art: Ron Gabelman
www.teresagabelman.com
www.facebook.com/pages/Teresa-Gabelman/191553587598342
I have always said that an author never gets where they are alone and I truly believe that. Each person below has helped me in one way or another, and without them, I wouldn’t be able to do what I love. So in no particular order I want to thank Ron Gabelman, Cody Gabelman, Emma Treadway, Becky Johnson, Kelly Perkins, Belinda Gallant, Crystal Clifton, Justine Littleton, Donna Bossert, Amy Maccario Cossio, Angie Stanton-Johnson, Jacquie Talento, all the women on my street team - The VC Warriorettes, Hot Tree Editing Staff and Beta Readers (Debbie Poole, Teri McGill, Jennifer Severino & Dawn Heslin), Bex ‘n’ Books, TwinsiTalk Book Reviews, Fang Tastic as well as every single reader who took a chance on the series and me. Without each and every one of you, I would not be living my dream.
I would like to give a special shout out to someone who helped me a lot with this book, but most importantly helped me become the person I am today. My brother, Police Detective and Private Detective Greg Treadway. Thank you so much for answering my unending questions and believe me there will be more. But finally I get to thank you for sending the little girl in ponytails back outside to beat up the street bully, even though I got a bloodied lip and cried, but hey I bloodied his nose and you were proud. You never let me give up or let me run from a challenge and because of that I am where I am today, which is thanking you in the acknowledgements of a book that I wrote, and one that you helped me with. How awesome is that! You made it easier for a little girl to grow up without a father figure and you definitely made me tough as hell. Love you, brother!
Chapter 1
Adam landed against the wall with a loud thud. Dragging his arm up to wipe his nose, he glanced down spotting the blood, his blood. Well, he had expected to get his ass kicked, but not by a girl. His eyes landed on Jill as he pushed himself off the wall and headed in her direction.
“Nice hit,” he acknowledged with a smirk.
“Thank you.” She casually returned his smirk with a raised brow, stepping into a fighting stance. “You ready for more?”
Adam didn’t throw any punches as he went for her. Instead, he faked going low toward her legs for a takedown, and when she dropped her hands to block him, he grabbed her around the head into a tight headlock.
“So are we still having problems, Jill?” Adam asked, his eyes landing on Slade who was watching closely.
“Why would you ask that?” Jill’s voice was muffled; her face smashed against his side. “Because I’m kicking your ass?”
Adam looked thoughtful before he laughed. “You do seem more aggressive than I remember.”
Jill struggled, making grunting noises. “Standing naked before a bunch of horny men seems to make me a little grumpy.”
“Ah, I apologized for that and you accepted my apology.” Adam tapped her on the head with his fist a few times as if to remind her.
“Didn’t anyone ever tell you a woman changes her mind…a lot?” Jill grabbed his arm, stepped back behind his foot and threw her weight into Adam. Flipping him to the floor, she landed straddled on top of him. “So for the moment, you can shove your apology up your ass.” She tapped his head with her fist as he had done to her, but a little harder.
Adam rolled her, pinning her arms above her head. “What can I do to make it up to you?”
Jill stopped struggling to think about that for a moment. “Clean the mats on my turn for a month.”
“Done.” Adam nodded, but didn’t let go.
“And…”
“And?” He frowned. “I think that’s good enough, Jill.”
“Naked as the day I was born, Adam,” Jill growled. “In front of every Warrior here.”
Adam let go and sat back with a sigh. “I am really sorry.”
Jill sat up. “I know you are, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to let you off the hook so easily. So for the next month, you are more or less my slave.”
Rolling his eyes, he stood, turning away. “I don’t think so.” Adam sensed her stand up behind him, and knew she was mad. He could feel the anger rolling off her. “I’ll do the mats. But that and my apology are enough.”
“You suck,” Jill said before she attacked.
