by Sierra Brave
Mal squeezed his eyes shut and palmed his face. Mother fucker. “What color?”
“They’re white.”
Mal sighed. “The car!”
“Silver.”
“Toyota?”
“Yep.”
“Son-of-a-bitch.” Mal opened the door, spying Wayne and Derrick. “What the hell are you doing here? I told you not to come.”
Dash poked his head out the door. “Excuse us.” After pushing Mal inside, he slammed the door shut. “You told humans where I live?”
Mal shook his head. “No.”
Dash shrugged. “Then how come there are two mother fucking humans in my yard, stinking the joint up.”
“Man, quit being racist.” He pushed Dash as the doorbell rang.
“Don’t answer—”
Mal opened the door, and Wayne nodded. “Wha’sup?” While extending his hand, the two locked arms before joining in a sideways hug. He repeated the gesture with Derrick. “Come on in.”
Dash threw his hands up in the air. “Yes, by all means, this place could use some white humans.”
Mal snickered. “Don’t mind him. He’s slightly xenophobic and racist.”
“Who’s racist? I’m a shifter and a First American—two marginalized groups. I’m allowed to distrust those who have persecuted both.” He shook his finger.
Derrick nodded. “Fair enough, but we’re not here to jam you up. We just need to check on Mal and make sure he’s okay.”
Dash rolled his shoulders. “Hell no. He’s stupid. Plus, he’s been attacked and dumped.” Mal punched the blabbing werewolf in the arm.
Derrick turned his attention toward the stallion shifter for answers while Wayne pushed his hair back from his forehead while his jaw dropped. “What?”
Dash pulled out his phone and flashed the screen toward the two humans. “Mal’s in love with this tiny, short-ass yet still curvy girl, but after she got the dick, she told him to go on.” He held his hand down toward the ground as if to insinuate Suki was the same height as a Keebler elf.
“Daaammmnnn! Didn’t you lay it down right, Mal?” Derrick held his fist up to his mouth as he pointed at Mal. The werehorse stuck a middle finger from each hand up—one for Dash and the other for Derrick.
Wayne dipped his head closer to take a better look at the picture. “Always surprised me how a gym rat like you went for the meaty girls.”
Squinting, Mal shook his head. “Huh? She’s not big, and she’s not that short either. She’s perfect.”
“What?” Derrick’s head jerked back. “That woman has some major junk in her trunk.”
“Man, shut your ass up.” Mal bowed his shoulders up in an intimidating stance. Dash snickered while returning his phone to his pocket. As he cut a sideways glance at the wolf shifter, Mal directed his human friends to have a seat. “I’ll get you guys some juice.”
“Thanks.” Both men claimed places to sit on the couch.
“Don’t mess with those pictures. They are persons of interest in a case I’m investigating. I need Mal to look at them and see if he recognizes anyone.”
“Why is fuckface Oliver one?” Derrick asked, leaning over as he stared at the photos.
“Huh?” Dash rushed over. “You know one of those guys?”
“This fucker right here works out at our gym. He’s obsessed with Mal but is too embarrassed to schedule an appointment with him so he’s always stalking him or lurking around his locker or asking nosey questions about his workout routine.”
“Seriously?” Mal returned, a glass of orange juice in each hand. As he handed off the drinks to his friends, the doorbell rang.
“Fucking grand central station,” Dash grumbled as he opened the door. Two men, one fairly close to his age and one significantly older, attempted to push their way past his friend. “What the hell?”
“Where is she?” The older male, a tall cowboy whose mostly gray hair retained a few streaks of dark black appeared to direct his question to Mal as he attempted to move past the werewolf’s outstretched arms.
“Uncle, slow down.” An equally tall, lean, and tan man with a head of jet-black hair and Suki’s eyes placed a hand on his elder’s shoulder. His eyes darted toward Wayne and Derrick. “Those two aren’t…”
The fine lines around the man’s mouth became more evident as he peered at the humans and frowned, his body tensing before he looked at Dash. “Officer, my daughter is missing, and I have reason to believe your friend might know where she is.”
