“What do you want, Kane?” Raven said before turning around.
Kane chuckled with a grin. “Never could sneak up on you.”
“Yeah, well, you kind of make it a priority not to get sneaked up on with demons wanting a piece of your ass.” Raven shrugged. She really needed to get her stuff and find a place to stay before it got much later. “Listen, I really need to take off.”
“Val left,” Kane said with a frown. “He quit, packed his shit and took off.”
Dammit. Raven really hated to hear that, but what she had with Val was an understanding between them both. Nothing serious. “Okay.” Her single word reply sounded uncaring even to her own ears. She wondered briefly when she had become so cold to everyone and everything around her.
Kane’s eyes narrowed. “That’s it? That’s all you have to say?”
“What do you want me to say?” Raven frowned, not liking his attitude, which made no sense at all since she was thinking herself as being cold. Damn, she was moody as fuck. “We weren’t serious, Kane. He barely noticed I was gone.”
“Obviously he noticed. Now we’re two down.” Kane sighed, running his hand through his hair. “We can’t afford to lose any more when there weren’t many of us to begin with.”
“Listen, I—” Raven started, but Kane stopped her.
“I know why you left, Raven. Charger is a dumbass.” Kane’s gaze turned sympathetic. “He couldn’t see what was in front of his face or he ignored it—when in fact we all saw it. I think Val began to have feelings for you. He and Charger had a beat down the night you signed on with the Warriors.”
“Val had no right,” Raven hissed. “Charger had nothing to do with my decision.”
“It wasn’t Val who started the fight. It was Charger.” Kane corrected her. “And you never could lie worth a shit. He’s hurting, Raven.”
Confused, Raven shook her head. “Then he shouldn’t have let Val go.”
“What in the hell are you talking about?” Kane was the one who now looked confused. “Charger doesn’t give a shit about Val. I mean, sure, he hated losing a man, but Val’s ass kicking was a long time coming.”
“Listen, I’m sorry, but this is where I need to be. I can’t continue with the Guardians.” Raven was done with this conversation that was going nowhere, plus it was totally confusing the hell out of her. “I’m going now to get my stuff.”
Kane stared at her as if he wanted to say more, but just nodded.
“I’m sorry, Kane,” Raven said, feeling as if she was letting him down. “I didn’t come to this decision lightly. It’s something I have to do.”
Kane reached out and pulled her into a hug. “I always looked at you as a little sister, Raven. Just be happy and watch your ass.”
Raven nodded, tears clouding her eyes. Kane and she always had a good relationship. “Watch yours too, Kane. And slow down on the whores. You can do much better. You need to find your mate and settle down.”
“Settle?” Kane pulled away with a grin, lightly fake punching her in the chin. “Honey, that word isn’t even in my vocabulary.”
“She’s out there and is going to find you,” Raven warned with a knowing stare.
“I’m very hard to find.” Kane tossed her a wink, but then his expression turned serious as he moved to leave. “Things are not what they seem with Charger.”
Raven opened her mouth to ask him what he meant by that as she watched him walk away, but he stopped without turning around before she could respond.
“I’m here if you ever need anything, Raven. You may be a VC Warrior now, but to me, you will always be a Dark Guardian.” With that, Kane disappeared.
Watching Kane ride away hit Raven hard. She’d never felt more alone than she did at that moment. Her life was spiraling out of control and she had no clue on how to stop it. She thought leaving the Guardians and getting away from Charger was what she needed, but she wasn’t sure even that was going to stop her spiral. She needed to get a fucking grip and get over it. Her life was complicated, had always been complicated. So why in the hell did she think a switch was going to change that fact? If she’d learned one thing in her long life, people came and went. Nothing and no one were forever.
Chapter 10
Bishop walked out the door, closed it behind him, and then wondered what in the fuck just happened. Leaning against the wall, he softly banged his head against it. Damn! Her words had torn at him. Was she saying she was a mistake?
