Elijah moved in silence, slipping through the hallways, clearing each room thoroughly, using his cat’s acute senses to tell him far in advance if danger was close. The downstairs rooms were empty. Even the large poolroom. He started up the stairs and immediately heard activity as he neared the top of the landing.

Elijah went to the floor, moving in human form in the way of the leopard. Stealth. Freeze-frame. Slow inch by inch. He moved in silence. He knew a cat could steal into a room full of people, grab a man and drag him out without anyone aware of his presence. He knew it, because he’d done it more than once. He knew it, because even as a man, he’d done it.

He heard the heavy fall of boots on the carpeted floor and froze, his body exposed. All the man had to do was take a few more steps and he’d be on top of Elijah. Elijah took a deep breath, scenting the air. The man with the boots was alone. He took another step and Elijah came up off the ground, already shifting, using just his upper body, but this time his entire upper body. His shirt shredded as his male leopard’s head and chest emerged.

The soldier was no leopard and the shock of seeing one was his undoing. He had his gun in his hands, but he didn’t even aim. He just stood there, his face frozen in fear as Elijah took him down. There was no sound, although the man opened his mouth to scream. The cat’s wicked claw stopped him with a swipe across the throat. Elijah eased the body to the floor and then moved into the room he’d come out of to clear it.

From the vantage point of the window he could see a telescope had been set up. Beside it, a pair of binoculars rested. He bent to peer into the telescope. A cabin leapt into view. Through the window, he could see a woman, back to him, hands trapped over her head, wrists in manacles. Her head was down, hair falling around her face. She was naked. There was blood running down her back. Her legs had given out and she was hanging from just her wrists.

Elijah swore. The man had been watching the show someone had provided. “Drake, the first cabin on the southern end of the house. A woman’s in there. A prisoner. She’s in bad shape. Get her out.”

“I’ll take your back and then we’ll get her,” Drake responded into his ear, his voice as calm as always.

“Get her the hell out of there. She needs medical attention.”

“We’ll get her medical attention. You’ve got five men in there against who knows how many. You need backup. We’ll get her, Elijah, just get this done.”