Return of the Phoenix - 01

by Heath Stallcup

  “Okay,” she said, and rolled over again.

  She started licking her way up his leg and took him with her oh-so-talented mouth. Franklin gasped at just what she was capable of. For the slightest moment, he actually thought, this is marriage material, before he came back to his right mind. She pushed him back on the bed further and lifted herself over him, suckling him like he had never been in his life. When she leaned over him, he reached down and cupped her heavy breasts in his hands and played with them. Lifting their heft and kneading them between his fingers. She moved around further on the bed and he worked his other hand around to squeeze her beautiful ass. He cupped each cheek and squeezed and worshiped her glorious body with his hands as her wonderful mouth milked him. He reached further between her legs to slip his finger into her and felt…balls?

  Wait? Were these…actually…testicles? Large, dangling NUTS?! Franklin froze, but she kept working away on him. His mind was racing a mile a minute and she never missed a beat. The full force of what was occurring hit him, just as his own testicles betrayed him and fired his own Senatorial semen down her…er, …his throat. She continued until he went completely limp and Franklin was still frozen to the sheets. She sat up and Franklin’s eyes betrayed him…although he begged them not to look, they did. From the waist up, she was ALL woman. Beautiful, curvaceous, bountiful woman. From the waist down, she had a cock like a porn star and the largest nuts he had ever seen. She leaned over him and kissed him deeply on the mouth, his own froth still on her lips. When she was done she slid off the bed and said, “I got to pee. Don’t worry, sweetie. You don’t have to do me this time. Last night was enough.”

  Franklin thought he was going to be sick. He lay there on the bed and felt his stomach turn. He looked at the table and saw an empty bottle of Jack Daniels and a two-liter bottle of Coke. Those were definitely his favorite drinks. And he did like redheads. And man, what an ass that one had…but a dick, too? He felt his stomach start to turn again when he heard her peeing in the toilet…obviously standing up.

  He got up and looked for his clothes. They were scattered everywhere. Intermixed with women’s clothes and an emerald green dress and high heels. He kept shaking his head. This can’t be real, this can’t be real, this can’t be real…she came walking back out and her cock was swinging in the wind. Oh my God, it’s real. She flopped down on the bed and pulled the sheet back over her.

  He went into the bathroom and stepped into the shower. He turned the water full blast on hot and let it scald him. He rinsed his mouth and spit it into the shower. Damage control…think damage control. Nobody knows. And what was the harm, really? I thought she was a woman. She performed oral sex. No harm there, right? A mouth is a mouth, right? It’s not like I’m going to catch AIDS from a blowjob, right? He shampooed his hair and then started lathering his body. But when he ran the washrag across his rear end, he felt a soreness that he really thought should not be there.

  Franklin sat down in the shower and began to cry. “I’m a homo…”

  17

  Nadia and Jack worked their way back to the castle proper just as the sun fell behind the horizon. Rufus was waiting for them when they entered the great room. He was sitting in front of a fire with a book and drinking from a Brandy glass. “I trust you had an enlightening day.”

  “You have no idea,” Jack said as they entered, hand in hand. Rufus took notice and raised an eyebrow.

  “I see that what Natashia has told me is true then?”

  “Natashia?”

  “My mother,” Nadia answered.

  “If you mean that Nadia and I are mates, then yes,” Jack said.

  Rufus merely nodded. “This is…unfortunate.”

  “Why is that?” Jack asked. “From what I understand, some wolves can go their entire lives and never find a mate.”

  Rufus set down his drink. “Jack, what do you intend to do once your wounds are healed?” he asked.

  “Go back to my team.”

  “And Nadia?” Rufus asked. “She would go with you?”

  Jack looked at Nadia who suddenly had fear in her eyes. “I hadn’t thought of…”

  “No. You hadn’t. Your kind hunt and kill her kind, Jack. Is this the future you would bring to our Nadia?”

  “No, of course not.”

  “Then what?” Rufus went on. “Stay here with us?”

  “I don’t know. I guess I could. I hadn’t really thought that far…”

  “Jack, we brought you here…we saved you from slaughter at the hands of the Lamia Humanus and their forces for one thing and one thing only. To take word of our struggles to your people in order to put an end to the wholesale slaughter of innocent lives.” Rufus stood and faced Jack. “You would throw away everything we put at stake for…what? Puppy love?”

  Nadia gasped, “This is not fair! You know that the mating is much more than—”

  “Silence! Know your place!” Rufus ordered.

