Argus: Accepting the Challenge

by Jana Leigh

  Argus heard Devon on the phone, calling ahead and warning them they were coming with Skye and she was hurt. The mile to their house was more like ten as they drove as fast as they could. Argus kept looking over his shoulder, and making sure, she was in the same place. He saw the tears on Jacob’s face and he ground his teeth together. Damnit, his lion growled inside him and paced.

  When they finally got to the gates, they were open with men standing by guarding it to see who tried to come through. When they saw his truck, they parted. As they passed the gate, Argus looked in his rearview mirror and saw they shut it and locked it before shifting. The men followed them through the town. Word must have spread because his entire Pride was standing outside of the house waiting.

  They could see a stretcher was waiting with Teagan and Darien holding it. Argus pulled in and slammed on the brakes barley putting it in park before he threw open his door and pulled his seat forward. Jacob handed Skye to him and he transferred her to the stretcher. Teagan and Darien quickly pushed her into the house. With Jacob and Argus following close behind.

  The people that were in the house barley registered. He saw his mother and Jacobs parents. They stood at the entrance of the medical room. When Teagan rolled her in Lena and Seila went with her and closed the door. Argus wanted to pound on it and scream for him to be allowed in. But he didn’t. Instead, he stopped in his tracks frozen looking at the door. He best friend and mate beside him doing the same thing.

  He heard Devon on the phone again. He assumed he was talking to someone in Milliken, explaining the situation. He felt his Warriors standing behind him, the fury of what happened to their lioness was radiating off all of them. No one knew what to do, or what to say. So they stood vigil with their leaders and the members of the New Council silently. Every once in awhile they would move and pace. But Argus and Jacob never moved a muscle.

  When the door finally opened and Lena stepped out Argus and Jacob held their breath.

  “She is unresponsive to people talking to her. She is muttering to herself still, but she has stopped fighting us. She has shut down.” She said tears, rolling down her cheeks. “Teagan is working to stabilize her. She has a lot of injuries. Teagan is requesting that we get the plane ready; she needs to be taken to Milliken where Cloe is. We can’t take her to the hospital here. You both claimed her; the blood test would show it. He is going to stabilize her; her unresponsiveness is probably more emotional than physical. She isn’t in a coma.”

  Darien stepped forward and said. “I will arrange it. Levi and Devon followed quickly, all of them on the phone talking to someone. Argus nodded and turned to Jacob.

  “Have Sierra pack our bags, we can be in the air within the hour.” He said and looked grimly around him. “I will address the Pride.”

  ***

  His Pride made him proud. They were rightfully enraged and took over cleaning up the house that Skye was held in so the authorities would not ask questions. Argus and Jacob waited until Teagan emerged from the room and allowed them to see their mate. He had drugged her so that she would remain unconscious during the plane ride.

  It broke both of their hearts to see their mate in that condition. They arrived in Milliken hours later and Skye was rushed into surgery. They did the same thing they had done before and stood vigil. This time there were new people with him. The entire New Council came and introduced themselves, and sat with him. Ryan and Ariel were also there. The female Pride leader gave them hugs, and helped them settle their beasts.

  Ryan took each of them in turn and allowed them to shift and run. Letting their lions blow off steam. While Ariel sat with the other and calmly ran her hand over their hair. She knew what their cat needed.

  Quin and Jaden made sure that a nurse kept coming in with updates. The list of her injuries made them all grimace. Jordan spoke softly to them, telling them that if she could survive what she had, then Skye would pull through. The doctors here were top notch.

  They repaired her punctured lung and dislocated shoulder. Argus and Jacob sat and stared almost feeling every wound their mate did. They were exhausted but refused to leave.

  Finally, Cloe emerged from the surgical room and smiled at them kindly. “She pulled through just fine. Everything is repaired; she should be asleep until the morning. We have a room set up for you all. I will check on her every hour, so don’t be alarmed.”

  Argus nodded and leaned back and took the first deep breath that he had in a long while. She was going to be fine. “I would like to ask you something though?” Cloe said and Argus opened his eyes. “While she is sedated and would not feel the pain of change would you like to turn her? It would make her healing speed up.”

  Jacob and Argus looked at each other. She had already allowed them to claim her. Although they had not specifically talked about when they would change her, they both nodded. Slowly they got to their feet. Ryan and Ariel stood by their side and went with them in a show of support. Blaze stood guard on the door for his Pride mates.

  They grimaced when they saw her. She looked so battered and hurt. Jacob nodded to Argus. They knew that Argus, as the Pride leader, would have to change her. She would be a full blooded lion. They each kissed her gently and murmured their love for her. And they did love her. In the short time they had been together, their bond had formed and she was now a part of them.

