Finding Monsters (20 page)

“No!” she whispered. “Those weapons are from my world and they will kill you!” She hid behind Dozer as Dredge took the lead. Dozer turned back to face her.

“If you get the chance, get to your cabayo and get out of here!”

Missy looked toward Egan. He grazed in the tall grass but looked wary of the strangers and too far away to reach. The jackals encircled them and without warning, attacked. The jac
k
als, in dog form, pulled Dredge down first while the other two overpowered Dozer, who’s shoulder bled heavily. Missy tried to pr
o
tect Dozer from the jackals’ attack. She pulled her staff and stood over him. She stole a glance at Dredge who still fought against his attackers. He landed a well-placed staff to one of the animal’s head, leaving it motionless.

“Enough!” the lead jackal said as he sized up Missy. “Watch the old bull and make sure he doesn’t cause any more trouble. Prepare the other one for tran
s
port.” He moved closer to Missy. She swung her staff at his head but he knocked it away with minimal effort. The nearly seven foot tall jackal grabbed her arms and pulled her from the ground. “And what is this?” he asked no one in particular. His grip crushed her arms as she tried kicking him. He didn’t seem to notice as he sniffed her all over in curious wonder. “Ah,” he f
i
nally said. “This must be the human girl child, Anu
k
han spoke of. We shall take her as well.”

Dredge exploded from the ground ready for another round only to topple over and land twitching on the ground. Missy saw the other jackal had a stun gun.

“How did you get these weapons?” Missy asked, shocked at their use of them. No one answered as they left Dredge where he lay and shot Dozer with the Taser next. Missy sent out a thought to Egan.

“Run home, Egan, quickly! Bring help!” Egan’s ears perked up and he snarled showing his teeth.

“No! Go, dear friend, please! They will kill you if you try to help me. Go now!” Missy felt one hint of regret from the cabayo before he bolted into the forest. One jackal gave chase but came back only minutes la
t
er.

“He’s gone, Saal,” he said returning to the lead jackal. Saal sneered his disapproval.

“Gather the remaining animals and load the bull. Make sure he is secure. If he makes trouble, shoot him again. As for this one,” he said pulling Missy from the ground again. “Tie her up and put her on the other cabayo. Make sure she can’t e
s
cape.”

The jackals worked with efficient precision to s
e
cure their captives and then they headed back into the forest toward home. When they crossed out of Bullclan territory, Missy saw two inert figures in the tall grass. The stink of blood and death assailed her nostrils. She looked away from the carnage and met Dozer’s gaze. She could tell from his sickened expression, he knew them.

They ran without stopping for two days. The cabayos looked exhausted but the jackals did not. Missy stayed tied to the caba the entire time, and after two days felt sore, hungry, and exhausted.

“We should have a good head start on the Bullclan,” Saal said. Rest the animals and tie the ca
p
tives to trees. Kell, take first watch.”

“What do you want with us?” Missy hissed at them as they moved her from the caba to a tree.

“Gag the human,” Saal said, ignoring her que
s
tion.

K
ell tightened the ropes around Missy’s hands and ankles before he went to secure the cabayo. She sat watching in s
i
lence. Dozer sat a few feet away, snarling in anger. His gunshot wound had been ba
n
daged. It became obvious they were wanted alive. Missy watched as Saal left the clearing in search of wood. The other two jackals made the camp. Missy looked Dozer’s way and tried to reach his mind.

“Dozer,” she sent out. He looked at her, co
n
fused. “Listen, I think I can get free,” she continued.

“How,” he whispered. Missy rolled her eyes.

“Use your mind, Dozer, don’t speak aloud. Just think it,” she sent again.

“What do you want me to do?” he thought, while still moving his lips.

“Nothing, I can burn the ropes, will you be ok?”

“Go! I’ll be fine,” Dozer sent back.

Missy concentrated on the ropes and the dragon’s gift of fire. It wasn’t long before her hands broke free. She kept them hid as she worked on the ropes binding her feet. Her eyes never left the jackals as she worked through the ropes. As soon as the bonds on her feet fell away, Missy bolted. She ran through the trees not looking back, trying to ignore the sounds of panic that erupted behind her. She ran, trying not to focus on leaving Dozer behind. She heard a pursuer behind her but she didn’t look back. She ran. Su
d
denly, Missy’s leg erupted in pain and she fell hard. She slid on the leaves and collided into the base of an old tree. Kell sank his teeth harder into her ankle. He never lost stride as he turned and pulled her back t
o
ward camp by her foot. Missy fought to keep the branches and rocks from skinning her alive. When they reached camp, Kell dropped her and trotted away. Saal appeared, standing over her, a menacing sneer on his face. He pinned her before she knew it.

“You cannot escape from me, human,” he snarled. “We are faster and stronger. I may have u
n
derestimated your abilities but I have a way to keep you from escaping again,” Saal growled, his lips curled back to show long incisors dripping with saliva. He snatched the shotgun from his shoulder and slammed the butt of it down on her thigh. A piercing scream erupted from Missy’s throat punctuating the unmi
s
takable crack of bone. She flushed as blood began to soak her leggings. Saal slammed the butt down again on her shin. Missy gasped for breath before unleashing another ear-shattering cry. Her hands shook violently, unable to close around the wound to stave off blood loss. Missy sucked in air like a drowning victim, her ears ringing. She clamped her eyes shut to keep the nausea to a mi
n
imum. Saal stood up, adjusted the gun back to its position and walked away.

“Tie her up,” he said.

