The Protector 2

(Névtelen)-1

THE PRESENT

Raven

By the time I finish my story, my throat is quite dry. Although Rafe was watching the road the whole time, and rarely asked any questions, I’m sure he was paying attention every single word. By now I’ve also realized that he had made me talk as a kind of therapy, to get me out of the state of shock following the attack, and I have to say, the applied remedy has worked. I’m calmer, my shivering has stopped, and my thoughts are better organized. It felt good to get the past issues off my chest, even though I left certain details in the dark for a good reason, and I tackled some others superficially. I don’t think Rafe wants to hear a detailed account of my s****l experiences with Sven von Staffeldt or Chad, who had that unbelievably perfect body. It didn’t escape my attention that when I talked about my male friends, Rafe’s chin jerked painfully, and he began to grip the wheel so tight that the skin on his knuckles turned white. He didn’t say a word, but he apparently took these things badly, which gave me an undeniable gratification. Yet, I didn’t intend to provoke him. Especially not when we were going at 130 on the motorway. Plus, I know that if our positions were reversed, I would also feel uncomfortable. Not that we owe one another anything, but I’d hate to hear the juicy details of Rafe’s affairs with other women.

Rafe

We’ve been silent for a while, only the quiet background music coming from the car’s loudspeakers breaks the monotonous noise of the engine. But it’s not the kind of awkward silence that would make you get out of the moving car after ten seconds. It’s just that I need a little time to process the massive amount of information that has been heaped on me. Up to now, I had no idea what happened to Raven since St. Thomas. Obviously, I didn’t think she was dreaming about me behind drawn shutters, away from the world, for years. I’m aware of the kind of effect Raven can have on men. Even I only needed to meet her once to become her captive, and after eight years, I’m drooling over her just the same. But to know that the girl I was crazy about at university worked as a model on the catwalk and was featured in fashion magazines, has really hit me. It’s hard to decide whether to be jealous or proud. I want to kick the asses of the guys Raven was involved with, even though I don’t know them, and I’m thankful to her for not sharing any more details. No matter how curious I am to hear her story, for the sake of my sanity, it’s better for me not to picture her in the arms of other men.

Finally, the ringing of my mobile breaks the silence. I take a glance at the display, and see that it’s Mac calling. Before picking up, I look at Raven, who’s also making big eyes at the screen. Hoping for the best, I press the green button.

“Rafe… I see… How serious is it? Okay. Where? … That’s cool. We’ll be there in five minutes.”

The conversation is short, and I make sure not to give away any details. Raven is studying my face, and I know she wants to ask a hundred questions at the same time, but I don’t want to upset her. She’s had enough trauma for a day. Of course, she can’t take it too long, and she begins to question me.

“So, what’s up with them?”

I cast a falt glance at her from the side, pondering how much I can tell her. I sigh and fix my eyes on the road again.

“They got out. Apparently, nobody followed them. But Gunner needs a doctor.”

“Damn!” she covers her mouth with a hand.

“It’s not so terrible. He’s a tough boy, he’ll get over it.”

“What can we do?” she asks apprehensively, chewing on her lips.

“I’ll think of something. We’ll see them soon at the next resting place. But you don’t need to worry about anything, Rae. That’s not your issue.”

She looks at me angrily, with a frown.

“What do you mean, not my issue? Of course it is. Don’t treat me like a child,” she says with anger, folding her arms.

The edge of my mouth jerks, but this time only because I’m trying to oppress a smile. Here comes my little sss fighter, again. Holy s**t, how much I adore this woman! She’s so hot when she’s grumpy.

I turn into the parking lot of the nearest resting place, and spot from a distance the Harleys parked next to the toilets at the building’s side. Before Raven would get out of the car, I grab her arm and pull her back.

“You stay in the car.”

“Out of the question,” she shakes her head. “I want to see how Gunner is.”

“Rae!” I say threateningly.

She turns to face me and looks into my eyes.

“Forget it, Rafe. Don’t even think about leaving me in the car like some poodle dog.”

I close my eyes and curse with clenched teeth. I feel in her voice that it’s pointless to argue with her any further. She is digging her heels in, and the only way to keep her in the car is to chain her to the dashboard. The idea awakes my imagination, and I actually think about it for a few seconds. True, I replace the dashboard of the bulletproof car with my own bed, but it doesn’t change the point. I swallow and shake my head with irritation. This woman is driving me nuts. I must compose myself. The hardest part is yet to come, so I must concentrate.

“All right,” I nod unwillingly. “But we have to be cautious. Promise me that you will be by my side all the time. I’m not kidding, Rae,” I jab a finger at her menacingly.

“Fine. I’ll be a good girl,” she answers with a bit more tenderness, and a hot shiver runs down my spine. I must get the image with the chain out of my head. I must!”

Mac is standing guard at the door of the public disabled toilet, and a cigarette is sticking out of his mouth. As soon as he sees us approaching, he straightens himself and throws away the butt.

“Mac,” I greet him briefly. He nods and his gaze is directed to Raven.

“Everything okay?” he asks.

Raven nods uncertainly.

“What happened?” I interrupt.

“Gunner got one while still in the house. But we finished off the bastards.”

“How many were they?”

“Four,” he shrugs.