Adam turned, blocking the kick coming for his head, and with a clean sweep of his foot, he took her other leg out from under her. When she hit the floor hard, he leaned down and smiled. “That, my friend, was for the bloody nose.” He laughed when she flipped him off.
“I thought you two kissed and made up.” Sid reached down helping Jill up. “Still pissy about the naked mission?”
Jill glared with a hiss at Sid.
“If it will make you feel better, I’ll drop my clothes right now and…” He reached for the waistband of his jeans.
“If I see any skin, I swear I will kill you.” Sloan, who had finally made an appearance, walked onto the mat just in time to witness Sid’s threatened striptease. After a hard warning look toward Sid, his attention turned to Adam. “What the fuck are you doing here?”
The whole room went deathly silent; even Sid’s mouth clamped shut.
“I want to come back.” Adam stood before Sloan as a man, not the boy who left over a week ago. He had attempted to talk to Sloan on multiple occasions, but could never find the damn guy. Adam knew Sloan was the man who held his future in his hands.
“And you think it’s that easy?” Sloan’s eyes were hard, his tone harder.
“No, sir, I don’t,” Adam replied without blinking. “I know the mistakes I’ve made and I’m willing to do whatever it takes to make up for those mistakes.”
“I don’t like my orders or the orders of my Warriors to be questioned or disobeyed. You’ve done both. That doesn’t fly well around here.” Sloan’s voice was firm, and had all the Warriors standing at attention. “Even though I have the last say whether you stay or go, it’s up to the Warriors closely affected by your disobedience whether you will be welcomed back.”
“I understand.” Adam nodded. He knew when he walked through those doors, there wasn’t going to be a welcoming committee, but he was ready to prove he was Warrior material. He had spent the entire night, after leaving Angelina, sitting in the nasty motel room, preparing himself for this moment. If he wasn’t welcomed back, he didn’t know what he would do.
“Does anyone have a problem with Adam being back in the program under a probation period?” Sloan asked, his voice firm as he continued to stare at Adam.
“No,” Damon replied, his eyes drilling into Adam.
“No,” Duncan, who was always the most serious, frowned, glancing away from Adam to Jared.
“He knows my stand,” Jared replied to Duncan’s look. “If he fucks up, he’s out or dies, depending on how badly he fucks up.”
Adam didn’t flinch at Jared’s words; he expected it. He knew Jared still hadn’t forgiven him for what he did to Tessa. Hell, he hadn’t forgiven himself.
“Well, I honestly think he needs to have his ass kicked before we let him back in,” Sid suggested, his golden eyes flashing his eagerness to do just t
hat; his grin slowly spread across his lips with evil intent. “Oh, wait a minute…Jill just did that, but then again, I think us Warriors need to give him a royal ass…”
“What’s your fucking answer, Sid?” Sloan growled, his impatience growing thinner by the minute. “Yes or no?”
“No, I have no problem with it,” Sid answered with his usual smart-ass smirk.
“What about you, Slade?” Sloan, who looked like he wanted to kill something, ignored Sid’s never ending smug grin.
“No problem, but I do think he needs to learn his own strength when dealing with humans,” Slade replied. “He could have killed his sister.”
Jared growled at that, his fangs snapping.
Sloan nodded, and then looked to Jill and Steve, who were standing to the side, but paying close attention to the fate of their friend. “Steve, what do you think?”
Steve’s eyes widened as they shot from Adam to Sloan. “Me?” He pointed to himself.
“Is your fucking name Steve?” Sloan growled. His clenched fist indicated he was trying to keep his control; though his darkening eyes warned everyone present he was about to let loose on someone’s ass.
“Ah, yeah,” Steve replied nervously, not used to having the attention of every Warrior on him. “I don’t see a problem. I mean, I don’t have a problem with him coming back.”
Sloan looked like he wanted to say more, but simply shook his head, looking away from Steve to Jill. “What about you, Jill? Do you have a problem with Adam being back in the program?”
