“Isn’t she pretty?” Zenobia purred, stepping off the podium and walking toward the copy of Dr. Winifred F. Lightfoot. Running the back of her hand down the clone’s cheek, she cooed, “All I have to do is program a little of your terrible personality and a tad of your incredibly lacking intellect and send her back to FUC to confess.”
"But, they will never—"
“They will never what?” Zenobia shrieked, racing across the room and grabbing Freddie’s face between her thin, skeletal fingers. “They’ll never believe it’s you? Hmmmm? They’ll instantly recognize the ruse? Oh, Freddie, Freddie, Freddie,” she poopoo’d, raising her free hand and snapping her fingers.
The sound of marching filled Buck's ears. He knew that sound. Instantly recognized it. "Dinos," he spat under his breath. "Muthafuckin' din… Holy shit on my shoes!"
Even through his barely open eyes, Buck could make out at least twenty of the dino soldiers. All exactly the same. Not one difference. Moving in unison. All their hearts beating as one. Right along with the copy of Freddie.
“Son of a bitch!”
Catching movement out of the corner of his eye, he saw the first one, the one he somehow knew had put the needle in his neck, move to the front of the line. Rage, utter hate, and contempt flashed in the dino's eyes, his strange elliptical pupils enlarging for just a split second. Then a spark of pain—no, check, agony—and then everything was gone. He was back to being a mindless drone.
“Well, kiss my ass and call me Sonny. That’s it!”
Not waiting for another second, Buck rolled the piece of metal still balanced on the center of his tongue toward his molars. Opening his eyes wide, meeting Freddie's surprised, but oh so wonderful, gaze, he gave his mate a single wink, mouthed, “Hold on, hot stuff,” and bit down as hard as he could.
10
He’s alive! He’s awake! Dammit, he’s fuckin’ gorgeous!
From one second to the next, a wave of energy, an explosion of power, a pulse that rivaled a small atom bomb, erupted from the vicinity of none other than Buck Blackthorne. From there, shit hit the fan in a glorious, chaotic, and absolutely fantastically effed-up fashion.
Zenobia shrieked, "No! No! No!" with her left arm flinging around like she was trying to take off or, at the very least, auditioning for air traffic control school. In contrast, her right thumb attempted to beat the stuffing— aka circuitry—out of a tiny black remote control Freddie hadn't seen until that moment.
Buck, oh, gorgeous, handsome, hotter-than-any-man-ever-had-a-right-to-be Buck Blackthorne, the honey badger who made Freddie's heart go pitter-pat, pitter-pat, got all furry in the blink of an eye. At least seven feet tall, with muscles on top of muscles on tops of muscles, his chest, tummy, and everything else she could see was covered with coal-black hair she knew would be coarse to the touch.
One jerk of his powerful arms and the massive brackets attached to the silver chains holding him to the stone wall were flying through the air. Left kick then right kick, and the ones shackled to his legs followed the same glorious path. In less than three seconds, her man was free and racing toward a running, well, more like stumbling ’cause she just couldn't walk in those heels, Zenobia.
And that was when Freddie's brain, or rather the part of her mind where self-preservation lived and the wellbeing of her mate stood alongside, kicked into gear. Shame, it was half a second too late.
Jerked out of the pool of water, chair and all, by the same dry, pebbly, scaly mauls that had captured her atop the mountain, this time with just the tips of its stubby, sharp talons touching her skin, she railed, "Put me down, you stupid son of a bitch! I swear on your black beady eyes that I will wear your guts for garters. I mean I don't wear garters, but I'll make one hell of a show out of—"
“Shut the hell up, Freddie.” Bright’s sass rang through the woman’s mind. “He’s trying to help you. He's on our side. One of the good guys for heaven's sake.”
"Gutting you…like…a…" Words failing, head flying back, chin jutting into the air, her eyes meeting Dino Dave's, Freddie ended what would've been her best rant, most excellent bitch fest, and most spectacular threat in her whole damned life all rolled into one with a sheepish, "You're helping?"
"Yep," he growled. Making quick work of her shackles, the chains and the wires Zenobia had used to electrocute her, he produced her very own Trees Are People, Too T-shirt and shoved it into her hand.
Up on her feet, refusing to back away, needing the dino super soldier to know she would beat him to a pulp as soon as shake his hand, Freddie gave him a single sharp nod. "Thank you, but I'm still gonna kick your ass. That right there…" She gave a single, curt nod toward the crazy contraption she'd just escaped. "That was some serious bullshit, and you brought me here."
Not waiting for an answer, she dashed around the stupid kiddie pool Zenobia had used before stopping with one foot in the air and hissing, “That’s it. That’s what Zany Zenny was talking about. Holy crapola. She’s still pissed about the senior games.”
“The what?”
"No time," Freddie hollered to the dino super soldier, who was quickly bringing up the rear. "We gotta find Buck and your boss."
Two more steps and she stopped again, this time spinning on her toes and poking Dino Dave right in the chest. Throwing her thumb over the opposite shoulder, Freddie asked, "Umm, what's up with the bozo troop? Why are they just standing there like somebody took out their batteries? I mean, I know that life-size Freddie doll"—a creepy shiver she couldn't contain skittered down her spine—"has no giddyap in her get-along, but those dudes were climbing a mountain and blowing shit up just a little bit ago."
Smiling, the expression more than weird, especially with the view of his sparkling, pointy chompers, he said, “Because somebody, namely Buck, took out their batteries.”
“Huh?”
“Quick answer?”
Nodding frantically as she started to walk backward, needing to look the dino in the eye to be sure he was telling the truth, she ran as she snapped, “Go for it.”
“I put a chip in Buck’s mouth as the drug was taking him under and told him to remember to bite down. That chip sent out an EMP that shut down the boss’—”
“Zenobia…”
"Yeah, her programming, allowed me to break completely free, Buck to shift, and, in the process, turned off my copies."
“That’s the short answer?” Freddie quickly queried as Bright groaned, "Oh, my Lordy, be nice. We all know you’re tough. You are Freddie. Hear you roar, blah, blah, blah. He’s helping. Hurt him later if he gets outta line.”
“Yeah, what she said.” Dino Dave smirked.
Snapping her head to the side even as she was turning to face front and pouring on the speed, Freddie warned, “Stay the hell outta my head. One smartass up there is enough. Do it again, and I’ll stop right here, right now, and kick your ass winged-tree-frog style. Ya get me?”
He saluted as he ran beside her and spoke a clipped, “Yes, ma’am.”