Jax (The Protectors Series) Book #8 (7 page)

Chapter 8

Jax didn't even look Mika's way. He took a long swallow of his beer, finishing it off before gently placing the bottle on the bar. "What do you want, Mika?" Jax asked calmly, though inside he was primed and ready, wanting nothing more than to kill Mika on the spot. Too many innocent people were in the way, preventing him, so he couldn't make that move… yet.

"Oh, you know, the normal… mayhem, terror…. The list goes on and on," Mika said flippantly. "And what do you want, brother?"

Having no intention of playing Mika's game, Jax remained silent. His brother was conniving and very clever, but Jax knew him well, and that played in his favor.

"Hmmm, silence." Mika gave a nod and ordered a drink before turning on the stool toward Jax. "I bet I can answer my own question. Now, let's see, what does Jax want? I'd say number one on that list is vengeance, but then again, maybe not. It has been quite some time since the tragic death of our dear sister. Your priorities may have changed to, say, maybe a certain lovely creature who can talk to the dead and has a nice set of tits."

The only indication that Mika's words had any effect on him was the small tic in his jaw. Other than that, Jax remained outwardly calm, while on the inside, rage stormed through him, desperate for release on his brother.

"Ah, I see I've found that nerve." Mika chuckled before taking a sip of his drink. "Sweet Caroline. Yes, I know all about her and how she and her sister communicate with the dead. Pretty impressive. I would love to use her. I mean, talk to her about her special gift. I could put that to much use."

Just hearing her name spewed from the bastard's lips was enough to drive Jax insane, but he kept his composure. "Seems like you don't need her skill," Jax replied, keeping the fury out of his voice. "What did you threaten Alisha with?"

Mika's gasp was theatrical. "What are you insinuating…? Oh, okay, you caught me. I've already found my… what would you call it…? Dead people reader?" Mika actually looked thoughtful, then shook his head as a sinister grin spread across his face. "But you have to admit having our poor dead sister shift into a boy was genius. Hell, it took you all long enough. Did you know the dead could manipulate dreams?"

"Soon, you are going to die," Jax said without inflection, but this time, he looked straight into his brother's soulless eyes. "By my hands."

Mika wiped his mouth after draining his glass, then smashed it down on the bar. Shards of glass went everywhere, but Jax didn't move a muscle. "Is that a challenge?" Mika's voice turned from flippant asshole to hardcore evil. "I just love a challenge."

Jax was ready for the move and, as Mika went to sucker punch him in the side of the head, Jax shifted enough that the fist missed, sending Mika scrambling on the bar. With fluid ease, Jax grabbed Mika's hair, slamming his face on the hard surface before pulling him face-first down the length of the bar. People scattered out of the way, which was a good thing because Jax wasn't slowing down. He picked up Mika and pressed him against the wall. He gripped Mika around the throat and squeezed, lifting him up to where his feet didn't touch the ground.

"It's not a challenge, you sick bastard," Jax hissed, his face up close to Mika's. "It's a promise."

Mika futilely beat at Jax's arm. "I'm going to love…," Mika wheezed out, "fucking her while I squeeze… her throat."

Jax punched him in the mouth repeatedly. "You will never touch her," Jax roared, then threw Mika away from him.

Mika jumped up, wiping the blood from his mouth. "That's what you said about Alisha." Mika spat blood before looking up at Jax. Hatred painted his face. "But you failed her as you will fail the little teacher."

In three strides, Jax was in Mika's face as punches were thrown by both. It was a vicious fight, both men taking out their hatred for each other. Instead of releasing the pent-up rage, it seemed to grow with each hit smashing into the other. Grabbing Mika, Jax turned and body slammed him to the ground, but he lost his hold as Mika rolled, landing straddled on top of him, raining down punches. Jax took each hit, letting it fuel him.

With every ounce of strength Jax had, he flung Mika off him and jumped to his feet. Spitting blood, he wiped his mouth with a slow smile. "Is that all you've got?" Jax spat again. "You still hit like a bitch."

