“You bitch.”
Panic set in the second she heard that voice.Hisvoice.
Cassie wheeled around in time to duck and throw up an arm against the rock inches away from her head.Jarek cursed and quickly regrouped before a second attempt to nail her with the baseball-sized rock in his hand.The jagged edges cut into the skin of her forearm.
She dove into Jarek’s midsection, knocking him back a step as the rock nailed her left shoulder blade.The tripping injury from a few minutes ago started bleeding again.Another jolt of adrenaline kicked in, giving her a boost of strength.Would it last?
“Not this time, Jarek.”She pushed off of him as he tried to slam the pointed edge into her backside again.He missed just shy of her ear.
“You won’t get away this time.”Jarek’s mouth curled into a tooth-baring sneer.He chucked the rock at her head.
She ducked right.The jagged edge grazed her ear.
And then she took off running.There was no time to grab her shoes.Twigs and sharp edges stabbed her feet with every step.She stumbled.The pain slowed her down.A sharp object stabbed her right arch.She faltered, dropped down to her knees before immediately popping up again.
She would have to turn around and fight.Shit.
Stuck behind a slow-ass tractor.
This text from his brothers came as Hudson arrived at the meetup spot.He shot a response asking how long it would take them to get there.
Not sure.At this rate, a while.
He couldn’t afford to wait, so he headed into the thicket without them.He wasn’t alone out here.His other siblings were making their way toward him, or would be soon.The clock ticked on.He’d learned the hard way that time waited for no one.Cassie needed to be found.She needed to know his family was willing to make sacrifices to keep her safe.And she needed to know how he felt about her.Then, she could decide what she wanted to do next once she had all the information.
Everyone had walked away from her.Every single person in her life cast her aside the minute she didn’t fit their ideal or when she made a mistake.With him, was she always waiting for the shoe to drop?She needed to know that he wouldn’t walk away.If she let him in, she would never have to be alone again.
Would it matter to her to hear those words?Or would she write them off as empty promises?
One way or the other, Hudson had to tell her how he felt.Otherwise, he would always wonder what could have been between them.
A bigger problem loomed.He had to find her first and get her to safety.
A commotion to the east caught his attention as he zipped through the thicket.He diverted course, heading toward the screeching noise normally reserved for horror movies.Panic tightened the knot in his chest.
Was it Cassie?
All hope he might have found her died when he entered a small clearing.A pair of raccoons fighting over food was responsible for the sounds.With no time to waste, Hudson cursed under his breath and moved on.
At this hour, she would likely be closer to his family home.He backtracked and prayed he could find her.
Hudson checked his cell for texts.There were no bars out here, no cell coverage.He had no way of receiving a message from Marcus, which meant Cassie could have been on the receiving end of the mountain lion attack, and he wouldn’t know it.
He bit back an expletive and pushed forward.
Cassie searchedthe ground for anything to use as a weapon.A sharp stick.A heavy rock.Anything.
It was impossible to see clearly through the thick underbrush.Could she drop down and feel around before Jarek caught up to her?
The answer came in the form of him taking a fistful of her hair and yanking her backward.She hit the ground hard, flat on her back.Hard enough to cause air to whoosh from her lungs and for her to see stars.Jarek was on top of her in the next second, with his hand over her mouth and nose so she couldn’t breathe.
Cassie bucked with enough force to shake him.She capitalized on the moment of confusion with a knee to his groin.
“Bitch!”Jarek rolled onto his side and curled into the fetal position.She felt around for a rock or anything sharp but came up empty.
Scrambling onto her knees, she screamed for help.It most likely wouldn’t do any good, but she had to try.After being surrounded by Hudson’s family, she’d never felt more alone.It dawned on her that she had real feelings for him, and now he might never know.
Pain screamed through her body as she got to her feet.Her shoulder was now bleeding in two places.She felt a cool liquid run down her side and immediately realized her shoulder blade was bleeding.