Kell tied her hands again around the back of the tree. He bandaged the bleeding wounds and splinted the broken bones with sticks, wrapping them tight with vines and a few strips of cloth. Then he tied her ankles together as before, oblivious to Missy’s wailing screams. She faintly heard Dozer flinging insults and curses at the jackals but his voice faded into a dull hum. E
x
hausted and weak from the pain, the blackness claimed her.

Missy woke to an abrupt return of the stabbing pain in her leg. She felt strong arms holding her on a cabayo as they galloped through another territory. Pain shot through her as she jostled about. Saal held her upright as they rode hard. She fainted frequently through the hard two day ride. When they finally pulled up to rest the animals, she struggled to keep co
n
scious. She saw Kell appear with what looked like fresh rabbits. The other jackal near the fire started skinning the meat. They offered a plate to Saal who devoured the raw flesh. Dozer and the other jackals ate their meals raw also. After finishing his meal, Kell made another plate for Missy. He tried offering her the raw game but she refused it. Gagging on the smell of the pungent flesh, it sent her into dry heaves.

“She can’t eat it raw you need to roast it for her,” Dozer spat. “She likes fruits better than meat,” he added. Kell ignored the comment and continued his goal of feeding the human. Saal watched for a minute longer before he got up and crossed the camp to Kell. He snatched the plate of raw food away and shoved Kell aside.

“Go find fruit for the human,” he barked. “And put this meat in the fire to roast.”

Kell moved away quickly not wanting anymore of his leader’s wrath. Saal sat down in front of Missy and watched. She didn’t stir as she leaned limp against the tree her head sagging to her chest. Saal pulled out his knife from a strap on his leat
h
er leggings and cut the ties from Missy’s hands. She fell to the ground and had no energy to move. Saal picked her up and took her over to his tent, a large crude canvas strung over tree limbs. Missy glanced around briefly and saw it padded with thick rugs and throws. Saal placed her on a soft cushion, kee
p
ing her upright with his arm. He pulled a leaf from a pouch around his waist and broke a small piece off.

“Open your mouth and put this under your tongue,” he instructed.

Missy glared at him.

“Do not make me force your mouth open, h
u
man, or you will suffer more. This leaf with take away the pain for a while. Open your mouth.”

Missy opened her mouth and Saal placed the leaf under her tongue. It tingled and made her mouth w
a
ter.

“Swallow the juices,” he instructed.

She did as instructed and soon the pain dulled, before long it disappeared.

“Is the pain gone?” he asked.

She nodded.

“Swallow the leaf. It will keep the pain away for several hours.”

She swallowed the leaf. “Thank you,” she said a
f
ter a few minutes. He left her there but returned a few minutes later with the roasted meat. He sat across from her and pulled small pie
c
es from the carcass. Again, he lifted her into a sitting position then offered her the food. She wanted to refuse but she opened her mouth obediently.

“We reach reptile country in two more days. No one stops there unless they want to be killed in the worse possible way. We ride hard through that country. You will need your strength if you plan to survive it.” He gave her more and she ate all of it. The canvas slid aside and Kell entered with a small cache of berries. He placed them in front of Saal and retreated. Saal e
x
amined the fruit and tried one.

“They are ok for eating,” he surmised and fed her the be
r
ries. After eating everything, Missy felt human again. She even had the strength to sit up on her own. Saal moved and let her sit.

“You are a frail child, yet you have bested the hyenas on several occasions. How is that possible?” he asked.

Missy shrugged. “I had a good reason to succeed,” she said, fingering the gold bracelet she wore.

“You are joined with one of the Bullclan,” Saal stated.

“Yes,” she said.

“He is weak now because of you, isn’t he?” he asked.

“Not so much anymore and soon he will be as strong as before,” Missy said with an air of confidence. Saal’s contempt
u
ous laugh echoed around the tent.

“He’s not weak because of you, human. His weakness is you. He’ll come roaring in to save you only to be captured by Anukhan and fall like all the others.”

“How is he using the bulls to move between worlds?” Missy asked, keeping the anger from her voice, hoping to get more information on the jackals.

“I don’t know how the device works. Only that it gives Anukhan the blue light for small amounts of time.”

“Where did the device come from?” she asked him.

“Only Anukhan knows,” Saal said.

“So, I guess he is your king?”

“Yes, and I work alongside him on most of the important matters. He entrusts me with very special tasks,” Saal’s smu
g
ness dripped from every word.

“Sounds like you’re just a pawn. You are out here, risking your life, for what? To bring back another bull so that Anukhan can play in other worlds? What’s in it for you?” Missy’s flippant attitude sparked him.

Saal lunged at her, snarling inches from her face. “You know nothing, human! You would do well to hold your tongue, child. I could kill you in an instant.”

Missy ignored him. She pushed his snout away from her face, stunning Saal into silence. “You won’t kill me. I only said what you already knew. He won’t share his power, and when he’s finally able to obtain what he wants, he’ll leave all of you behind,” Missy a
c
cused. “So tell me, Saal, what does he want with me?”

Saal backed away from her and stood, his composure r
e
turning. “Get some sleep; you need your rest.” He turned to leave the tent.

“What, Saal!” she shouted to his back as he disappeared. She lay down on the soft cushion and tried to reach Charlie. Nothing. She tried Egan, nothing again. She could only guess the distance between them was greater than she could reach. She still could sense Dozer but no one else. She laid thinking about it but soon fell asleep.

When she opened her eyes again, darkness had fallen. A faint sliver of moonlight shone through the tenting. Saal lay on a cushion across from her, his lethal eyes watching her. She stared back wondering what he was thinking. She dared not touch his mind for fear he would know her little secret.

“Release me,” she whispered.

“Get some sleep, child,” he said.