Shifting the loosened ropes, Adi snarls, “God, I’m going to kill him. Just wait until I get my hands on him. His life, as you now know it, is over…soooooo over.” She brushes off the leaves and dirt from her clothes, asking. “Did y’all see which way he went?”
“Which way who went? We only saw the bush rustling, and then you popped out,” Kaden explains.
Adi rolls her eyes. “Ugh, Larson.” She swerves her head in all directions, looking for Larson. “I swear on my grandmother’s grave, the next time I see him, he’s going to wish he’d never been born.”
Kaden chuckles. “Oh, I can’t wait to see that. A small package of dynamite like you exploding on a brute like him...” Rubbing his hand together, he adds, “I’d pay money for that show.”
I remind her, “Looks like he didn’t hurt you. Plus, I thought you two were an item, you know…in love.”
Growling, she snaps, “Oh Pierce, there’s a fine line between love and hate. And yeah, he hurt me, well…my pride, anyway.” Changing the subject, she notices it's just us and asks, “Where’s the rest of the crew?”
I report, “Dani-Jo and Tova were taken. Kole and Jace went after you and Dani-Jo, and we were following a path hoping to find Tova.”
Adi shoos us with her hands. “Well, let’s get a move on it. Hopefully, we’ll find the other two before time’s up.”
Kaden proposes, “I say we take out a few fake targets as we search. The more we take out, the better our chances are at humiliating them when they lose and have to wear their pj’s to the bonfire Friday. I mean, we’re grown-ass adults. Enough of this embarrassment of wearing pj's in front of everyone. I’m over that shit!”
“Okay, just don’t make a large commotion when we do it. We don’t want to draw attention to our whereabouts,” I warn.
We take down at least twenty targets and are now almost in the center of the arena. Glimpsing a couple forms out of the corner of my eye, I ready my ax to throw until I realize that Jace, Kole, and Dani-Jo are together quickly running toward us. Lowering my weapon, I take a deep breath in.
Thank God!
“No shit, you found Dani-Jo,” Kaden praises as he fist pumps the air.
Kole high fives him. “Yeah, she was all bound up and tossed into the thicket close to the river.”
“Those assholes dared to manhandle me like I was a rag doll and had me bound in ropes before I even knew what was going on, then just left me. Why the hell did they do that? Did they think I’d miraculously escape on my own? Thank God they found me,” Dani-Jo vents, pointing to Kole and Jace, “or I’d still be there screaming into the gag until I lost my voice.”
Adi seethes, “Oh, don’t worry, Dani-Jo, we’ll get them back…if it’s the last thing I do. Those heifers did the same thing to me. Except you know who was behind my abduction?”
“Seeing how mad you are, I’m going to guess Larson,” Dani-Jo chuckles.
“Yes, and when I get my hands on him, he’s going to be begging for mercy.”
Jace guffaws, “I sure do feel sorry for him.”
Noticing Tova isn’t with us, Dani-Jo stammers, “Oh—Oh no, where’s Tova?”
Kaden replies, “She was taken shortly after they got you. We waited a couple of minutes to give her time to free herself, but we’ve seen no trace of her or any of the other Superiors. We’ve been randomly taking down targets while we look for her to add to our target count.”
I point out, “Now that we’re all together, we can span out six breaths wide and search a larger perimeter.”
Jace speaks up, “I wouldn’t put it past them to tie her up in some tree thinking we’d only be looking on the ground for her.”
“You have a point, Jace, only I’d hoped she’d have freed herself by now.” I bow my head in defeat.
Jace pats me on the back. “Don’t look so downhearted we can still hope. Don’t discount her determination. We’ll find her. But I still say we look everywhere.”
Lifting my eyes to meet his with a little more fire in my bones, I reply, “Okay, let’s do this.”
31
Tova
Crap! Kage has managed to wrap one of his muscled arms around my waist and carry me off. His buddy here is covering my eyes and gagging me with some fabric. Why? I have no idea because I’m not even trying to scream. My feet are dangling off the ground. I’m waiting for some footing before I counter-attack. I know he can’t carry me forever. As I’m bouncing around like a limp noodle, another person takes my wrists and wraps them with rope.