Closing his eyes, he thought of the kiss. Their kiss was nothing compared to Christmas Eve under the mistletoe. No comparison at all.
Without a doubt, he knew if he had stayed inside while she dressed, they wouldn’t be leaving that room anytime soon. Viktor had called him, informing him that Orjyll had made contact, and to bring Bonnie to Sloan’s office.
Not telling Bonnie was a conscious decision on his part because honestly, he didn’t know if he wanted her to go. It felt like he was putting her in harm’s way, but Bishop knew that wasn’t fair. This was something Bonnie had to do, and it wasn’t for him to deny the closure she needed where her bastard of a father was concerned. And he fucking hated it.
Every protective instinct inside his soul burned for him to take her and go. Leave and let everyone else deal with the evil Bonnie had endured all her life. But he also knew that until this was finished and Orjyll was dead, Bonnie would never have a life. She would always be looking over her shoulder and even with him at her side, that was not living. And it definitely wasn’t a life she deserved to have. He was afraid she was the only one who could defeat her father, and that knowledge terrified him.
Opening his eyes, he stared at the closed door, knowing that his mate—yes, mate—was behind it. Bishop had never been more certain of anything in his life now he could push past her aversion spell. She was human; he was not. He had no clue how she felt other than her thinking they were a mistake, but he was willing to prove her wrong.
Thoughts of the past pushed their way into his present and he stared into the distance. His stomach twisted in knots, knowing one day soon he would have to confide in her how many witches he had killed. She was a witch; he had been a witch killer and damn good at his job. Swallowing hard, he realized he was afraid of losing something he wasn’t even sure he had. Bonnie was complicated, no doubt about it, and at that moment, he knew he would die for her.
As the door opened and she looked up at him, Bishop knew that the first time he ever saw this beautiful woman, he would have died for her. Pushing himself off the wall, he scanned her from head to toe. She was beautiful. Her rounded face, rose-kissed cheeks, and large, expressive brown eyes called to him like no other. He was done denying it.
She was his.
“This—” Bishop waved his hand toward her room. “—is not over.”
“It should be,” Bonnie whispered, barely able to look at him. “I’m bad news, Bishop. Didn’t you learn that with my mother? Nothing good ever comes with a Grail woman.”
“Bullshit.” He really tried to keep the anger from his voice, but with Bonnie, his emotions were hard to control.
“You’ll see,” Bonnie warned, once again looking at him. “So will Steve and Ronan. I don’t want to say it or think it, but our track record is piss poor.”
“Honestly, to this point, it’s the people you’ve surrounded yourselves with that’s been piss poor,” Bishop said, truly believing that. “You’ve been let down… I’m sure by those you’ve trusted. Seen people turn their backs on you because of fear or greed, but never will I do that. Neither will Steve or Ronan. We are in this to the very end.”
Bonnie looked as if she was ready to say something, but instead, she closed her mouth and sighed.
“What?” Bishop urged her to continue. He wanted to know what was in her thoughts.
“I’m a witch. You’ve hated witches for most of your life.” Bonnie cocked her eyebrow at him. “And I’ve hated your kind most of mine. You really think that’s the best foundation for a relatio
nship.”
He wasn’t surprised by her words, because he had actually thought them himself. Spent many long nights thinking them. “A weak foundation can be reinforced with the right equipment and materials.”
She frowned at him, and he noticed she fought a smile. The smile won. “Have you ever even built anything before?”
Bishop chuckled. Even with what he knew they were getting ready to walk into in a few minutes, she made him laugh. “I’ll have you know I’m an excellent builder, with many structures under my belt.”
Bonnie shook her head with a smirk. “You’ve been warned.”
“I have, but you have to promise me something,” Bishop replied, growing serious. All joking put aside for now.
“I don’t make promises until I know what they are.” Bonnie’s voice shook, indicating she didn’t like where this was going.
“You don’t run,” Bishop said point-blank, staring directly into her eyes. He could always see a lie in the eyes, and Bonnie’s were no different.
