by CatNip (lit)
The men outside all had their orders. The traps were in place. The thought of his captives bound and waiting inside had Adonis itching to put the rest of his plan into motion. After all, the traps, which were electrified trip wires rigged to the cabin’s alarm system, would alert them to any intruders that got too close. Problem was, Chambers hadn’t yet returned or called to check in. It was troublesome. Adonis didn’t need to have to worry about Chambers at a time like this, not when he was cocked up and ready to blow.
Shaking his head, Adonis called Snipes, his next best man for any job, and sent him out to locate Chambers. Adonis was amused now. He wouldn’t want to be Chambers when Snipes did find him. Snipes, Adonis knew, didn’t appreciate it when orders were changed like that mid-stream. Ah, well, back to the women.
Adonis needed, wanted a son. Without progeny, his legacy would die out. He was the last hope for their line. His father was dead and his brother was serving life in a maximum security hell-hole. But even if there were other saber-tooth tigers left, he was the last Cervantes man standing and able. Sure, his sister Medea was still alive, had even amazingly carried twin girls successfully. But, meanwhile, he was the only one left to carry on the Cervantes name.
~ CatCuffs ~
Leo, cursing, realized they still needed more gas. The men turned off at a forlorn exit, and Leo caught the faint scent of cat. It whispered to him as he scented the air.
“Follow me,” Leo commanded.
It didn’t take long for the men to follow the scent to a ramshackle shed and overpower an old man and Adonis’s thug.
Adonis and his rogues had gotten sloppy, egotistical, or both, Leo noted. Otherwise, the thug wouldn’t have stopped in alone at the old man’s store. After some interrogation, he discovered the thug answered to the name of Chambers, and the old man’s name was Leroy.
Leo scowled at Chambers. “We’ve got you now, scumbag. Where did Adonis take our women?” He restrained his urge to rip the man apart, limb from limb. Daniel quickly cuffed Chambers to the iron railing.
Chambers flashed a toothy grin as he struggled, then spat on the ground, barely missing Leo’s feet. “I don’t think he’s in the mood to talk to us Leo,” Craig noted wryly.
“You’re probably right, Craig,” Leo concurred. “He could use some beauty sleep, don’t you think?”
At Leo’s suggestion, Roberto pulled a vial and syringe from the small satchel Colby and Drake had brought for him. “I’ve got just the thing. This should keep him out for a little while.”
“First, let’s see what we can find out from the old-timer here,” Leo said, glancing over to where Daniel had his gun on Leroy.
“Who are you people?” Leroy croaked out, clearly terrified. Daniel and Craig both flashed their identification. That was all it took for Leroy to break down. “I’ve never broken a law in my whole life,” Leroy near sobbed. “I’m just an old cracker out here in the swamp, trying to make an honest living.”
Daniel didn’t waste time. “If that’s true, then we need your help finding this man’s friend,” he said, pointing to Chambers. “He’s abducted two women. One is my sister and a federal agent too. Now, what can you tell us?”
As Leroy began to talk, Daniel said, “Whoa, whoa, whoa, slow down so we can keep up. Okay, that’s better. Now, tell us exactly where the house is located.”
As Leroy blurted out the information and directions, they all listened intently until they’d gotten the important details. From the old-timer’s description, Adonis had a pack of at least six men who supposedly worked for him and joined him for his hunting vacations.
“Go ahead and knock him out,” Leo said, pointing to Chambers. “We don’t want him causing any trouble.” Roberto quickly injected Chambers with the potent sedative. It would knock the big man out-temporarily, at least.
What they needed now was a plan of attack, Leo surmised as Chambers slumped against the rail-post. At least now, the odds for overtaking Adonis and his pack of men were getting better. However, they all understood the importance of being prepared for anything when it came to Adonis.
They couldn’t take chances of Adonis slipping off with Lynx and Felice again. If that happened, the women could disappear for good. It wasn’t a chance they could take. Failure was not an option.