Oh, hell, no. I don’t think so, buddy. I may have played the damsel in distress, but now someone’s about to pay.
Yanking my arms free from the other person, I manage to fling my inside leg in front of Kage’s, causing him to stumble. He catches himself from completely falling, and he loosens his grip on me. Immediately, the other guy rushes to me as I’m bent over. He throws his arm around my neck, and I go into defense mode. I jam my chin into his side, take my outside arm, and thrust my fist into his gonads. Yelling obscenities, he lets me go and drops to the ground, grabbing his manhood. I rip off my blindfold and the gag, but Kage doesn’t miss a beat and proceeds to bear hug me from behind. I sidestep him enough to allow my inside arm to deliver a blow to his groin.
Refusing to loosen his grip, Kage, barely able to talk, grumbles, “Tova, you don’t play nice.”
“Oh, like you do?”
He’s still holding me, but we’re more crunched over, so I take my head, pushing it as far as I can away from Kage’s face, then fling my head back, delivering the worst head blow I can manage. Seeing stars, I squeeze my eyes shut.
“Damn it, Tova. You busted my nose,” Kage bellows.
“Well, let me go!”
“Ha, you have to do better than this. Some Superior Protectors overheard you and your team talking about wanting to use new self-defense skills. Show me what you got!” he taunts.
“Be careful what you wish for; you just might get it.”
By this time, I’ve already figured I’m going to groin punch him again, then unleash all of my energy into defeating him. Sidestepping one more time, I pound my fist into his gonads. He loosens his grip, but not entirely. I rotate to face him, then open both of my hands. Flat palmed, I smack his ears simultaneously, stunning him.
He lets me go while he grabs his ears and closes his eyes, yelling in shock and pain. While he’s still bent over, I place both of my hands on his back to steady myself. I lift my right leg back and thrust my knee into his gut.
Down to the ground, he goes.
Oh, but I’m not done. I take my right leg again, lifting it back to get momentum, I ram my shin into his guts once more. I leave him gasping for air, his nose bleeding all over the place and rush to the guy still rolling on the ground, moaning in pain.
“You didn’t think I was done with you, did you?”
Peeking up at me, I repeat the same maneuver and kick him with my shin in his gut as well.
Now that both of my captors are incapacitated, I take off toward the sound of the river, knowing that it’s near the middle of the forest. Hopefully, I’ll find my team there.
I tune into my feline senses and listen for any of them talking. Climbing up this last hill before I can see the water, I hear a few footsteps coming in my direction.
God, I pray it’s not more Superiors.
I jump back behind a tree and into some shrubs, waiting for the footsteps to get closer. Hearing a female voice, I realize it’s Adi. I leap from my position, scaring the hell out of them.
Kole hollers, “What the hell Tova? We were worried about you, and you retaliate against us?”
I throw my hands up in surrender. “I didn’t mean to scare you. I didn’t know if you were friend or foe when I heard your footsteps. So I hid, but when I heard Adi, I got excited.”
“Whoa, your eyes!” Jace exclaims.
Transitioning my eyes back, I say, “Oh, sorry about that. I was just trying to tune in a little deeper to my ability
, so I could find y’all.”
“You found us alright, and now some of us may need to change our undies because you scared the shit out of us,” Kaden scoffs.
Pierce rushes to my side, hugging me tightly. But as his hand closes around my neck in embrace, he notices a matted dried crusty substance. “What the...? Is this blood?”
“No?” I answer, unsure if it is or not.
“That’s not a question you answer with a question, Tova. Why is there blood in your hair? My God, did someone hit you upside the head?” Pierce growls.
I shake my head, but Pierce counters, “I swear when I get my hands on him…”
I place my palm on his chest and explain, “No, Pierce. No one hit me. I head-butted Kage when he took me into a bear hug. I busted his nose. If it's blood, then it’s his blood. He’s a sight to see. He may not be my friend anymore after today. Just saying.”
Pierce, holding my shoulders, looks at me suspiciously. “What? You mean to tell me you kicked his ass?”
