Top Gun Tiger (Protection, Inc 7)

They all jumped backward, raising their tranquilizer rifles.

“Merlin, get Ransom back!” Ethan shouted.

Merlin tried to pull him away, but Ransom dug in his heels. His mouth moved, but whatever he was saying was drowned out in the roar and crash as the thing behind the door smashed through it and burst into the corridor.

It was a bear. But not one like any Destiny had ever seen. Calling this beast a bear was like calling the daeodon a hog, or the T-Rex a lizard. It was bigger than a polar bear, bigger than a grizzly. Even in the wide, high-ceilinged corridor, its sides brushed the walls and the fur of its back touched the ceiling. Its shaggy brown fur covered everything but its dagger-like claws, its gleaming white fangs, and its black eyes. Like the daeodon, this was a beast from another, more primal era.

“A cave bear,” Merlin said, sounding awed.

The bear roared, and both the sound and its glittering eyes were filled with such terrifying rage that all of them instinctively flinched back. For the first time in her life, Destiny knew in her bones what it felt like to be the prey and not the predator.

Then her training took over. She fired her tranquilizer rifle, aware that Ethan was standing right beside her. She heard the puff and hiss of their shots, and saw the darts strike home.

The cave bear roared again and shook itself. The darts clattered to the floor. Destiny wasn’t sure if the bear’s fur was too thick for them to have penetrated or if they had but didn’t affect it, but all they seemed to have done was anger it even more. It came for them in a shambling run with the inexorable deadliness of an avalanche.

“Tigers?” Ethan asked.

“No room!” Destiny gasped. But her own words gave her an idea. “Quick, in here!”

She grabbed Ethan’s arm, beckoned frantically at Merlin and Ransom, and ducked into the nearest storage room. They all piled inside. The cave bear plunged after them, but stuck at the shoulders. But it kept trying, roaring and slapping at them with its immense paws. It was a small room, and they were only a few feet away from it.

“So much for stealth,” Merlin said glumly. “Though on the positive side, we should get reinforcements any second now.”

Sure enough, they heard yelling and pounding footsteps outside. The cave bear withdrew from the room. There was another roar, then a few screams that cut off almost instantly. A moment later, the cave bear roared once more, and stuck its head and paws back into the doorw

ay. There was blood on its claws and muzzle.

In the brief moment of silence between roars, a quiet voice spoke. It was Ransom. “It’s Pete.”

“Then why’s he attacking us?” Merlin began, then cut himself off. “Wait, never mind, they probably drugged him with the same stuff they drugged you with. Hmm. That’s not so good.”

“I’m not drugged.” Ransom’s gaze was more focused now, and he sounded a lot more coherent. “And neither is he.”

“Oh?” Merlin stepped up confidently, though Destiny noticed he didn’t come within range of the cave bear’s paws. “Hey, Pete, you need to turn back—”

The cave bear roared at the top of its lungs, baring its fangs and slashing wildly at Merlin.

“Back off, Merlin, you’re just pissing him off,” Ethan said.

“Same as always,” Merlin sighed, but retreated.

Destiny nudged Ethan. “You try. Remember how you talked me down when I was losing control? Like that.”

Ethan gave her a doubtful glance. “I knew you wouldn’t hurt me. I’m not so sure about Pete. He wouldn’t do it on purpose, but…”

“Then don’t cuddle him,” Destiny advised.

Keeping his posture relaxed and his hands open at his sides, Ethan said, “The battle’s over, Pete. Come back now. Come on, buddy, you can do it. You’re a Marine, so be a Marine. Stand up on two legs and talk to me…”

The cave bear was suddenly gone. A dark-haired man in camouflage stood in the doorway, then staggered and leaned against it.

“Good to see you back with us.” Ethan stepped forward and laid a comforting hand on his shoulder.

Pete jerked away as if Ethan had touched him with a lit cigarette. Then, brown eyes wide, he looked around the room. His gaze settled on Destiny. “Who’s she?”

“Destiny. My—” Ethan paused, obviously not wanting to repeat the “She doesn’t sound Australian” exchange, and settled on, “She’s private security. I’ll explain later. Did you see a radio anywhere? Any sort of communications?”

Pete shook his head. “No, but I saw another prisoner. He was in the infirmary, handcuffed to a bed.”