Mika roared, lunging for him, but Jax was quick with a spin kick to Mika's head, which sent him tumbling into tables. Jax followed, knocking tables out of the way, and noticed for the first time that the Warriors surrounded them.

"He's mine!" he warned as he reached for Mika, pulling him up and dodging a punch.

The momentum of the punch pulled Mika out of his grasp, but Sid was there to push him back in. The shift happened immediately. When Mika touched Sid, he shifted. Then he touched Jared and shifted again, trying to confuse Jax. Unperturbed, Jax's eyes tracked him until Jared repeatedly punched Mika in the face and yet, it was as if Jared was punching himself.

"Stop!" Jax yelled, but it was too late. Mika pulled Jared, knocking him into Sid as all three of them went down into a fighting pile. "Fuck!"

Jax headed over, trying to keep an eye on Mika who kept shifting from Sid to Jared. Damon and Sloan separated them. When they stood, there were two Sid's and one Jared, but no Mika.

"This shit is fucked-up," one Sid growled, staring at the other. "That is not me." He pointed directly at the other Sid.

"Fuck you, asshole." The other Sid growled back, trying to throw a punch, but Sloan stopped him. "No way could you pull off being me. Jax knows exactly who is who."

The fact was, Jax wasn't sure. Mika was good, damn good, but there was one way to find out. With a fluid motion, he reached behind him and pulled out the knife he always carried in the waistband of his pants, and with precise aim, threw it.

"Motherfucker!" one Sid bellowed, staring at the knife handle sticking out of his shoulder. "What in the fuck is wrong with you?"

Jax's eyes went straight to the other Sid, who stared at him wide-eyed before breaking away, running toward the door. Before Jax could reach him, Mika was outside, already shifted back to himself. He had grabbed a woman from the crowd and was holding her in front of him.

"If you come one step closer, I will break her fucking neck." When Jax remained silent, Mika torqued the woman's neck, making her cry out. "You know I'll do it, brother."

"Then you will die." Jax's tone was matter-of-fact, knowing once again his brother had the upper hand. It pissed him the hell off.

"Please," the woman cried, her eyes begging Jax for help.

Jax sneered with a curse, unable to do a damn thing without endangering the woman. Neither his oath nor strength of character would allow him to do it.

"Watch your back," Jax hissed at his brother. "I'm coming after you." He pointed directly at him in warning.

"Big words, brother," Mika sneered.

"Why don't you let the woman go and face me like a man?" Jax knew Mika wouldn't let go of his shield, too afraid to lose, and lose he would, but it was worth a try; plus the more he got in the bastard's head, the better.

"Because I want you to suffer." Mika's face contorted with hatred as he backed his way through the crowd still holding the woman. "And I know you aren't afraid to die, but you do fear something happening to someone you care about. Alisha proved that." Mika finally pushed the woman free, then turned, rushing into the crowd, shifting from one person to the next as he fled, until he finally blended in with everyone else.

Jax's eyes tried to track Mika as he raced through the crowd, but it was useless. "Dammit," Jax cursed as he turned to head back toward the club, but found all the Warriors had been behind him the whole time. "Who's with Caroline?"

"Go search the crowd and make sure the woman is okay," Sloan ordered before answering Jax. "Blaze stayed behind."

"You son of a bitch." Sid stormed up to Jax, the knife still sticking out of his shoulder.

"You hit the wrong guy, dude." Steve was still standing there, his eyes going from Sid to Jax.

"I gave you an order." Sloan's growl sent Steve scurrying into the crowd.

"Do you think the chance of maybe hitting the wrong person, as you did in this case, was too big of a risk to take?" Sloan asked, his focus moving from the knife in Sid's shoulder to Jax.

"I'd say, fuck yes, it's too much of a risk to take," Sid growled. "It hurts like a bitch."

