Chance Lost

by Jo Larue

  With his workday over, Trey struggled to get to his car. He felt like he was going to pass out from the lack of sleep. He seemed to be hallucinating, hearing voices in his head or was he? Through sleep deprived eyes, Trey glanced around warily. He saw the shifter but it was too late. He felt something sting the back of his neck as he started to shift. Then everything went black.

  * * * *

  Craven was ecstatic for the first time in weeks. Ryder had found and brought him Trey. He’d lost weight and looked like shit, but he was alive. Seeing everything starting to come to fruition after all this time was a major head rush. He told his new Beta to carry him to the basement and together they manacled him to the wall.

  Craven made sure Ryder knew he had done well by shackling him, facing the wall, next to Trey. He whipped the man from head to toe, and he was still begging for more. He took advantage of the man being restrained and had his way with him for the next hour. Yes, life was good.

  Later that evening, Craven patiently waited for Trey to come to his senses. He wanted to make sure he knew why he was there and what was going to happen. Then he would tranquilize him again and keep him under until Dakota brought in the bitch. He saw Trey finally stir and stood up from the chair he was relaxing in.

  In a soft voice laced with venom, he called to him, “Wake up, Trey. It’s time find out what happens to traitorous wolves in my pack.”

  Craven laughed as Trey raised his head in confusion. He was chained to the wall with his hands stretched apart and manacled above his head. There was just enough slack for his feet to touch the floor, but that was all. He wouldn’t be able to lie down or move from the spot he was in. There were spikes in the cuffs, and they were embedded in Trey’s wrists to prevent shifting.

  “What the fuck do you think you’re doing Craven?” Trey started to shift and stopped when he realized he was trapped with the cuffs.

  I am enjoying this way too much, but it is so worth it to see his face. Craven laughed again at the thoughts racing through his mind. “You’re here to watch your precious bitch get her rewards for attacking me. What’s the face for, Trey? Did you seriously think I didn’t know what you were doing? All those things I promised to do to her? You’ll now have a front row seat. I will strip her, beat her, and fuck her while you watch and I’ll keep doing it until I break her. Get my drift, traitor?”

  “You touch one hair on her, and I will kill you, Craven. I’ll make you wish for death before I end you.”

  “Those are idle threats coming from a man with no way of escape, don’t you think? Maybe I will share her with the rest of the pack too. Hmmm… now that’s something to think seriously about. I don’t imagine there’s a man in this pack who’d turn down a naked and restrained woman, do you?”

  Craven laughed again as he watched Trey struggle to free himself.

  “Careful Trey, you don’t want another permanent injury do you?”

  Trey let out a string of useless curses and Craven tired of the game. He hit him with another tranq dart so he could leave to hatch more plans for his revenge.

  * * * *

  Jack woke up feeling much better than the day before. There was nothing like friends, food, and beer to set things right again. He mourned the loss of his bar, The Den, but the insurance would take care of it. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to rebuild it in the same place though. He liked the area Chance was building on and considered finding a spot nearby to build instead. Out in the country was always better than the city in his book. Better clientele was a major selling point. He also knew most of his employees would have no problem making the move with him. He spent the morning calling all of them so they could stop worrying. He also set it up with the bank to make sure they all received pay while the bar was in limbo.

  Jack used his afternoon to restart training with Sylas and Chance. Sylas made sure he gave her a booster bite before hand and she matched Sylas blow for blow after. It did his soul good to see her becoming his equal. He would never say it to the man, but Sylas needed this for far too long. Even though they weren’t related, Jack thought of him as a brother.

  Jack met Sylas at the beginning of the Revolutionary War and fought together again in the War Between the States, both times as medics. It was during the latter Sylas saved his ass the first time. Sylas shielded him from a cannon blast by pulling them both out of harm’s way just before the cannon ball struck. The second was when he kept him sane after the loss of his wife and cub in Montana.

  Since he wasn’t in the greatest shape since his capture, he watched them spar and pointed out things he thought needed improving. He also volunteered to cook meals for the day and he worked on the bait strategy while they trained. He wasn’t going to allow anything to go wrong this time.

  The way he worked it out, the best place to do this was on her property. The terrain was perfect to set traps and now that her road was in, they could drive into the property and effectively close down the entrance with a downed tree. If they were to get to her first, they would have to carry her out and that alone should allow enough time to catch up to them and retrieve her.

  The hard part would be to draw the Alpha out. Jack brainstormed some ideas but he would have to run them by Sylas and Chance first. He still had the standby crew waiting in the wings. He’d made sure as soon as he woke up this morning.

  Jack used a SAT phone Chance had with her. Having no trace on the phone meant no one tracking back to where they were. He also timed Chance’s eyes this time, and it lasted eight and a half hours. By his calculations, if Sylas boosted her three times a day, in two or three more days, she should be finished with the change.

