BLAZE
BY
Teresa Gabelman
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
The Protectors Series
BLAZE
Copyright 2017 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 (2017-2-21). Blaze (THE PROTECTORS SERIES)
Kindle Edition.
Editor: Hot Tree Editing
Photo: www.istock.com
Cover Art: IndieDigitalPublishing.com
Chapter 1
Blaze rushed back to the compound, his face emotionless, but his body full of pent-up energy that needed release, and soon. It had taken Katrina two days to fully heal; it was even touch and go for a minute, which shouldn’t have happened when a full-blooded vampire fed from another full blood with an ancient lineage. She should have healed within an hour at the most, but that hadn’t happened. And Slade, who could pretty much figure out anything medical, was at a loss as to why.
For two days after Katrina had been found beaten and bloody on the steps of the VC compound, Blaze had only left her side for moments at a time to replenish his own blood as she took his. He had brought her a companion, Sager, the German Shepherd she had saved and had been going to get from the vet when she was attacked. Since she had started healing, though slowly, he was set on finding out who had dared attack her. She said she couldn’t remember anything, and with the beating she had taken, he believed her.
Hitting in the code for the door, Blaze walked into the compound and headed for Sloan’s office. The shit going down hadn’t given him time to even comprehend he was once again a fucking VC Warrior. Jesus, what the fuck was he thinking? The doc had texted him to come back to the compound ASAP. Thinking it was about Katrina, Blaze had texted back but got no reply, which pissed him the hell off.
“What’s going on?” Blaze tried to keep his cool as he walked into Sloan’s office. He needed to stay calmer where Katrina was concerned, but that was getting harder to do.
“Okay, Adam.” Sloan ignored Blaze. “We’re all here.”
Adam nodded and walked from the back where he had been standing next to Jill and Steve. He stopped in front of Sloan’s desk and in the middle of the Warriors. “We have a problem, a big problem.”
“What the fuck is new?” Jared sighed with a shake of his head. “We always have a big problem.” The Warriors murmured in agreement, then waited for Adam to continue.
“After Katrina was attacked and not healing quickly, I read her.” Adam glanced at Blaze, then shifted his eyes quickly away. “I only did it because something wasn’t adding up, and with Slade being concerned about her not healing, I wanted to see if she knew anything.”
“And?” Blaze growled, not liking that Adam knew more about Katrina than he did.
“And she knows a lot,” Adam replied, then frowned. “And this information could most definitely put us and those in our circle in danger.”
“Circle, meaning?” Sid spoke up, his usual comedic attitude taking a back seat.
“Meaning, our mates and anyone associated with us.” Adam glanced at Becky, Sloan’s mate, who was listening intently at her desk. “And she knows exactly who beat her. She got away by calling on animals to attack her attackers.”
“Who?” All Blaze heard was she knew who’d attacked her. She had lied to him when he’d asked. His anger was palpable. He felt the heat of his body soar and had to tighten his hands into fists to keep from blasting the room with angry fire.
“Spit it the fuck out,” Sid growled, glaring at Adam. “What does she know, or better yet, who do we need to kill?”
“I would rather she have the chance to come clean and tell you,” Adam replied, then cringed when every Warrior there except for Blaze starting cursing at him. Blaze didn’t have to curse him; his glare said it all. “Hey, this fucking thing I can do really sucks. I don’t like being able to pry into anyone’s thoughts without them knowing. So, I don’t think it’s unfair of me to give the person a chance to come clean themselves. There’s no immediate threat, and she’s probably fucking scared to death. Knowing what I know now, I can’t blame her. I would do the same for any one of you, and she is a Warrior in training, for now.”
Hearing Adam say that Katrina was probably scared changed his focus from anger to protective mode in a flash.
“Go get her.” Sloan nodded toward Steve and Jill.
Watching them both leave to get Katrina, Blaze glanced back at Adam, who was staring at him. “What?”
“Nothing.” Adam shook his head, looking quickly away.
“You reading me, boy?” Blaze growled, his darkening eyes narrowing.
“No, it’s just—” Adam stopped when Steve and Jill reentered with Katrina following.
Blaze looked away from Adam to watch Katrina stop inside the door, her eyes searching everyone before landing on him. Sager was right by her side, alert as if ready to defend her if necessary. Her hand automatically went to the dog’s head as if seeking comfort and, for a split second, Blaze felt a jealousy toward the dog that pissed him off. His feelings for this woman were getting out of control, and he needed to do something about that before he totally fucked up both of their lives.
******
Katrina headed toward Sloan’s office not realizing she was being summoned. She wanted to be cleared to start training again and had been told by Slade that Sloan had the last word.
“Hey.” She smiled as Jill and Steve headed down the hallway toward her. Her smile faded seeing the look on their faces. “What?”
