They were mistaken.
They were now the prey.
Chapter Four
Toni shivered in spite of the heat. It was a hot Louisiana summer night, but she was chilled to the bone. Her thin cotton T-shirt stuck to her skin with sweat. She wrapped her arms around herself, desperate for some warmth.
The man with the gun had shot one of his companions. And if he’d shoot his buddy, he’d have no problems killing her. She had to get out of here. But she didn’t know where to go. Here there were three men, at least one of which had a gun. And out there in the bayou were poisonous snakes, gators and a very large predator.
At this point, Toni figured she’d be safer with the cougar, gators and snakes.
The air behind her stirred and, before she could move, a hand was slapped over her mouth. She threw her head back against her attacker to try to throw him off while she brought her gun around. The safety was still on and she flicked it off with her thumb. She’d never shot an actual person before—paper targets didn’t count—but she knew she could do it if it meant her survival. She didn’t even get close before her hand was captured in an iron grip.
“Shh. You’re safe. It’s me.” His voice was little more than a toneless whisper.
His voice broke through her terror. Stavros. Somehow he was here with her. All the fight went out of her and she sagged against him like a balloon being deflated. He slowly released her hand but kept his palm over her mouth. After another second, he lowered that hand as well.
“What are you doing here?” she demanded. She kept her voice pitched low so the men wouldn’t hear her. Toni tried to turn around and face him, but he grabbed her shoulders and applied just enough pressure so she couldn’t move.
He pushed her down until she was crouched by the base of the tree. “Stay here,” he ordered, not bothering to answer her question.
She bristled at the command, but before she could tell him she had no intention of staying anywhere he put her, he was gone. She blinked, unable to believe a man as large as Stavros could disappear so easily, blend so quickly with the surrounding night.
The darkness had thickened in the last while, the slice of moon cloaked by the clouds. She swallowed hard and peered through the trees. Where was Stavros? What was he doing?
He was crazy to take on those men by himself. They needed to call the local police.
She shifted her weight and realized she was no longer shivering. Nor did she feel quite so afraid. Not with Stavros here. She wasn’t sure how she felt about that. She’d never depended on a man before. But these were extenuating circumstances.
Her legs cramped and she moved, shifting her position for a better view of the yard. The three men were still there. One was lying on the ground with another one next to him. The third man, the one with the gun, turned slowly from side-to-side, watching the woods.
It occurred to her this would be a good time to run. With the men worried about the cougar, they wouldn’t be looking for her for the next while.
Stavros, the idiot, was out there with the wild cat and the gunmen. She didn’t even know if he had a weapon or any way to defend himself. No way could she leave him. Her hand tightened around her weapon and she forced herself to relax her grip.
No, she couldn’t leave Stavros. They were in this together.
She hunkered down to watch the small clearing, all the while cursing men in general and Stavros in particular.
Stavros was back in his jaguar form, sliding through the underbrush. The scent of blood filled his nostrils and he twitched his whiskers. The injured man might die from his wounds if they didn’t get the bleeding stopped soon. Not that he cared. They’d come to hurt Toni.
“Do you see him, Roy?” Paul asked. He was sweating profusely now and blood continued to seep from his wound.
“No. Now shut up and let me listen.” He swung his flashlight from side-to-side, sending its beam over the surrounding woods. Roy was nervous. Stavros could smell it. He had to take this man down first. He was the deadliest of the bunch, the most unpredictable.
Stavros launched himself from the shadows and leapt toward Roy, easily clearing twenty feet in one leap. He swiped at the gunman with his long, lethal claws. The gun in Roy’s hand jerked and his shots went wide.
Roy screamed, but the terrified yell was quickly cut off when Stavros sliced through his jugular without a moment’s remorse. Blood spurted from the wound and Roy fell to his knees and then backward, hitting the ground hard. The gun and flashlight dropped beside him. The flashlight rolled a couple of inches before stopping. The light created a pool of light around Roy, spotlighting his dead body.
The other two men yelled in terror as Stavros disappeared into the shadows and blended once again with the night. “What the hell was that?” Paul screamed.
The other man was crossing himself and praying. “That ain’t no cougar. That thing was huge.” He stumbled to his feet and backed away.
“Don’t leave me here, Billy,” Paul implored. “Help me.” His friend ignored him and ran, leaving Paul to his fate.
Stavros circled around and caught the fleeing Billy as he abandoned his friend. The man pissed his pants when he caught his first glimpse of the massive jaguar. Stavros wrinkled his nose at the pungent smell. The man held his hands out in front of him as though he could ward off Stavros, but nothing could save him from the jaguar’s wrath. Stavros raked his deadly claws across Billy’s throat. The wounded man clutched his shredded neck and fell to the ground, gurgling out his last breaths.
Stavros turned his back on Billy and silently padded back to Paul, who was valiantly trying to pull himself toward Roy’s body. Paul caught a glimpse of Stavros and whimpered as he dragged himself closer to the abandoned gun. Stavros beat him to the weapon and shoved it aside with one large paw. The illumination from the flashlight allowed the other man to see him perfectly.
