Slide

6

He led them to the edge of the building, pointed to the trail they needed to take, then headed over to the house. He managed to sneak in without alerting any of the guards. He had to ensure the safety of the hostages before anything else. He couldn’t have the whole encampment coming after him, Not when there were so many innocents to save.

When he reached the basement door, he took out the guard standing at the door and slipped inside. He found Ember blindfolded and tied. She flinched when he touched her.

“It’s okay,” he whispered. “I was sent here to rescue you.”

“You’re here to get me out?”

“Yes, hold still.”

He broke the ropes easily, and she pulled off her blindfold. He caught a flash of her bright eyes in the dark. There was something about her that haunted him, but now was not the time to dwell on it.

“You go first,” he said. “I’ll tell you which way to go, and you just keep running until you hit the trees.”

“I know my way out,” she said firmly. He smiled. She had a tough spirit, this one.

“Okay. We’re taking the west doors. Let’s go.”

They jogged through the place, slipping past hallways and main rooms. Slide began to feel uneasy. There should have been more guards. His instincts were screaming that something was very wrong.

As they hit the last room, Slide heard the click of a gun being c****d. He shoved Ember in front of him, pushing her through the door.

“Run!” he roared, turning back to face the room. If all he could do was give them time to escape, then so be it.

When he spun around, he was shocked to find that the room was empty.

It took his eyes a moment to focus on the armchair in the center of the room where one man was sitting, smiling coldly at him.

General Amadou!

“You’ve returned, Slide,” the General said, standing and keeping the gun trained on him. “It’s so nice to see you ... if you’ve come back to us, of course. But that can’t be … Not if you’re letting our hostages go.”

Slide growled, the sound low in his throat. He bared his teeth, just a little. He was about to spring at him, gun or no gun.

“You always were an animal, Slide,” Amadou said. “That’s what I liked most about you. Sometimes when you were fighting, it was like you had no humanity in you at all.”

“Whatever humanity I had left, you killed it,” Slide hissed. Amadou laughed, making Slide clench his fists in a fury.

“Me? What did I do to you? It was all very unfortunate how it went down. But I didn’t mean it. Let’s sit and talk about it.”

“You’re a f*****g liar!” Slide screamed. Amadou shrugged.

“Of course.”

Slide sprang. He shifted in midair. Amadou tried to raise the gun, but he wasn’t quick enough, and the shot went wild. Slide landed on top of Amadou, slashing and snarling at him.

The General held him off with one arm against his chest. The man was strong for a human. At the last second, Slide realized Amadou had been reaching above his head, looking for something to use as a weapon. Slide rolled to the side before the General could smash him in the head with a fire poker.

He spun around to charge the General again, and this time he did get hit. Slide felt sluggish, slow, and weak. He knew it was from his time in prison. Even though he’d worked hard every day, there had not been enough to eat, and he never got enough sleep.

I might not be able to finish him!

Desperation flooded him as he tried to stay in his lion shape. The change was bleeding out of him. In fury and frustration, he threw his now-human form at Amadou’s midsection, sending them both rolling across the carpet. He sat on the General’s chest and started punching him in the face over and over.

His shoulders hurt, and his knuckles were split. The breath heaving in and out of his chest was as harsh as fire. He couldn’t keep this up. He remembered the hostages in a guilty rush. He had to save them first. He couldn’t waste the last of his strength on this guy.

Reluctantly, he got up. The General tried to follow but only rolled in his direction, cursing softly and spitting out a tooth.

“I’ll be back for you,” Slide swore. “I’ll never forget what you did to me.”

Amadou was reaching for the intercom. Slide bolted, trying to shift but realizing that he couldn’t. He wasn’t strong enough. He ran through the house, sticking to the shadows. Soldiers were beginning to run toward the main building, called by Amadou. He'd be long gone by the time they got orders to come after him.

He hit the edge of the woods, nose to the wind. He didn’t need to shift to use his enhanced senses, even though he was far stronger in his animal shape. He could sense the group moving through the forest some distance away. Ember’s scent was closer. She had to be waiting nearby.

He put his head down and jogged steadily through the woods, waiting for his strength to come back so he could shift. He tried hard to get his mind back on the task at hand and not be distracted by his revenge ... which was so close he could almost taste it.

Once I get these hostages to safety, I’m going back for Amadou, and nothing will stop me.