Page 26 of Savage Desires

Tabitha nods in agreement. Reghan looks nearly catatonic. Lucy and Stacia are weeping, but at least they are being quiet.

"Continue in the same direction. Stay low and hidden," I say.

We all look at each other like we may never see each other again, and I hate to think it's a genuine possibility. The voices get closer, and I wave my hand, indicating we've got to go now. As quietly as we can, we start moving. Lexis doesn't hesitate to break away from the group. Reghan is the next to go her own way. I watch Stacia and Lucy huddle close instead of listening to what I told them to do.

Tabitha gives me a knowing look, and I shrug. There's nothing we can do about them now. Tabitha and I start picking our way through the woods several feet apart. Everything is quiet, and I begin to relax, thinking maybe the men hunting us went in the other direction. Then a scream rends the air, making the hair on my arms stand up.

Tabitha's eyes are wide, and I shoo her forward with my hands. Another scream sounds, and I don't think; I just react. I run towards the screams instead of away like any sane person would do. I told Tabitha I wasn't sane, and this proves it. I trip on a root, barely keeping myself upright as I move too fast through the trees. It doesn't take me long to find them. Two men dressed in black have found Stacia and Lucy.

I take a quick survey of the situation. Lucy is hanging limply over one of the men's shoulders while Stacia grapples with the other. He's quickly overpowering her. I don't hesitate as I run at the man with Lucy. I catch him by surprise and tackle him to the ground. Lucy drops, and I can only hope she's okay.

"Stupid bitch," the Russian man growls.

He moves quicker than someone his size should be able to as he lunges at me. Now that I don't have to worry about Lucy being in the way, I point the gun at the man and pull the trigger. He looks at me with shocked eyes as his hands move to his stomach, where blood is quickly blooming on his shirt. He stumbles towards me, and I pull the trigger again, hitting him in the chest. He falls to his knees, then tips onto his stomach.

I'm so distracted watching him fall that I don't notice the second man abandoning his struggle with Stacia and heading my way. He's on me so quickly I don't have time to react before he's got me on the ground. The gun falls from my hand and skitters across the ground out of reach. I struggle against him, but it's no use. He's got me pinned to the ground, and no matter how many times I try to break the hold, I just can't.

"You fucking killed, Marat," he snarls.

He wraps his hands around my throat and squeezes while I continue to struggle. The way he's sitting on me with his knees pinning my arms means that I can do little more than kick my legs and thrash as he chokes the life out of me. I can hear the blood rush through my veins as my heart races. My lungs are burning, and darkness is creeping into the edges of my vision. I suppose if I have to die tonight, at least I died free.

One second, my eyes are fluttering closed, and I'm making peace with my death; the next, hot liquid covers my face, and the man on top of me topples to the side. I gasp a deep breath, trying to figure out what the hell just happened. I thought for sure I was dead.

"Willow," Tabitha falls to her knees beside me and grabs my shoulders. I'm still trying to remember how to breathe and figure out what happened when she whispers, "I thought you were dead."

"Stubborn bitch, remember," I say hoarsely.

"Thank God for that."

She helps me sit up, and I see the man who attacked me lying beside me, his throat sliced. It finally clicks in my mind that it was his blood that coated my face. I touch my cheek, then look at my fingers numbly. I should probably feel something about being covered in someone's blood, but there's nothing.

"Lucy and Stacia?" I ask.

"They're okay," she says. "We should keep moving, though. If anyone else was out here, those gunshots will lead them here."

She helps me as I struggle to my feet. I have nothing left in the reserves. I have no idea how I will make it out of here. We locate my lost gun and take the two the assholes we killed had on them too. Tabitha abandons her knife in favor of one of the guns. I take the one Kisten gave me and stuff the extra in the waist of my pants since I'm the only one wearing any, and there is no way I'm arming Lucy or Stacia.

Stacia is helping Lucy to her feet, and she isn't crying for a change. She looks scared, but I can see a small fire burning in her eyes. Nearly getting taken again has obviously impacted her significantly. Hopefully, she will hold on to that tiny spark of fire and use it to keep going.

We creep through the trees. Right now, it's stealth over speed. Lucy and Stacia are both injured, and I'm barely upright. Tabitha is hovering near me like she's waiting for me to collapse. It's a fair assessment. It's a miracle I'm standing on my own.

An eternity later, I hear heavy footsteps coming our way quickly. We all freeze for a heartbeat before we move. Stacia and Lucy duck between two trees and into some brush. Tabitha hides behind a tree, holding her gun steady towards whoever is running in our direction. I do the same, even if I'm leaning a little heavier against the tree than she is, and my arm may be a little shaky as I hold my gun.

We wait quietly as the footsteps draw nearer. I let out a choked cry when I see him. Kisten. He found us. I drop my arm and step out from behind the tree. He looks at me with a horrified expression and races to me. He cups my face, then runs his hands down my body like he's looking for injuries.

"Not my blood," I say hoarsely. My throat hurts like a motherfucker. I have a feeling I have one hell of a bruise underneath all this blood.

He roughly pulls me into his arms and buries his face in my hair despite the blood. "Fuck, beauty. I heard gunshots… I thought…"

Tabitha steps out from her hiding spot and chuckles. "She's a stubborn bitch. Can we get the fuck out of here now?"

He narrows his eyes at her, and I have a feeling he's about to tell her off for calling me a bitch, but I don't hear what he says because the world tilts, and blackness consumes me.

CHAPTER NINE

KISTEN

My heart stopped when I heard the gunshots. Lexis and one of the other women darted out of the tree line moments before the shots. I waited to see my Beauty, and when she didn't appear, I knew in my gut that she was in trouble. My gut has never steered me wrong.

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