Slade had stayed behind also. He leaned close in concentration. "It's buried all the way to the handle." His eyes rose to Sid. "You want me to pull it out?"

"No, I'm going to wear it as a new piercing." Sid just gave him an "'are you serious"' look. "Fuck yes, I want it out."

"I need something to stop the blood." Slade looked around.

Jax figured since it was his fault, he should play nice. Taking off his jacket, he pulled off his shirt, tossing it to Slade. "Here."

Slade put one hand on Sid's shoulder, then gripped the knife handle with the other one. "I'm going to count to three."

"He's lying." Jill walked up at that exact moment. "It's two."

"Just pull the damn thing ou— FUCK YOU! That hurt." Sid grabbed the shirt out of Slade's hand and applied pressure. He walked up to Jax, getting in his face. "If you ever fucking throw a knife at me again, you are a dead man."

Jax casually pulled on his leather jacket. Not one to usually give explanations for his actions, he felt Sid deserved one. "Most shifters will lose their shift under the shock of extreme pain. I had a split second to decide."

"Well, you decided wrong," Sid grumbled, moving the shirt to look at his wound, which was already healing.

"No, I didn't," Jax replied, his voice gruff. "There was no wrong move. You just got screwed in the pick."

"Yeah, well fuck you and fuck your brother." Sid walked away, still pissed.

"Everyone needs to make sure to watch their backs." Jax ignored Sid's remark.

"Oh, is that what you were doing when you took off without a fucking plan?" Sloan's tone turned harsh. "We had a plan, which is now shot to hell."

"Caroline was not going to be part of that plan," Jax replied, not caring how pissed Sloan got. Caroline was not a Warrior and would not be a part of this any more than she already was, and he would make damn sure of that. "And Caroline is right. Mika has someone with the same gift as Lana and Caroline. He is manipulating Alisha to do his dirty work."

Sloan and Jax stood alone on the steps of the Venue. The crowd was dispersing as the human police had shown up. Damon and Duncan were filling them in on what had happened.

"What exactly does your brother want?" Sloan asked, his eyes searching.

"For me to suffer by taking out as many people close to me as possible, as well as Warriors he despises," Jax replied without hesitation. "And he won't stop until he succeeds or dies."

"Then he dies," Sloan responded with a single nod of his head. "You need to head back to Caroline's before I do."

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?" Jax's head snapped up, his eyes narrowing in on his leader.

"Exactly what it sounds like." Sloan didn't back down. "Walk away from her and I will step in."

Jax took two steps, coming nose to nose with Sloan. "I'm keeping her safe, and fuck you for taking advantage of that."

"Any man would be a fool not to take advantage of that with a woman like Caroline." Sloan's words were like a slap to his face. "I comforted her after you left today, as a friend to you. If I comfort her again because you're being a total bastard with no clue, it will be as a man who has no respect for you."

Adrenaline rushed through his body, wanting more than anything to plaster Sloan Murphy on his ass, but he held back, still having some respect for his superior. "Touch her and I
will
kill you." He was still face-to-face with Sloan, each the same height.

"Hurt her, and
I
will kill you." Sloan cocked his eyebrow, challenging Jax's own words.

"Then you might as well kill me now," Jax spat in disgust. "Because the closer I get to her, the more in danger she is. She'll get hurt, even worse, killed."

"You are so full of shit." Sloan grabbed Jax's shoulder when he tried to pass, but Jax shrugged him off. Sloan was far from finished so he grabbed Jax again, pushing him up against the building. "What are you really running from, Jax? I never figured you for a pussy. If Mika is coming after her, he will come no matter if you're with her or not. He obviously knows your feelings. Who better to protect her than you?"

Jax pushed away from Sloan and walked away. He knew the son of a bitch was right and it pissed him off. Heading toward his bike, he ignored everyone in his path, yet kept his eyes open for his brother, who he knew was long gone. His fists tightened at his sides as Sloan's words echoed through his mind. What exactly was he running from when it came to Caroline?

