Hunt, Sofia - Riding the Circuit [Rodeo Riders 1] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (16 page)

Scott glanced back at her. “You stupid bitch, you thought it had to be someone who travelled the circuit, didn’t you?”

Mitzi nodded, unable to speak. She shot daggers at him with her eyes.

He reached back and yanked the duck tape off her mouth. “Where we’re going, no one will hear you scream except me, and I like it when women scream. It turns me on.”

“You bastard.” Mitzi struggled against her bindings, ignoring the excruciating pain radiating from her ribs, head, and jaw.

“So you never expected it to be me, did you?” He puffed up with self-confidence at how clever he’d been.

“No, I never expected it to be you.”

“A little short-sighted, wouldn’t you say?”

“Don’t think it didn’t occur to me, you little creep, but I never pegged you as someone who had the guts. Besides, you never leave the ranch.”

“Oh, but I’ve been spending weekends with my sick aunt. Just ask you father.” Scott held his hands over his chest. “The poor woman. She won’t last much longer, but I figure her odds are better than yours.”

Mitzi fought back the panic and embraced her anger.
Keep a clear head. Keep him talking. Find a way to get free.

After several minutes and a few turns, the truck rolled to a stop, and the back door opened. Scott cut the tape on her ankles with a pocket knife, shoved it in his pocket, and yanked her to her feet. White-hot pain shot through her beaten body. Even so, she took in her surroundings, knowing every bit of information could eventually save her. She opened her mouth to scream, despite the possibility no one seemed to be in the vicinity. He slapped her so hard her brain rattled in her skull. Clamping a hand over her mouth, he dragged her toward his destination.

He’d parked around the corner of an abandoned warehouse in a deserted industrial district. Scott opened a heavy wooden door and kicked it shut after they entered a darkened warehouse.

He seemed to know where he was going. Mitzi stumbled several times over the trash littering the floor, but Scott didn’t hesitate. He towed her along beside him. They entered a back room. Light filtered through a dirty window. The room appeared to have been used as a place for homeless people to flop for the night. A dirty mattress sat in a corner, and a couple wooden chairs were placed around a table. He threw her down on the chair. As he knelt to wrap duck tape around her and the back of the chair, she kicked at him. Her boot
toe
hit him squarely in the nuts.

“You fucking bitch,” Scott ground out as he doubled over. Mitzi leapt to her feet and ran for the door. He wasn’t quite as incapacitated as she hoped. Rage fueled his movements, and he tackled her just as she grabbed the doorknob. They slammed to the floor. Her bruised body cushioned his fall as he landed squarely on top of her.

Pushing himself to his feet, he grabbed a fistful of her hair and jerked her to her feet. Tears ran down her cheeks. He shoved her into the chair. Pulling out his knife, he held it to her neck. Fury contorted his face, making him appear evil, almost inhuman.

“Try one more stunt like that, and I’ll slice you open from your neck to your navel and watch you bleed out.” Wisely, he stayed away from her legs. He
knicked
her neck to prove his point. The warm blood trickled down her neck.

Grabbing the duck tape from the floor, Scott wound it around her waist and the chair. Then he bound each ankle to a chair leg.

A predatory smile spread across his face. “I’m going to enjoy this, you little cunt.” He ran the knife lightly down her throat to the open collar of her shirt. He grasped the front of her shirt and yanked it open, ripping the fabric and sending buttons flying.

“Oh, yeah. They’re as beautiful as I imagined.” He stared at her heaving breasts, encased in a black lace bra. “You’re mine. You’ve always been mine, since you were a little girl. Your daddy promised you to me. Don’t you get it? If you’d just cooperated and done what Daddy wanted, this wouldn’t be happening.”

He slid the knife lower into her cleavage. Mitzi held her breath.

“I’m going to tame you, little lady. I’ll show you what it’s like to fuck a real man, so enjoy it, because it’s the last fucking thing you’re going to get.”

Mitzi shook her head and spat on him. Her saliva landed on his check and ran down his chin. She braced herself for another blow, but it didn’t come. Instead he smiled a predatory smile and wiped the spit from his face.