  Sylas told him they needed to move again by day’s end, so Jack took the list Chance made and picked a campground in northern Alabama. It was near Cloudland Canyon State Park and would make a good spot to start the return to her property. It would be all back roads from there and less chance of being discovered until they were ready. It was the quiet before the storm keeping Jack on edge. Something was not right. It was too quiet and going too well for his comfort.

  When their training finished and had sated their hunger, Chance begged off strategizing in favor of a shower and sleep. Jack knew she was letting the men have some needed talk time. They really needed to talk about this without her present and Jack made sure he let her know his appreciation with a quick hug as she left the room.

  “You have a special gem in that one, Sy. Best not let anything happen to her, or this old cat will have to pull out the claws. Catch my drift?”

  “I caught your drift a long time ago and trust me when I say, I will go down first before I let anyone hurt her. She finally told me about her childhood, Jack. It wasn’t pretty. I know you’ve seen her flinch at loud noises. Trust me when I say she had good reason. I’ve never wanted to kill a human before, but the abusive pricks she lived with as a child, deserve very painful deaths.”

  “I feel you, Bro. She’s still a tough cookie. I sure as hell don’t want to be on her bad side. I like my boys hanging healthy and I mean to keep ‘em that way. I’ll drive us to the next camp if you want to take advantage of your not-so-empty bed back there. But I suggest you get some sleep, because tomorrow we need to teach your wildcat the intricacies of shifting. I know she can’t shift yet, but I’m thinking we need to give her pre-instructions to ward off the worst case scenario.”

  “You’re getting the heebeegeebees too, I see. Something isn’t kosher in shifter land. This has been too easy and it’s making my hackles rise. My cat hasn’t stopped pacing for 2 days now and I’m not sleeping. Waiting for the ax to fall makes my balls itch. Just glad you’re here, Jack. I feel better knowing I have my back covered. I’ll chat ya in the AM, Bro. Keep it locked and batten down the window covers before you crash. Oh, and thanks again for being alive, Jack.”

  Jack waited until Sylas crawled in with his lady before cranking up the house on wheels. The next few days were going to be hell. Jack was going to make sure they all made it through i
n one piece, come hell or high water.

  Chapter 34

  Chance was still awake when she felt Sylas crawl into bed with her. She was facing him when he pulled her close and she opened her eyes to look into his. He was humming to the radio he turned on before closing the door and coming to bed. He held her face gently with his hands and sang to her along with the music.

  It was a popular Bruno Mars song and the words and his voice stroked her in ways hands could not.

  “I’m not Bruno Mars, but the words mean the same. I love you, Chance Cadens.”

  “I have the person I want, Sylas Taiken. I love only you, forever and a day.”

  He pulled her in closer, brushing his lips to hers. It was feather light and the kiss made her melt. Something was different with him tonight. It was as if this was their last time together and he was expressing how he felt through this one kiss. It wasn’t desperation, just love. Chance wrapped her arms around his neck and moved as close as she could, molding her body to every inch of his. Closing her eyes, she let her mind feel every breath, heartbeat, and muscle that was Sylas. Their heartbeats and breathing synchronized as they lay there holding each other.

  Chance had no idea if it would work, but she projected her thoughts at him. She concentrated on the dream they both shared in the past. She put all her love into it and knew she was successful when she felt his breath hitch with a small gasp. She wrapped a leg over his and held him tighter, not wanting him to distract her.

  Chance pictured them in cat form in the forest and she rubbed her muzzle and body down his. She manipulated the dream to fast forward to where they shifted back to human and made love amongst the trees. He was behind her, holding her breasts and entering her with his hard shaft. As they mated, he reached down and bit into her shoulder. Her dream self looked over as if looking into a camera and mouthed “I love you, Sylas.” just before they both climaxed.

  Just as in the dream, Sylas leaned down and bit her in the same spot. They climaxed at the same time as their dream selves and they never moved other than the bite. They both lay on the bed quivering from the mutual orgasm and power behind the dream she sent him. It was the strongest orgasm yet and she nearly fainted.

  “Holy fuck, baby! I’m not sure what you just did, but I’m… speechless.”

  When Chance finally regained some semblance of control, she asked, “Sylas, can mated pairs talk to each other in their minds? I mean the paranormal romance novels all say they can but those are just made up stories, right?”

  “I have no idea, love, but you just talked to me. I was there with you Chance. I love you too.”

  Sylas kissed her on the nose and smiled. “You know once we mate the bite mark won’t disappear like it does now. It’s a way of marking your other half as taken and our scents will mix. Other shifters can see and smell mated pairs. The only difference with us over other shifters is we don’t emit a scent, at least I think it will work the same. Since I can shift into many animals, I don’t carry a scent that shifters can identify. The same should go for you as well and the difference between our dream and reality is we will need to mark each other for the mating to be official.”

  “Sylas, you do have a scent. It’s very unique and I’ve always loved it. It’s a cross between dark spices and a pine forest. If I can smell your scent, why can’t others?”

