A shiver rocketed through her body.
There was no need to guess what he meant.
Instead of immediately delivering them to Dr. Gardner, he was going to take them somewhere else and rape them while he worked to get himself the most amount of money he could wring out of the crazed scientist.
When her back bumped against the piles of rubble they’d been clearing when they first heard the man’s approach, Cassandra realized it was over.
There was nowhere else to go.
The end of the line.
Rose’s hand suddenly landed on her thigh, fingers spread wide. At first, Cassandra thought the other woman was justdrawing comfort from her presence, from the fact that they were in this together.
But then she felt one of Rose’s fingers move.
A moment later, another disappeared.
And it clicked.
Countdown.
The other woman had something planned, and whatever it was, she was going to enact it when she counted down from five.
The man continued to talk, but Cassandra was no longer listening. Every muscle in her aching body tensed, and she prepared herself to follow Rose’s lead. They had to assume that the mercenary had a weapon, and while he might not want to kill them, he wanted his payday too badly to risk it, that didn't mean he couldn’t shoot to incapacitate.
Still, she would follow whatever Rose had planned.
Two fingers still touched her leg.
The man continued to advance, confident he had them where he wanted them.
One finger.
She rocked on the balls of her feet, wishing she’d been able to spot one of the guns. If she could get to it, she wouldn't hesitate to shoot the same way she hadn't hesitated to shoot her own father when it was clear he was going to kill her and her sister.
The second that final finger moved, Rose darted forward. With practiced ease, she went in low, below the light’s beam, and caught their would-be kidnapper around the legs, taking them both down.
As he fell, the man lost his grip on the flashlight, and it clattered to the ground, rolling off somewhere.
“Get the light, find the guns,” Rose shouted, and Cassandra didn't hesitate to follow her order.
While the other two tussled, she battled against her fear for Rose and quickly scrambled for the flashlight. Once her fingerscurled around it, she quickly moved the beam around the area where she’d fallen when the explosion went off.
There.
Something glinted in the light.
Behind her, Rose cried out, and for a second, Cassandra faltered. Maybe she should go to Rose and help her. There were still two of them against the man, and since he hadn't fired any shots yet, maybe he didn't have a weapon on him.
Deciding her best move was to go for the gun like Rose had told her to, she ran for it, dropping down and snatching it up into her hand. It felt heavy, but in a good way, it provided not just protection but could be the difference between life and death.
Another grunt from behind her, and then she heard Rose cry out again.
“Cassandra, syringe, he drug …” Rose’s voice wavered and faded as whatever she’d just been injected with obviously began to work quickly.
It didn’t matter, though, she had the gun and the flashlight.
Aiming the light right in the man’s face as he pushed to his feet, leaving Rose’s limp body lying beside him, she didn't hesitate to raise her weapon. She wasn't going for anything less than a kill shot. There was no time to play around. She didn't know if the guys were okay, or if there really was someone else there, she had to be smart and protect herself and Rose.