As he studied the younger of the two men’s faces, recognition dawned on Mal and he gasped. “You’re Collin Marks.” He looked at the other man. “Are you Suki’s father?”
Dash relaxed his posture and invited the two men inside. “Sorry I don’t have more room.”
Mal’s heart raced and the room seemed to spin. “What do you mean by missing?”
Mr. Marks eyed Mal suspiciously. “Her grandmother’s frantic because she missed her check—in call. Never happens because Suki likes to make sure her Granny is feeling okay and taking all her meds.”
The vein in Mal’s neck throbbed. “I’ve been trying to contact her too, but she won’t answer. I thought maybe she was mad at me, but I couldn’t figure out why. We went on a nice run in the woods, but then she ran back ahead of me and by the time I got back she and her car were gone. She sent me this message.” He showed Collin his phone.
He read the curt response and lifted an eyebrow. “That didn’t strike you as strange?”
Mal shrugged. “Well, yes, but I thought maybe I said something wrong or…I didn’t know.”
“Not her style. She talks things out, and where are the emojis?”
“We haven’t texted back and forth too much yet. I wasn’t positive.” Mal rubbed the back of his neck with his palm. “Oh, God. Where could she be?” He turned to Dash, meeting his gaze as if begging for help.
Dash pinched the bridge of his nose and grimaced before pulling his phone from his pocket. “I’m going to call a guy I know. I need you guys to meet him at the doc’s place to pick up some of Suki’s clothes for scenting. They’ll need something she wore recently from her dirty clothes. Can you do that for me?”
“Sure.” Suki’s father nodded as he spoke. “Do you have a lead?”
“Maybe. Let’s exchange numbers, and I’ll be in touch. In the meanwhile, I’ll send some officers to start a search but we need the clothes as soon as possible.”
Suki’s father pushed his lips together tightly as he sighed, his eyes welling with unshed tears. Collin nodded as he replied, “We got it.”
After Suki’s relatives left, Dash asked Mal to look over all the pictures on the table. Mal took his time, staring at all six for nearly thirty seconds each. He shook his head. “If I’ve ever seen any of them before, I don’t remember.”
Derrick tapped one of the photos. “As I said, this dick is Oliver Farris. My money is on him. He has a membership at the gym. Want me to call and get his address for a warrant?”
Dash nodded. “We’re going to need his address, but we can’t have him running his mouth about shifter business in a police station where humans will be.” His gaze darted from Wayne to Derrick and he scrunched his nose. “No offense.”
Chapter Fourteen
Suki’s entire body hurt, every muscle stiff and sore from sleeping in the kennel the prior evening. She’d been able to pick the lock but only for practice. She could hear Ollie moving around on the floor above. Sounds of her trying to escape were likely to reach him if she made her move too soon so she waited. Unfortunately, the next morning after he freed her and fed her another bowl of dry cereal from a dog bowl, she learned he often worked from home.
After more so-called training which amounted to forcing her to mimic dog tricks in exchange for his praise, he had left the television on for her while he went upstairs to work. Suki ignored the game shows broadcasted on the screen while she searched the room from one end to the other. All she found hidden away were the manuals fo
r the television and video game system. Damn it. She rubbed her wrists before massaging the kinks in her shoulders and knots in the muscles of the small of her backs.
She stood on his chair and stared out the window, looking as far from one side to the other as she could see out of the small opening. The tinted portion of the outside world didn’t offer many answers. She was in a virtual stranger’s house with a small back lawn leading to a thicket of trees. Her only company was the two squirrels she spied darting past her viewpoint. She sighed, envying their freedom. Shifters weren’t meant to be locked up—she needed wide open spaces with room for her to shed her clothes and take her second form. She sniffed, holding back tears as her stubborn nature stoked her determination. She couldn’t wait much longer. Tonight, come what may, win, lose, or draw or die, she was making her stand.