  Argus leaned over her and frowned. He had to bite her several times in order for the change to take place, though wolves had to bite their mates only once, cats needed to bite their several times in order for the change to happen quickly. Other shifters had their own ritual as well, thought Skye would have been in pain had she been awake, bears mates that are changed don’t feel the pain. Thankfully, she would be asleep for the pain. They had been told it would only last a few hours while the shifter blood took over and her lioness was born. With each bite, he felt the tears fall from his eyes, soaking her skin. Jacob held onto her hand and whispered to her.

  When he was finally done, he stood and nodded. Ariel came to him, rubbed her cheek against his, and held him while he cried. It was the first time he could remember letting his emotions show in front of others.

  Blaze came through the door to help Ryan wheel her out, and into the room they had given the three of them. Argus and Jacob followed silently and when everyone left, they locked the door and sat on the couch watching over her while she slept and changed. They only allowed the doctor to come in every hour to check on her. Each of them falling asleep and resting in turns so they would keep vigil and be with her when she woke.

  Chapter 15

  “Well that sucked.” Cami said and stood looking out the window of her room.

  “Yeah, but they are here now and safe. Cloe and Teagan will take care of them; I can’t believe that he was right under our noses this whole time.” Quin said and hugged her from behind.

  Jaden joined them and wrapped his arms around both of his mates. “Two more.” He whispered and they were silent. Each of them was thinking about the two Chosen that were still out there.

  “I swear, none of us can show up without drama. Bombs, kidnappers, blood, gore. The only thing we are missing is…” Cami said.

  “Don’t say it. You will jinx us.” Quin said quickly.

  “Right, like that isn’t already true.” Jaden drawled and they smiled at each other.

  “Next week I will call Michael and accept the challenge. Until then we will get everyone healthy and look for the remaining Chosen.” Quin whispered.

  Cami hung her head and cried from the stress. Her mate was going to fight for their lives, their right to be leaders. There was nothing she could do. Well almost nothing. She thought and then raised her head and took the hands of her mates and led them to the bed.

  ***

  Skye groaned. Her mind woke up before her body. She could feel the heaviness in her limbs but her heart was racing. She felt different somehow, and she knew. She was changed. Her mates had found her and saved her. Just as she knew they woul
d.

  Slowly she felt the tingling in her fingers and wiggled them. She heard movement come from somewhere around her. “Baby, open your eyes. Please.” She heard Jacob say.

  She tried but they were not working yet. She felt a presence inside her and wanted to scream. What the hell was that, she thought and then focused. Wow, it was a sleek and large lioness. Her lioness. She soothed it instinctively by thinking of her mates. The cat paced and then settled down when she felt their mate’s hands on her arms.

  “Skye?” Argus said gently, leaned over, and kissed her lips. They were dry and sore. Her lioness laughed and growled. She would fix her when they shifted. Her lioness was strong; she smiled to herself when she thought of changing and running.

  Finally, she felt her eyelids try and open and she forced them wide. The first thing she saw was her mates leaning over her. Goodness, they were handsome. She wanted to purr and rub her head against them.

  “Hey baby girl.” Jacob said.

  “Jacob, Argus,” She croaked out.

  They smiled at her and she sighed. Everything was going to be okay; she thought and then asked for a sip of water. That first day was the hardest. Getting used to her lioness and moving her sore muscles. Surprisingly, her lioness had already repaired some of her wounds. She knew that she would have been worse off she had not been changed. She thanked her mates repeatedly for coming for her. They insisted on having her talk to someone about what happened. Jo was the one they turned to. She had been in a similar position. The two women had bonded over their talks. Slowly, the rest of the New Council had come in and introduced themselves trying not to overwhelm her too much.

  She liked all the women, and was excited when she saw all of their tattoos. She wanted one too. Her mates had put down their feet and told her she had to wait until after she was healed.

  Her first shift came only days after she had arrived in Milliken. Ryan, Blaze, Ariel, and her mates took her to an open field and talked her through it. It was an amazing feeling turning into a lioness. Her mates had loved her cat. They played for hours before she had become tired. When she shifted back, she felt better. The healing was accelerated every time she shifted.

  After a week of healing, she was growing restless. Her mates refused to make love to her until she was fully healed; her lioness and human side agreed that they were being worry warts. Cami and the other women had the right idea to complete her healing.

  They found her a sleek white see through nightgown that fit her well. And a week to the day of her attack she walked into their bedroom with the gown on and her mates had been seduced. She laughed when she talked about it afterward with her new friends. Jacob had practically drooled when she had walked up to him and smiled. Argus fumbled over the remote control he had been holding, trying to find a football game to take their minds off their mate.

  “Skye? What is this all about?” Argus said and put the remote to the side and fisted his hands on his thighs.

  She smiled and sashayed a little to the middle of the room. She hoped that she didn’t look like a dork. But from the looks in her men’s eyes, she knew that she had caught their attentions and laughing at her was the last thing on their minds.

  “Boys, I am sick and tired of you thinking that you know what is best for me. Yes, I was kidnapped. Yes, I was hurt. But, no, I am not a shrinking flower. I feel great; all the female parts are humming. So, I suggest you guys get busy, and make your lioness happy.” She said standing defiantly looking at them.

