Hunting Human (9 page)

Tremors wracked her limbs and stunned silence filled her mind.

The change stopped. Her fingers shook involuntarily, but they were long and unclenched. The shift not only halted but completely reversed.

A thick hand wrapped around her upper arm and yanked her up; she tried to push her feet beneath her, but her muscles refused to obey her commands. She felt herself start to slide toward the ground, but the man holding her hoisted her up and over his shoulder.

The position jarred her ribs, radiating pain through her chest with every step. She was momentarily relieved when she was dumped over the back of a car, the warm metal smooth against her clammy cheek. Rough hands grabbed her wrists, yanking them behind her back. A zipping sound cut the air and plastic ties cut sharply into her skin.

No!

Familiar panic clawed through her mind and sent her legs kicking out behind her. She’d been here before.

“No.” She struggled against the plea, shame clogging her throat. “Please, no.”

She was jerked back to her feet and the trunk of the car sprang open.

“No!” She forced her feet up against the bumper of the car, shoving away from the trunk with all of her remaining strength. The second her feet left the bumper, arms snatched her legs, forcing her into the trunk.

The last thing she saw, before the trunk came down, plunging her into darkness, was Braden’s cold, unflinching gaze.

Breathe.

Don’t panic.

Beth struggled against the oppressive darkness. The sharp slam of the trunk still rang in her ears and, as the engine fired and the car moved out of the driveway, the past rushed up, clawed into her mind and pulled her under.

Two Years Ago…

Liz jerked awake as the van made a sharp right turn, the momentum rolling her on top of her bound hands. She bit her lip against the pain and tried to quietly adjust her body to take the pressure off her arms. She’d worked desperately to slip her wrists out of the zip ties the men had used to bind her hands behind her back. Hours later, she was still bound, the skin around her wrists raw and sticky with blood. Every time the van bounced, her weight shifted back on her arms and pain radiated from her wrists up through her shoulders.

Liz rolled onto her stomach, taking the pressure off her arms as the van continued to bounce. She tried to gain her bearings. Dim light filtered into the back of the van; dawn was approaching. What time had they been grabbed? Two in the morning, a little later? That meant they’d been traveling three or four hours at least, possibly more. God only knew where they were being taken. Not into civilization, Liz guessed. If the way the van bounced and pitched was any indication, the smooth blacktop of the highway was far behind them. Did that mean they were closer to their destination? Closer to death?

Liz fought against the panic clawing up her throat.

Stay calm.

You can’t afford to panic.

If she and Rachel were going to have any chance at survival, she had to keep a cool head. Keeping Rachel from falling apart would be challenge enough. More light filtered into the back of the van, the darkness receding into gray, revealing the outline of Rachel. She had her cheek pushed against the floor of the van, some of her long blond hair spilling over her shoulder and around her face. Between the alcohol and the terror, it hadn’t taken long for Rachel to sob herself into an exhausted sleep, abandoning Liz to deal with the harsh reality of their situation. Hopefully, Rachel would sleep through a little more of the van’s rough bouncing; the longer she slept off the alcohol and remained unaware, the better.

Liz jumped, every muscle in her body tensing. The hiss and crackle of a radio filled the van, and a deep voice fired off a barrage of what sounded like Russian. The driver picked up the radio and responded. Their kidnappers hadn’t said much in the last several hours but none of it had been in English. Frustration ate at Liz’s nerves. She knew they were in trouble. Still, she’d rather know what they faced, get the panic out of the way and move on to figuring out how to deal with the situation.

“Lizzy?” Rachel’s voice cut through her thoughts.

“Shh,” Liz whispered. “It’s okay.”

Rachel blinked slowly, glancing around the van. She found Liz’s face in the darkness, fresh tears welling in her swollen eyes. Her breathing hitched.

“Oh God,” Rachel sobbed, struggling against the ties on her wrists.

Liz moved, aching to reach for Rachel, frustrated as her wrists pulled against the ties. Instead, she scooted across the space between them and pushed her forehead against Rachel’s.

“Rachel… Rachel, look at me.”

Rachel kept her eyes pressed firmly shut but stopped struggling.

Good enough.

“It’s okay. We’re okay. Try to stay calm.”

“Calm?” Rachel stuttered with hysteria. “
Calm?
I can’t, Lizzy. We’re, oh God, we’re…” She trailed off, words strangled by a fresh wave of sobs.

“In trouble?” Liz reached for all the levity she possessed. The humor she pushed into the words snapped Rachel’s eyes open.

“Well, yeah,” she said incredulously.