Leo and the men prepared to approach the house tucked away at the far end of Leroy’s property. Cautiously, they decided to forgo any expected approach by land or road to get there. Their approach was less likely to be spotted if they took the circuitous route along the river inlet’s shore. From Leroy’s description, they were about three quarters of a mile down shore from the house Adonis was using. Once there, hopefully they could catch Adonis and his rogues by surprise.
Resolved and determined, the men set out with determined speed. Who knew when Chambers would be missed? Time was critical. They couldn’t afford to waste it.
Silently, Leo, Craig, Daniel, Roberto, Colby, and Drake made their way for the boat dock Leroy had told them about. The dock was closest to Leroy’s side of the property at the back of the old cracker’s unpresuming home. Leroy had offered to guide them closer to Adonis’s property, but they declined his offer. It was simply too dangerous for a civilian. He willingly gave them directions to the Adonis’s cottage. He told them once they saw the lightning-scarred tree, they were getting close.
Leroy did seem relieved to stay, despite his offer to assist more. He was obviously anxious to help do the right thing. But he’d looked shocked when Daniel had explained that Adonis was a Cervantes.
Leo knew the old man wasn’t lying. He knew nothing of drug cartels or crime families. Adonis had used Leroy’s trusting nature to perpetuate his own evil plans.
Once at the dock, the men quickly untied the mid-sized craft and settled into their somewhat cramped positions. Roberto took the wheel.
Leo turned to Roberto. “See, your former experience working small fishing boats will be invaluable now.”
They pushed off. With a sharp gun of the motor, the boat surged forward into the narrow channel. Cypress lined the swampy edges of it, with oaks and palms set farther back. Around each bend, danger lurked. The murky water beneath them teemed with alligators and water moccasins, but each man’s face held a look of grim determination.
~ CatScans ~
Craig watched as the sun and shade dappled shores sped by, praying as they did that Lynx and Felice were okay and unharmed by the bastards who had taken them. Craig reflected silently on his feelings of utter helplessness and longing where Lynx was concerned. His concern was reflected on the faces of the other men, as well. Craig could sense that, with Leo, the feeling was mutual. He and Leo both needed Lynx back powerfully, with a soul-deep hunger.
This was what love felt like. It could hurt too, Craig knew. Kelly’s death had hurt, but altogether differently. Craig knew the difference personally now. Craig’s eyes continually roved the nearby banks for any sign of movement as he considered what he could lose if he lost Lynx. Anxiety, Craig understood, rode with them all until the women were rescued.
It would never do to be caught off guard out here in the near-open like this. The other men constantly scanned the surrounding forest, on the alert. They all realized the dangers of an ambush this close.
Roberto suddenly switched the motor from low to off after going around the bend where an old cypress stood, warped and wounded. At first glance, Craig could see that the tree looked almost normal. That is, until he rounded the bend to see the other side of it. There, lightning had ripped away its bark like skin peeled back from an orange. Scorch marks ran down the entire side of it. The scars were long and wicked, and only one living branch remained on that side.
But even that branch was likely a skeleton of its former glory. It was, like Leroy had told them, as if one half of the old tree continued to live on. But half of it had long since expired. Roberto’s face paled, his hands were clenched tightly at his side. Leo’s face blanched too as they passed it. The half-dead tree, Cra
ig realized, looked how he’d feel if he lost Lynx.
Craig turned away from the sight of the scarred tree, if anything, only more resolute. Lynx would make it home unharmed, or goddess help the man who dared to hurt her.
Chapter 16
Adonis startled as his cell phone buzzed to life to the strains of Wagner’s “Ride of the Valkyries.” Maybe it would be Chambers checking in. Adonis checked the ID box. No such luck. Scowling, Adonis lifted the phone to his ear. He pulled it back a bit as Snipes let loose with a few choice words about Chambers.
Snipes venting about Chambers might have been funny any other time, but not now. Adonis wasn’t amused by Snipes’s angry blast, “Has the ineffectual, missing son-of-a-pussy Chambers called you yet?
Adonis struggled to keep his tone mild. There had been no word from Chambers. Not what he had hoped to hear. “Not yet,” he replied.
