Page 6 of Great White
I’m looking at a woman like that right fucking now. Clad in leather, with dark kohl rings around her hazel eyes, and a body so hot it’ll burn you to ash.
Yeah, that’s the kind of bitch I’m talking about.
“Listen up, recruits.” She paces back and forth in front of me and the five other men standing in a row. It’s a muggy summer night, my shirt is clinging to my chest from the perspiration, and there’s a strong earthy scent lingering in the air. Dust kicks up as her combat boots brush across the ground while we all watch and listen to this little firecracker speak. “You’re here for one reason. To survive. This is your test to see what you’ve got.” She stops right in front of me and stares into my eyes. Or at least tries to. I have a decent foot on her. Her energy is abundant though. In this case, like in many cases, size does not matter. “You want to be part of the Deltoro cartel?”
“It’s what I’m here for,” I answer whether she is looking for a response or not. The corner of her sweet mouth curves up, with her eyes still trained on mine. The small gesture makes something inside me crackle like a malfunctioning fuse box. “The question is, how long are you going to last?”
I try not to smile, but damn I want to crack a comeback. It would be fun to spar with this one. That’s not what I’m here for though. Fun. Nope, what stands in front of this country boy is life or death. That I know.
“Gentleman.” She begins to pace again. “In a few short minutes you go from being the world’s greatest predator to prey. You will be hunted. You will be killed.” She turns an about-face and bluntly discloses, “The weak will be left to be eaten by wolves. Unless you survive. Unless you show us you are the wolf. You prove you want to devote your life to the Deltoros. Because once a Deltoro, always a Deltoro.” She zeros her focus in on me again. I pretend not to like it, but I do. The raw animal instinct inside me is thirsting for her. I pump the brakes on that uninvited hormonal response. I have to stay focused. Getting laid is not what I’m here for, and by the sound of it, if I don’t make it through this night, I won’t have to worry about it ever again either. That’s a big bummer.
“You’ll have a five-minute head start. And then, God speed.” Her tone offers no sympathy, and I can’t help but respect that.Bad. Ass. Bitch.I’m sold. “If you do happen to survive, there will be red tags attached to tree branches. Follow them to find the meeting point.”
I hear the sound of a shotgun get cocked behind the line of us, but it’s too dark to see who and how many are standing there. The only light given is the full horror movie moon overhead, and the sole headlight of a Harley.
“Well, what the hell are you waiting for?” She places a hand on her hip expectantly. “Run.”
The other four pause for a second as they comprehend what she’s saying, but I am already off and running into the thickness of the woods. I hear heavy footsteps and rustling behind me as the other men follow suit. I don’t have much of a head start, but I’ll take what I can get. I run deeper into the forest, my survival instincts kicking into high gear. A gunshot rings out in the near distance, and I duck, but stay moving on my feet. The smell of damp moss and dry earth trails after me as I search for a safe place to lay low. The darkness doesn’t add any favors. I can barely make out the tree branches before they scratch me across the face. Daunting animal sounds add to the anxiety. A long, low howl at the moon makes my heart jolt.
I calm my breathing and find some focus. I can survive this. I’ve survived worse. I just need to be smart.
A snap of a twig to my right causes me to pause. I hear it before I see it, two figures wrestling a few yards away from me. I crouch down. My only option is wait and watch to see who becomes the victor.
From the little I can see, they are evenly matched in girth, and both put up a determined fight. Their grunts and groans echo out into the night until one man’s growls grow louder than the others before a gunshot rings out. Fuck. I petrify like a statue, unsure if the victim is the hunter or the hunted. Heavy breathing is all I can hear now, and only one silhouette is standing in the not-so-far-off distance. I hold my breath, compelling myself to become invisible. To fuse with the stillness of the forest. I need to make it through this night.
Right there and then, the figure begins to dig, with his bare hands it looks like. A shallow grave for the recently departed I conclude. I spy the whole time, silent as a hunted church mouse. The minutes drag on until I hear a thump. The body has been kicked into the hollowed-out earth. It takes no time at all for the figure to finish his job and move on to find his next target. Which is sure as hell not going to be me.
The silhouette disappears into the darkness, and I allow myself to exhale some deeper breaths.
If I am going to survive this night, I need to be smart. I need to do more than just hide. I need to blend into the background. Become one with the environment.
I begin to unbutton my shirt when I feel something poke me behind my ear.
“Found you,” she hums, and I break out into goosebumps.
“Didn’t realize you were lookin’ for me, darlin’.”
“Don’t flatter yourself,” she scoffs. “Stand up.”
I stand slowly and steadily, keeping my hands up. I turn cautiously to face her, the slivers of moonlight through the trees highlighting her features like an angel from above.
A fallen angel, but an angel, nonetheless.
“Didn’t realize you were part of theReindeer Games.” I stare straight down the barrel of her handgun.
“Why not? Think I’m afraid of gettin’ dirty?”
“No, darlin’, I definitely don’t think you’re afraid to get dirty,” I cautiously flirt. “It’d be a shame to get blood splatter all over that pretty face, though.”
“You should have hidden better.”
“You almost sound disappointed.”
“You love to flatter yourself, huh?”
“Who else will toot your horn better than yourself?”
“Only egotistical maniacs.”