“That’s a promise I will never make,” Bonnie answered with no hesitation whatsoever. “If anyone’s life depends on me running, I will run.”
“And what about your life?” Bishop didn’t like her answer but wasn’t really surprised. This was who Bonnie was and one of the reasons he was so drawn to her. She was loyal to those she cared for.
“I have no life as long as my father breathes.” Her reply sent his emotions into overdrive. He grabbed her, pulling her to him.
“I swear to you I will do everything in my power to keep you safe, Bonnie.” Bishop held her against him tightly, daring anything or anyone to harm one hair on her head.
“Then you will have no life either.”
He heard the tears in her voice, and it killed him. Before he could respond, his phone rang again. She pulled away instantly, turning from him, and headed down the hallway. He glanced at his phone to see his missed call was from Viktor.
With a growl, Bishop rushed forward and stopped her. “I haven’t had a life until you walked into it,” Bishop growled down at her. “Don’t think you know what my life consisted of before you met me.”
“Killing witches,” she spat, and he knew instantly what she was trying to do.
“It’s not going to work, Bonnie.” Bishop warned her with a glare. “You’re not going to push me away that easily.”
“What do you want from me?” Bonnie’s voice rose to a higher pitch. “I don’t have anything to give anyone. I don’t have anything left. I don’t even know if I had anything to begin with. My whole life has been trying to take my father down. Do you have any idea what that does to a person, let alone a young girl so bent on revenge? It’s all I think about, every single minute of every single day. I have nothing but hate in my blood and if I’m not careful, evil will join that hate. I wake up in the mornings praying to the Goddess that my soul hasn’t turned against me and that I still have some good inside. It terrifies me to become what I had to pretend to be.”
“I want all of you. Everything. From the good to the bad,” Bishop said while wondering where in the hell that came from, but it was true. He wanted all she had to offer.
“You have no idea what you’re saying.” Bonnie tried to turn away from him, but he wouldn’t allow it. “You have no idea what I’ve done for revenge. Things you and your brother would have hunted me down for, only to burn me for the witch I was, had to become.”
“You did it for the good of others.” Bishop tried to reason with her, but he had a feeling reasoning with her at this moment wasn’t something that would easily be done.
Bonnie laughed, but no humor registered in the hollow sound. “Revenge is a personal vendetta and has nothing to do with the good of others. The truth about me is ugly, and the truth always comes out. You ask me why the aversion spell. That is why. Once the truth comes out, it saves me the heartache of watching people walk away in disgust and hatred. Betrayal is hard to see in another’s eyes, and I’ve seen that look more than I ever care to admit. Selfish is what I am, Bishop. Nothing more, nothing less.”
He knew without a doubt that anything he said at this point would be a waste of time. She wasn’t ready to admit she was worth anyone seeing anything other than what she saw in herself. She needed to be shown, and once he’d saw past the aversion spell, he’d known she was worth that fight. Actually, the first time he laid eyes on her he’d known she was worth any fight that put itself between them.
Taking her hand, he remained silent as he led her downstairs. Soon she would see, and if it wasn’t soon, he would spend the rest of their lives proving to her that she was good, no matter what her past dictated. For once in his life, he had purpose, real purpose and he’d be damned if anyone took that away from him.
Chapter 11
Bonnie walked downstairs to Sloan’s office with Bishop. The room was overflowing, and she had a sudden feeling of unease. Seeing a man she had never seen before, she frowned. He was a tall, slim guy in a Big Bang Theory T-shirt, skinny jeans, and wearing black-rimmed glasses. He was actually handsome, in a nerdy type of way with his mop of unruly brown hair. He was bent over a computer that Lacey sat at.
He straightened and turned toward her, his smile widening. “Bonnie.”
“Jinx.” She smiled back, finally realizing who the guy was by his voice. “So I finally get to meet the master behind the screen.”
“Hear that, Lacey? Master,” Jinx said proudly with a puffed-out chest. “I’ve been telling her that for years, but finally, someone who knows perfection when she sees it.”
