Feral Escape (Catnip and Cauldrons 3)

“You probably can't get in by the start of this semester, but how about January?” Onyx asked.

“Yeah, I'll get my transcripts and stuff together once I figure out where I'm going to settle down.” Molly flicked a glance in his direction, and his stomach lurched. It hit him—he wasn't ready to let Molly go yet.

Then of course, she still needed someone to protect her. The threats to her life hadn't been eliminated just because she wished it so. But if he kept insisting to be the one to protect her, would she read too much into it? With a shock he realized he didn't care if she did.

Before they started whatever was going on between them, he'd basically told her he only wanted a fling. Yet somehow he found himself mentally calculating how much he could get for his house if he put it on the market tomorrow. One or two “for sale” signs in Cole's neighborhood had definitely caught his eye. A place surrounded by a little bit of woods for some shifter privacy would be ideal, but he didn't have the first clue how to voice any of this to Molly.

She wouldn't take him seriously. She wanted to start a new life. Start school. Maybe help run a freaking clowder.

None of those things included a guy like him. But did he want it to?

He did.

How could he make her believe him?

Judging by the pain in her chest, Molly thought her heart might actually be breaking. They'd parted ways with Onyx and Cole after dinner. The urge to run instead of getting into his truck with him had hit her hard in the parking lot. But when he'd held the door open for her she couldn't stop herself from climbing in, even if she could feel their time together screeching to a halt. Ivan had warned her he wasn't looking for a mate. He'd been honest from the start. If her heart had gotten tangled up, it was her own damn fault. But that didn't mean she could do this any longer without getting hurt.

She sucked in a lungful of air before blurting out. “I think I'm going to stay here with Onyx and Cole. You can go back home whenever you want.”

Molly heard Ivan take a deep breath and steeled herself for an argument.

“It's still not safe for you,” he said with deathly calm staring ahead through the windshield.

“I realize that and I appreciate everything you've done for me, but I'll stay with Onyx and Cole. I'll be safe there. No one should know I'm at his house.”

“People have already seen you in Catcall Falls. How long do you think it will take for word to spread that you've been spotted there? It won't take them long to track you down. The college is in the next town over, not some alternate universe.”

“Listen, I appreciate your concern, but if you want me to be honest—” Molly paused because this was the part that hurt the most. Her pride and her heart.—“I can't do this anymore.” Her voice rose as she waved her hand back and forth between them before she continued. “I'm not asking you for anything more; I know you don't want that. But I'm scared if we keep doing this friends-with-benefits thing, this protector/girl-on-the-run thing, I'm going to end up getting hurt. It's not your fault; it's mine.”

As his truck started up the hill leading to the bridge spanning Crystal Lake, Ivan struggled to frame what he wanted to say. Since they'd parted ways with Onyx and Cole, he'd sensed Molly slipping further away.

With the sun hanging lower in the sky, the water shimmered and sparkled below them, making him wish he'd remembered his sunglasses. A few scattered orange cones lined the shoulder of the bridge, and he eased off the accelerator. Knowing the area a little better now, he judged Cole's house was less than five miles away. If he could just get them there, they could work this out. He needed to look her in the eye when he told her he wanted more than some fuck-buddy arrangement with her.

“What, you have nothing to say?” she pressed.

Oh no, he had plenty to say to that. “Molly—”

Before he could finish, a sharp impact sent his chin into the steering wheel.

“Fuck!” He shouted, struggling to sit back and keep control of the truck. His seat belt clamped down, yanking him tight against his seat. He turned his head to check on Molly, but another jolt struck, wrenching his neck.

A glance in the rear mirror showed a big, green SUV getting a little too close for comfort. He had to get them out of here before this psycho sent them nose first into the water. Slamming his foot on the gas, the truck roared and shot forward, putting distance between them and the asshole who seemed determined to push them over the guardrail. Four hundred horses of turbo diesel power rocketed them forward, but the damn SUV behind them kept pace. Fuck if it wasn't the same vehicle he'd spotted earlier. Finally they made it off the bridge, and Ivan continued to push his truck’s limits.