Snipes barely gave him time to respond before he went off again, “When I find that man-eating pussy, I’m going to rearrange that ugly-ass mug of his. He’s not doing a damn thing to help around here. The lazy bastard hasn’t checked in yet, boss. When are you going to light a fire under that no-good, no-account excuse for a saber-tooth?” Snipes fumed.
Adonis had a brief image of Snipes breathing fire on the other end of the phone but didn’t say so.
He didn’t give a damn about whether or not Snipes rearranged Chambers’s face and attitude at this point. Where the hell was Chambers, anyway? A faint bud of anxiety began to bloom in his chest. Adonis knew Chambers and Snipes were constantly at each other’s throats. He wouldn’t even be surprised if Chambers was avoiding Snipes for the moment. Chambers had certainly done so before. He’d give Chambers another half hour to check in before getting paranoid. Chambers really hadn’t been gone that long.
Sighing, Adonis let Snipes deliver a little more of his angry diatribe about Chambers before he finally broke in. “Enough, Snipes!”
It was clearly time to remind Snipes of his position and his duties. When Snipes piped down at last, Adonis began barking out orders. “Snipes, get over to old man Leroy’s place, pronto. Find out if the old man has seen Chambers in the last hour or so. I expect to get a report back from you personally, even if you find Chambers. Afterwards, you are going to be in charge of keeping an eye on the less experienced guards. Obviously, Chambers isn’t up for that challenge.”
Adonis hung up, surprised by the twinge of guilt he felt for Chambers’s sake. However, he sure as hell didn’t need another of his men taking off goddess knows where. If he needed to humor Snipes a little right now, he would. He was, after all, the boss, he thought angrily. With an impatient snarl, Adonis turned towards the room where the females were being kept.
As he entered the room, for a second, he could have sworn his mate was lying there on that big bed. How well he remembered her honeyed hair, her thickly fringed eyes wide with desire and heat, her long legs that had wrapped around him like a blanket whenever they’d come together. Sure, the last months when she’d carried his child deep within her, had been full of changes. The small mound of her stomach had expanded, and her mouthwatering breasts had grown fuller by the day.
A stab of grief and sorrow, then rage, pierced Adonis as he looked at Lynx. Yes, his former mate was gone. But this bitch was really nothing like her, and neither was the other one.
But this pussy was here now, along with her delectable friend. He would mate her friend first, due to the heat already coursing through her. Adonis watched as the second, smaller female tossed and turned. Despite the fact she was sleeping and still under the influence of the injected drug, her hips moved restlessly. She occasionally moaned incoherently. Yes, she would damn well suit his purposes.
~ CatStalkers ~
When the men thought they might be less than a mile from the cabin, they stowed the small boat in the next thick copse of trees they came to. The area was rife with scrub palms and irritating prickly weeds that snagged at their clothing.
Daniel had already disposed of one snake, Drake another. Leo gave the halt signal. Nobody in the group moved a muscle. Craig looked at him questioningly.
“Stay here, I thought I might have heard something. Roberto, you come with me. We’ll be back in five to ten minutes. If not, Drake check on us. The rest of you stay here,” Leo whispered tersely.
After fading out of sight in the heavy brush, Leo and Roberto shed their clothes and burst into their big cat form at a dead run. They sensed a rogue cat presence was just around the bend. Seconds later, they simultaneously leaped at the man leaning sideways against the large cypress tree. They surprised the unwary guard completely. He slumped to the hard ground under Leo’s weight.
Despite having his rifle at the ready, the guard had twisted around at the last moment, sensing something. It was too little, too late.
It was over before a warning could even leave the guard’s lips. Barely missing a beat, Leo and Roberto quickly dragged, and then hid, the guard’s body out of sight. Leo muzzled the urge to roar victoriously. They set off at a slightly slower pace to assess the situation ahead of them. The enemy camp was another man down, but how many to go? Leo and Roberto were about to find out.