“Like we’ve never been in trouble before?” Liz kept eye contact and forced her lips to curl up. “I mean really, Rach. Have you forgotten that spring break in Mexico?
That
was trouble.”

Rachel choked against a laugh.

I’ll take it. Anything is better than the sobbing.

“That worked out, right?”

“Yeah.” Rachel sniffed through a watery nose and pressed her head against Liz’s shoulder.

“Right. So we stick together and we don’t panic. Okay?”

Silence fell between them and, for a moment, Liz was afraid that Rachel was going to slide back into hysteria. Instead, Rachel took a deep breath beside her and murmured, “Okay.”

“Good. And Rach?”

“Yeah?”

“You better not be snotting all over my shoulder.”

“You could use new clothes.”

“True. But this is
your
sweater, remember?”

They shared a secret smile as the van rumbled to a stop. The two men in the front stepped out, slamming the doors behind them. Liz seized one last opportunity to bolster Rachel. “Remember, no matter what, we stick together. Don’t panic. Okay?” The side door squealed open and Liz bumped Rachel with her shoulder. “Okay?”

Clear eyes met hers and Rachel nodded. “Okay.”

A rough hand grabbed Liz’s bound wrists and dragged her out of the van. She barely managed to get her legs beneath her before she hit the ground. As she gained her feet, she heard Rachel being pulled out of the van behind her.

A rough shove propelled her forward. “Get moving.”

Liz stumbled forward into the morning air and felt a solid lump of despair settle at the bottom of her stomach. They’d driven into a small clearing, every side flanked by trees so tall they completely blocked the morning sun. There were no buildings, and even in the early quiet of the morning, Liz couldn’t hear any traffic to indicate a main road nearby.

We’re in the middle of nowhere.

There was another van parked parallel with the one they’d arrived in, and several other people were being hoisted out of the back and herded toward the clearing.

“That’s far enough.” Markko’s fingers dug into her arm until she stopped. Rachel stepped up next to her, pressing close to her side, glancing around with wide eyes. “Lizzy?”

“I don’t know. Stay close.”

Markko stood behind her and the guy from the street, the one Markko had addressed as Alek, stood behind Rachel. The young man Liz recognized from earlier that night and an unknown fourth made up the points of a rough square, boxing in several people Liz didn’t recognize. An older couple, probably in their mid-fifties, huddled together next to Rachel. The man pressed his eyes closed and leaned into the woman’s side, whispering into her ear. The woman tightened her hand around the man’s forearm, her wedding band glinting with the movement. How long had they been married? Would they see another anniversary?

Overwhelmed, Liz looked away to a woman in a flimsy halter and a short pair of cutoffs. She’d already lost her shoes. Fine tremors racked her body as she stared through her surroundings, a silent mantra spilling from her lips.

Two young men stood to Liz’s left, one of them wearing a University of Texas sweatshirt. University students? They didn’t seem to know each other. Would their friends and family, wherever they were, notice they were missing? How long would it take for her own family to start to worry? She and Rachel had called home less than twenty-four hours ago—days could pass before anyone realized they were missing.

Beyond the young men a lone woman stood, feet planted, hands curled into fists. She looked to be in her early twenties, maybe younger. Of all of them, she seemed the most composed. She stood her ground, a guarded expression watching everything. When their eyes met, she briefly inclined her head, as if to say
hey
.

For a long moment, only the sounds of the wind rustling the trees and early morning birdcalls filled the air. Finally, as Liz began to wonder if any of the men were ever going to say anything, the kid in the University of Texas sweatshirt spoke up.

“Why the hell are we here?” His tone wavered between angry and frightened. “What the fuck do you want?”

“What do we want?” Markko strode toward him, a smile stretched across his face. “Just to have a little fun.” With his gaze never leaving the kid’s face, Markko barked, “Aleksander.”

Alek stepped forward, withdrawing something from his pocket. He flicked his wrist and his butterfly knife flew open, clicking into an open and locked position as he approached Liz and Rachel. Unable to do anything to stop it, Liz watched as he wrenched Rachel away from her.

“Lizzy!”

“Leave her alone! Don’t touch her.”

Alek held Rachel in front of him and slowly ran the tip of the blade in a vertical line from Rachel’s throat down the front of her shirt. “Or what?” Alek taunted as fat tears squeezed out between Rachel’s clenched eyelids, tracking down her face.

Desperately Liz pleaded, “Please. Whatever you want.” She took a bracing breath. “I’ll do whatever you want. Just let her go.”