His neck snapped forward as once again they were struck from behind. This time their tormentor slammed into the left fender, causing the truck to spin. Molly's scream echoed in the cabin. The tires caught on the edge of the road. Ivan barely had time to shout at Molly to “hang on.”

The truck flipped and rolled. Glass shattered. Airbags exploded. His head slammed into the window.

Molly's screams and the roar of the truck's engine were the last things he heard.

Twelve

As she came to, Molly blinked several times, her brain not wanting to process what she saw. Pain filled her heart when she looked at Ivan.

“No, no, no,” she whispered as she tried to reach him. With the amount of blood covering his face, he had to be dead. Why did she have to pick a fight with him tonight? He didn't seem to be breathing. She fumbled with the seatbelt, trying to get to him. They were hanging upside down.

“You're a hard pussy to snatch,” a harsh voice from outside snickered.

A scream tore from her throat at the face peering in at her from the busted windshield. A set of hands, unrelated to the face, roughly cut the seatbelt, and she fell to the roof, glass stabbing into her hands and knees in several spots.

The bastard outside reached in and yanked her through the windshield. Before she even saw their faces, she blacked out.

Ivan cautiously opened his eyes to see fractured moonlight spilling in through his windshield. A cracked windshield that was torn out on one side, and he was looking through it upside down. Turning his head to the side caused piercing pain to slice through his neck and skull. Breathing hurt, but he pushed the pain aside. Shoving the deflated airbag out of the way, he attempted to catalog his injuries.

Toes moved. Feet flexed, legs wiggled, arms, everything checked out. Touching his forehead, he encountered blood, but his vision was clear, so whatever damage had happened could wait.

Molly. He had to get to Molly. She could not wait. A breeze drifted in, and he turned his head in her direction. Her seat was empty. The seatbelt cut and dangling. He scented her blood, her fear, and at least two panther shifters.

A roar of rage exploded from him.

They took Molly. Enforcers had obviously caught up to them and pushed them off the road. He groaned as he fought the airbag carcass to reach into his pants and pull out a knife.

Hacking and sawing at his seatbelt until it gave way winded him. He dropped to the roof and groaned as his knee locked up. Taking a couple deep breaths, he stretched his leg out and shifted his weight. When his knee seemed steady he crawled out of the truck.

If he could find his phone, he could track Molly by the necklace she wore, provided she hadn't lost it in the crash or the goons who had grabbed her hadn't realized what it was and thrown it away. Patting his pockets, he came up empty handed. It dawned on him the phone had been sitting on the middle console at the time of the crash.

Get it together. His mouth felt thick, his thoughts fuzzy, but he crept back into the truck to search for the phone. Nothing.

He popped open the glove box and took out a flashlight. A quick search of the dirt surrounding the truck finally located the phone. Smashed to pieces. So much for the fancy protective cover the sales guy had promised could withstand a car driving over it.

He surveyed the area, trying to get his

bearings. Cole's. They'd been maybe four or five miles from the cottage when they'd been ambushed. If he could get to a computer, he could log onto the tracking site and get a bead on Molly's location that way.

He needed to hurry. If Enforcers had Molly, she didn't have long before they killed her...or worse. Long buried memories fought to the surface. Things Ivan never wanted to think about again. Things he thought he'd excised by leaving the Enforcers. He went back to the truck one more time, pulling out his go-bag and the directions to Cole's house. He studied the directions Molly had written down just this morning, in case they wanted to go exploring while Onyx was doing other things.

Molly's neat, tiny handwriting made him grind his teeth. He had to find her.

Calling on his lynx form, he shifted. He'd cover more ground on four feet than two. Clamping his jaws over the backpack, he took off running.