  “Maybe it’s the mate thing, Chance. You have a distinct scent to me as well. You smell and taste like honey and wine mixed with a hint of summer flowers. I bet if we asked Jack, he wouldn’t know what we were talking about.”

  Chance watched as he got up to get a warm wash cloth to clean up. He carefully washed her down before cleaning himself. He crawled back under the covers with her and this time he turned her and pulled her back to his chest. His hands roamed her body absentmindedly as they both recalled the power of the dream. Her curiosity was in full bloom and was laden with lots of questions.

  “What if I hurt you with my bite? I won’t know what I’m doing and it scares me a little, Sylas.”

  “Trust me love, you will know when the time comes. It’s instinctual and natural. It will be the first of many such bites. Only the first one will scar. The rest will fade like they do now.”

  Chance could feel his arousal poking into her back. She took a fistful of hair and reached back to rub him with it. She heard his sharp intake of breath when the silken strands brushed his body.

  “You really don’t play fair, woman. Do you have any idea what you’re doing to me?”

  Chance had only one thought on her mind now. Fuck the questions. “Show me.”

  Sylas growled before he got up and pulled her to her hands and knees. He moved behind her and grabbed on to a thick strand of her locks, effectively keeping her still by pulling her head back, taking advantage of her exposed neck, His free hand played with her breasts for a moment before moving down her back to her sweet spot. She was dripping with need and she heard him growl again as she grew wetter in anticipation. He eased her down on her stomach and pulled her to the end of the bed. He slid down to the floor on his knees still behind her. “I want to be right here buried so deep it makes you scream my name.” She felt his tongue lapping up her running juices and moaned, with her leg muscles already starting to quiver. He wrapped both of his arms under and around her legs, trapping her and spreading her wider. His shoulders pushed her ass higher in the air, giving him perfect access to her honey pot.

  His long tongue and fingers tortured her by bringing her close and then backing off. Her virginity was more important to both of them than him getting his rocks off, so he stayed clear, careful not to break her hymen.

  “What do you want baby?” He whispered to her. She begged him to let her come.

  “Then come for me Chance, I need to taste more of you.” She felt him lick higher as his fingers played with her clit. Just as she was ready, she felt him insert a wet finger carefully in her ass. That did it. She stiffened and cried out his name as promised. He continued to move his fingers in both spots as she rode the magical high. She heard him moan and growl as her juices flowed. Sylas didn’t let her up until he made her scream his name again.

  Sylas wasn’t finished with her yet. He got up and straddled her, pulling her higher onto the bed and turning her over onto her back.

  “I love your breasts, baby. They are more than a handful and perfect.”

  Reaching down, Sylas took hold of his cock and rubbed himself between her breasts. Chance caught on to what he was doing and moved her hands to press her flesh together over his now rock hard cock. He moaned when she reached her tongue out to lick him as he rocked back and forth over her. She wanted more than just a taste and pushed him back on the bed to finish what he started. He was still straddling her legs but she didn’t care. She wanted to satisfy her man the only way available to her for the moment. When he came, Chance fell back on the bed, worn out but at least they both were satisfied.

  Sylas rolled them both over, spooning her again. This time they left the mess, too tired to wash.

  “Bite me again, Sylas, before you sleep. It comforts me.” His hands cupped and massaged her breasts as he complied, biting her shoulder and sucking the tender skin. Unexpectedly, she came again with the pleasure of his simple but loving movements.

  “I love you, Sylas.” She fell asleep almost as soon as the words left her lips.

  They awoke the next morning starving and in a new campground. After a much-needed shower, and more steamy shower fun, they joined Jack to eat the breakfast he cooked while they were playing. Thoughts of the night before played havoc in Chance’s brain. She started twenty questions with the both of them over some hot coffee.

  “Jack, do Sylas or I have a scent that you’ve noticed? Sylas said other shifters can’t smell his scent, but I can.”

  “Now that you mention it, no, you don’t have any scent other than that perfume that I caught wind of in the bar. I’ve never been able to catch a scent on Sy either.”

  Chance rememb
ered the dream and that brought up the next question. “I don’t want to bring up a bad memory, but when you were with your mate could you to speak to each other with your minds?”

  “First, there is only one bad memory of her, sweetness. The rest are beautiful thoughts that I will cherish until my time is done here. Sy showed me the reality of our life together and that is how he kept me sane after her loss. There was only the one bad one, to the millions of good, and the good were what he kept me focused on. To answer your question, no, we were never able to speak to each other in our heads. Why?”

  Chance let Sylas tell him what she had been able to do. She watched Jack’s eyes widen as he told the story. He kept looking back and forth between them in disbelief. She just blushed and smiled.

  “Chance, when was the last time Sylas bit you?” She glanced at Sylas and shrugged. He didn’t bite her in the shower this morning and she hadn’t looked in the mirror. Sylas was looking at her strangely now and it was making her nervous.

  “Maybe an hour or so after Sylas came to bed? Why? Do I have a wart on my face or something? You two are scaring me, so spill it.”