Greta is dreaming. She dreams she's lying on her back, looking up at a cloudy sky. One of the clouds looks like the head of a dog. Yes, it's a dog with big ears, and his tongue is sticking out. Mariah lies between Greta's legs, licking her pussy. It feels wonderful. Greta shivers with pleasure and closes her eyes. When she opens them, the sun has come out from behind the clouds.

She found herself awake, staring up at a skylight in the bunkhouse. Mariah lay asleep next to her, her large breasts resting against Greta's shoulder. Greta slid out from beneath the coarse wool blanket and stood up. The other women were still asleep, each in her own bed. Only Greta and Mariah had slept together.

Maybe I'm oversexed, Greta wondered.

Then she heard the sound of men's voices outside. She crept to a window and looked out. The big man named Loopy was there, along with four others. Two carried shotguns. Loopy was talking into a two-way radio. He clipped the radio to his belt and told the others, "Okay, time to get these sluts up and moving. Our great white hunters are on their way."

He walked over to an iron triangle hanging from a pole and began banging it with an iron rod. The clanging was louder than Greta had expected. She retreated to the bed where Mariah was awakening in confusion. The other women were also stirring.

"They're coming to get us," Greta told Mariah. "Be brave."

A door opened, and Loopy walked in.

"Okay, girls, up and at 'em. Get your clothes on and get your asses outside." Mickie, who wore only a T-shirt, was nearest him, and he suddenly grabbed her arm and pulled her to him. With one big forearm pressing her neck, he ran the other hand down her body, then inserted three fingers into her slit.

"Nuthin' like the taste of pussy in the morning," he said with a grin. Then he licked his fingers, released Mickie and left.

"The son of a bitch," Mickie sobbed, falling to her knees and trying to pull her shirt down to cover her crotch.

Tiffany knelt beside her. "Come on, honey. Get your shorts on. We're going to make it. Somehow, we'll get through all this."

They had all been told, in the letter inviting them to what once looked like a profitable weekend, to bring shorts, T-shirts or tank tops, and running shoes. Greta had chosen a white, ribbed tank top and khaki shorts. It looked like the others had pretty much the same idea. All except Layla. She wore shiny black bicycle pants and a grey top that barely covered her nipples and left her belly exposed. Not very practical, thought Greta. But she did have nice tits.

The triangle clanged again, and Loopy called, "Don't make us come in there after you." Instinctively, the women gathered together and hugged, then headed one by one outside.

Greta was first. When she emerged into the sunlight, there were several whistles from the men. "Get a load of them legs," said one. "What I wouldn't give to get between 'em."

"The fuckin' hunters are giving a lot more than you ever could, Danny boy," said Loopy. "So just forget about it."

Whistles and wisecracks greeted each of the other women. Mariah, with her big breasts, drew an especially enthusiastic reaction.

"Line up, girls," said Loopy. "Line up and pay attention." He held up a pair of stainless-steel semi-circles, attached by a hinge. "This is a collar," he said. He reached out and pulled Mariah out of the line. "Turn around and face them," he commanded. "And push up your hair so your neck's exposed."

Mariah did as she was told.

"The collar attaches like so," he said, closing the two semi-circles around her neck and clicking the ends into place. "There's an electronic gizmo in it that's activated when you get close to the fence around the Ranch. When that happens, the little radio inside lets us know where you are. The ranch is big, but there's a road running all the way around it, just outside the fence line, and we've got guys in Jeeps, guys with guns. They're stationed every half mile on that road. You might make it through the razor wire to the outside, though I doubt it. But even if you did, one of our guys would be on you like one of them Jurassic velociraptors."

The other men began attaching the collars. The one who stood in front of Greta looked like a college kid, a good-natured jock. She smiled tentatively at him.

"Being sweet won't do you no good," he said in a low voice. "All of you cunts is going to die today."

He stepped back and looked expressionlessly at her. She felt defeated. Ever since she was 15, she had been able to handle men with a smile that was three parts friendliness and one part pure lasciviousness. It wasn't going to work here.

More men were coming up the path the women had followed the night before. They passed the big wooden frame, but the body of the gutted woman had been removed.

McTeague joined Loopy. "Have they been cooperating?" he asked. "So far, so good," said Loopy. "I explained about the collars."

