Page 22 of Sanctuary

Paige turned her head slightly. “Stand your ground,” she whispered, but not quietly enough, and the men heard.

The men came at them quickly. Paige turned and kicked out at the one that drew closest first. Misty had Sarah’s hand, and she was ready to run, but a low growl stopped her in her tracks, and she froze.

“Well, look at that,” the second man said. “You were right, we can have it all.” He drew the knife on his belt, and the flashlight glinted against the eight-inch blade.

“The girls make good bait,” said Dale. “I would stay very still if I were you,” he told them.

Misty wanted to run, but she was too afraid. She knew they couldn’t trust these men.

Dale walked around the girls and peered sharply into the darkness. “Here kitty kitty,” he whispered, crouching and waving the knife slowly in front of him. “Watch our flank, Baxter,” he said.

“We should run,” Sarah whispered.

“Something big is out there. The last thing you want to do is run,” Paige whispered back.

Misty had heard of peeing your pants because you were so scared, but she never really understood. Now she did. Her bladder felt heavy, and she was worried she would embarrass herself.

Something large sprang from the bushes, and Dale charged at the same time Sarah produced the most blood-curdling scream Misty had ever heard.

“Run!” shouted Paige.

Chapter Fifteen

Savage Sanctuary Island, Simon

Terror ran through Simon’s veins as he moved through the forest. Indra ran ahead and disappeared. The scream had come from the direction of the lighthouse. Simon took the small road they used for transport. It divided into a rarely used path which was the quickest way. He hadn’t heard the hunters speak. Maybe one of them had a high-pitched voice.

The rain wasn’t at full hurricane force, but it came down in sheets and obscured the dense forest. Simon stumbled on a branch and tried to use his large hand to stop the fall. He failed and slipped a few feet in the mud before he was able to sit upright. Now was the hard part where he had to stand. His right knee hurt the worst, but they were both bad. After a deep inhale, he pushed up and groaned as his knees took his weight. He began moving again.

He stopped a few minutes later to listen. A man’s voice came from a short distance away and Simon relaxed slightly, thinking the strange scream was one of the hunters.

“That damn cat almost got me. I sliced him though. We’ll hunt the sucker down.”

Simon would hurt them. He would find the cat and stitch him up. He saw red as his anger built. The other man’s words stopped Simon in his tracks.

“I need to get out of this rain. Let’s go after the girls first. The cat will die and we can find his carcass later. We’ll have a trophy with only a little work.”

The girls. Simon had heard a girl scream, and these men were the cause. He stayed where he was and continued listening as the first man spoke again.

“I want to watch that cat bleed out. Better yet, I want its blood running down my hands when it dies. I’ve needed this for a long time. Man against nature and all that. This is what I’ve lived for and no girls, hurricane, or pack of cats will stop me. You go after the girls. Save one for me.”

Where the heck had the girls come from? The cats were loose on the island and girls were not allowed. Indra came out of the foliage and Simon ran his hand across the tiger’s back, keeping him close. Soft snarls came from the cat’s throat.

The hunters split up. Simon, sick with worry over the cat who was injured, made the decision to follow the man going after the girls. He couldn’t see him but could hear the noise he made on the trail, and that was over the sounds of the storm. How this man qualified as a hunter was beyond Simon’s comprehension. Had he ever watched big cats hunt? They were silent and stealthy. This was why these men paid so much money to go after the lions on the island. They had no idea what they were doing.

The man continued moving in the direction of the lighthouse. If there were girls looking for safety, the lighthouse door would be locked, and they wouldn’t be able to get inside. The hunter would catch them, and Simon knew his intentions were bad.

Girls were Simon’s worst nightmare and he wasn’t happy that he had to deal with the hunters, Jerry, and them, whoever they were. He had never been good around women. His large size scared them. The younger they were, the worse it was because they cried. Simon did everything he could to stay away from all females. Well, except Yolanda. She’d always treated Simon nicely.

The hunter veered off the path and Simon followed a short distance. The man’s movements became louder before he started cursing.

“Where the hell is the damn trail?”

He was lost, but Simon knew exactly where they were. If the girls went to the lighthouse, he could find them and help. Or should he? They wouldn’t trust him and they would be scared. He changed course toward the actual trail. Trust or not, they were in the beginnings of a hurricane, and if he didn’t help, they could die. It would be worse if they were attacked and eaten by one of the cats. The hunter could fend for himself.

When they moved far enough away from the man, Indra stopped growling. As they drew closer to the lighthouse, he growled again.

“Stay back, go,” one of the girls shrieked.

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