“I hope you like it rough because I’m riding you until I’ve broken that willful spirit of yours. You’ll be begging for mercy before I’m done.”

* * * *

Riley walked back to the RV parking, cussing a blue streak. “That mule-headed, reckless woman. When I get my hands on her—”

Riley and Jonah stopped in their tracks as Mitzi’s truck barreled past them. They jumped out of the way to avoid being hit.

“What the fuck?” Jonah started to run after it, obviously not thinking.

“Shit, there was a guy driving.”

“Wasn’t that Scott Trimble? Her dad’s foreman.”

“He’s her stalker.”

Together they sprinted toward their truck. Jonah jumped into the driver’s seat. Riley was still slamming the door shut as Jonah accelerated out of the parking lot and burned rubber down the street.

Riley’s heart slammed in his chest. “Come on. Come on! Faster, they’re getting away from us.”

Jonah’s hands gripped the wheel, and he leaned forward. “I don’t see another person in the truck. Maybe she’s not in there. Try her cell.”

With shaking hands, Riley dialed Mitzi’s cell phone. It went straight to voice mail.

“She’s in there. Don’t lose them.”

Jonah ran a red light. He slammed on his brakes to narrowly miss a truck crossing the intersection. The driver honked and flipped them off then took his own sweet time moving past them.

“Oh, shit. I don’t see them now.” Jonah cursed under his breath.

“Keep going to the spot where we last saw them.” Riley’s gaze darted left and right, looking for a sign of the truck down a side street.

Jonah slowed down so they didn’t miss anything. Riley pounded his fist on the dashboard in frustration. They were wasting precious time.

“Call 911.” Jonah spoke through gritted teeth.

“And tell them what? That we think she’s in there and been kidnapped, but we’re not sure?”

“Oh, crap. What if this is decoy? What if we’re following her truck while someone else really has her?”

“That means Trimble has a partner. I don’t think so. We have to keep looking for this guy.” Riley saw a small slice of blue down a side street a few blocks down. “Down there. Turn. Now.”

Jonah cranked the wheel. The truck tires squealed in protest as they skidded around the corner. Riley smelled the burned rubber but didn’t give a shit.

Old warehouses comprised the deserted industrial area, most of them boarded up. Parked around the corner of one building, almost out of sight, sat a familiar blue Chevy diesel pickup.

“It’s hers.”

Their eyes met. Riley’s worry was reflected in Jonah’s eyes. They’d trained for situations like this in Special Forces.

“We need to be smart about this. We don’t know if this guy is armed or what.” Jonah pulled further down the street and parked their truck at the side of the next building behind a dumpster.

“Let’s go.” Riley started to jump out of the cab, but Jonah jerked his arm and pulled him back.

“Riley, don’t go in there half-cocked. Keep your wits about you. Remember your training.”

Riley nodded. His impatience demanded action, but he knew the truth behind Jonah’s words. What a weird reversal of roles. Usually, he calmly analyzed the situation and formulated a plan, while Jonah charged into danger. “Okay, fine. We need to divide up so he won’t realize there are two of us. If anything happens to her, I don’t know what I’ll do.”

Jonah’s gaze locked with Riley’s, and he knew his buddy echoed the sentiment. “All right. I got your back.”

Riley nodded. “Create a diversion.”

“I will. Trust me. One more thing. Open the glove box.”

Riley opened the glove box and a tense smile spread across his face. A pistol was shoved underneath some papers. “A pistol?”

“Never leave home without it. We don’t know if he’s armed or what.” Jonah’s words sliced alarm through Riley, but he reined in his adrenaline and used it to his advantage.

He pulled it out and checked it. “It’s loaded.”

“Yeah.”

Jonah hung back as Riley crept to the doorway nearest the parked truck. The back door of the truck stood open. Riley tried the warehouse door. The knob turned. He opened it a crack and peered into the darkness of the building. What he’d give right now for a good pair of night vision goggles and an assault rifle.

Glancing back at Jonah hunkered against the building, Riley slid through the doorway. He held the pistol close to his side. Crouching down low, he allowed his eyes time to adjust to the darkness, even though any delay frustrated the hell out of him.

