Page 10 of Gone (Gray Wolf Security #23)

“The guys are gonna kill us for this,” whispered Lauren.

“Shhh. Sound could carry forward,” said Lena. “I’m trying to remember everything Nathan taught me, but it’s been a long time. We’re on the right path, but the question is, what do those men want with the boys?”

“Should we let the dogs loose?” asked Erin. “They would find them.”

“Yes, they’d find them, but they might not be so quiet. I don’t want the dogs to get killed over this, and I damn sure don’t want those sweet little boys hurt.”

“Then we keep going,” said Faith, nodding her head. “Lauren is right about one thing.”

“What’s that?” asked Grace.

“The guys are going to kill us.”

Lena was proud of the women behind her and the dogs.

They walked slowly, carefully, just as Trak had taught them.

Every once in a while, they caught a glimpse of a male head bobbing up and down in the distance.

Someone at the rear stepped on a branch, a loud cracking sounding through the forest, and the women all froze.

In front of them, no one seemed to notice. They looked at one another with a strange expression, then Ashley smiled at them.

“I’ve covered us in a bit of a bubble,” she whispered. “No one will hear us.”

“God, I love you,” said Alexandra. “That gives me an idea. Ivy. Regan’s Ivy.” The girl laughed, moving to the front of the line.

“Yes, ma’am.”

“No ma’ams. The plants here, is there one that you could cause to grow and, I don’t know, maybe tie the men up?” Ivy’s eyes opened wide, and she smiled, nodding at her.

“I think so. Hold on.”

She knelt on the path, placing her hands flat on the earth. Closing her eyes, she could see every variety of plant within a mile of her. There were dozens of twisting vines, weaving through the forest.

“I can reach the two at the back, but I don’t think I can reach the other three,” she said.

“That’s good!” said Faith. “Two is good. Do it.”

Still kneeling, she closed her eyes, seeing the vines up ahead. They twisted and turned, like tiny snakes weaving through the grass and trees. She could see the legs she wanted, the ankles, and knew what to do.

“What the fuck is keeping you two? Keep up and push those damn brats.”

“We’re hungry and tired, Frank. These kids can’t keep up. We don’t need them. Let them go.”

Frank Joest was a career criminal. He started out robbing convenience stores, then moved his way up to banks and armored cars. When he killed two bank tellers and then the guards of an armored car, there was no turning back.

Roman Polk was a guy who’d done small-time crime. He was a criminal. He knew that, but he’d never murdered anyone. Never. Following Frank and his partner, Tommy Carroll was the stupidest thing he’d ever done.

“Shut the fuck up, and do as you’re told, Roman!”

The boys were terrified, staring at the men in front of them, and then the two behind them.

Standing with Roman was another small-time criminal, DJ Treat.

At first, Roman thought he really was a DJ, a music DJ.

Unfortunately, he was wrong. That was his real name.

No full spelling. Just DJ. His parents forgot to fill in all the blanks.

No wonder he’d turned to crime.

“Get moving!” yelled Tommy as he and Frank marched on.

“Come on, boys. We’ll stop in a little while,” said Roman. The boys pushed on with the last of their group of criminals, Rusty James.

Suddenly, Roman tripped, not knowing what had caused it.

“Shit,” he muttered.

Looking down at his ankles, he realized they were wrapped in thorn- covered vines, twisting and winding around his ankles. Panicking, he tried to pull the vines from his legs, only cutting his hands.

“Roman,” said DJ, looking at his own ankles. “What is this? What the hell is happening?”

The two men tried to call out for help, but Frank, Tommy, and Rusty must not have heard them. Even the kids didn’t turn around. The vines continued to twist and turn up their legs, around their torso, and then their hands, binding them together in bloody thorn-covered strands.

“What the hell?” said Roman, panicked. Suddenly, the two men were surrounded by more than two dozen beautiful women.

“What in the world?” whispered DJ.

“You two like stealing little boys?” growled Nat, her fingers throwing sparks and flames toward the men.

“Stop! Stop! N-no, we didn’t want to take them. It was Frank and Tommy.”

“Where are they going?” asked Kari. The two men just stared at the women, squirming in pain from the vines.

“My friend won’t ask you again,” said Mary. “Where are they going?” She pulled the pistol from her backpack, cocking the hammer, ready to fire if needed.

“The caves. They’re taking them to the caves. They stashed some money there after they robbed an armored car. The kids were insurance for them.” Marie looked at the other women and nodded.

“Hannah, Sara, Lissa, Ro, and Jenna. Run back down the trail and get the guys. Tell them where we’re going and that we will not turn back until we find those boys. We know they’ll be pissed, but they’ll find these two right here.”

The women nodded, jogging back down the trail, toward camp.

“Tory and Alexandra, you stay with me so we can be sure these two idiots don’t get away. Ivy? These will hold?” asked Mary.

“They’re not going anywhere,” she nodded.

“Good. The rest of you. Go get those kids. You know what we have here,” she said, looking at Nat, Valentina, and the other amazing women. “Be careful.”

“Let’s go,” said Erin. “I want to get those kids back to their families safely and make sure no one is hurt. If my husband kills me, it’s going to be for a very good reason.”

“You’re crazy,” said DJ. “You’re all crazy. Didn’t you hear me? Those men are killers and don’t care who you are. Those men will kill you and those kids. They won’t care. They’re nuts!”

“Good news,” smirked Lena. “So are we.”