Chapter 9

Caroline headed up the unsteady ladder to the roof. Reaching the top, she looked up, spotting a hand hovering before her face. Taking it, she let Blaze help her the rest of the way up.

"Be careful and only walk on the new wood," he ordered, while searching for danger as she made her way to the peak of the roof and sat down.

Looking over her property, Caroline smiled, then closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. "I love it here." She peeked at Blaze then laughed. "I think I've said that a thousand times. Everyone is probably sick of hearing me say it."

"There's nothing wrong with being proud." Blaze nodded, sitting down.

Caroline shrugged then put her chin on her knees, staring out at the sunset. Loneliness swept over her, despite Blaze's closeness. It wasn't Blaze she wanted sitting next to her. "Yeah, you're right, and I am proud, even though there's still a lot of work to be done."

"It will get done," Blaze reassured her. "I should get back to working on this roof."

"You've done enough." Caroline lifted her chin to look at Blaze. "Why don't you let me make you something to eat? There's some leftover lunch meat. I can make you a sandwich."

"No, I'm good." Blaze frowned and then looked over his shoulder to the ground below. "Why do you keep looking that way?"

Caroline shifted, her eyes rising to meet his, wondering if she should tell him. "I was just… ah…."

"How many are there?" His frown turned into a scowl.

"I'm sorry, Blaze." Caroline shook her head. "Sometimes it distracts me. We don't have to talk about it."

"How many?" he demanded.

"Six." She looked away from him briefly to the five dead men and one woman, who stood staring up at them. "Who are they?"

"You tell me?" Blaze shifted uncomfortably, looking over his shoulder, then back at her. "I see no one."

"I wish I could, but they haven't made contact with me. Actually, they don't seem to realize I can see them, or they just don't care." Caroline was dying to know who the people were. Five of them were badly burned, but the female had no burn scars that she could see. "And I won't make contact with them without your permission. I respect your privacy."

Blaze seemed to want to say more, but didn't, which made Caroline want to curse. She wasn't nosey by nature, but when she had dead people hanging around, it was primed in her to want to know who they were and what they wanted. And honestly, she was intrigued by Blaze and his unusual talent.

"Can you tell them to go the hell away?" Blaze grabbed a hammer, flipping it in his hand.

"I can tell them anything you want me to tell them, but that doesn't mean they'll listen." Caroline shrugged. "The dead do what they want."

"Doesn't that creep you out?" Blaze eyed her as he expertly caught the hammer he was tossing, but stopped, waiting for her answer.

"What? The dead?" Caroline laughed. "No, not really. There's evil in this world that creeps me out much more than they do. I'm used to it. Been seeing them since I was a little girl."

"That had to have been hard." Blaze once again glanced over his shoulder.

"It was until I found out that my sister could do the same thing." Caroline added, "We hid it from everyone, and each other, because we were afraid to say anything."

"Can they harm you?" Blaze again frowned at the thought.

Caroline shivered, thinking of not too long ago when she was pretty much held hostage after trying to read someone. "Physically, no, or at least not that I know of. They never have to this point." She stood carefully. "Mentally, yes, they can."

Blaze also stood, making sure she made it to the ladder safely. Helping her turn and holding her steady as she positioned herself on the ladder, Blaze was ready just in case she fell. "You need to not go up and down this ladder without someone here."

"Yes, sir." Caroline grinned up at him. "Now, I'm going to make you something to eat, so clean up or whatever, because it's getting dark and you've done enough."

"Yes, ma'am," Blaze mocked and actually gave her a full-on smile. She about fell off the damn ladder. Blaze was a handsome man, hands down, but when he smiled, he was breathtaking.

Knowing she was staring like an idiot, Caroline started down the ladder with a sad smile. Why did these Warriors all have to be so damn good-looking? It was so unfair.

"He'll be back," Blaze said from the roof, staring down at her.

