by Becca Van
“Ten minutes south of town.”
“We’ll have to go in your car. My ma…boyfriend drove me to work this morning.”
Mr. Tate grunted and she wondered what that was supposed to mean, but gave a mental shrug when he began walking toward the door. Tammy locked up and followed him to his car. It was a rental, and she wondered where he was from. She pondered on whether to contact her mates and let them know she was leaving the office for a while and then thought better of it. If Crag or Carter knew what she was doing they would probably go ape shit at her. Especially Crag.
She just couldn’t let the man beside her suffer anymore. He’d already suffered enough, and if she was able to give him a quote, she may even be able to slot him in to get his landscaping done as quickly as possible so he could sell his father’s house.
He gave her an appreciative smile as he held the front passenger door open for her, and she got in and buckled up. Mr. Tate jogged around the front of the car and got into the driver’s seat. He started the car and then backed out of the parking lot.
“Thank you for doing this. You have no idea how much this means to me.”
“I do actually. My mother died a couple of years ago, and I just recently lost my stepfather.”
Mr. Tate cleared his throat and nodded as if overcome with emotions. “Is your boyfriend rich?”
Tammy frowned. What sort of question was that? As far as she was concerned, it was very rude.
“Pardon?”
“I asked if your boyfriend was rich.”
“I don’t appreciate being asked that question. You’re being rude.” Frissons of alarm began to race up and down Tammy’s spine, and she began to think she should have stayed back at the office.
Mr. Tate reached over and placed a hand on her thigh and squeezed her leg so hard she cried out in pain. That was when she knew she was in big trouble. “Answer the fucking question, you little bitch.” He dug his fingers in harder. “Is your boyfriend wealthy?”
“Tammy, are you all right? What’s going on?” Crag’s voice sounded in her head and she jumped.
“I’m in trouble.”
The pain in her leg got too intense, and tears rolled down her cheeks. “Yes.”
“Good. He can pay me to get you back. Ralph owed me a lot of money, and I’m not leaving until I get that money back with interest. I’m sure he’ll be willing to pay whatever I ask to get you back.”
That was when it hit her and she remembered where she had seen him before. He was the man who had been in his car and used a driveway to turn around. He had stared at her and Carter’s truck before disappearing again. She was in big trouble and needed her mates.
“Are you at the office?” Carter asked.
“No.” Tammy went on to explain how Mr. Tate had fed her a load of bullshit and made her feel sorry for him and that she was now in his car heading away from Aztec.
“He wants money. God, I think he’s the man who killed Ralph.”
“Fuck!” Crag snarled. “Keep looking for landmarks and keep us updated, darlin’. Carter’s contacting Jarrod and the pack. We’ll get to you. Don’t panic, love. I need you to keep nice and calm for me. Okay?”
“Okay. I love you, Crag. I love you, Carter.”
“Love you, too, baby.”
“I love you, darlin’. We’re coming, Tammy.”
“I don’t know,” Tammy finally responded to the prick’s last sentence.
He pressed his finger into her muscle and made her cry out again, and then he released her. Tammy sighed in relief and edged closer to the door.
“You’d better be telling me the truth. I wouldn’t want to have to hurt you.”
But she could seem by the evil gleam in his eye that he would relish doing just that, and fear permeated her heart and soul.
This man was a psychopath.
* * * *
Crag had never been so scared in his life. He could feel Tammy’s fear and hoped that he and Carter could get to her in time. There was no way he could get huge amounts of cash from the bank without any notice and hoped like hell that he and Carter could catch up to Tammy and her assailant before he hurt her.
She was trying to block the connection between him, Carter, and her, but she hadn’t become proficient enough to block everything out yet, thank God. He could feel pain in her leg and growled low in his throat as he wondered what that sick fuck was doing to his mate.
