Page 2 of Raven Blackwood
Markus’s bravado wavered as he sized me up, glancing back at his men. One of them muttered, “That ain’t no regular man. Look at the armor. He’s one of them, cyborgs.”
The fear in his voice rippled through the group, andI saw their resolve start to crack. Markus tried to save face.
“This ain’t your fight,” he growled. “We’re here on official orders.”
“I don’t care whose orders you’re following,” I said, stepping closer. My nanites subtly shifted, enhancing the glow of my armor and amplifying my voice for effect. “You will not lay a finger on these women or their property.”
Markus hesitated, his hand twitching toward his holster. Before he could draw, I fired a warning shot at his feet. The blue ion bolt scorched the ground, sending a clear message.
“Next one won’t miss,” I said.
The men exchanged uneasy glances, and one finally broke, backing away. “This ain’t worth it, Markus. Let’s go.”
Markus glared at me, then at Hannah, before spitting on the ground. “This ain’t over,” he snarled. “You’ll regret crossing Mayor Jenkins.”
“No, he will regret crossing me if he continues this course,” I replied coldly.
With that, the men backed away and retreated, muttering curses under their breath. I waited until they mounted their horses and rode out of sight before lowering my weapon and turning to face the women.
Hannah stepped forward, her expression a mix of relief and curiosity. “You must be Raven,” she said, her voice steady despite the tension.
I nodded, retracting my helmet. “And you must be Hannah. Are you alright?” I couldn’t help staring at this beautiful woman who was to be my mate. I loved her already. The scientists programmed it into my genes.
She glanced at the other woman, who was visibly shaken but unharmed. “We’re fine, thanks to you.”
Hannah studied me for a moment, then offered a small smile. “Man, you are a sight for sore eyes. Thanks to that damn cow, I was afraid I would never get to meet you.”
I couldn’t help but smile, although I didn’t understand what she meant. “Not to worry, there’s nothing that could have kept me away.”
Chapter Two
Hannah
“You know who I am, but you never answered the notification that we matched,” Raven remarked.
“Well, my com tablet had a little accident. My milk cow got a little restless when I stopped to answer the call. She bumped into me while I was looking at your picture, knocked the tablet out of my hand, and stepped on it. There was nothing I could do, but I figured you might show up sooner or later.” I gave him a self-deprecating smile.
“I brought extra coms and came as soon as I was notified; I was worried that you might be in trouble.” Raven finished retracting his helmet and returned my smile. “Apparently, I was right. Exactly what did I just see?”
For several long seconds, we just stared at each other, perhaps a bit overwhelmed at meeting for the first time. His picture had barely done him justice, and had not prepared me for his breathtaking presence. He was a big man by any standards, head and shoulders taller than me. I wasn’t a tiny woman. Theskintight armor covering his ripped, muscular body hid little of his physique. My body zinged with sexual awareness. I wanted him.
The quirk of his full lips and the heat in his gaze told me he knew it.
I shook my head and sighed, glancing at my sister-in-law. “That was Mayor Jenkins’s regular shakedown. He sends his goons around to all the ranches to rob us of whatever we have. They don’t care whether they take more than we can spare,” I explained. “We haven’t had enough to satisfy their demands in months. We’re just scraping by as it is. My sister-in-law, Grace, is pregnant, and my brother disappeared over a month ago. We’re pretty sure that Jenkins’s goons took him. Zach had the only weapon we owned with him. One gun against that crew, no matter how good a shot I am, isn’t going to stop them.”
Raven frowned as I said that, and I could see a hint of disapproval in his eyes. “Don’t even think about it. There’s no way you could stand up to all those thugs. I am trained for this, and even I will have to be cautious.”
“Well, aren’t you bossy?” I quipped with a smile because he sounded more protective than bossy. He was definitely impressive in person.
“I just don’t want to see you hurt.Then I might have to kill somebody.”
I could see he was deadly serious, but then he gave me a cocky smirk. From the way he was looking at me, I felt like he considered me his already. But I was warned about that by the cyborg Dagger’s wife after they had done my DNA scan. Cyborgs are possessive mates. I found that both intriguing and disturbing. In any case, I was glad he had arrived. We needed him.Ineeded him.
Raven took a step closer, his presence almost overwhelming. His nanite armor glinted in the sunlight as he scanned the area, his jaw tightening. “Hannah,” he said, his tone softening slightly, “you don’t have to deal with this alone anymore. I’m here now. And I’ll handle Jenkins and his thugs.”
I crossed my arms, lifting my chin. “Handle it how? If you’re planning to march into town and take him on single-handedly, you’ll only make yourself a bigger target. Jenkins has spies everywhere, and he won’t take kindly to someone interfering with his so-called ‘operations.’”
Raven smirked, his confidence practically radiating off him. “I’m not worried about Jenkins. He’s just another bully who thinks he can rule through fear. And I don’t scare easily.”
