Page 78 of Runaway
“M-m-mountain lion,” I tried to say, but it was garbled through the gag. The eerie sound came again, this time directly ahead of us. It seemed to widen and echo across the air with painful wails. The grating noise made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. A movement drew my gaze up, and my heart crashed into my stomach.
On a ledge of the rocks above us appeared a long, lithe animal. A sinewy tail became a large, catlike body that stood on a tree branch and peered straight at us. The upper lip twitched as the mountain lion sniffed our direction.
Fear pooled in my trembling stomach. Of all things I'd expected, this was not it. Not that ridiculous mountain lion. The insanity was almost too much to bear.
New questions and fears ran through my mind at top speed. Was I supposed to look bigger or smaller? Bigger, I thought. But how? The cat slipped to the edge of the branch and onto nearby rocks without taking its eyes off of us.
Joshua stumbled back a step.
“It’s massive,” he whispered.
Massive didn't do the beast any credit. While I didn't know much about mountain lions, this one appeared so thick I had little doubt it was mature. It licked its lips. Corded muscles moved on its front shoulders as it prowled down the rocks and toward us. The snow continued to fall between us. Was this the creature that had been prowling around Adventura?
Undoubtedly.
Not for the first time, I both wished for Atticus and feared for him also. How thorough had Joshua been in his attempt to steal me? Had he killed Atticus? The thought brought hot tears to my eyes. I didn't dare ask as I blinked them back. Hope was too precious to destroy.
Part of me wanted to throw myself closer to the cat—surely Joshua would leave me behind then—because I wasn't sure which was the greater danger anymore. I could bumble my way back to the lake on our trail and hope to get there with my frozen limbs.
But would the mountain lion let me go?
Also doubtful.
Joshua stumbled back another step when the mountain lion stepped onto a lower rock, whiskers twitching. Joshua grabbed onto the back of my coat, keeping me in front of him as we backed away. A rock slid out from beneath him and we both almost went down, but I righted us at the last minute.
“Easy there, lion,” Joshua crooned while the cat growled. For every step back we took, the mountain lion took another one forward. Snow fell on top of my already frozen head as we skimmed through trees. A new sort of numbness moved through me.
This is good,I thought, foraging through my brain for any positivity that would keep my dimming hope alive. The mountain lion had certainly slowed us down. If we could hold still, Mark would find us all the sooner.
Although he may not have realized yet that I was gone. Without movement, the cold would set in with surprising force. In which case, there were three things trying to kill me tonight.
My whole body shook in another round of shivering as Joshua crouched down and picked up a fallen branch. The mountain lion stalked toward us, body low to the ground, paws deliberate with every step. It let out a low growl that turned into another scream.
Joshua waved the branch so wildly it almost crashed into my head.
“Get back!” he screamed. “Back!”
For just a moment, he'd let go of me. I took a step to the side but fell to my knees as the cat advanced with a hiss, its back curled. The unnerving, grating sound echoed through the forest. Joshua grabbed the branch with both hands.
“Get back!”
Yes,I thought as I tried to stand without the use of my arms.Sing, kitty. Sing. Bring Mark to you.
Joshua jerked me to my feet when I tried to stumble away again. “Don't do anything stupid!” he snarled.
The mountain lion shrieked and ran at us with an arched back and puffy tail. I suppressed a scream and fell on my butt. Joshua skirted ahead of me to jab the branch at the mountain lion.
I reached up and ripped the gag off.
“MARK!”
Joshua jerked back to me and barked, “Shut up!” but the cat lunged closer. Forced to whirl back around, he swung the branch at the mountain lion with another cry. I shoved back my feet with all my awkward power and stumbled in the slippery snow.
“HELP! I'm over here!”
Joshua feinted after me, but the cat advanced on him. Joshua stopped with a livid growl, eyes on fire with frustration.
My voice cracked as I shoved through snowy trees, screaming Mark's name. Snow and ice landed on my neck with a painful sting as I barreled through the snow, tied arms held up to protect my face.