He and Carter had been horrified by how her stepfather had been tortured and cut up before he had been killed. It looked like the sick bastard had cut Ralph’s fingers and toes off before he’d been gutted and eventually died. That was why he and Carter hadn’t let Tammy in the house in Durango. The stench of blood and death and the carnage had been nearly too much for them to handle, let alone their sweet, innocent mate. And they were supposed to be the animals. When their wolves made a kill, it was always quick and clean. The man who had tortured Ralph Binks had to be mentally insane, and now he had their mate in his clutches.
He and Carter had dropped everything as soon as Tammy had said that she was in trouble, and now he was driving down the road toward Aztec at one hundred and fifty miles an hour. They had been on the opposite side of town, a good thirty minutes out. It was going to take time for them to catch up with Tammy and her abductor.
Just as he hit the main street of Aztec, he saw two sheriff’s cars skid out onto the street and speed away. Crag had never been so pleased to see Jarrod and his brothers, Malcolm and Braxton, because they had their sirens blaring and their lights flashing, which made it easier for him to follow without slowing down.
Since he’d already been at a good speed, it didn’t take him long to catch up with Carter’s cousins and sheriffs. He saw Braxton glance at him in his rearview mirror, and then he looked back to the road again.
Carter began explaining through the common pack link what Tammy had told them. She hadn’t been able to speak to anyone else on the communal link yet, but Crag knew it would take a little more time for her to connect on a more emotional level with the members of their pack before that happened. He just thanked God that he and Carter were able to communicate with her on their own private mate link, otherwise they probably wouldn’t have known she was in trouble until it was far too late.
“Tammy? Where are you now? Are you okay, baby?”
“I’m so scared, Carter. When I reached for the door handle to jump out he pulled a gun on me.”
Crag’s wolf came to the fore, and it took every ounce of his control to push his animal back. When he glanced at Carter, he could see and feel he was having the same trouble.
“We’ll be with you soon, baby.” Carter’s voice was calm and even, but Crag knew inside his mate was just as scared as he was.
“He’s slowing down. Oh, God, he’s driving along a dirt road toward the Animas River. He’s stopped. He’s making me get out of the car.”
“Stay calm, darlin’,” Crag said in a calm voice, but inside he was roiling with fear and fury. “We’re coming to get you.”
“Carter,” Jarrod called through the common pack link. “I think I saw the car she’s in. The asshole turned off the main road and is heading toward the river. I’ve cut the lights and sirens so the fucker doesn’t hear us coming. Park on the side of the road. Malcolm, Brax, and I will stay in human form so we can shoot this bastard if we need to. You and Crag change into your wolves. You’ll be able to track Tammy easier and hopefully get the jump on this prick.”
“Will do.”
Moments later Carter pulled the truck onto the shoulder of the road, jumped out, and began stripping off his clothes. Crag was beside him, and as soon as they stripped off their clothes, they called on their wolves.
They both sniffed the air and took off running. Jarrod, Malcolm, and Braxton followed with their weapons in hand.
Chapter Thirteen
Tammy was shaking so much she could barely walk. She stumbled and staggered each time the asshole pushed the gun into her back.
She had no idea where he was taking her and wasn’t sure she wanted to know.
When she’d reached for the door handle with the intention of jumping from the speeding car and he’d pulled the gun on her, she thought she’d have a heart attack. Her heart had started pounding in her chest so hard she thought it would jump right through her chest cavity.
She was so scared she couldn’t even think and couldn’t get enough air into her lungs. He was making her walk along the river bank, and she wondered if she would be able to jump into the fast-flowing water before he shot her, but she wasn’t willing to take the chance. Besides she couldn’t even comprehend her surroundings since she was in such a panic, and knowing her luck, she would dive right onto a rock and save the fucker from killing her. If that was his intention.
Her mates’ images came to mind, and she began to calm. She wondered if they were somehow pushing that calmness toward her but didn’t think that was possible. Her brain began to work, and her legs began to steady. At least now she wouldn’t fall into the river since she was more stable on her legs.
