Free New Species 03 Valiant by Laurann Dohner

gripped Tammy’s arm. “Your
    car is the least of our concerns. You’re going to help us
    turn everyone against those animals.”
    Tammy fisted her keys to force a few of them to slip
    between her fingers. Four men against her weren’t good
    odds. She silently prayed someone would walk out of the
    bar to help her but it didn’t happen. Her other hand
    grabbed the handle of her car door.
    “I can’t just leave my car here. I’m willing to listen to
    what you have to say but I can’t afford to pay the tow
    yard to get it back.”
    The jerk suddenly tried to yank her away from her
    vehicle. She clung to the car handle, he pulled on her
    hard enough to open the door slightly, and the interior
    lights inside her car came on. He yanked harder and the
    metal she gripped slipped from her fingers. She spun and
    knew she needed to attack to break free.
    She punched the guy hard in the gut with the pointed
    keys sticking out between her fisted fingers as her foot
    came down on his. Her hand hurt from the keys when
    she struck him and her other hand clawed at his face. Her
    fingernails dug into his flesh just under his eye. He
    bellowed and released her just as Tammy let out a
    piercing scream to try to draw attention to her
    predicament.
    Tammy shoved him and started to run for the bar
    but only got a few feet before someone grabbed her hair.
    She screamed again from the pain that shot from the
    back of her head. The stranger jerked her in his brutal
    grasp and slammed her into someone’s parked truck.
    Their side mirror struck her cheek and pain shot through
    that side of her face near her ear.
    He released her hair so his strong arms could wrap
    around her waist and they kept her from hitting the
    ground when her knees threatened to collapse under her.
    She screamed again and kicked at the jerk who hefted
    her off her feet. The back of her head made contact with
    a face behind her when she threw it back in a frantic
    attempt to force him to drop her. He cursed loudly and
    released her.
    She hit the ground and nearly fell to her knees but
    managed to stagger away a few steps instead. Two of
    her attackers had put themselves between her and the
    bar. She fought back a wave of dizziness from the pain in
    her face and the back of her head where she’d head-
    butted the jerk. She bumped the truck again, used it to
    push against, and sprinted for the road instead. She
    made it out of the parking lot to the sidewalk, even to the
    pavement of the street, and spotted headlights coming at
    her.
    Tammy ran at them, sure that those jerks would run
    in the opposite direction. Traffic was normally light at
    that time of night but whoever drove the car approaching
    her had to be better than those she fled. She waved her
    arms, yelling to get the driver’s attention, and realized
    the vehicle started to slow.
    She recognized the vehicle as it drew closer. Pastor
    Thomas’ beat-up old car was a welcome sight when he
    hit the brakes completely, stopping just feet from where
    she stood. She couldn’t miss the shock on his features as
    he peered at her through his windshield. Relief flooded
    her until his gaze shifted from hers, his lips parted, and
    his eyes widened in alarm at something he saw to the
    side of her.
    Tammy twisted her head to stare over her shoulder
    and saw the four men rush at her. The one in cowboy
    boots who’d lifted her off her feet had blood running
    down his chin from his busted lip she’d caused and that’s
    all she saw before they reached her.
    Tammy screamed, kicked, and tried to punch but the
    men grabbed her arms and one of them grabbed her
    legs. They yanked her off her feet and ran with her body
    carried between them toward the parking lot of the bar.
    A loud horn blared while Pastor Thomas screamed her
    name.
    They hoisted her into the air and tossed her over the
    rim of the bed of the truck as if she were a sack of
    potatoes. The force of the impact when she landed
    knocked the air from her lungs and pain