A scuffling sound and a whimper caught his attention. Holding perfectly still, he determined the direction of the sound. Across the room, a dim light sliced through a door standing ajar. Soundlessly, he picked his way around the boxes and garbage littering the floor toward the sound. His pulse rate sped up when voices reached his ears.

“You’ll never get away with this. Never.” Relief flooded through him.
Mitzi’s voice.
She was still alive. The edge to her tone indicated she still had fight left in her. That was his girl. Tough little cookie that she was. His heart swelled with admiration and pride.

Jonah entered behind him and took a different route to their target by circling around the room in the opposite direction. Resisting the urge to rush, Riley finally made it to the doorway and listened. Jonah signaled to him from several feet away as he knelt behind some boxes.

Riley stood back into the darkness and waited. He wouldn’t shoot unless he had no other choice. He preferred the satisfaction of kicking this jerk’s ass.

Listening, he waited for the right moment.

“—be begging for my cock before I’m done.” The bastard’s threat enraged him. Fury vibrated through every cell in his body. His patience slipped several gears. He held on tight, needing that control now to save Mitzi.

Riley nodded to Jonah.

* * * *

Jonah pushed over several boxes in front of him. They crashed to the floor. Riley hunched down and kept his eyes on the door, waiting for Mitzi’s captor to rush out. The guy didn’t. They might have underestimated the man.

Silence emanated from the room, except for Mitzi’s muffled whimpering.

Crap, now they’d put Mitzi’s life in danger and alerted the guy to their presence. Riley signaled that he was going in. Jonah followed, keeping himself hidden.

“Put the knife down.” Riley spoke in an oddly calm voice.

“I’ll slit her throat if you come any closer.”

“And I’ll drop you so fast you won’t have a rat’s chance in hell of escaping.”

“Maybe, but it’ll be too late for her.” Trimble’s voice held no fear, just cold, hard determination. “Drop the gun.”

Jonah crept closer to the doorway, which now stood wide open. He peeked inside. Riley had positioned himself in such a way that the other man was turned slightly away from the door. Trimble’s knife rested against Mitzi’s throat, as her captor focused his full attention on Riley. Any movement from Jonah could alert him and set off a chain of events none of them could stop. The two men were at a standoff.

“Drop the gun.” Trimble nicked Mitzi’s neck. A thin trickle of blood ran from the cut. “Drop it, or she gets more of this.”

A muscle ticked in Riley’s jaw as he fought to control his temper. Jonah could almost see those gears spinning in his buddy’s brain. With a frustrated growl, Riley threw the gun to the floor.

“Move away from it.” Trimble gestured.

“You hurt her, and I’ll have your balls and dick served on a silver platter to the hogs.” Riley moved a few steps to the side, farther away from the gun but effectively causing Trimble to turn his back away from the door.

Trimble snorted, not the least bit concerned by Riley’s threats. As the man turned to follow Riley’s movements, he exposed the arm holding the knife to Jonah.

Jonah didn’t wait a second more. He lunged and delivered a quick kick to the man’s arm, sending the knife flying across the room.

“You fucking bastard!” Enraged, Trimble spun around and lunged for the gun. He reached it a split second before Jonah. He swung the gun in an arc and slammed Jonah in the side of the head. As blood ran from the cut, adrenaline rushed through Jonah’s veins. He’d keep the asshole from Mitzi at all costs. Ignoring the pain, Jonah wrestled Scott for the gun. His head swam, but he fought the dizziness.

Riley circled them in an attempt to disarm the man without accidentally setting off the gun and sending a stray bullet God knew where. Jonah grasped Trimble’s wrist, amazed at the man’s strength. They rolled around on the floor like two dogs fighting for alpha status. Jonah managed to pin the guy on his back. At the same time, Riley kicked the gun from his hand. Jonah shot to his feet and grabbed the asshole by his shoulders. He hauled Trimble up in front of him and wrenched Trimble’s arms behind him, not giving a shit if he forced the man’s arms out of their sockets.