On Her Master's Secret Service (Masters and Mercenaries #4)(109)

A horrible hissing sound filled the air as the gator’s jaws opened, and she could smell fetid, rotten air.

The men outside the enclosure laughed as she scrambled away.

They were everywhere. So many of them. Fear threatened to choke her, but she forced herself up. They weren’t attacking. She tried to remember everything she could. These weren’t wild alligators. They were used to being fed by hand. And they were used to easy meals.

She wasn’t going to be an easy meal. The men sent to get her were betting on how long she would last before she begged them to save her.

She wasn’t going to be an easy meal for any of them.

There had to be another exit. Following the perimeter, she found the primary door across the enclosure. Could she make it? Or would they just run around and grab her on the other side? She was trapped and had no idea what to do. Think, Eve.

There was a shed close to the door, and then she saw it, the weapon she needed. There was an emergency phone on the wall of the shed, likely in case one of the workers got in trouble.

How fast could the police get out here? She wasn’t sure if it would help, but she wasn’t going down without a fight.

“Eve, my darling, I must say, you look very attractive all broken and bloody. You know it’s my favorite look on you, but it’s time to get cleaned up. We’re leaving in fifteen minutes. You don’t want to make your first appearance in South America all covered in mud, do you? After all, my slave’s hygiene reflects on me.”

Evans stood with his men now, Petty and Carlos beside him. He stared at her with a possessive look on his face.

She had to get to that phone. Fifteen minutes. They might not be able to save her, but at least Alex would know which airstrip the plane had taken off from.

And then the man beside Evans jerked as a loud bang cracked through the air. He fell to his knees as a red stain bloomed next to the oil stain on his shirt.

“Fucking sniper!” Evans screamed and everyone turned, guns in hand.

And that was when she saw him. Alex. He was running around the backside of the enclosure, away from the gunfire likely provided by Sean or Jake. Whoever was in sniper position had the higher ground, and another one of Evans’s thugs went down, blood splattering against the screen of the enclosure.

Rapid gunfire broke out, and the door slammed open.

She wasn’t alone with the gators anymore. She had to move. Evans, Petty, and Carlos were taking refuge in the monster pit. Eve ran, trying to sidestep the gators. One hissed her way, but she kept moving, trying to get to the other door. Alex was running for it, and she had to get to him before they got to her.

“Stop right now, Eve!” Evans screamed her way.

“We have to get the f*ck out of here.” Panic sounded in Petty’s voice. “Let her go.”

“We can’t let her go. You get her back or I swear to god, I’ll kill you.” Evans was on the ground, staying out of the line of fire.

Alex made it to the door first, kicking his way in. His big body stood in the doorway, his eyes searching for her. He laid down a couple of rounds, forcing the other men to hit the ground.

A high-pitched scream sounded through the enclosure. She glanced back at Carlos. He’d slipped and fell right into a pit of gators, and one seemed to have taken exception. There was a terrible huffing sound that Eve would have sworn she could feel vibrations from and then a nasty snap. “It’s got my hand!”

He began screaming in rapid-fire Spanish.

Alex seemed to dance around the large reptiles. They were restless now. Even she could smell the blood in the air. Their tails had started to twitch, brushing this way and that. Hisses and growls seemed to permeate the very air around her.

Alex grabbed her hand, hauling her close. “Stay calm. If one gets hold of you, punch, kick, and scream. Go for the snout and the eyes.”

He pressed her behind him as Evans walked up. Evans was holding a semiautomatic in his hand. “I see you came to get your bitch. You lied, Warren. I believe you mentioned Special Agent McKay was no longer with us.”

Carlos kept screaming, but Warren seemed to have gotten his panic under control. “It’s easy enough to remedy. You have to remember, he needs us alive. Don’t you, Alex?”

Warren was coming up on their left side, Evans on their right.

Alex didn’t say a word, merely tried to back up.

“I can’t move.” Her heels were against something scaly. “There’s an alligator behind me.”

She could feel it breathing against her skin, its huge body coming halfway up her calves.

If they couldn’t back away, there was no escape.

“Yes, you’re right. He needs one of us alive. Well, let’s face facts.” Evans had a shit-eating grin on his face. “He needs me alive. I’m the only one who can put your dear brother away. He doesn’t want Edward Petty in the Oval Office now, does he? Petty here gave you up so nicely. I have to admit I was a bit surprised when he arrested me. I rather thought I was done for. And then he takes me to a little coffee shop and gives me his proposal.”

She felt Alex tense. God, they were right. Without any evidence, Edward would just go on with his career. Tears threatened. Alex was standing in front of her, his big gorgeous body ready to take any bullet that came their way. He wouldn’t give her up. And he couldn’t help but try for justice.

Evans stared at them. He didn’t move at all, a predator with his prey in his sights. “He would let me go if I did this one little job for him. Just one little clinic. He knew how much I hated them, you see. It all started to go wrong when women forgot their place. Clinics like that and those f*cking shelters, they’re the problem. I don’t understand you, McKay. I think that’s why I find you fascinating. You really should be on my side.”