Page 104 of Body and Soul

I took another sip of whiskey, the liquid courage burning a path down my throat. “We go in hard and fast. Hit them before they have a chance to regroup. We'll need to neutralize their perimeter guards first, then breach the compound. I have a map of the campground.”

I reached into my jacket and withdrew a folded map, spreading it out on the scarred surface of the bar. Bear leaned forward, scanning the detailed diagram of the cult's compound.

“I presume they’ve all gathered here in the center. They like to circle their RVs with the smaller vehicles toward the middle of the campground. Once we're inside, we'll have to move quickly,” I continued, tracing a finger along the map. “Locate Eli, secure him and then… If possible, I’d like to locate my sister, Daniella, and extract her as well.”

Bear studied the map intently, his brow furrowed in concentration. I could see the tactical gears turning in his mind as he assessed the layout of the compound, calculating risks and formulating strategies.

“Your sister's in there too?” he asked, glancing up at me. “How long?”

I swallowed hard, a muscle ticking in my jaw. “She's been with them all her life.” The words tasted like ash in my mouth, the bitter tang of failure and regret.

Bear grunted, a sound of acknowledgement and understanding. He'd seen his fair share of broken souls, lost to the seductive pull of false salvation.

“Two extractions then,” he said, straightening up from the map. “Eli and Daniella.” He fixed me with a hard look. “I hope you're prepared for the possibility that she might not want to be rescued.”

I met his gaze with steel in my eyes. “I'll deal with that when the time comes. Right now, our priority is getting inside that compound and locating them both.”

Bear nodded, a sharp jerk of his head. He turned to survey the bar, his booming voice cutting through the low murmur of conversation. “Listen up, Riders!” he called, commanding instant attention. Scarred faces turned towards us, eyes glinting with anticipation. “We've got ourselves a job.”

The scent of pinesap wafted on the chill night air as I crept through the forest, my footfalls silent on the bed of fallen needles. My prey was close. I could hear the distant murmur of their voices drifting from the campground ahead. A thrill of anticipation shivered down my spine. These cultist bastards had taken what was mine. Stolen my mate. And for that, I would paint the forest floor with their blood.

I was fully unleashed, the shackles of Shepherd's conscience cast aside. Unfettered and feral. Keres incarnate. The primal beast within me yearned to rend flesh from bone with teeth and talon. To gorge myself on their terror and suffering.

The primal hunger for brutality pounded through my veins, feeding my bloodlust. Visions of the coming slaughter flashed behind my eyes. Bones snapping. Screams gurgling. Entrails steaming. My cock throbbed almost painfully, pulsing in time to the frenzied beat of my heart. Destroying those who took what was mine would be the ultimate release.

I prowled forward through the shadowed pines, every muscle coiled and ready to strike. The reek of cheap cigarettes assaulted my nostrils as I neared the ring of tents. Low conversations rumbled, the bored chatter of men unaware that death stalked them in the darkness.

Bear's hand signals flashed in my peripheral vision as he and the other MC members melted into the tree line, fanning out to secure the perimeter and cut off any attempts at escape. Gavin remained at my side, a sleek shadow armed with ruthless efficiency. His presence was a tether, keeping me from fully surrendering to the howling bloodlust. I needed to be able to come back, to be human again because my little rabbit would need those other parts of me to be whole. I had to stay under control for him.

My focus narrowed to a laser point on the largest RVs huddled together in the center of the camp. He was in there somewhere, my scared little rabbit. Every cell in my body strained toward them, desperate to reclaim what had been ripped away from me. The need to hold Eli in my arms, to erase every mark and memory of his suffering, was a physical ache in my marrow.

But there would be time enough for that after I painted this forest red with the blood of those who took him.

My lips peeled back from my teeth in a feral grin as Bear's men melted out of the shadows like wraiths, converging on the cult sentries. The snap of a neck, the wet gurgle of a slit throat, the muffled thud of a body hitting the ground…

I watched with savage satisfaction as the guards crumpled lifelessly to the forest floor, their eyes wide and glassy in death. The coppery scent of fresh blood mingled with the pine, an intoxicating perfume that made my pulse race and my mouth water. The beast within me growled its approval, thirsting for more.

But even as the primal hunger surged, Gavin's steadying presence at my shoulder kept me tethered, prevented me from losing myself completely to the feral need. His hand brushed my arm, the barest touch, but it was enough. A silent reminder of what I stood to lose if I surrendered fully to the monster inside.

I drew in a slow, centering breath, forcing back the red haze that clouded the edges of my vision. I couldn't afford to succumb to mindless savagery. Not yet. Not when stealth was still critical. I needed to stay in control until I had Eli safely in my arms once more.

With an effort of will, I wrenched my focus from the cooling corpses to the task at hand.

My nostrils flared as we crept deeper into the enemy camp, searching for any hint of Eli’s scent. Rusted RVs waited in the shadows like slumbering beasts, their paint peeling and tires rotting into the earth. A distant generator sputtered and coughed, the only sound in the oppressive stillness.

My mouth salivated at the memory of the sickly sweet taste of human flesh on a young tongue, the approving murmurs of the cult elders as they fed me their sacrament of blood and meat. They had made me, just as surely as Shepherd had. It was justice that I’d returned to be their undoing.

I prowled from RV to RV, ripping open doors with savage strength, chasing the elusive scent of my mate. But each one revealed only the leavings of the human vermin that infested this place. No sign of Eli. No trace of Dani. No trace of anyone.

Frustration snarled in my gut, twisting and building like a serpent ready to strike. Where were they keeping him? Why couldn't I scent him in the air? The urge to rampage, to tear this place apart board by board until I found him, pounded through my skull.

A flicker of movement caught my eye—a twitch of ratty curtains in the window of an RV set apart from the others,half-concealed in the shadows of the towering pines. My pulse jumped, senses flaring to high alert. Gavin touched my arm, inclining his head toward it. He sensed it, too.

I crept closer on silent feet, every nerve ending sizzling, screaming that my prey was near. The decrepit RV was pitted with rust, but I was sure I’d seen movement inside.

Two armed guards slouched by the door, bored and brawny, cradling assault rifles. The stink of tobacco and boredom clung to them like a miasma.

My heart slammed against my ribs, a war drum urging me to maim, to kill. To paint the rusted metal with arterial crimson. Gavin waited at my side, a sleek shadow with death in his eyes. At my signal, he melted into the darkness to take the guard on the left.

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