I point my thumb behind me. “Oh, not just his. I kicked his dumb partner’s ass, too. Let’s just say they won’t underestimate me again.” As I finish my statement, the buzzer sounds. Laughing, I ask, “Can we go get cleaned up? I’m a mess.”
Everyone yammers that showering is a great plan. We all head back to the cabins because they’re closer. After we’ve all cleaned up, we all walk to the cafeteria together. Adi and Dani-Jo fill me in on their kidnapping. The guys boast about how many additional targets they acquired. Pushing the door open for me, Pierce steps aside, allowing me and everyone else in our group to enter inside. The Superiors have beaten us here. They’re currently in line filling their trays. Kage glances in the direction of the door, and we all take in raccoon eyes and a swollen nose.
Jace grips my shoulders. “Holy Hell, Tova. You did that?”
“Un-huh. And see the guy behind him? He may have a hard time bearing children.”
Letting loose of his grip, Jace teases as he takes a step back, “Damn girl, remind me to never piss you off.”
Sitting down to eat, Pierce taunts Kage, “Say, old man, you gonna be able to eat alright, or do we need to mush it up so you can swallow?”
Kage waffles, “Ha, ha. She didn’t bust my mouth or throat-punch me.”
“Yeah, well, by the looks of it, she beat the shit out of you,” Pierce mocks, unphased.
Kage admits, “I may have asked for it. So, no hard feelings.”
My eyes widen in shock and I snap my head at him, “What? You’re just going to forgive me, just like that?”
“Yeah, I am. You proved yourself out there. You are one badass woman,” Kage admits, shoveling food in his mouth.
Pecking me on the cheek, Pierce commends, “that’s my little Spitfire.”
Adi fumes and points her butter knife at Larson, giving him an ‘eat shit and die’ look. “Well, I do not forgive you that easy! Buddy, you have some explaining to do.”
Larson attempting to explain, “Look, babe…”
Not letting him get another word in edgewise, Adi unleashes on him, “Don’t you ‘babe’ me, honey. Where do you get off thinking you can just snatch me, gag and bind me up and throw me into some bush?”
Larson opens his mouth to speak, but Adi continues, “Nope, you don’t get to talk right now. I’m not some piece of trash you can just haul over your shoulder and leave out for the takin’. I’m your freaking girlfriend. I don’t care what Kage or any of the other Superiors have instructed you to do. YOU DO NOT EVER DO THAT AGAIN! Do I make myself clear? Because if you do, I’ll cut your penis off in your sleep.”
“Babe, that’s a bit harsh, don’t you think? I didn’t hurt you…physically, that is. Now you know we had to do this exercise. What if someone outside those walls decides they like you and want you for themselves? They’re not going to just tie you up and leave you for dead. Oh no. Those people out there rape women, then kill them and cook them for dinner. So, don’t get so freaking pissed off that I caught you off guard. I want you to be as prepared as you can be before we leave these walls, or I’m going to suggest you stay behind because I could never live with myself if something bad happened to you. You are my everything. Don’t you see that? I was doing this to help you.”
I have never seen Larson, so beside himself, it's truly eye-opening to see this level of emotion from him.
“Grrrrr, oh okay…fine then. I’ll forgive you.” She peeks over at Kage and asks, “Do you think we can all take self-defense lessons soon if it really is as dangerous out there as you all say it is?”
“Oh, it is, and then some. We’ll make it a priority to do that,” he says with a firm tone.
Smiling, she affirms, “Okay, it’s settled then.”
We all finish our food and leave for the learning commons, to brush up on history and naturopathy. After our lessons, we hug out our goodbyes and head off to our destinations so we can rest up.
32
Tova
A few days have passed, and we’re all getting ready for the bonfire. Once again, we lost to the Superior Protectors, getting the most targets for the week in training. Not by many, but nonetheless, a loss is a loss. With my fingers twisted with Pierce’s, we hike to the bonfire with Adi and Dani-jo walking beside us. I’m in my most atrocious sleepwear. When we’re closer to the fire, I notice Larson sitting on a log alone on the outside of the circle where everyone else has gathered to either roast marshmallows or hotdogs. I side-eye Dani-Jo, hinting that now’s our time to fill Larson in on his proposal plans. Now we just have to figure out a way to talk to him without Adi around.