Focused on Steve, along with everyone else, Jill pulled her gaze away when Sloan spoke her name. Glancing at Adam, who was staring at her intently, she frowned. “No,” she responded after a small hesitation. “No problem.”
“You sure about that?” Adam’s eyebrow cocked in question. He wanted no doubts from anyone, even Jill. If there was a problem with him coming back, he wanted to know now.
“Don’t push it, bud.” Jill pointed at him before crossing her arms as if daring him to push. “Just don’t ask me to go along with any more of your undercover missions.”
“Well, guess that decides it.” Sloan’s attention was back on Adam. “Don’t make me regret this.”
“I won’t, sir.” Adam nodded, and then looked each Warrior in the eye. “I won’t let any of you down again.”
“If he does, then can we kick his ass?” Sid uncrossed his arms. “I mean really. If I was him, I’d be getting my ass kicked all over this room.”
“You’re not him and you are about to get your ass kicked all over this room,” Sloan snarled. “Now get to work. I need active Warriors, and if they’re going to be ready for their initiation, they had better be prepared. I will not have my group look like a bunch of pussies. Got it?”
“Initiation?” Steve’s eyes popped open in confusion. “No one said anything about initiation. I just thought after the program, we were Warriors.”
The deep laughter that filled the room didn’t sound promising and had Adam, Steve and Jill wondering what the hell they had gotten themselves into.
Chapter 2
Lana let herself into her parents’ home with the key she never gave up. She was relieved to see neither of her parents’ cars in the driveway. She needed someone to talk to, someone who would understand, and her sister was the only one she could go to.
“Caroline?” Lana called out, tossing her bag and jacket onto the chair that sat in the entryway.
“In the kitchen,” Caroline called out, sounding stronger than she had days before. She had snapped back from her ordeal stronger than ever. She also seemed changed, but in a good way. “You’re just in time. I’ve made your favorite, fried peanut butter and banana sandwich.”
Hugging her sister, Lana glanced at the sandwich. “I’m not really hungry, but thanks.”
“You not wanting to eat?” Caroline slapped her hand on Lana’s forehead with a mock frown. “This can’t be.”
Rolling her eyes, Lana pushed her sister’s hand away before sitting on a stool at the kitchen counter. “I’m not sick.”
“Then you need to eat. I can tell you’ve lost weight and those circles under your eyes tell me you haven’t been sleeping.” Caroline placed a sandwich in front of Lana. “What’s going on, Lana?”
Lana poked at the sandwich deep in thought before looking up at her sister. “Do you feel them?”
Caroline nodded, looking over her sister’s head before their eyes met. “Yeah, I do. As soon as you walked in the door. Who are they?”
“I’m not exactly sure.” Lana rubbed her eyes with a long sigh. “But a few are very persistent with messages.”
“Then deliver the messages.” Caroline grabbed Lana’s hand.
“I can’t.” Lana’s tired eyes finally found her sister’s.
“Why not, Lana?” Caroline frowned, worry creasing her forehead. “It’s the only way they will leave you alone.”
“Damon, Jared, Duncan and Sloan are the only names I’m hearing.” Lana’s eyes filled with tears, something that even her sister rarely saw. Lana didn’t cry, ever.
“And Sid?” Understanding flashed across Caroline’s face.
“Nothing.” Lana shook her head, slamming her hand on the counter. “How can I do that to him? I don’t care if the other Warriors want to hear their messages or not. It’s my job to deliver them, but how can I do this to Sid? No one has come forward for him Caroline. Not a single soul.”
At that moment, the love Lana had for the Warrior Vampire was evident. She would rather suffer the hounding of the dead to keep Sid Sinclair from being hurt, and suffer she would. When the dead wanted to speak, they would go to many lengths to have the messages spoken to their loved ones.
“You have to do this, Lana, not only for them, but for you.” Caroline grabbed her hand, squeezing to get her attention. “You can’t keep on like this. We both know it. I’ll help you.”