A burst of clapping sliced through the tension around them. “Oh, you…you are so much better than I’d thought you’d be.” Markko strode toward Liz until he stood directly in front of her, a smug smile plastered across his face. “Oh,
Lizzy.
” His breath skittered across her face and Liz fought to hold her ground. “You know, I knew I’d like you when I saw you in the bar. The ones with a bit of fight, a bit of defiance, are always so interesting. Although…” Markko raked his gaze over her, “You are far more attractive than most. Too bad you’re not for me. You’ll be Ivan’s first.” Markko gestured to the young kid standing at the edge of the clearing. “And I promised my little brother I’d find him a true challenge; he’ll always remember his first.”

Liz’s stomach turned but she ground out, “Let her go.”

Markko smiled, “No.” He glanced over her shoulder and said, “Go ahead.”

The moment the words left his lips, Rachel started screaming and struggling, trying to twist away from Alek. His knife came up, flashing in the morning light, poised to slice Rachel’s life away, but plummeted down, cutting through the ties that held Rachel’s hands together instead. Alek shoved Rachel away from him, laughter filling the air around him.

Markko’s firm grip around Liz’s elbow prevented her from rushing to her friend. Rachel hit the ground hard and didn’t get up, sobbing into the earth beneath her.

Cold metal pushed between Liz’s hands and the ties around her wrists snapped apart. The moment he released her, Liz darted forward, dropping to her knees next to Rachel.

“It’s okay. Take a deep breath. Calm down.” Rubbing Rachel’s back, Liz looked around the clearing. Alek was busy slicing through the captives’ bonds as Markko rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet, grinning.

“Come on, you’ve got to get up.” Liz got a firm grip around Rachel’s arm and forced her to her feet.

“I believe you wanted to know why you’re here.” The clearing went silent. “Every blue moon, we arrange a little game. The rules are simple. In a few minutes, you will be released.”

Whispering rustled through the clearing.

“You’ll be free to go.”

Liz tightened her grip on Rachel’s arm and waited for the ax to fall.

“You have until nightfall, at which point we hunt. Seems fair, no?” Markko smiled and nodded toward his men who immediately backed away.

“Hunt? What, you mean you’re gonna chase us through the woods, like with guns or something?” Texas asked, face disbelieving.

“No.” Markko’s lips pulled away from his teeth. “A true predator needs no weapon.”

Movement in the corner of her eye caught Liz’s attention. Alek stood off to the side, toeing off his shoes and pulling down his pants. She glanced at the rest of the men, shock shifting to bafflement. All of the men were stripping.

“Aleksander!” Markko barked. “Show them.”

Alek stalked, brazenly nude, into the clearing. He smiled and bent into a low crouch that reminded Liz of a sprinter setting in starting blocks. Shoulders pushed in and back arching, Alek grunted as the skin along his spine rippled from his neck all the way down his backbone.

Gagging but unable to look away, Liz watched as Alek’s body began to shift. Birdsong died and the clearing fell unnaturally quiet, the silence broken only by Alek’s grunting and the sound of bones snapping.

Alek’s legs jerked in toward his body. His hamstrings flexed and shortened into hindquarters. Hair sprouted, first all the way along his back and spine, then raced down his arms and legs. Finally, as he opened his mouth to scream, his face shifted, lengthened and honed into a snout. A howling wolf sprung from where moments before a man had crouched.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Texas panic and run toward the parked vans. He didn’t take four steps before the wolf was on him, bearing him to the ground.

“No! No… Please!” The wolf pinned him, facedown in the dirt, jaws spread across the back of his neck. The slightest pressure would be lethal.

“Oh my God, Lizzy…” Rachel’s fingers clawed into Liz’s sweater.

“Don’t look, Rachel,” Liz whispered, relieved as Rachel pushed her face into her shoulder. “Don’t look.”

“Let him up, Aleksander.” Markko strode, fully naked, toward where the wolf—where
Aleksander—
had Texas pinned. When he didn’t immediately back off, Markko barked, “Aleksander!”

Alek paced back, his teeth bared and allowed Texas to push himself up.

“Now, now, no running.” Markko tsked. “You’re getting ahead of the game,” he said, glancing around the clearing, a smile on his face. “We haven’t discussed the rules yet.”

“First…” Markko waved toward the other two men, who instantly transformed from men to wolves. It happened so quickly that Liz wondered if Alek had drawn out his shift for the sheer pleasure of seeing everyone react. “Right. Rules. First, to ensure that this is sporting for us, you’ll be given until moonrise, at which time our hunt will begin.” The three wolves prowled the group in ever tightening circles, each moving toward a group of hostages.

“You may head toward the trees and into the woods. If you’re caught circling back to the cars, you’ll have spoiled our fun.” Markko’s voice hardened. “We would be most
disappointed.
” He let the threat hang in the air.