“He was young and obviously green. It equaled easy to kill this time,” stated Roberto, using their accustomed link. The pause was understood. There was no way would it be that easy to take Adonis or any experienced saber-tooth for that matter. “If only it could be that simple from here on out.”
Leo couldn’t help but agree with Roberto’s assessments. “I find it hard to believe anything will be simple when it comes to Adonis,” Leo concurred, remembering Adonis’s surprise ambush of Lynx and Felice at the crowded club.
“I wish I didn’t agree with you this time,” Roberto said simply.
They stalked closer to the perimeter of the property. This close to the targeted cabin, they couldn’t afford any noise. Nothing could give them away. They moved with a calculated slow and careful silence through the woods. Abruptly, a small glint caught Leo’s eyes. Instinct had him warning Roberto to be completely still. “Don’t move!”
Carefully, Leo examined the wire they’d discovered stretched between the trees in the woods surrounding the cabin. “Careful, Roberto, it’s nearly impossible to see the wires. It’s a trap, of course. It may even work to our advantage for the time being if Adonis thinks he will be warned before company arrives. Let’s get back and warn the others. But be watching, just in case Adonis and his men have laid other wires we’ve missed.”
Stealthily, Leo and Roberto headed back in the direction they’d come from. They needed to shift back and return to apprise the others of what they’d found before their luck ran out.
~ Cat or Mouse ~
On the outer edge of the cabin, where the woods met, the strangled growth of the surrounding scrubs and trees provided cover. Leo, Craig, Daniel, Roberto, Colby, and Drake silently signaled one another of their intended route of attack. They could see the house was guarded at every corner. They couldn’t be exactly sure if there were extra men in the house. Clearly, Adonis was inside with the women. He had not been sighted as yet.
Two of the men at the back of the house chatted, weapons in hand. They were leaning casually against the stone wall. Ghostlike, Craig and Daniel moved into position slowly until they found a spot where they could set the two guards in their sights. Leo and Roberto planned to take out the two guards in front, while Drake and Colby went to quietly investigate the surrounding area close to the cabin for hidden guards and for more of the hidden wires.
From where Craig and Daniel were hiding, they heard the agreed upon bird call, and with synchronized purpose they both fired their silencer-equipped weapons. The only sound was a small ping, ping, and then the low, heavy thump of the guards falling.
By the front of the house, the other two guards were disposed of with equal finesse at Leo and Roberto’s hands. Before they could converge on the house, Colby came out of the clearing near the corner of the hou
se. He signaled that he and Drake had found three more men evidently on guard duty down near the cabin’s own small river dock. It was quickly signaled for Craig and Daniel to stay and keep an eye on the front and rear entrances to the cabin.
Leo and Roberto followed Colby back to where Drake waited, watching. The four made short work of eliminating the three guards by the dock. Stalking back quietly, the plan was to converge in force on the cabin and take out Adonis and his men inside.
Meanwhile, Daniel and Craig quietly waited out of view. Keeping in sight of the cabin’s front and back doors, it wouldn’t be long now, Craig thought. He gritted his teeth impatiently. He was supposed to wait for the others. Powerful instincts warred within him. He wanted nothing more than to explode through those doors and finish this deadly game of cat and mouse.
Chapter 17
Adonis, too, had grown weary of playing. His goal was within reach. He would have revenge for his beloved Drea and their unborn son. She had been a true innocent in the COBRA raid that had decimated the Cervantes family.
For her, it had been just another boring business function. Drea had never cared to be intimately involved in those, but this one had proved to be her demise. Now, he would never know his son. But vengeance would be his. Now he had two potential females to bare him a son. Even better, in a twist even he wouldn’t have foreseen, the two beautiful shifters were connected to COBRA, the same hated group of federal operatives that had destroyed his entire family. Sometimes revenge turned out to be a true thing of beauty.
Adonis didn’t believe for a second he could equal what had been lost that day. The day Drea had stepped in front of a stray, careless bullet, he had lost everything that was important to him. However, he could, and would, avenge his family and continue his family’s lineage.
The time for fooling around had come to an end. Chambers or no Chambers, Adonis would wait no more.