  Argus laughed and Jacob jumped up from the couch. He swooped her up, and took her back to the couch where he draped her across his and Argus’s lap. She barely had enough time to catch her breath he was so fast.

  “Baby, that is a demand we can certainly help you with.” Jacob said and kissed her neck. She shivered when he ran his tongue across the place where he marked her. It was an erotic zone now apparently.

  Argus ran his hands up her legs, pushing her nightgown up further. She smiled when he growled. “I love it when you take control, my lioness. You know how much cats like their cream, spread for me, and let me taste you.”

  She sighed and did as he asked. Jacob seemed to be fascinated with the silky way the nightgown moved over her nipples, making them hard. He palmed her breast, and sucked her nipple through the material. The added friction made her moan.

  Argus ran a finger through her pussy lips, and then put it in his mouth and looked up at her. “Yum, so sweet.”

  She smiled when he used his fingers to part her nether lips, and then use his tongue to search for her sensitive clit. It was already engorged with the need to be touched. She wiggled a little, and tried to get him where she wanted him. Unfortunately, he grabbed her waist and made her stop moving. She growled in frustration, and then felt him smile against her pussy.

  Jacob grew impatient, and pulled the nightgown up, ripping it in the process. “Hey,” she said. “That was not mine.”

  “I will replace it. I will replace it for you in every color. You look so sexy wearing it. I think a new rule should be made for when we are in the confines of our home, you must always wear a sexy nightie.” Jacob said against her breast.

  Argus made a noise in agreement. She rolled her eyes, but felt herself become wet at the thought of the smooth material running over her body all the time. She would always be wet, she thought. Was that a bad thing? She wondered, and smiled when Jacob stopped teasing her nipple and sucked it in his mouth.

  Argus flicked his tongue over her clit and she lost all thought. When he pushed a finger into her wet pussy, she began to move her hips. She grabbed his hair and held him still while she set her own pace. She knew what she needed, what she had needed since that first change.

  Jacob increased the pressure on her nipples, and she thrashed her head, and then moaned as she came. The release came fast and she still felt unsatisfied. Only having her mates inside her would ease the need.

  “I need you inside me. Both of you.” She groaned, and barely felt them move her and lay her in the middle of the lush bed. Her mates had ordered this bed; it was similar to the one that was in their home in Texas. She loved it; and thank goodness, it fit in the room. She could not wait for her new house to be built, so she could feel free to scream as loud as she wanted at particular times.

  Skye watched through half closed eyes as her mates undressed quickly. It never ceased to amaze her that they loved her. She had been shocked the first time they said it to her just after she woke up from the surgery. She felt it too, but felt like maybe she should wait to tell them. It had to be too soon, she thought. Apparently, she was wrong. Her mates had growled and kissed her until she was breathless when she said the words to them.

  Finally, they were on the bed with her. She wrapped an arm around each of them, and held them to her breasts for a moment. She wanted to savor the feeling of them touching her and loving her. She had a lifetime of this, and was amazed it had barely started.

  Argus grew impatient first, pulled back, and nipped at her neck. “Ride Jacob baby, while I take this sweet little ass.”

  She shivered in response and allowed herself to be moved until she straddled Jacobs’s waist. She smiled down at him, leaned over, and licked his nipple. It was where she had claimed him and Argus just days before.

  Argus and Jacob had insisted that she claim them right after she shifted for the first time. She had been peeved that they would not have sex with her while she did it. They claimed she was not recovered enough, but they wanted to make sure the bond was fully in place, should something happen to her again. For some reason they feared that she would disappear on them again. So she claimed them. Biting both of them on the chest right above the nipple. The men had been shocked that she struck so fast, but she smiled at their disproval of not being able to show off their mating mark. She told them she was just fine with them waking around shirtless, as long as they remember who they belong to.

  Her self-confidence was growing every day. She sometimes wondered if her
kidnapping had been a dream, well nightmare. Jacob brought her back to the business at hand when he brushed her sensitive nipples with his hand, and then smiled. She leaned forward and kissed her playful mate. Their tongues battled, and she felt the cool lube slide down her ass.

  Jacob moved her until she held his cock in her gate, and waited. Argus stretched her ass and kissed her spine, murmuring words of love and devotion of her ass. She smiled and looked over her shoulder at her mate. He was amazing, they both were.

  Argus lowered her onto Jacobs cock, she sighed at the feeling of finally taking them once again. It felt like coming home.

  Argus lined himself up and pressed in her back side. When they were all connected, she felt a sense of peace flow through her. It lasted only moments as they began to move. She loved the feeling of them making love to her together. She felt the love and commitment surround them, and she moaned. Jacob reached up and pressed her clit and she came with a burst of stars behind her eyes. Her men released their seed moments later, whispering their love for her as they came.