Caroline stumbled at his words, but didn't say anything. Instead, she gave him a hesitant shrug as she made her way into the house, hoping with everything Blaze was right.

******

Singing quietly with the radio, Caroline got the lunch meat out, along with bread, mayo, mustard, and chips. She didn't know what Blaze liked so she just set it all out on the table. Grabbing a beer, she opened it and took a long drink. She was a wine drinker, but didn't have any so a beer would have to do.

Walking out onto the porch, she stood at the edge of the steps. It was now completely dark and she didn't hear Blaze moving around on the roof.

"Blaze?" she called out, looking up toward the roof. "Sandwich stuff is out."

"I sent him home." Jax's voice came from the darkness behind her.

Caroline jumped, almost losing her beer in the process. She squinted, trying to see him, but eerily, he blended into the darkness of her porch. "Why didn't you come in?" Caroline took a step closer, but stopped. "Why are you out here in the dark?"

He walked close enough she could finally see him.

"What happened, Jax?" She stared up at his bruised face—which looked like old bruising since he was already starting to heal—and swollen eye. Dried blood matted his hair. Her eyes moved down his body. He wore his leather jacket without a shirt. "Where's your shirt?" Not that she cared, because without a shirt while wearing that leather jacket, he was sexy as hell. She could stand there all night counting the muscles in his stomach.

"I gave it to Sid to stop the bleeding," Jax replied without further explanation.

"Stop whose blood?" Caroline gasped.

"Sid's," Jax replied evenly. "Slade needed it to stop the bleeding from the knife."

"Sid was stabbed? Oh, my God!" Caroline set her beer on the railing. "Is he okay? What happened? Who stabbed him?"

"He's fine," Jax replied, a frown forming across his lips. "And I stabbed him. Actually, I threw the knife that pierced him in the shoulder to the handle."

That took her aback for a second. Yet as she thought about it, Jax had to have a perfectly good reason for doing something like that. He didn't usually go on rampages stabbing his fellow Warriors, did he?
No, of course not
, she answered herself. "What did Sid do?"

Jax just stared at her, his eyes opened wide. "What did Sid do?" Jax laughed, but without humor. "I just told you I stabbed a fellow Warrior and all you can ask is 'what did Sid do?'"

"I think I know you well enough to know you wouldn't stab someone without good reason and Sid can,"—Caroline flipped her hand up in the air—"you know, piss people off. He just goes on and on and on…."

"Unbelievable." Jax shook his head, then rubbed his hand down his face.

Caroline's body started to heat. Her face burned and tingled, indicating she was getting pissed. She was even ready to apologize for calling him a coward, but as far as she was concerned, the way he was acting, he could forget an apology. The jerk.

"You know, if you just came to pick a fight, then you can just turn your ass around and leave." Caroline slammed her hand on her cocked hip.

"I'm bad news, Caroline." Jax's voice rose with each word. "Dammit! What in the hell will it take to prove that to you?"

For a split second, Caroline could have sworn she saw vulnerability he was trying so hard to hide. "No, Jax." Caroline shook her head. "Your brother is bad news, not you. What will it take for me to
prove
that to you?" She went to touch him, but he stepped away. The action made her heart ache and her jaw clench.

"You can't prove anything to me," Jax answered, not looking at her. "I know exactly who and what I am. You deserve better than what I can give you."

"Will you just please shut the hell up?" Caroline put her hands on her ears and stomped her foot in what she knew looked like a tantrum. She took her hands from her ears and smacked him on his bare chest. "Damn you and your brother. Damn you and your… your tattoos. Damn you and your stupid guitar that you never taught me how to play, and damn you for making me care."

Jax just stared down at her with a look of stupid shock on his face as he absorbed each hard smack she delivered to his bare chest every time she said, "'damn you."'

Tears blurred her vision as she looked up at him. Removing her hand, she held it to her chest. "And damn you for coming back." She choked on a sob before turning around, slamming the door behind her, and then locking it.