Tammy didn’t want to die or be used as a pawn because of something her stepfather had done, and she began to get really angry. She pushed the fear back and built the anger until she was shaking with it. She purposely tripped on a rock and went down to her hands and knees. The bastard fisted her hair and jerked her head back, causing pain to permeate her scalp as he ripped strands of hair from her head. She didn’t stop to think.
Tammy rose up on her knees and jerked her arm back hard. Her elbow connected with the fucker’s face, and she heard a satisfying crunch as his nose broke. He howled with pain and rage, and as he swung the arm he was holding the gun in, she gripped his wrist with both her hands and dug her nails into his skin.
But he was a lot bigger and stronger than she was. He released her hair and smashed his fist into her jaw. White-hot, searing pain exploded in her jaw and head and she saw stars, but she kept a tight hold on his gun arm. A punch to her sternum had her crying out in pain and her breath whooshing from her lungs. Her mouth opened on a soundless scream and she tried to draw a breath, but nothing happened. She felt like an elephant was sitting on her chest and couldn’t get any air into her lungs.
Her vision cleared just as he swung at her face again. A shriek of agony left her mouth, and she tasted blood. Tammy spat in his face and dug her nails into his skin. He shouted in pain as she tore his flesh, and just when she thought she was going to win and get him to drop the gun, his fury lent him more strength. He brought his knee up hard. She screamed when it connected with her breast, and then she fell back.
She could hardly see through her blurry vision, but when she saw the gun coming up, pointed toward her head, she closed her eyes.
A growl rent the air, and then the sound of snarling and snapping brought her eyelids up again.
A wolf had the fucker’s wrist in his mouth, and he bit down hard, breaking bone. Blood splattered on her face, and when she blinked, she saw another dark-colored wolf was attacking the asshole’s leg. When the prick dropped the gun, the dark wolf leapt at his throat and enclosed it in its massive jaws. Every time the bastard moved, the wolf sank his teeth in a little deeper.
Three men raced toward her and the wolves, but Tammy couldn’t keep her eyes open anymore and sank down into the blessed relief of pain-free oblivion.
* * * *
Crag had put on a burst of speed when he’d heard Tammy scream, and Carter had been right beside him. When he’d leapt into the clearing and saw his mate struggling to keep the bastard from shooting her, a haze of fury had covered his eyes.
Kill. Kill. Kill. His wolf had chanted in his mind. Crag’s hindquarter muscles bunched, and then he’d been flying through the air. He’d latched onto the fucker’s ankle at the same time Carter had gripped the bastard’s wrist. Their wolves had bitten down hard and were satisfied when they’d heard screams as they broke bones.
Crag held on and had shaken his head, but Carter had gone for his throat.
“Don’t kill him.” Jarrod’s voice broke through his and Carter’s anger. As much as Crag wanted to ignore his pack mate and sheriff, he knew it would be hard to explain to the authorities that the prick had been killed by wolves. Plus he didn’t want to scare Tammy.
Crag released his hold on the fucker’s mangled ankle and stepped back so Jarrod, Malcolm, and Braxton could arrest his arse. Carter took a bit more convincing.
“Carter, let him go,” Malcolm spoke calmly. “Your mate needs you.”
Crag was already at Tammy’s side, and he quickly morphed back to his human form. He felt her pulse and nearly sagged with relief when he felt it beating strong under his fingertips.
Carter gave one last growl and then released the prick’s throat. He rushed over to Tammy’s side and pushed his wolf back.
“Shit! We need the paramedics,” Carter said, and Crag could see and feel his pain. He was just as worried about Tammy. She had blood on her lips and teeth, and it had dribbled down over her chin. Her jaw was swollen and already bruising, and she was unconscious.
“I’ve already called them.” Braxton came over, squatted down beside them, and handed over their clothes.
They quickly dressed, and then Carter carefully picked Tammy up. She moaned as if she was in pain, but her eyes stayed closed.
“Get her back to the road so the paramedics can take her to the hospital,” Malcolm said. “We’ll be with you as soon as we deal with this piece of shit.”