“Sloan wants to see you.” Jill glanced away, looking down at Sager. She petted the German Shepherd on the head before rubbing her ears, an action that calmed the overexcited pup.
“Oh, ah, okay.” Katrina’s eyes landed on Steve, who couldn’t seem to look her in the eye. “Why?”
When Jill and Steve shot each other glances, she knew something was up and dread filled her soul. They knew. Somehow they knew. Her mind raced as she stood there, her eyes going to the ground, a habit she used so many times in her life to hide her fear.
“Listen, I probably shouldn’t say anything,” Steve started, gaining Katrina’s attention, “and I’ll probably get my ass kicked….”
“Probably? I’d say definitely.” Jill snorted, pulling her hand away from Sager. “Adam knows something, about you.” Jill took the initiative and told Katrina.
“But he won’t say until you’re there,” Steve, who never wanted to be left out, added. “He wants to give you a chance to tell what
ever it is you need to tell.”
Katrina felt physically ill. Everything blurred as fear replaced all rational thought from her mind. This couldn’t be happening. She had been more than careful. Right now, she needed to calm down and figure this out, fast. If the Warriors knew who she was, everything would be ruined.
“What do you need to tell us?” Steve hedged, leaning toward her, one eyebrow raised.
“Nothing,” Katrina said automatically, then glanced at Jill before looking back at Steve. “How good is Adam’s skill?”
Steve leaned back, eyeing Katrina for a minute. “Let’s just say, if you have a secret you don’t want shared, you’re fucked.”
“Whatever it is, you’re a Warrior in training.” Jill jumped in with the same thing Adam had said, no doubt in reaction to the fear Katrina couldn’t hide. “Come on before they come looking for us. Just be honest, Katrina, and everything will work out fine.”
Katrina let Jill lead her down the hallway, but she didn’t miss the concerned look on Steve’s face before he turned away. As if knowing her turmoil, Sager stuck close to her leg as she walked toward what she knew was going to be her end of the line with the Warriors.
Taking a deep breath, she followed Jill and Steve into Sloan’s office. Her eyes automatically went to Blaze before falling back to the ground.
“Katrina.” Sloan’s voice was deep and full of authority, quickly pulling her gaze from the ground to him.
“Yes.” Her voice cracked, her breathing coming in short, fast pants and yet, she kept her eyes glued to him. She needed to be careful. She didn’t know exactly what they knew; she couldn’t blow this. Her life depended on the next few minutes.
“Is there something you need to tell us?” Sloan didn’t beat around the bush about anything. It was something Katrina has learned quickly. He was in-your-face blunt, and she had found that trait honorable until this moment.
“No,” she replied, her monotone lie ringing throughout the room, echoing in her head because she knew they knew she was lying.
“I know, Katrina.” Adam stepped up with a frown. “And if you don’t tell them, I will. I didn’t mean to pry, but when you weren’t healing, I wanted to help Slade help you and well, I know everything.”
“That’s rude.” Katrina’s eyes narrowed toward Adam, unhappy he had pried into her personal thoughts. Remembering where she was, she curbed her attitude and looked toward the ground again.
“So is keeping what you have been keeping from the Warriors,” Adam shot back, but his voice wasn’t angry, just edged with concern. “As well as dangerous.”
“Well, if somebody doesn’t say anything in the next second, I’m kicking Adam’s ass,” Sid said on a growl, standing from the chair in front of Sloan’s desk. “If my mate is in danger, I want to know, and I want to know now.”
Katrina jumped when Sid moved, her eyes shooting up from the floor.
“Katrina,” Adam warned, his head tilting toward her. “Tell or I will.”
“Katrina, this isn’t a game.” Sloan’s tone rose, but only slightly.
“I know that.” Katrina frowned, her eyes glancing toward Blaze, whose level stare gave nothing away as to what he was thinking. “Believe me, I know that better than anyone,” she added, looking away from Blaze.
Sloan sighed. “Katrina, whatever it is, we need to know. You are going to be a Warrior. So far, all I know about you is Jill brought you in from the half-breed camp we successfully shut down.”
This was it; the secret she had kept buried so deep was about to be exposed, and she was deathly afraid. Her life and the lives of those in this room were about to be put on the line, a line she had crossed knowing the risks. She wasn’t naïve. She knew these Warriors were the best, but they followed the law from what she could tell, and where she came from, there was no law.
“This is bigger than you, and they can keep you safe,” Adam encouraged, but it fell short.
“Safe from what?” Blaze finally spoke, stepping forward.
Swallowing back her fear, a legitimate fear that had plagued her since she was old enough to understand the world she had lived in, she looked Sloan straight in the eye. Maybe if she just told them about how she was changed, without giving many facts, they would be satisfied with that. Glancing at all the Warriors with a quick sweep of her eyes, she quickly looked past Blaze, whose body was poised as if he were ready to explode. His angry glare and downturned lips indicated he was pissed, and it was directed toward her.