Lacey turned, rolling her eyes. “Congratulations, Bonnie. You’ve created a monster.”
Bonnie grinned, but it slowly faded when she noticed the look Lacey was giving her. She looked at Jinx. “He contacted you, didn’t he? That’s why you’re here?” Bonnie’s tone turned serious.
“Yeah, the Wicked Warlock of the West found a way past my VPN and ordered me to summon you,” Jinx replied, none too happily. “How the hell he did it I don’t know, but I’m helping Lacey make sure everything here is more secure.”
“When?” Bonnie said, trying to ready herself for this meeting with her father.
“Not much longer.” Lacey turned back to the computer.
“You don’t have to do this,” Bishop said from behind her.
“The hell I don’t,” Bonnie said as she looked around at the Warriors who were waiting for her answer. “I will never run from that bastard. We’ve been trying to get hold of him for weeks.”
“Yeah, that’s no easy feat on the dark web,” Jinx said without looking away from the computer. “Anyone can get lost there and not be found.”
“But he found you.” Sloan’s eyes narrowed.
“There is that and it shook my confidence, which only makes me more anal.” Jinx pushed his glasses up. “But that won’t happen again. I can only think this evil dude had a computer guru like me.”
“So now you’re calling yourself a guru?” Lacey glanced at him over her shoulder, making Bonnie smile.
She needed to be relaxed and on her game when she talked to her father. Their banter was easing her tension. Orjyll would be able to tell if she was nervous, scared, and not her normal “fuck you” self. He would prey on that, and she couldn’t afford to give him that satisfaction.
“Babe—” Jinx said, then cringed after taking a quick glance at Viktor, who stood frowning at him. “Sorry, habit.”
“That habit is bad for your health,” Viktor replied, his voice deep without a hint of joking.
“Yeah, tell me about it.” Jinx whistled low, then turned back to what he was doing.
“You get used to the threats,” Steve reassured with a grin. “I get at least four, maybe more a day. So, are you a gaming guru too?”
Jinx snorted. “Shit. Try guru master. There isn’t a game on the market I can’t beat.”
“Please.” Lacey shook her head with a loud sigh.
“Listen, baaaa—Lacey,” Jinx said correcting
his slip, then looked at Steve. “How in the hell have you survived here?”
“It ain’t easy, bro.” Steve shook his head. “Definitely not easy.”
“You guys done shooting the shit?” Sloan growled, eyeing both Steve and Jinx. After they shared a look, they both nodded. “Then hurry the hell up.”
Jinx practically pushed Lacey out the chair. “What in the fuck have you gotten me into?” he whispered, but everyone in the room heard him, including Bonnie.
“Stop being a puss and help me.” Lacey stood and went to another computer. “Okay, I think we got it.”
“Yeah, no one is going to be able to break their way into this system.” Jinx sounded confident.
“Good, ’cause your life depends on it,” Jared tossed out as he glared at Jinx, his eyebrow cocked.
“Every single day, bro,” Steve reminded Jinx, then shrugged and walked away. “Every single day.”
Bonnie chuckled, but felt nervous tension overwhelming her. She used her magic to calm herself down. Hearing someone else come through the door, she saw Mira and Kira, followed by Charger and Kane. She honestly didn’t know how they were going to fit anyone else in the room. She looked around for Raven, but she wasn’t there.
“Where’s Raven?” Bonnie asked, a frown dipping her brows. Her gaze met Charger’s, but it was Kane who answered.
“She’s probably getting her stuff and trying to find a place to stay,” Kane said, nodding at Bishop as he passed.
Anger consumed her. “You kicked her out?” She directed her question to Charger.
He glanced her way but didn’t answer. One thing Bonnie hated was being ignored or looked over as if she or her question didn’t matter.
“I’m talking to you,” Bonnie said, stepping in Charger’s way when he tried to pass. Bishop grabbed her arm, but she pulled away. “Did you kick her out of a place to live just because she transferred?”
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