He hunkered down next to Paul and stared at him, deliberately intimidating the man. He had questions and he wanted answers. He also didn’t want to waste time with a lengthy interrogation.
Paul whimpered and Stavros began to shift, intentionally keeping the process slow to add to the man’s terror. Paul was crying and calling out to his deity for help by the time Stavros was a man once again. Stavros could have warned him to save his breath. He suspected that Paul and his buddies had aligned themselves with a dark god who would never let them go.
They’d sealed their own fate.
“Who are you?” Paul asked. “What are you?” Tears ran down his face and snot ran from his nose.
“Who sent you?” Stavros asked. “And don’t lie to me.” He tapped the side of his nose. “I can smell a lie.”
Toni was hyperventilating. She only realized that startling fact when her vision started to dim. That was no cougar in the clearing behind the house. The cat was enormous. Too huge to be real. Yet it was very real. And its coat was black.
Jaguar.
She’d caught a glimpse when the moon had momentarily peeked out from behind the clouds, and another when the large cat settled in front of the light from Roy’s flashlight.
Impossible. Jaguars didn’t exist in this part of the world. And, as far as she knew, there were none as gigantic as this one.
The animal made quick work of two of the men. Toni cringed, feeling pity in spite of the fact these men had come to harm her. Dying at the hands, or rather the claws, of a big cat was a hard way to go.
The animal prowled closer to the injured man, hunkering down in front of him. Toni was surprised the beast didn’t just attack, especially because of the bloody wound on the man’s leg.
Toni blinked when the animal began to change. She rubbed her eyes with her free hand, unable to believe what she was seeing. There was no longer a large cat in the clearing, but a man. And not just any man. Stavros.
And he was stark naked.
She swallowed hard. Okay, she’d either just gone on a bad drug trip—and she’d never done drugs in her life—or she was hallucinating. There was no other explanation for a giant jaguar to become a man.
Then she remembered the jaguar tattoo she’d seen on Stavros’ back. That had to be it. Her mind was obviously manufacturing the connection. Toni pinched her arm and frowned when it hurt.
She was awake. Stavros was still in the clearing with the injured man. And he was still naked.
Had it been Stavros all along? Had she created the jaguar to protect her out of her imagination? Toni was too scared and confused to make sense of any of this.
“Who sent you?” Stavros asked. “And don’t lie to me. I can smell a lie.” It was his tone more than his words that sent a shiver down Toni’s spine. Slowly, she came to her feet. The muscles in her legs protested after being in an uncomfortable position for so long. She inched closer to the men, unable to take her eyes away from the macabre scene unfolding before her. She kept her gaze averted from Roy’s dead body.
“A guy. I don’t know who he is,” Paul hurriedly added. “Honest. He asks us to do stuff for him from time to time.”
“And what do you get in return?” Stavros asked. His tone was calm, but Toni heard the underlying fury.
Paul shrugged and rubbed his hand across his face. He was trying to act tough, but even Toni could tell he was scared. His hands were noticeably shaking. “Money.”
“Money.” Stavros chuffed and it sounded exactly like a big cat.
Toni’s chest was rapidly heaving and she forced herself to breathe in through her nose, hold it for a second and then slowly release it through her mouth.
“For that you’d kill a woman.” Stavros raised his hand and it morphed into a giant black paw complete with razor-sharp claws.
Toni froze in place and blinked, but the image didn’t change. Her breathing quickened again.
“No. He didn’t want her dead. He just wanted her.” The man clutched at his leg and tried to pull himself away.
“What does this man look like?” Stavros asked. He didn’t move position, and his very stillness was intimidating. He was like a jaguar toying with his prey. Toni found the image unsettling.
Paul shrugged. “He didn’t come himself this time. Sent another guy. Strange-looking dude. Spooky too.”
“What does this mystery man look like?” Stavros asked once again.
“Tall, dark hair, good dresser. Always in a suit.”
Stavros swore long and low. Toni had the feeling he knew who Paul was referring to. Was Stavros involved in what was happening to her?
Toni crept closer, needing to understand what was going on, why this mysterious man was targeting her. Stavros jerked his head in her direction. His nostrils flared and the clawed paw disappeared, replaced by a normal arm and hand in the blink of an eye.
Toni felt nauseous. Her skin was clammy. What was going on? The whole world had gone crazy.
“Are you going to kill me?” Paul asked. Toni was wondering the same thing. There was no doubt he was capable of it. Dressed, he was formidable. Naked, his true character was revealed. Stavros was a dangerous predator.
In spite of the seriousness of the situation, Toni’s fingers itched to hold her camera, and she cursed the fates that she didn’t have it when it was usually close at hand. The play of light and shadow on Stavros’ skin made him look primal and fierce. All the muscles of his body were delineated to perfection. He was hunter and protector. With his hair flowing down around his shoulders and his square jaw tilted to the side, his face was masculinity personified. The images she could capture of Stavros would rival anything she’d ever done. No, scratch that, they would be the best work she’d ever do.
Stavros picked up Roy’s gun and flowed to his feet, his movements fluid and smooth. He held the gun in front of him and Toni held her breath. “No. I’m going to let your boss do that when you don’t deliver. And, trust me, by the time he’s done with you, you’ll wish I had killed you.”