“I was changed with a group of people,” Katrina started, her eyes quickly flicking toward Adam’s warning glare. “Someone in the group is the one who formulated what they gave us.”
“This someone”—Sloan cocked his eyebrow at her, letting her know he knew she was keeping information from them—“that you know made an injectable that turned you and a group of people into half-breeds.”
“Yes.” Katrina gave a nod, but then remained silent. She knew that she wasn’t going to get away with just that, but she wasn’t ready to volunteer information.
“And who is that someone?” Sloan continued.
“His name is…” She didn’t know his real name. “…Bones.”
“Excuse me?” Sloan tilted his head, his eyes assessing her. “Who the fuck is Bones.”
Katrina licked her dry lips, hesitating to say anything because once she did, it would all be over. “He’s… just—”
Sloan slammed his hand on his desk, making her jump. “Adam?”
Her head snapped toward Adam, silently begging him not to say anything. He gave her a brief look of sympathy before it was replaced with business as usual.
“Bones is the name of a… patched member.” Adam kept his eyes from her and on Sloan.
“Patched member?” Steve snorted. “What the fuck is he, a Boy Scout?”
No one said anything, but they all stared at her. Until that very moment, she had never understood what people meant when they said the silence in the room was deafening. It was so silent the roaring in her ears grew to deafening levels. God, she was going to pass out, even weaved slightly. Blaze reached out to steady her, then backed away as if touching her disgusted him. At least that was what she saw, and it silently broke her heart. Because as soon as they heard everything, none of them would want to have anything to do with her.
“Which gang?” Sloan didn’t ask Adam, but her.
She hesitated, her mind going from shutting down, from passing out, to frantically thinking of a lie they would believe. She couldn’t stand the thought of losing her place with the VC. As small of a part she had in their lives, it was a part she had wanted all her life. To feel involved with something good.
The growl had her answering quickly. “The Iron Drakes.” Katrina didn’t even look at anyone as those words she had held close to her fell out of her mouth. Yes, literally fell out of her mouth as if it were the only way they would form.
“Holy shit!” Steve finally got on board.
“And what are the Iron Drakes to you?” Sloan asked, again bypassing Adam, obviously wanting to hear it from her.
“I can’t be sent back there.” Katrina didn’t even try to hide her terror. The thought that once they knew, they would toss her back into that life had her stomach rolling with nauseating fear. If she had been thinking clearer, she would have realized that wouldn’t be something they would do, but even the smallest hint that it could be a possibility had her fighting against the irrational fear. “I will kill myself before I ever—”
“No one is sending you anywhere, Katrina,” Sloan assured her, but his tone was harsh. “What are your ties with the Iron Drakes?”
“I’m Katrina Drake.” Her hand, which had been rubbing Sager’s ear, tightened, making the pup whine. She quickly removed her hand. “Samuel Drake, president of the Iron Drakes, is my father.” Bile pushed at the back of her throat as soon as those words escaped.
Cursing filled the room, but she ignored it until she heard Jill.
“You
told me you were kicked out by your parents after you were turned,” Jill questioned, her tone only curious, not accusing.
“I lied,” Katrina responded automatically. “And I’m sorry, but….” Katrina knew she needed to come clean. They knew her dark secret so she might as well let it all out and get it over with. They would find everything out eventually so she might as well as be the one they found out from.
“But what?” this from Blaze, and she couldn’t even make eye contact with him.
“I didn’t know I was Samuel Drake’s daughter until I was around seven. My mother told me my real father had died and I never questioned it.” Katrina sighed, aware that trying to explain this mess wasn’t going to be easy. Nothing about her life was easy. “From what I was told, my mother ran from the MC right after I was born before my father became president. We ended up in California where she married a man who was a piece of shit with a decent job.”
“So how did you end back up with the Iron Drakes?” Blaze asked.
“My stepfather was a bastard who beat my mom and threatened to do the same to me once I got older.” Katrina frowned, her memories of those years clouding her thoughts. “The first time he ever hit me, my mom came to my school about a week later and pulled me out. We headed toward the airport, got on a plane and ended up back here.”
“And Samuel Drake just opened his arms and let your mother back into the club?” Sloan said, his tone indicating he felt there were holes in her story.
“I was seven years old, but I wasn’t stupid,” Katrina replied, knowing there was no way they could understand what her life had been like, so she tried to keep her cool. “On the plane my mom explained to me that my real father was still alive and that she was going to go back to him, that he would keep us safe. I didn’t know anything about the MC, their rules, or their fucked-up way of life. All I heard was that my real dad was alive and he would protect us from my bastard of a stepfather.”
Blaze (The Protectors Series) Book #10 Page 1