“I don’t know.” The truth. Nadirah hadn’t paid much mind to the route they took.
“You might not, but she does.” The general fixed Farah with a stare, but she remained undaunted and silent, her lips clamped tight.
The general inclined his head, and one of his hired guns pointed his weapon at Nadirah’s belly.
“What are you doing? She’s pregnant!” Farah exclaimed.
“I know, and it would be a shame to lose her and the baby, but then again, she’s already provided proof that pregnancy is possible, making her redundant. So I guess the question is, how many people have to die before you tell me the way?”
Farah hesitated, and without the general making any kind of gesture, another gunshot rang out. A glance to the left showed a reserve worker dead on the ground.
“What’s it going to be? My patience is waning. Next shot is in her gut.”
The threat led to Farah’s chin dropping and her shoulders rounding. “Don’t harm her. I’ll lead you to the village.”
With glum expressions—in direct contrast to the jovial general’s—they set off on foot, the trek long and arduous, mostly because of Nadirah’s leaden feet. She couldn’t believe Farah spared her life but condemned that of the harimau.
The stunned stupor lasted until they reached the village. Upon entering, relief filled Nadirah, as no one seemed to be around, a relief short-lived as Phoenix, wearing only hip-hugging shorts, dropped down from the tree they’d been calling home.
The general smirked. “If it isn’t the AWOL lieutenant. You’re a hard man to find.”
Phoenix glared and growled. “You sadistic bastard. Let the women go. This is between you and me.”
“Who says I’m here for you?” scoffed the general. “Why would I want a defective therianthrope when I can have some fresh ones to play with?”
The anger drained from Phoenix, leaving something much colder and darker in his expression. “You should have left me alone, because you just signed your own death warrant.”
And with that statement, the tigers attacked.
Chapter Eighteen
Phoenix thoughthimself done with warzones, but finding himself in the midst of a battle where men fired guns while tigers snarled brought back unpleasant memories. Even worse, he didn’t have a weapon to help. Zafira, Johan, and many others had switched into fur and claws. Zafira, no surprise, dove into battle with Johan by her side. They fought because the alternative might be worse than death.
As striped felines baited the armed mercenaries—one rushing head-on while another crept up from behind—the scene devolved into chaos with much screaming and fatalities. It wasn’t just the mercenaries, though, staring sightlessly at the roiling sky. While the harimau could heal grievous wounds via shifting, head shots killed. It didn’t help that some of the shifters, in the midst of fighting, would get a severe enough injury that morphed them back to their two-legged shape. Their nakedness, along with a lack of claws and teeth, put them at a disadvantage.
Since Phoenix could do little to help, he strode for the general with determination. “Call off your men.”
“Why would I do that?” mocked the general.
“Because, if you leave these people alone, I’ll go with you willingly.”
“So conceited. I already told you I’m not here for you. I’ve had people searching Malaysia for therianthropes before you ever sailed to its shores.”
A man went running past Phoenix, a tiger hot on his ass. Predictably, the cat won. A quick glance around showed most of the mercs either on the ground, about to get taken out, or running for the jungle. It led to Phoenix feeling slightly more confident as he announced, “Your hired army isn’t faring well. I’d suggest you start running if you want to survive.”
“Why would I run like a coward when I still have this advantage?” The general pointed his gun at Nadirah’s head.
An icy chill stiffened every muscle in Phoenix’s body. “You want to shoot someone, then shoot me. I’m the one you’re pissed at.” He held out his arms to make himself a tempting target.
“You’d like that, wouldn’t you?” sneered Davidson. “But I’m not dumb enough to fall for it. If you want the woman to live, then you’ll tell them to stand down.”
“You’re the one who needs to call off your men.” Only a few remained, but they’d formed a back-to-back square with guns pointed outward. The tigers outnumbered them but couldn’t get close enough to attack without getting shot. Given they’d already lost three to death, the rest proved cautious.
“On your knees and surrender,” snapped the general as he began to realize he might have been overconfident.
“Once you let Nadirah and Farah go.”
“I don’t give a rat’s ass about the old lady, but…” The general nudged Nadirah’s head with the muzzle of his gun. “She’s coming with us.”
