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“But if we do manage, sir? If the hunt ends and we haven’t been found? If that were to happen, what then, sir?” Raeanne persisted, her tone respectful but insistent.
DJ’s grin was laced with malice. “Why, then, darlin’, you’ll get the beating of a lifetime for depriving our paying guests of the good time they’ve paid for. Get it now? You hide for as long as you can, but if Curtis here blows his whistle, that means the hunt is up and you get your ass out of your hidey hole and you let yourself get caught, understood?”
“Yes, sir,” Raeanne said softly, though Mara, standing just beside her, saw Raeanne’s hands clench into fists behind her back. Cassie was staring at the ground, her posture already one of defeat.
“Make sure y’all separate,” DJ continued. “Each of you go your own way. Makes it more fun for the guys. I find any of you together, I’ll beat you like I own you.” He paused a beat and then added with an ugly laugh, “Oh, wait, I do.”
Mara stared at the ground. No, you don’t. I belong to Alex.
She looked up again as DJ clapped his hands. “Okay, then. Let’s get this show on the road.” He waved his arms toward the trees surrounding them. “Go on. Git.”
Mara took off, glad to get away from the men, especially DJ. Running was impossible, but she moved as quickly as she could through the scrubby undergrowth that covered much of the forest floor.
Once safely away from the clearing, she slowed down, examining her surroundings as she thought about her plan. None of the trees were especially high, no doubt stunted by the sandy soil, constant wind and seasonal storms on the barrier island, but some were quite large, their sturdy branches thick with foliage.
She thought about DJ’s admonition to stay one step ahead of the hunters. Mara imagined a terrified fox tearing blindly away from growling, slavering dogs. With a shudder, she shook away the image.
She would not be a fox. She would not try to stay one step ahead. She would stay behind. Stealthily, she began to retrace her steps to where they’d entered the woods. If the guests were anything like DJ and his father, they would probably come barreling into the forest, crashing noisily through the brush with the assumption the girls were hidden somewhere deep within.
She peeked out from behind a tree and breathed a sigh of relief. No one was in sight. She could just see the distant shore between the trees. Her often-visited fantasy of running toward the ocean and swimming away slipped into her mind, but she’d never make it.
Focus, Alex whispered, bringing Mara back to her immediate task. Surveying the prospects, she chose a large tree on the edge of the woods. The really sturdy branches were too high up for her to sling her rope, but the trunk had plenty of nooks and crannies that would serve as toeholds.
Reaching into her backpack, Mara took out the bandana and used it to tie back her hair. She made her way gingerly through the tangled clump of thorny vines at the base of the tree. Wrapping her arms around the fat trunk, she placed the toe of her sneaker in a small hollow about a foot up the trunk.
She lost her grip twice, scraping her legs, arms and torso as she skidded back down to the ground. Finally, slowly, gracelessly, she inched her way up the tree and into the protective cover of the leaves. She settled in the V of two thick branches and leaned back against the wood, grateful for the padding her backpack supplied.
It had taken probably a half hour to make it up the tree, and Mara stiffened at the sound of movement below her. Had the men arrived early? Was the hunt on? Her heart squeezed in a vise of fear, Mara peered through the leaves. But instead of a bunch of men, she saw Cassie zigzagging along through the scrub, panic radiating from her like an aura.
Mara leaned back against the branches, sagging with relief at the reprieve. But what was Cassie doing still out in the open? Why hadn’t the girl hidden herself yet? Was she being chased? Were the men already there, having come in a different way?
Mara decided she was in a good spot, and permitted herself a small smile of congratulations. She was thirsty from the hard work, and she reached back carefully to extract her water bottle. She took a deep pull before returning it to the pack.
It was maybe forty minutes later that Mara heard footsteps and masculine voices below her. The hunt had begun. Once more she peeked through the leaves, her heart in her throat. She could see the tops of four heads. Two of the men were wearing caps. The other two were bareheaded, one with straight blond hair, the other with the dark, curly mop she recognized as belonging to DJ Wallace.