Nausea rolled through Molly's stomach, but she fought the urge to be sick. Her mind dipped and swirled with all sorts of hazy dreams and hallucinations she desperately tried to claw away from. The back of the vehicle she found herself sprawled out in jostled her with every bump it hit. She clamped her lips shut to avoid moaning in pain. A foul, bitter taste made her curl her lips in disgust, but she managed to keep quiet. They didn't need to know she was awake yet.

Tears burned behind her eyelids. Ivan was dead. Before they'd grabbed her, she'd caught a glimpse of him hanging limp in the driver's seat. That much she knew had been real.

Focus. Think.

The airbags had deployed, but he had still banged his head somewhere. Fresh blood had dripped from the cut on his forehead. Before she could reach out to him, she had been brutally yanked from the truck, and everything went dark.

Ivan. She'd never get to tell him how much he meant to her. That she loved him.

Every glance she darted in the direction of her kidnappers revealed nothing. They seemed so focused on taking her wherever they were going. How long had she been unconscious? How far had they taken her? One finally turned around. She snapped her eyes shut.

“I think she's awake.”

Shit.

“Hit her again.”

She tensed waiting for the blow to come. Refusing to open her eyes, she could only hear one of them shoulder his way back to her. Then a foul smelling cloth jammed over her nose and mouth. She struggled to hold her breath to escape whatever drug would knock her out again. Her captor was patient. When she finally gasped for air, it came filtered through the drugged fabric. Blackness claimed her.

Keeping to the woods as much as possible made the journey to Cole's house take even longer. He kept at it though, because he couldn't afford to have someone spot a lynx running through town carrying a backpack. He was taking a huge risk. When he arrived at the high wall surrounding Cole's backyard, he dropped the pack. Stalking back and forth, he searched for the best point of entry. Once he found a rock to give him a little boost, he grabbed his gear and sailed over the wall. Reaching the back door in a few strides, he thumped his paws against it. Onyx must have been near the door, because it opened almost immediately. Shock showed on her face as she stared down at him.

“Ivan?”

He shifted, not concerned if his nudity made her blush.

Her hand shot out to touch the bloody spot on his head. “What on earth happened? Are you okay? Where's Molly? When we got back and you weren't here, I figured you went to the movies or something.”

“I wish,” he growled. “They took her. They ran us off the road and took her. My truck is totaled. Where's your computer?”

Onyx stepped back and pointed to the kitchen table, confusion furrowing her brow. Ivan paused long enough to grab a pair of pants out of his bag and slip them on, not bothering to button them.

He sat down to her laptop and called up the website with the tracking application. It killed him to take his time, but he didn't want to have to reenter the data and waste more precious seconds. He got the correct screen. A green light blinked steadily.

While he called up the map and coordinates for the location, he motioned Onyx over and asked for her cell phone. She handed it over, and he downloaded the tracking application then keyed in his information.

Please work.

He tapped the phone until he found the application. Her green blip still blinked from the same location. Without meaning to, his mind strayed to the look on her face when they'd woken up together this morning. So full of trust. The enormity of hit him like a sledgehammer. She trusted him to keep her safe, and he'd failed her. Getting her back safely was his only priority right now.

Onyx kept focused on everything he did, then checked the computer screen. “I know where that is, it's an abandoned chicken farm. I used to pass it every day on my way to school.”

“Where's your car?”

“Wait, let me go with you. I can help.”

“No fucking way, it's too dangerous.” He rifled through the pack for a shirt, shrugged it on, and stood up.

Onyx wriggled her fingertips at him. Sparks of electricity danced at the tips. “I've been working on my magic. I can be useful.”

He took a second he didn't have to spare to consider her. It might be convenient to have her. He'd seen firsthand what her magic could do. But his obligation was finding Molly. She'd been taken again because of him. Besides, even though he knew Onyx could kick ass, he didn't want to risk something happening to her.

“Where's Cole?”

“On campus.”

“Call him. Take down the address and you two can meet me there.”