“Hell no.” Lana pulled her hand away from her sister as she pushed away from the counter to stand. “Don’t even think about it. Look what happened the last time I asked you to help me.”
“Yeah, and the reason it turned badly for me is because I have shoved this gift we have away. I left myself wide open for something like that to happen. It was more my fault than anyone’s. I’m not doing that anymore.” Caroline stood, leading Lana toward the bathroom. “Now go wash up so you can eat. We’ll talk more about how to approach this later after you’ve had some rest and food.”
“I can’t do this to Sid, Caroline.” Lana walked out of the kitchen.
“I’m not giving you a choice,” Caroline whispered, picking up her phone and shooting off a quick text.
******
Sid had just finished training when Lana’s sister texted him asking to meet at their parents’ house. Although his and Lana’s relationship was going great, he knew something was wrong. He sensed she was keeping something from him. At first, he thought it was working with both the police force and the Warriors, but deep down, he knew that wasn’t it. She was doing her best to hide whatever it was, but he had a feeling he was about to find out.
Before he could even knock on the door, Caroline opened it. “She isn’t going to be happy I texted you, so be prepared,” she warned, tossing a glance over her shoulder.
“What’s going on?” Sid’s eyes searched above Caroline’s head trying to spot Lana; his protectiveness roared to the surface.
“Come on.” Caroline stepped out of the way so he could enter. Once he was inside, she closed the door and led him through the house.
The first thing Sid spotted as he followed Caroline was Lana sitting at the kitchen counter; her shoulders slumped as she stared at a disgusting looking sandwich in front of her. Her eyes lifted and the sadness looking back at him made his stomach clinch. Anger surged to the surface sending an urge to kill whoever made her unhappy.
“Hey?” Lana said, looking confused before understanding brightened her dull eyes. “Caroline, dammit.”
; “I’m not going to stand here and watch you suffer, Lana.” Caroline walked around to the other side of the kitchen counter out of her sister’s reach, which was a good thing as anger swiftly replaced the confusion on Lana’s face.
“Lana?” Sid frowned, not liking being left out. He had noticed before she left for work that morning that she looked tired, had even commented on it, but figured it was because he had her up most of the night worshipping her sweet body. Now, he wasn’t so sure he had been the cause of the dark circles under her beautiful eyes.
“I’m fine,” Lana sighed, glancing up at Sid.
“No, she’s not,” Caroline shot back. “If you don’t tell him, I will.”
“Tell me what?” Sid’s voice had deepened, his eyes intense as he gazed between Lana and her sister.
“Are you feeling better?” Lana asked her sister with mock sweetness.
“Perfectly. Why?” Caroline frowned at her sister. When Lana didn’t answer, but lurched toward her knocking over one of the kitchen stools, Caroline squealed, running behind Sid for protection.
“Because I’m going to kick your ass, that’s why.” Lana tried to reach around Sid, but Caroline shoved Sid toward her, leaping out of reach.
Sid couldn’t help but grin as he stopped himself from ramming into Lana. “Ladies, as much as I would like to see some one-on-one girl action, twins to boot, I’m going to have to put a stop to this,” he teased, trying to lighten the mood, but instead, it got him punched and slapped by two very pissed off women.
“That’s disgusting.” Caroline smacked him hard on the back.
“I can’t believe you said that, you disgusting pig.” Lana punched him in the stomach before stomping on his foot.
“Hey!” Sid pulled Lana in front of him to shield himself from Caroline and received an elbow in the stomach. “I was just kidding.”
This time, Sid moved out of the way of another back elbow Lana tried to hit him with and forced her to sit down. “Well, it wasn’t funny,” Lana warned, her face scrunched in disgust as she shot him a nasty glare.
“Obviously,” Sid rubbed his stomach, “but it got you two to stop fighting. Now, tell me what the hell is going on.”
Adam (The Protectors Series) Book #5 Page 1