Enticing Their Mate(70)

Statler laughed. “You’re threatening me? Surely, your boys have told you that I’ve been enhanced.” He waved his gun—a gun full of poisonous bullets no doubt that would have killed him in the past.

Now, however, the were-killing poison would have no permanent effect on him. One of the reasons he’d asked Tyson and Ford to stay in Florida was because they’d agreed to donate their blood so that he, too, would become enhanced. Armand had to admit he’d never felt better, and those training sessions had made him feel like he was forty again.

Growls and howls arose outside the barn, indicating Statler hadn’t come alone either. No surprise there.

“Seems like our men are doing battle.” Armand had no doubt the Pack would be victorious. It was only a matter of time before they came barging in, which meant Armand needed to take down this man now. Statler had been a thorn in his side for too long.

“You didn’t follow my instructions of coming alone, I see,” Statler said. “Though I knew you were too much of a coward to face me by yourself.” He puffed out his chest, but a hint of worry had seeped into his eyes.

At another deliberate scraping sound, slightly different this time, Armand glanced toward the cart again. Statler reached in his breast pocket and withdrew a lighter and flicked it on. Only then did Armand notice the line of black powder leading to the cart. Oh, shit.





Chapter Twenty-Five





Sarah’s arms and legs were bound, and the dirty gag Statler had jammed in her mouth made it hard to breathe, but she wouldn’t give up. When she closed her eyes, she could picture Riley and Jay running around frantically trying to find her. Because she always returned to the motel after work, when she failed to show, they’d know something was wrong.

The problem was how they’d find her. It seemed as if Statler had driven for hours, and unless they’d put a GPS on his car, they wouldn’t know where he’d hidden her. Once her coffin-like container had come to a stop, and Statler had dragged her into the barn and tied her up, she’d begun to suspect he was using her as bait. She was okay with that, since whoever he was waiting for would have backup. After all, the person would know how evil this man was. The question was whom had he called?

Statler hated the General worse than anything and would relish a showdown, but with the General in Florida, she wasn’t sure he could make it to Canada quickly enough. She doubted Statler was keeping her captive just to lure Tyson and Ford there, since he’d know he’d lose that fight fast.

Once he’d placed her behind the cart, his game plan confused her. Was his intention to wheel out the cart and shout ta-da?

If there was to be a show, she wished that person would hurry up. Two hours of sitting in one position had her legs cramping even more. Add in the fact she was starving and needed to pee, and she was thoroughly aggravated and disgusted with herself. She should have been more aware of her surroundings when she left the clinic.

Sarah looked around for something she could use to cut her ropes, but Statler had moved everything out of reach. Even if she could crawl around the cart to search for something else, he’d probably cold-cock her and drag her elsewhere. No, this position suited her fine.

What seemed like forever later to Sarah, the barn door creaked opened and Statler joyfully greeted his guest. When he asked about the nice flight, she sagged against the wall. The General was here—and just maybe Jay and Riley were, too. Unfortunately, given Statler’s enhanced status, she suspected he would win in a one-on-one fight.

However, if the General was aware she was there, he might proceed with more caution. Instead of making her presence obvious by groaning, she dragged the heel of her foot across the hard-packed ground using short and long scrapes. When the General then asked where she was, hope bloomed.

A loud click sounded, and the General let out a curse. Shit. Something bad was about to go down.

Before she could figure out what it was, loud growls sounded behind the barn, jacking up her pulse enough for her to sit up despite the ache coursing through her. Someone else was out there who hopefully was on the General’s side.

Only then did she detect the smell of sulfur burning. Oh, no. Sarah had to see what was happening. With a Herculean effort, she propelled herself on her back, and using her elbows, slithered like a snake to see past the cart.

Just as she peeked her head out from around the end, a gunshot sounded and her heart nearly jumped out of her body. Had she not seen the bloodstain on the General’s chest and watch him drop to his knees, she might have thought Statler had shot her.

No, no, no! The implication of the General’s death caused sludge to replace the blood in her body. Light-headed, her arms weakened and her head smashed against the ground.