He stuck his head through the door cautiously. Ace was caught between catching Fritz before he could get away and waiting to see if he got his head blown off. He didn’t want to rush into the room in case his enemy was still there, patiently waiting.
Just as he stood to survey the room, a bullet whizzed by his ear. Ace flung himself to the floor and rolled behind some stacked boxes. This room was unoccupied and used for storage, which was probably the reason why Fritz had chosen it as his vantage point.
The bastards have been watching us the whole fucking time.
Ace lifted his head and sniffed. He had the gist of where Fritz was, but he couldn’t be sure. He stuck to the wall, stalking as quietly as possible toward a sheltered nook where his prey was most likely hiding.
He came to a small gap between the crates and paused. Ace stuck his head out experimentally and immediately yanked it back again when he heard the roar of a gun. The crate beside his head exploded, sending broken pieces scattering through the air like a haze of destruction.
Ace cursed, sticking close to the wall. That had been too close.
How the hell do I take this guy out?
He circled the room. The only plan was to flank Fritz and get around to him. Ace knew this was impossible because, clearly, Fritz had every angle covered.
Then Ace smelled something that made his big cheetah mouth grin.
Fear.
Fritz was scared. There was a big difference between a well-armored-and-defended guy who was calm and one that was scared.
Scared guys misjudge things.
If Ace could get him to panic, Fritz would give himself away.
Ace roared as loud as he could and tore into the crates in front of him with all his strength. Some of them came apart with great tearing sounds. Others toppled directly toward Fritz’s hiding place.
Fritz let out a terrified scream, and it was music to Ace’s ears. Thrills of anticipation ran through him as his prey broke free from its hiding place and bolted like a gazelle across the savannah.
You’re just as dead as one, too, you asshole.
Ace jumped out from behind the crates, roaring the whole time. Fritz fired a few shots over his shoulder, then dropped the gun and ran. Ace’s satisfaction and anticipation grew.
Fritz had made it to the hallway and was headed for the stairwell as Ace charged through the main door to hunt his prey. It was laughable how much energy Fritz was putting into his dash.
I’m a fucking cheetah, dickhead. This is a snail’s pace to me.
Fritz disappeared down the stairs, and Ace ran out the doors after him. The stairwell was quiet and dark.
Excellent. Some privacy.
It only took a few short strides to chase Fritz down. As Ace dove at him, planning to land on his back, Fritz spun around with a massive knife in his hands. Ace bounced off him before Fritz could use the knife.
The momentum had been too much for him, and Fritz stumbled back into a corner. Ace came at him again, ignoring the sweep of the big knife as he came down on top of his enemy with claws and fangs at the ready.
There was a burning slash of pain across his ribs, letting him know he’d been hit, but Ace didn’t care. The only thing that mattered was the warm flesh and hot blood pouring under his claws as he tore Fritz apart.
He staggered back, taking a quick look at the man’s wide, staring eyes and gored open chest. Satisfied that Fritz was dead, Ace ran down the stairs, desperate to get back to Emma.
He felt a rising anxiety that something was very wrong. As if he’d missed something. Ace wondered where Benny might be, and his concern grew.
He jumped from landing to landing, barely even using the stairs themselves. Again, he went to the first underground floor. It was one thing to be a wild cheetah running through the city and quite another to be ablood-soakedwild cheetah running through a busy street.
Ace took an underground duct to Emma’s building and came out in the garage. As he hit the stairwell, he realized his stamina was failing. Cheetahs were the fastest land animal, but they also tired out quickly.
They were sprinters, not marathon runners, and Ace had expanded a ton of energy in a very short time.
After a night of no sleep, I’m also a long way from a decent meal.