Minutes to Burn

She gave a startle display, spreading her wings and rearing up on her hind legs, filling the entire space between the trees and revealing two eye-like markings on the insides of her front legs. The upper part of her abdomen scraped against her underwings, producing a harsh hissing. She lowered herself, then stepped deliberately back behind Tucker's body and struck him with her front legs, knocking him a few feet across the ground. He howled, more in fear than pain, and tried to struggle away. His intestines were spilled on the ground beside him, and one of his hands was trying to scoop them back inside his body as the other clawed him forward.

Savage was frozen with indecision, unable to venture within range of the thing without being killed but desperately wanting to get his hands on it. He hoped for Tucker to pass out. But Tucker had never passed out, not from pain or panic. He kept moving, clawing and scooping like a wind-up toy running out of steam.

The creature's raptorial legs flashed out again, snatching Tucker off the ground and curling his body in toward her face. He screamed as the mouth approached him. The mandibles cut into the back of his neck and then he went limp in her front legs, twitching.

Savage and the creature watched each other as she ate.

She chewed with her mandibles, holding and manipulating chunks of flesh with her maxillae. Tucker's head rolled off and struck the ground with a thud. The creature made no effort to pick it up.

Savage watched one of Tucker's arms go down, the elbow sticking out of the preoral cavity. Despite her strong cutting jaws, the creature was a messy eater. It was not a pleasant meal to see consumed in any event, but the image of Tucker's various parts protruding from the crea-ture's mouth was sickening.

Savage crouched and glared at the creature, wiping the rain from his eyes with a swipe of his arm. "I'm gonna fuckin' kill you," he whispered, almost lovingly.

The creature paused, as if she had heard him. She lowered her head, tearing a thick band of meat from Tucker's flank, and when she looked up, Savage was gone.

Chapter 42

Cameron jerked to her feet when she heard something crash through the brush at the edge of the forest. They all squared defensively until Savage's figure cut from the dark, charging toward them.

"Where the fuck were you?" Derek yelled. "You're over an hour late and we couldn't transmit to Tucker. Szabla said his transmitter just cut out."

Savage didn't answer as he neared the circle of logs, his eyes steeled on Szabla.

"Where's Tucker?" Cameron asked, concern coloring her voice.

Without slowing, Savage passed the fire pit and seized Szabla's under-shirt around the thin arm straps. He tore the straps forcefully to the sides, ripping the shirt down the middle and exposing her breasts. He towered over her, his knee pushed tight between her legs on the log as she leaned back. Before anyone could reach him, his knife was out of the sheath and pointing at the small raised circle of her transmitter. Cameron and Derek were tense on their feet, ready to pounce on Savage if the opportunity arose.

"This is not a fucking toy!" Savage yelled. "Fuck!" He stepped back and threw the blade hard at the log. It stuck deep. Tank was between him and Szabla in a flash, but Savage didn't make another move toward her. He yanked the bandanna off and ran his fingers through his hair, grab-bing the back in a ponytail before throwing his hand off to the side. "He's gone. He's fucking dead."

Mouth ajar, eyes glassy, Szabla sat dumbfounded on the log, making no effort to cover herself. In the silence that ensued, Cameron walked over and pulled Szabla's shirt back up. She stood in front of Savage and raised her face to his. "What happened?"

"He got eaten. By this huge fucking thing. With snapping front legs. Like… almost like a praying mantis."

Derek snorted. A strange expression worked its way across Rex's face, then vanished. He turned to Diego and something passed between them. Cameron's stomach turned over once, as it sometimes did just before she vomited.

"What are you talking about, Savage?" Justin said. "Where the fuck is Tucker?"

"It was swinging upside down like a fucking bat and it grabbed him in those legs, clamped down on him like a bear trap." He shook his head. "You shoulda heard him screaming."

Cameron sat down heavily. "Is this a fucking joke?" Derek asked.

Justin's breathing was so shallow it sounded like panting. Szabla dipped her head, running a hand across the back of her neck, her nails leaving red streaks. She murmured something in a low whisper. They stood for a few moments in silence, breathing together. Savage glared at them expectantly.

"Fuck this," Justin finally said. "Fuck this."

"Calm down, Justin," Derek said. "We don't really know what's going on here."