“What have we here?” his voice is silky. His face is attractive. Looks can be deceiving, and I’m not talking about the centaur who just stepped into my path. He’s tall. In his human form and completely naked.
Lilith lied.
She lied!
Is it possible that she made a mistake? No! She outright lied! She was adamant that they had gone. Centaurs are nomadic. They wreak too much havoc to stay in one place too long. They also operate in a herd, so it’s unlikely this one is alone. This feels like a trap. If the herd is still here, we’re as good as dead, or worse. There’s always worse.
I need to shout out. I need to warn Andy. Maybe he can make it out. I pray he’ll make it out.
“You look shocked.” He smiles, looking innocent. I know otherwise. “Did you think we were gone?” He winks at me.
Lilith lied!
I should be able to pull my gun before he reaches me. I get my hand around the butt of my Glock when I’m grabbed from behind.
I yell and kick back as hard as I can. I throw a reverse headbutt that hits home with a crunch. The grip holds firm, and my hand is pulled from my gun before I can draw.
The grinning fucker in front of me advances. Instead of fighting the hold on my arms, I use it to lift my body from the ground and to kick, using both my feet. My boots connect with his chest. He staggers back a few steps, and then he’s advancing again.
I’m screaming like a banshee. I’m praying that Andy will leave. I know deep down that it’s highly unlikely. I would never leave him either. I’m hoping that this herd isn’t too big. Maybe it’s just the two of them. Maybe we can take them.
I manage to pull one arm free. I reach for my gun when the centaur behind me knocks me off my feet with a hard blow to the side of my head. My ears are ringing. My vision goes in and out of focus. I feel a pulling on my side. I hear the blood rushing through my veins. I’m moaning loudly. I can’t stop. The world feels like it’s tilted to the side. I can’t get up. I’m breathing hard through the moans.
That’s when I see them. Four more. Four. Holy crap! It’s a small herd, but I’m dead anyway. We’re dead if Andy tries to help me. The dizziness is subsiding. I sit up and reach for my gun. It’s gone.
Fuck!
“Your human toys won’t save you,” one of them says. A woman. There are two women and four men. This doesn’t make me feel any better. The women are almost as muscled as the men. Just as tall. They have large breasts and long hair. They’re also twice as vicious as their male counterparts.
One of the women shifts into centaur form, her body morphing into that of a large, powerful horse. Her torso from her waist up juts upwards from the base of where the horse’s neck would have been. Her hair is long and flows down her back. Her face is beautiful. Her eyes are cruel and hard. They are focused on me.
I’m fucked!
She snorts, sounding very much like a horse. “The human is tiny. I hope the other one is more substantial. It would be nice to have a proper meal before we head out.”
Other one?
Other one!
I taste bile as I struggle to my feet. They know about Andy. The small glimmer of hope I was harboring fades away to dust. Disappointment floods me. This is irrefutable proof that Lilith set us up. I’m an idiot. This is all my fault.
“Not everything is about food, Gaia,” one of the men says. A shiver runs down my spine when I see how he is looking at me.
“Not everything is about sex, Dru. Let’s get the answers we need first. Then we can play with our food, at least,” she licks her lips; her teeth are sharp, “until they break.” I can’t see them, but I know her molars are blunt for grinding grass and hay. Centaurs are strange creatures. They eat both grass and raw meat. The fresher, the better. They’re partial to humans. I shudder.
I’m trying not to panic. It’s not working. “Run, Andy. Run!” I scream as loud as I can. I know what these creatures are capable of. What chaos and carnage they can wreak. I’m about to become a statistic.
“Stop that, human,” the female centaur, Gaia, says. “You’re hurting my ears.”
“Your little friend,” the other woman centaur says, “Andy. I am sure he will have been captured by now.” She lifts her head, looking left and right. Her pointed ears twitch.
My heart lurches in my chest. There are more of them. At least one, and he or she is stalking Andy right now.
No!
“Run!” I yell. “Please…go! Run, Andy! Leave me…just—” I shout as loud as I can.
“Enough!” one of the men interrupts. He closes the distance between us in two or three strides, grabbing me by the arm.
His penis is erect, and he’s smirking at me. “I say we play while we question her.” His eyes drift down to my breasts. He yanks at my jacket, tearing it and my shirt underneath wide open. I’m wearing a sports bra. He looks duly disappointed. Fucker!
I knee him in the groin while he’s looking at my chest. He wasn’t expecting that either. He’s probably used to women screaming and begging. Not me!
His eyes widen, and he groans, doubling over. I slam my boot down on his foot and punch him in the face. He staggers back, laughing. A trickle of blood drips from his mouth. He touches a hand to his lip and looks down at the blood. He laughs again. “How wonderful, a feisty one. We’re in for a treat. I think we need to fuck it into submission first.”
“Stay away from me,” I shout.
“No, Spiro!” Gaia shakes her head. “You might hurt her.”
“I’ll be careful.” I watch in horror as he palms his hard member, looking at me with both hate and lust. “I promise to stay in my human form. Besides, it’s not her mouth that will take a hammering. She’ll be able to talk just fine.”
My eyes widen. I might be sorely tempted to beg them to kill me before long. I still have the gun in my ankle holster. I vow to take at least one of them down. Maybe even two. I’m mostly praying that Andy heard me. I’m praying even more that he listens.
“Why does he get to go first?” one of the others says. “I found her. I should get to mount her first.”
“You can have her after me.” Spiro is grinning, his eyes on me. He glances at Gaia. “After Thine, she should tell us everything we need to know in return for a quick death. Otherwise, we’ll give her to Dru. I think you get the picture, human. You need to be a good girl and talk. We want to know more about the Order. About the identities of others of your kind. Give us three names and locations right now, and we’ll let you go.”
“You’ll let me walk out of here?” It will never happen. I wasn’t born yesterday.
“Yes.” He nods. “It’s the first and only offer I’m making you.”
There is a loud crash. It’s followed by a yell which sounds like Andy. Then a shout that doesn’t sound anything like Andy. Then all is eerily silent. We all listen for a good ten seconds. Silence.
The centaur in front of me smirks. “Your friend has just been captured. What do you say, human?” He lifts his brows. “Easy or hard?” He fists his cock. At least, I think that’s what he’s doing. I don’t look down. I keep my eyes on his. They have us both now. Andy. My heart feels like a lead block in my chest.