Kimera

Driving away from the Punishers’ compound, I tried not to let guilt consume me. My biggest argument with myself was, what did I have to be guilty about? I wasn’t doing anything wrong. I was protecting and ending a nightmare for my new friend. After that came the thought that I hoped they would understand and that Spawn would forgive me.

I huffed out a breath. Why should I be concerned if he did or not? He wasn’t anyone more important than the other Punishers and less important than Troian. Who cared if he forgave me?

Even as I thought it, I knew I was full of shit. It did matter. I found it mattered more than almost anything other than protecting Troi. Spawn made me feel so many things, and most of them were conflicting. He could annoy, frustrate, infuriate, and confuse me, along with making me anxious. On the flip side were excitement, exhilaration, attraction, protection, and safety, to name a few.

As much as he might make me want to fight, he made me feel passion, and that was disturbing. I might notice men due to their looks or personality, but I couldn’t recall one making me want to experience his kisses or have sex with him desperately. Spawn did, and it scared me.

I knew my decision to go against what he and Lash forbade would earn me his displeasure, but I had to do it. I was better equipped than Troian to deal with her fucking cousins. Recalling what they did to her filled me with rage. Monsters like them and others deserved nothing but pain and to pay for their sins. You might not be able to get rid of your own monsters, but if you had the chance to get rid of someone else’s, then you should. Troian had immediately gone from a stranger to a patient and then to a friend, which I never had before.

I wasn’t blessed with a family or a ton of friends like some people were. I was too guarded, I guess, for that. There were things I wasn’t comfortable sharing, and if you wouldn’t share, people tended to move on. Troian, though, I didn’t see her being like that. She was one person I might be able to talk about my past with one day. It was these things that had me leaving her with Lash after Spawn left the house. The two of them continued to argue while I supposedly rested. In reality, I prepared. I wasn’t sure I’d get a chance to do anything, but if so, I would.

As luck would have it, I got a call while the men were in church. I didn’t recognize the number, but it gave me my opening. I told the old ladies I had to take the call, that it was work. It wasn’t. It was some telemarketer trying to sell me different car insurance, but they didn’t know that. When I returned, I lied and said I had to go to work. That was when the guilt started.

Not to raise suspicion, I had them get Colt. He’d go with me to the hospital and then return when I called to let them know I was ready to come back. I would only wait until he left the hospital and then get in my car and ride around town. It was a risk, seeing as the Punishers might be out and see me, but there wasn’t anything they could do, short of kidnapping me, to stop me.

I dragged off the hat I’d put over my hair once I colored it. It was close to the color of Troian’s. It was purely a fluke that I even had it. I bought it before I met her and was toying with the idea of changing my color. What made me pack it when we moved to the compound, I don’t know, but it could’ve been divine guidance. Colt was riding behind me. Hopefully, he couldn’t see my hair. I shook it out. I’d put my hat back on before we got to the hospital, but for now, my head needed some air. I was sweating.

As I drove, I tried to think of where I’d show myself first. The logical thing was to go through the main part of town. After that, I’d work my way through the secondary streets and alleys. I wasn’t sure if residential areas were worth it. Would they go there to find her?

Glancing ahead, I saw our town was quickly coming up. I needed to concentrate. If I did catch a tail once I got rid of Colt, I’d head to the compound and call the guys to give them a heads-up. If they’d planned this with me, we could’ve led the Gusevs elsewhere, but since that wasn’t the case, this would have to do.

Suddenly, a loud engine sound caught my ear. I swiveled my head from side to side, trying to see where it was coming from. The road had been mostly deserted. This vehicle, whatever it was, was loud. By the time I spotted it, there was nothing I could do. I screamed uselessly, “Look out,” to Colt.

I watched in horror in my rearview mirror as a big dark blue SUV came up behind his bike, and he went flying off the side of the road. I kept screaming as the car kept coming, not bothering to even slow down. I hit the gas, but it had a bigger engine than my little car did.

The driver pulled up alongside my side of the car. A window came down, and a hand with a gun in it pointed toward the ground. There was a loud pop. I heard another pop right after it, and then I began to fight the car. Shit, they’d shot out my tires! I had to fight to keep my car from going off the road and hitting the trees. My heart pounded as I fought the steering wheel. By the time I got my car under control, they had blocked me, and I had to come to a stop. I scrambled to get to my gun and phone. Both were in my purse, which had been on the passenger seat but were now on the floor on that side.

I wasn’t fast enough. Before I could use my phone that I had just snagged, my door was yanked open, and hard hands reached in and jerked me out. I barely had time to stuff my phone in my hoodie pocket. It was off because I worried if the club figured out what I did, they’d track me. I heard cruel, sinister laughter. Hard hands bit painfully into my arm. I punched and tried to kick as I was jerked out of the car. I added screams to it. Maybe I’d get lucky, and someone would come along, and I’d be saved. Please, God, let Spawn and the others come, I prayed.

I knew what Troian’s evil cousins looked like from the photos we’d been shown by Lash and Spawn. I knew it had to be them when they shot out the tires, but seeing their faces made it worse. Jarek was the one manhandling me. His grin was menacing. It quickly morphed into confusion. He turned his head to tell the others joining us, “It’s not Troian. I don’t know who this bitch is.”

Hope filled me. Maybe I could play this off, and they’d leave me alone and get the hell out of here before they were seen. Worry for Colt filled me. I needed to make sure he was okay and call for help. At a minimum, he would need to go to the hospital.

“Let go of me! Who are you? Why would you do this? I’m on my way home to my husband,” I spewed. As I said it, I was scanning for a chance to get away. I’d hate to leave Colt, but I wouldn’t be able to help him if I was dead. Jarek shook me and jerked my shoulder higher. I hissed at the pain.

“Shut up, bitch! Zandro, it’s not her. What do we do?” he continued.

The other three came to a halt and stared at me. I felt like a bug. Their expressions weren’t reassuring. Eyes ran up and down my body. I had to fight not to shiver.

“Well, well, what do we have here? A tasty little morsel, it seems. The hair is the same, but not the rest,” Kaz said with a leer. My skin crawled, and my stomach heaved.

“Proklyat’ye! Goddamn it!You idiot, this isn’t Troian. You said it was her,” Zandro shouted.

“I thought it was. She has the same hair, and we’ve had no luck in town,” Jarek protested as he shook me.

“Hey, I don’t know who you are, but you need to let me go. My husband could come by here any moment,” I said.

“Tikhiy,” Zandro snarled at me and Jarek. I didn’t know for sure what they were saying, but the tone and looks were enough to get the gist of it. He wanted us to shut up.

“Zandro, what’re we to do?” Laszlo asked as he fidgeted and kept glancing up and down the road.

Zandro examined me coldly. After several tense moments, he smiled. It wasn’t a pleasant one. “Why, we take her with us, of course. Even if she isn’t our cousin, she can still be useful. Put her in the car. Hurry,” he ordered.

I screamed and renewed my fighting, but it was too late. A punch to the face made everything hazy, and my knees almost buckled. Despite that, I kept kicking, squirming, screaming, and throwing my head back. Laszlo joined Kaz, and they manhandled me toward their SUV. I turned my head, got Laszlo’s upper arm between my teeth, and bit him. He howled and then slapped me. My ears rang. Zandro had the back door open. I kicked at him. He laughed. As I was thrown inside, I knew I wasn’t likely to get out of this alive. My only recourse was to fight until the end.