He turned and walked toward her, leaving Paul yelling after him.
Toni ignored the man and focused only on Stavros’ face. He looked calm but determined. He stopped in front of her, reversed his hold on the gun and handed it to her. She took the weapon. It felt heavy in her hand. Roy would have used it on her if he’d had half a chance. “Go inside and pack up your things. It’s no longer safe here.”
Toni did her best to ignore the fact he wasn’t wearing any clothing. “We need to call the police.” That was the sensible thing to do.
Stavros shook his head. “The police can’t help you. You’re dealing with something beyond your wildest nightmare.”
“But you can help me.” It wasn’t a question, but he answered her.
“I can.” He tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. “I will. I won’t let anyone hurt you.”
“Who are you?” she whispered.
He shook his head, wrapped his arm around her shoulders and led her toward the house. She kept her gaze away from the two dead bodies as they made their way to the front door.
Paul groaned and called after them, begging them not to leave him. Toni stumbled, but Stavros kept her moving forward.
“It’s locked,” she told him. “I went out through the bedroom window.”
Stavros raised his hand and she heard the locks unlatch. “Now it’s open.” He turned the handle and pushed the door open. The living room light came on by itself. She gasped and stood there, trying to process yet one more impossible thing.
“I’m going crazy,” she muttered. “It’s the only explanation.”
“No.” He placed his hands on her shoulders and squeezed. “Not crazy. Pack up your things and come with me. I’ll explain everything once I have you safe.”
She could do this. It wasn’t like she had much choice. No way was she staying here with two dead bodies and an injured man outside. Still, she couldn’t help but ask, “What about the guy in the yard?”
Stavros shrugged. “He has his cell phone if he wants to call for help. I don’t think he’ll contact the authorities. And I’ll be surprised if there’s a trace of any of them left here by morning.”
Toni shivered, stepped inside and hurried into the bedroom. She carefully set both guns down on the bed before turning on the bedside lamp. She looked longingly at the bed. What she really wanted to do was crawl under the covers and pretend none of this had happened, but that wasn’t an option.
Thankfully, she didn’t have much stuff to pack. She was used to traveling light when she was on the road. It didn’t take her long to stuff everything into her duffle bag and carefully place both weapons in an outside pocket. Then she went to the kitchen and packed up her laptop and cameras, placing them carefully into their protective cases.
When she was done, she rinsed off the few dirty dishes and set them in the drain tray on the counter. Then she threw what little food that remained into a box. Once she left here, she wasn’t coming back, not for anything.
Stavros patiently waited while she worked, but there was a sense of anticipation, of readiness about him. Whatever was going on, it wasn’t over. Not by a longshot.
“You’re naked,” she blurted. Heat crept up her cheeks and she knew she was blushing. But really, she couldn’t ignore the elephant in the room any longer. Stavros was standing naked in the living room like it was no big deal.
And it was a plenty big deal. It was impossible for her not to notice. His hair flowed around his broad shoulders. And the man didn’t have a six-pack. He had an eight-pack. She could easily see him gracing the cover of any magazine. And he’d never have to be airbrushed. He was perfection.
“Let’s get out of here.” He reached for her duffle and slung it over his shoulder. “We’ll take your car. You won’t be coming back here.” Stavros lifted the box of food and tucked it under his arm. He raised one
eyebrow in question when she hesitated.
Okay, so he was going to ignore the fact he was naked. If he could, then she could too. Toni took a deep breath and glanced around the room. Nothing of hers remained. She couldn’t help but feel that her life had irrevocably changed. Whatever was going on, she needed to get to the bottom of it, needed to understand how her life had gone from normal to crazy in the span of a few hours.
And right now, Stavros was the key.
It might be smarter to run back to the city and catch a flight home to Maine, but deep in her gut, Toni knew the problem would only follow her.
No, as much as she might want to flee, she had to stand her ground and fight whatever storm was coming her way.
She squared her shoulders, slung her camera bag over her shoulder and grabbed her laptop bag. “I’m ready.” She turned off the lights and strode past him. She paused on the porch long enough to lock the door before heading to her car.
The sedan she’d rented at the airport was still sitting where she’d parked it the day she’d arrived. Stavros opened the trunk without the key. Toni ignored that little tidbit. The man was Houdini, not seeming to need keys for anything. She set her bags next to the duffle and the box.
“Do you have a purse?” he asked.
She shook her head. “My wallet is in my camera case.” She rarely bothered with a purse considering she was always dragging around her camera bag or a knapsack. She dug her car keys out of her bag and clutched them tightly in her hand.
Stavros closed the trunk and then went around to the driver’s side and opened her door. Paul must have heard them, because he called out again. She glanced toward the backyard. He was bleeding heavily from his wound and that would attract all sorts of critters.
“You can’t help him,” Stavros told her. “He signed a deal with the devil and the devil always collects.”
A shiver went down her spine. Why did she have a feeling Stavros meant what he said literally and not metaphorically?
Lure of the Jaguar: Hades' Carnival, Book 7 Page 4