While she was free of restraints, and Ollie was in the other room, she took the opportunity to use the bathroom in peace and to wet a washcloth and take a birdbath in the sink. As the sweat washed away so did her doubt, strengthening her. Placing her fingers over the purple mark beneath her eye, she sucked air through her nostrils, pursing her lips as the coolness of her frigid hands provided a tad of comfort to the painful spot. Alright, Ollie, you son of a bitch, I’ve taken all your abuse and humiliation and now I’ll come out on the other side.
“Where the fuck are you?’ His voice roared. She dropped to her knees and then crawled out of the bathroom. He frowned. “I was nice enough to leave the television on for you; I expected you to sit and watch.
“Sorry, Master.”
He stormed over to her and grabbed her by the hair, yanking so hard he nearly lifted her off her hands and knees. “Get in your bed!” As soon as he released her, she scurried to the large floor pillow. The degradation weighed on her as she performed her three turns before sitting, but she needed to live to see her family again and to feel Mal’s arms around her. She kept her mouth shut as she waited for him to bellow out more orders. He stared at her for a moment, squinting, eyeing her with contemplation before frowning. “Nah, can’t trust you. I need to go to the store. You’re going back in the box.” He pointed to the dog crate.
Without complaint, Suki made her way over to the kennel and entered. He shut the door behind her before clamping the padlock.
“Be good.” He kicked the cage before walking out of the room.
Suki held her breath, counting the seconds until she heard the engine of his truck crank. Her ploy had worked. Since she’d hurried to the kennel, he hadn’t bothered to bind her hands, but he probably wouldn’t be out long. She removed her improvised lock-picking kit from under the blanket before placing the edge of the bobby pin in the keyhole. She used the paperclip to scrub the tumblers until she was able to release the mechanism. Blowing out a heavy breath, she pushed her fingers through the grating and removed the shackle before she pushed open the door and crawled out.
She rushed across the room, heading straight up the steps to the basement’s exit. At some point, the doorknob had been reversed so the room could be locked from the outside, but the effort Ollie had taken to do so was laughable considering all she had to do was push the bent paperclip’s end inside to pop the button. She pushed and pulled as hard as she could, but the door wouldn’t budge. Ollie had to have barred the door some other way, possibly with another padlock with a fixed staple latch or maybe a barrel slide bolt. Shit.
Lifting her foot, she kicked the door as hard as she could. She heard a clanking sound but was no closer to escape. Her heart raced. He could return any minute, but she only had one option left. She closed her eyes as she began to pick the lock on the anti-shifting collar. Something sharp scraped against her neck as she stuck the end of her tension wrench in the hole. She stilled, holding her breath before continuing with the utmost care. Her heart crept up into her throat as she scrubbed across the pins but once they lined up and she was able to unfasten the collar, the blades retracted. While expelling the air held in her lungs, she flung the collar down on the floor. She shed her clothes at break-neck speed, beginning her transformation immediately afterward.
Shifting on a flight of poorly constructed, wooden stairs was less than ideal, but she had no choice but to plant one foot on a step ahead of the other and steady her hands against the door. She took a deep breath and concentrated on what she wanted her body to do as if mentally flipping the go-switch. The familiar clicking and popping sounds heralded her change. Her tongue filled her mouth and soon her head was large enough to accommodate her new teeth. Her neck lengthened and the rest of her took shape.
Suki gasped, taking in a breath before rearing up and landing her front hooves on the door. It bowed and creaked, the jam cracking against the pressure. She repeated the action twice more before the door burst open. As one of the steps broke beneath her heavy back foot, she sprung forward, her powerful shoulders barely clearing the opening. She shimmied back into her human form just before flopping into the narrow hallway floor. Rushing down the stairs, she nearly tripped, but a two-step hop saved her, allowing her to land on the floor without injury. She gathered her clothes, dressing as she escaped the room.
Once she’d made her way into the main part of the house, she searched the immediate area for her car keys but didn’t see them. Damn it! Did he take them with him? Panicking, she turned around in a circle, uncertain of where she was or where to go if she ran. She looked around for a landline, but Ollie didn’t appear to have one. Fuck! Her gaze fell on a stack of mail, and after checking the address, she realized she had been driven at least an hour away from the mountain.