Striding to where Larson is, we all plop down around him on different logs. Adi snuggles into his side as he wraps his arm around her back.
“Larson, you not hungry?” I ask.
Shaking his head no, “Nah, not right now. I was waiting for y’all to get here before I roasted any dogs.”
Adi nuzzles him and says, “That was awful kind of you. But if It’s okay with you, I’m going to go cook one. I’m starving. Practice today has my tummy grumbling like crazy.”
“I’ll get it, babe, you just stay here,” Larson insists.
Reaching back and tapping Dani-Jo’s arm, I nod in the direction of the bonfire. Taking my hint, she rises to her feet. I lean over a whisper to Pierce, “Dani-Jo and I are going to go talk to him about Adi. I’ll cook us some food.”
He eyes me suspiciously before replying, “Okay, Spitfire, but I’d rather be the one to cook the food. I need to take care of you like he is her.”
“Love, I can cook for us. No one will judge you for sitting back and relaxing.”
Placing his hands on the tree, he pushes up. “Yeah, that’s going to be a no from me. I won’t eavesdrop. I’ll cook, you chat.”
I shove my elbow into Pierce’s side. “Stubborn!”
“You’re the pot calling the kettle black.” He’s able to catch his balance.
Dani-Jo, Pierce, and I all walk over to where Larson is standing. I’m now roasting a marshmallow because Pierce demands to cook the food.
Dani-Jo stands on one side, and me on the other side of Larson.
Larson gives us the once over. “Oh great, I smell double trouble.”
Letting a half-smile slip, I prod, “So, when do you plan on giving Adi a promise ring?”
Surprised, Larson coughs, “Ummm, what?”
“You heard me,” I declare.
Larson babbles, “Ugh, what if she doesn’t want to spend the rest of her life with me anymore? I pissed her off really bad the other day. I mean… I love her with all of my heart but I feel like I screwed up royally.”
Dani-Jo spouts, “Yeah… you did! But after you explained yourself, she calmed down. I’m pretty sure there’s nothing you could do to ever change her mind about you.”
I reaffirm, “Don’t doubt yourself. I see the way she still looks at you even after two years. You’ve got her…hook, line, and sinker.”
Larson grunts, “Ok, ok. I’l
l ask her soon.”
“How soon?” Dani-Jo asks.
“Ladies, I don’t want y’all to tell Adi. So, I’m just going to keep the details to myself.”
Balling my fist up, I slam it onto my hip. “Ok, fine. Don’t tell us when, but have you thought about how you’re going to ask her?”
“Kinda,” he responds sheepishly.
Glaring at him, I snort, “Kinda? What the hell does that mean?”
“Y’all, I’m a guy, I’m not fluent in romantic gestures. I thought about asking her at dinner. I’ll cook supper and put the ring inside a dark-colored glass of tea, so when she drinks, she won’t see it until she’s done.”
Dani-Jo suggests, “That sounds like a fun idea. Can I recommend maybe a sunset picnic that you make food for?”
I contribute, “Also, she loves flowers. Pierce’s mom has these gorgeous fields of the biggest sunflowers you’ve ever seen. I can go ahead of you and set everything up, scatter rose petals across the blanket and put a small vase of flowers in the center. Just keep that ring in your pocket. Do not lose it. Sneak it into the glass and after she finds it, pop the question.”
Pierce lets one of his lips curl up on one side. Ha! He is eavesdropping, but that smile lets me know he approves of our meddling.
“Y’all, that sounds like a fantastic idea. When the time gets closer, I’ll let you two know. I just don’t want you to let it slip before then.” Larson gives us a wink.
Jumping up and down, I clap my hands. “Eeeekkkk. I’m so excited for you.”
I’ve burned and dropped the marshmallow off of my stick, but I don’t even care. I’m so freaking excited for my friends.
Protecting Tova (Iron Mountain Book 1) Page 18