“The laptops?”

“They’ve been annihilated. We have smoked the house out.”

“Did anybody follow you?” I cast a flat glance at the parking lot, but other than us, there’s only a rundown family van parked in our vicinity.

“Nobody. Great move with the tyres,” he pulls a quick smile.

“And Gunner?”

“It’s not too bad, but have a look yourself,” he says, and opens the door of the toilet.

I step in with Raven close behind. So far, her eyes have been shifting back and forth between Mac and I, following our quick conversation. Now she gives a little scream as she catches sight of Gunner, pale as the wall, sitting on the lid of the toilet. The shirt is ripped open on his shoulder, and under his shoulder bone, an ugly wound is visible. Rita is standing right by his side, in the act of changing the bandage on the bleeding wound.

“Not too bad, my foot!” she breaks out vehemently.

“Hello, Boss,” Gunner nods towards us.

“How are you, dude?”

“Fabulous,” he snorts, and his face jerks with pain. “Give me a cig.”

Rita looks at him angrily, but keeps her opinion to herself. I call out to Mac and ask him for a cigarette. I light it and stick it in his mouth. Gunner inhales the fag deeply, holds it in for a while before breathing it out. “You should see those pricks at the house,” he nods in my direction.

He sounds exactly as shattered as he looks. I quickly size up the situation, then turn to Rita, beside whom the wash basin is smeared with blood.

“What’s up?”

“I don’t see an exit wound, so I think the bullet is still in there, but thank God it didn’t hit a bone. It needs to be removed quickly, though. And we need sterile bandage.”

“There’s some in the car, in the first aid box.”

“I’ll go get it,” Raven leaps to her feet, and starts to walk, but I grab her wrist.

What the f**k is she thinking?

“Don’t even think about it,” I warn her strictly.

“I just…” she shrugs her shoulders.

“Mac will go for it,” I order, and opening the door, I give him the instruction.

“I’m so sorry,” she turns to Gunner, and makes a face as if the gun that wounded him, had been fired in her hand.

“Don’t be, girl,” Gunner makes a little smile. “Don’t take it to heart. It’s not your fault.”

Raven smiles at him gratefully, but her face says that she feels herself at fault. I want to kick this damn toilet apart, and shout into her face that the gang of assassins is at fault who struck down on us, and their commissioner, whoever that may be, and the whole f*****g mafia. The whole crap started on the unlucky day the weapon was fired in Matteo Bertone’s hand and killed the DeVito boy.

“I swear sometimes I think it would be better if I gave myself up, just to end this nightmare,” she whispers, torn, and my blood pressure jumps to 200. Gunner and Rita stare at her with the same shock. She can’t be serious, damn it.

“Raven!” I pull her towards me with passion. “Don’t even joke about crap like that. You should never ever think about that.”

“He’s right, Rae,” Rita adds. “Don’t even think about it. Everything will be okay.”

“I know it wouldn’t make any sense,” she shrugs with dejection. “If they were to execute me, my uncle would probably never rest until he could get the killer, and so on…” she gazes at Gunner with discouragement, who is looking worse by the minute. “He must be taken to hospital at once,” the words burst out of her with fright.

We all quickly turn our heads in her direction, and give her an incomprehending look.

“What?” she shrugs questioningly.

“It would be a bit hard to explain all this in the hospital,” Rita blurts out, “But we have our own doctor, and I’ve already spoken to him," she continues, looking at me, and I nod with agreement. "“He’s waiting for us at the clubhouse, we just need to get there somehow.”

“We will,” Gunner mumbles with the cigarette hanging from the corner of his lips.

“I’d like to help,” Raven says firmly.

“Don’t you get sick at the sight of blood?” Rita asks, raising her eyebrows.

“No way!” snorts my princess. “Don’t take me for such a wuss.”

Rita casts a questioning look in my direction, and I shrug.

“Then hold this here, and press it down firmly,” she instructs her, pointing to the cloth soaked in blood.

Raven takes her place beside Gunner and does her job. In the meantime, Mac arrives with the first aid kit. Rita takes another pack of sterile bandage from it, and while separating them, she gives orders to Raven about how to sanitize the wound. For lack of something better, she pours the content of Gunner’s tiny bottle on it to sterilize the hole hit by the bullet, and the area around it. Gunner endures the treatment cursing hard and clenching his teeth.

While the women are busy with the wound, I discuss the plan with the boys. Here, our paths will part, because Gunner needs a doctor’s help as soon as possible, and I won’t need Mac for the thing I’m planning to do.

Since we were attacked at the shelter house, I don’t trust Bertone’s scheme anymore. For sure, there’s a mole among his men, that’s the only way our whereabouts could be leaked. Raven’s safety is more than a private issue; it’s a heart matter for me, and while listening to her story in the car, I devised a rather daring plan.

I call the club’s doctor who assures that he is ready to receive the wounded man in the clubhouse. We can’t waste any more time, the bullet has to be removed as soon as possible, because the danger of an infection is increasing. When they are ready with the bandage, Gunner knocks back the rest of the whiskey as a painkiller, and we soon say goodbye. Mac helps Gunner walk to the Harleys, while Rita puts the helmet on his head. Raven nudges me and looks at me with shock.