Crag didn’t take his eyes off of Tammy as Carter carried her. He wouldn’t be able to settle until he knew she was going to be all right. Just as they came to the edge of the road, the paramedics pulled up. Carter carried Tammy to the back of the ambulance and climbed in when one of the paramedics opened the door.
Crag ran to the truck, got in, and followed the ambulance. He was so worried about Tammy he was shaking and he fumbled his way through the gear changes. When he got to the hospital, he parked the truck and ran inside.
Carter was pacing outside the emergency room and constantly running his fingers through his hair. When he saw Crag, tears filled his mate’s eyes.
“I haven’t heard anything.” Carter spun away and then turned back again. “She looked so fucking pale and helpless. I have never been so scared in my life.”
Crag pulled Carter into his arms and held him. He didn’t care who saw them hugging. They needed comfort from each other and wouldn’t settle down until they knew what was happening with Tammy.
Carter’s arms around him was enough to help him calm down, and from the look on Carter’s face when he drew back, he felt the same way. Just as they stepped back, the double doors to the emergency area pushed open and a doctor came striding toward them.
“Are you with Tammy Adams?”
“Yes, how is she?” Carter asked in a raspy voice.
“She’s going to be just fine. She’ll be sore for a while and will need to rest up, but she’ll make a full recovery.”
“Thank God.” Crag’s knees nearly buckled with relief, and he had to lock them to keep from falling.
“What are her injuries? Is she awake?”
“She has sustained multiple bruising to her jaw and face, a split lip, bruising to her sternum and one breast. She is awake, but we’ve got her on a drip of pain meds. She has a slight concussion, but she’s in a lot of pain in her chest. From what she told me, the asshole who kidnapped her kneed her in the breast and punched her in the chest and face.”
“Jesus,” Carter whispered. “I, we, need to see her. Can we?”
“Of course, follow me.” The doctor turned, led the way into the emergency department, and pointed to a curtained-off cubicle. “We’ll get her settled into a room shortly. I want her to stay overnight for observation. She doesn’t have any broken bones but her sternum is badly bruised. We have ice packs on her breast, chest, and jaw. Hopefully that will help to alleviate the pain and swelling along with the pain meds.”
“Thanks,
doctor.” Crag shook the doctor’s hand.
Carter did the same. “Thank you.”
Crag stepped through the curtain and rushed to Tammy’s bedside. Carter hurried in behind him and moved to the other side of the bed. Crag took her hand in his and stroked the back of it with his thumb. Her eyelids fluttered open, and her eyes looked glazed over from the medicine.
“Hey, darlin’.” Crag leaned down and kissed her lightly on the forehead. He didn’t want to put too much pressure on her in case he hurt her.
Carter kissed her temple and smiled down at her. “Hi, baby.”
“You saved me,” Tammy slurred, and tears leaked from the corners of her eyes and down into her hair. “Thank you.”
“We love you, darlin’. We would do anything to keep you safe.”
“Love you, Tammy.”
“Love…too…” Tammy sighed and her eyes closed again.
For the next twenty-four hours, Crag and Carter stayed by Tammy’s bedside. She drifted in and out of sleep but roused often. Crag couldn’t wait to take her home where she could rest more comfortably and peacefully.
Pack members came and went to make sure that Tammy was on the mend, and when Jonah, Mikhail, Brock, and Michelle turned up, Crag knew he was an accepted member of the Friess pack and so was Tammy. Although he’d already known it when he and Carter had mated, it just cemented how easily he fit in with this pack. He had always felt a little on the outer in the Reynolds Pack, but now he had two mates and new family members. He was content and in love and would never leave Aztec, New Mexico. His life was here, and he hoped that he would get a US citizenship soon. He would hate to have to leave his mates. It would kill him, literally. But he would worry about that later. For now he needed to concentrate on looking after Tammy and making sure she rested while she recuperated.
* * * *
Tammy sighed with relief when Carter carried her into their suite of rooms. She was so glad to be out of that noisy hospital. As much as she appreciated the care the doctors and nurses had given her, it was good to be home.