Sweat dampened her brow and her stomach turned flips as she raced to the foyer and stood behind the front door. Her first impulse was to bolt, but fear froze her. What if he’s setting me up for a worse training session? Her heart pounded and her pulse raced. Knowing she might never have another chance for escape, she slipped her finger behind the curtain covering the window next to the door. She braced herself, taking several heavy breaths before stealing a glance. The small opening didn’t allow her to see much besides part of the front porch. For all she could tell, Ollie could have been hiding around the corner. She backed away and rushed into a nearby room, hoping for a better look.
Finding a sliding glass door leading to the back yard, she ran toward the path to freedom. Her palms pressed against the cool glass as she peered out at a small concrete patio with a picnic table. She clicked the lock open, but couldn’t make the door move along its track. Looking down, she spied the sawed-off broomstick Ollie had used to stop burglars from easily entering his home. She yanked the impediment out of place before sending the door flying open.
As soon as she stepped out into the fresh air, the sound of her kidnapper’s truck pulling into the driveway kickstarted her fight-or-flight response and she took off running for the woods. Branches broke and twigs snapped beneath her feet as she fled, hoping to put as much distance between her and Ollie’s home as she could before he realized she was missing. Shit…leaving the door wide open wasn’t my grandest moment.
Her legs ached and her clothes were wet with sweat when her inability to catch her breath forced her to stop. She leaned against a nearby tree, her fingernails nervously scraping against the bark as she panted.
The unmistakable roar of an engine belonging to a motorbike or ATV or some other type of vehicle Ollie could use to catch-up with her made her gasp. She bolted like a scalded cat, unbuttoning her shirt as she ran. She continued to move, losing one shoe and then the other and leaving both behind. She stopped for only a few seconds to step out of her pants and panties before continuing her mad dash barefoot and naked.
The noise from the engine grew louder as Suki’s feet transformed. She glanced over her shoulder, seeing Ollie racing toward her on a motorized dirt bike just before her head shifted, completing her full transformation. She had been exhausted, but her horse was not. Galloping as fast as her four legs would allow, she neighed in response to her pursuer’s screeching. She
couldn’t make out what he was saying, but she didn’t imagine he had anything nice to say about her.
“Are you sure this is the right place?” Dash opened the unlocked door of a truck in the driveway of the house Oliver Farris had listed as his address on his gym membership.
“What are you doing?” Wayne sounded indignant. “Don’t you need a search warrant?”
Derrick slapped him on the back of the head. “Weren’t you listening? This can’t go to court.”
“Hey!” Wayne rubbed the area where he’d been hit.
“Shut up!” Mal whispered. “If he catches us here and Suki’s not in the house, he could tip someone off to kill her.”
Dash hopped out of the truck, holding the registration card. “Yep, this is the place. Don’t worry, Mal. We’ll find her. I sent several guys to scent her clothing. They’ll split up. A couple will search the woods where these guys have held girls before, and the rest of the search party will start going door-to-door. If she’s being held her anywhere on the mountain, my guys will find her.”
Mal’s stomach felt as if he’d swallowed a string of Christmas lights with a short. “I hope so.”
Dash squeezed the werestallion’s shoulder. “Now be cool. There’s no need for this guy to know we’re on to him. Since he knows you three, you should hide while I ring the doorbell.” Dash moved to the front porch.
“Fuck that! Derrick, you and Wayne go around back to make sure he doesn’t have an exit.” Wayne removed a crowbar and baseball bat from his vehicle, handing the bat to Derrick before the two hurried around the side of the house.
Dash rang the doorbell, but after a few seconds, when no one answered and they didn’t hear a sound, Mal pounded on the door. “Hey, open up!” He kicked up as much noise as he could.
Clapping his hand on Mal’s shoulder, Dash said, “This dirt road is pretty secluded. Nearest neighbor is some ways down the road. Let’s kick it open.”