"Excellent," said McTeague. Then he turned to the women. "Now, listen closely. Each of you will be given a chance to get as far from here as you can in two minutes. At the end of two minutes, the hunters who've drawn your name will begin pursuit. Since you'll be leaving separately, you won't be able to stick together. So get any notions of teamwork out of your pretty little heads. It's every girl for herself out there.

"The Ranch is big, over 5,200 acres. The northern half is hilly and heavily wooded. We're in the southwest. The hotel is over there." He pointed east, where the men had just come from. "There are buildings of various sorts scattered about. You can hide, or try to hide, anywhere you want. After all, you're running for your lives.

"As for our hunters," he said, turning to the men, "they will be operating in two-man teams, and though they are restricted to bagging their assigned prey, they can radio me anytime they run into another team's quarry. So, in a spirit of cooperation, we should be able to round up all of these young ladies before nightfall. And while their bodies are yours, to be disposed of as you wish, remember that the Medical Center will pay 1,500 each for usable hearts and livers, 500 each for kidneys and 150 for corneas."

"Fuck you," yelled Tiffany. "I'm not playing this game."

McTeague moved toward her. She tried to back away, but one of the staff men grabbed her from behind and pinioned her arms.

"You don't have to play," McTeague said calmly. "You can just let the pair of men who drew your named take you directly to the Abattoir. That's where we discipline naughty girls like you. I don't ordinarily participate in such exercises, but in your case I would make an exception."

Then he hit her with a backhanded blow that snapped her head to the left. She went limp in the embrace of the man behind her.

"Tiffany will be released last," McTeague said, in an even voice. "That will give her a chance to come to her senses." He rejoined Loopy and pulled a stopwatch out of his pocket. "Okay, Greta, you're up first."

Greta hugged Mariah and stepped forward. "I'm ready," she said. "Who'll be chasing me?"

McTeague waved toward Davis and Tom. "Great. A fat man and a cripple," Greta said, in a deliberately loud voice. "This should be easy."

"They won't go easy on you when they catch you," said McTeague. "Alright, start running."

Greta had already decided on her course. With long, effortless strides, she ran northeast, toward a low hill that led to the forested northern half of the Ranch. When she reached the crest, she found herself looking down into the valley she had seen from the hotel dining room the day before. The hotel was on the farther side, its windows gleaming in the sunlight. Greta glanced back at the group of men. She figured she had almost a half-mile lead before two men detached themselves from the group and headed toward her. Davis and Tom were trying hard, but they moved slowly. She smiled and continued running. She wanted to put as much distance as possible between herself and her pursuers. She would need time to set up an ambush.



# # #



Back at the bunkhouse, the second runner, Mickie, had started out at a very fast pace, headed northwest, toward the nearest big stand of trees. The men who were to pursue her, two brothers named Tony and Raymond, were doing calisthenics to loosen up. They appeared to be in good shape.

Bob and Paulie were checking their gear. Another hunter, Jeff, came up and said, "I've never seen a bow like that. What kind is it?"

"It's a compound bow," said Paulie, "very powerful, but very smooth."

"What kind of arrows do you use?"

Paulie pulled one from his quiver and handed it to Jeff.

"Boy, it's really light," said Jeff.

"Yeah. The shaft is made of graphite."

"But the barbs here look like they're slanted the wrong way," said Jeff. "They're swept forward, instead of back."

"Yeah," said Paulie. "But when the arrowhead enters an animal - Layla, for instance - the blades swing back and lock into place. Sort of like a toggle bolt. These kinds of heads do a lot more damage."

Jeff whistled softly.

"Hey," said Bob, in a tone of mock indignation. "What about me? What about my nifty crossbow? These bolts will do just as much damage as my friend Robin Hood's arrowheads. Watch this."

He raised the crossbow and aimed at a stack of firewood next to the bunkhouse. There was a sharp twang, and the top log split in two. Bob looked around the group for approval. The men were laughing appreciatively. The faces of the four remaining women were filled with fear.

Layla's lips trembled, and she started crying. She had been selected as Bob and Paulie's quarry.

"Retrieve that bolt, Bob," said McTeague. "You and Paulie are up next. After Miss Layla gets her head start, of course." He winked at her.

One by one, the women fled and the men pursued. Mariah was last. Her hunters were Jeff, who she thought had a rather gentle appearance, and Dozney, a large, athletic man with a completely bald head. He hadn't smiled once that morning, or at the reception the night before. After McTeague announced that Mariah would be his and Jeff's quarry, he had kept his dark eyes on her. He was trying to spook her, she thought. Well, it was sure working.