She grabbed her car keys off the counter and handed them to him. “Please be careful.”

Pain and nausea twisted Molly's stomach in knots. Her brain wasn't exactly moving at full speed, but a sense of wrongness pounded inside of her. Her mind might be moving sluggishly, but she had enough awareness to know she was someplace bad.

Well, at least I'm not stuck in a cave by myself again.

Although, she had a feeling in a few moments she'd wish she were back in the cave.

The hard floor underneath her both hurt and chilled her body. Her shoulders were numb, and she couldn't feel her feet. She wriggled her lips. At least nothing covered her mouth. Although, that wasn't necessarily a good thing. It probably just meant they were so far away from other people gagging her was pointless.

She sucked in a few deep breaths in an attempt to calm herself.

Curiosity got the better of her, and she forced her eyes open. She caught a glimpse of two men sitting at a table. Then her eyelids clamped shut again.

“She's coming around,” one of the men said.

“About time. I want to have some fun with her before Z gets here.”

That doesn't sound like the type of fun I'm going to enjoy.

Now would be a great time for someone to rescue her. Except, Ivan was dead. She couldn't stop to think about it now or she'd lose her shit. It would be hours before Onyx and Cole realized something had happened. She fought to relax her body and slow her breathing so they'd think she was still unconscious.

“You're not fooling anyone sweetheart, rise and shine.”

Molly sighed and forced her eyes open again. She examined her captors. They were both tall, hulking brutes, but her perspective might be skewed since they'd thrown her on the floor and were looming over her. The more talkative one had thick black hair, a square jaw, and what appeared to be a pretty buff body.

Fan-freaking-tastic.

Molly had taken a few self-defense classes, but she'd be no match for him. She tugged at her wrists. Especially with her arms tied behind her back. Shifting and attempting to make a break for it might be even more dangerous. She had no idea what they turned into, but most likely it was something that could eat her little kitty body as a snack.

Kidnapper Number Two wasn't any less tall or built.

“I don't know why Z is so obsessed with this bitch. She's not that hot. Look how small her tits are,” Jerk Number Two said.

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; Causing a fatal car crash and kidnapping her weren't enough, now they were going to insult her. A tiny spark of anger flared inside. She might be going down, but she'd go down fighting. Kidnapper Number One gathered her hair at the nape of her neck and yanked her into a sitting position.

“Ow!”

Ignoring her protest of pain, he turned to his partner. “Oh, I don't know. I think she's kind of cute. I've always had a soft spot for redheads. I don't think we should kill her. We'll tell them she's dead, but we can keep her as our own personal sex kitten. Got a nice little cage back at my place she'll fit in perfectly.”

Molly did not like that plan at all.

Number Two seemed to perk up at that idea. “I don't know. We should give her a test run.” He turned and looked down at her. “I hear you like the big cats, sweetheart?”

Number One thought that was hilarious and laughed.

The two assholes were not only terrifying her, but they were also distracting. Molly tried to ignore them and focus on the building. Long, hollow, mostly empty, and dark. Now that her sense of smell had returned she realized her surroundings smelled pretty foul. Metal filing cabinets of various colors and sizes lined one wall. A silver-gray table with four matching chairs sat in one corner with a bare bulb hanging down over it for illumination.

Why she cared about her surroundings baffled her. It's not like she had access to a phone to call anyone and tell them her location. Phone! She dug in her back pockets, but they were empty. Dammit! The two knuckle-draggers could have taken it, or it could have fallen out during the accident. Either way she didn't have it.

Number Two eyed her up and down again, he licked his upper lip in an obscene way that made her want to vomit.

“Let's play house, baby. You be the door and I'll slam you.” He punctuated the ridiculous statement with a vulgar hip thrust. Wild laughter followed. The jerk found himself very funny apparently.

“I know you're Enforcers being paid to do this.” Engaging them in conversation was probably not her brightest idea, but maybe she could find a way out of this.