  “Now hold on just a goddamned minute,” Jack exclaimed. He struggled to keep on his feet, as his legs were killing him. The walk through the castle and out to the woods recharged his batteries, but took a real toll on his still-healing legs. “What happened to the ‘peaceful vampire host’, huh? What’s with the orders and barking at her like she’s a slave?”

  Rufus glared at Nadia then gave Jack a solemn look. “She is a slave, Mr. Thompson. Her entire family are my slaves. A gift from the lupus prosapia to me. To do with as I wish.”

  Jack was aghast. “And here I thought you were just being a nice guy and all, but you’re just a modern day slaver.” Jack’s face twisted in disgust. “I should have known better than to trust a fucking bloodsucker!” He raised his walking stick to knock Rufus’ head from his shoulders, but Nadia stopped him.

  “Jack! No.” She held his hand back. “It’s not like you think.”

  “It’s exactly as he thinks,” Rufus stated.

  “Rufus,” Nadia pleaded. “Why do you antagonize him?” Jack pushed against her to get to Rufus, but she held him easily at bay. “He can still do what you need done as my mate.”

  “How?” they both asked at the same time.

  “True, my family was gifted to Rufus to serve him, but he does not treat us as slaves.” Jack eased up and Rufus sighed, falling back to his chair. “Be honest with him, Rufus. He needs honesty now more than ever. His own people have manipulated him enough for three lifetimes.” Rufus looked at the two of them then ceded her point.

  “Rufus treats us as his own family,” she said. “Remember when I told you that he sold off most of his holdings to help support his family?” Jack nodded at her, “That was to support us and to keep us safe and away from those who might hurt us. To prepare safe places for us to shift during the full moon, and to provide this island with safe places for us to shift and run and hunt during other times.” She waved her hand toward Rufus. “He is as much like a father to us as any of our own fathers. He is no slave owner.”

  She now turned to Rufus, “And you…how could you say such things? I know you want him to take our plight to his people, but do not try to manipulate him like this. He deserves better!” She reached out and pulled Jack in tight to her. “He is my mate.”

  “Or, will be soon if I have my way,” Jack added.

  Rufus nodded and gave her a wave of her hand. “Go on. Please, explain to me how you two can be mated and he can go back to his people?”

  Nadia paused. “He can either mate with me and then return to his people to deliver the message…and maybe return one day…”

  “Or…” Jack asked.

  “Or I can go with you and we do not tell them that I am wolf,” she said.

  “No!” Jack and Rufus both interjected at the same time.

  “At least we can agree on something,” Jack said. He turned to Nadia and held her hands in his face. “Look, Nadia, I’ll be the first to admit that this is all going really, really fast, okay? I mean, I feel things for you that…I can’t explain. Maybe it is this fate t
hing you’ve been talking about, or maybe it’s just plain magic. I really don’t know. I don’t care! But I do know that I won’t do anything that puts you in any kind of danger, alright? It just ain’t going to happen.” Jack turned to Rufus. “Look, if she really is some kind of slave or indentured servant or…whatever, I’ll make a deal with you.”

  Rufus looked up at Jack. “Go on.”

  “I’ll take your plea to my people and I’ll give it my absolute best shot to explain to them what’s going on. Hell, I’ll even try to get my CO to agree with a sit down with you so you can explain to him what’s going on. But either way…win, lose or draw, she’s free to leave if she wants to.” Rufus started to argue, but Jack stopped him. “That’s the only way. I’ll do what you want, and I’ll give my word that I’ll give it my best shot, but I get Nadia. Free and clear. If we both want to leave afterwards, then we are free to do so. Or if she talks me into coming back here and we live happily ever after making puppies or…whatever the hell it is werewolves do, then…so be it.” Jack stuck his hand out to Rufus to shake. “Deal?”

  Rufus contemplated Jack’s proposal. “How do I know that you simply won’t return to your people for a short time, ignore our plight and then tell me that you tried your best?”

  “Because I’m a man of honor. I stand by my word. It’s all I have,” Jack said.

  Rufus stood and took Jack’s hand. “Agreed.”

  *****

  Colonel Mitchell pulled the Humvee into the hangar and met Laura at the topside guard shack. “Everything go as planned?”

  Laura rubbed her temples. “Yes, sir. I definitely need some sleep, though,” she responded. “We got Franklin set up in the Ritz in New Orleans, the IT Geeks did their thing, everything went smooth as warm butter,” she said. “Just, one thing, Matt. Please, if we ever need to do something like this again, let me stay behind and have somebody else supervise. I feel like I need a week’s worth of a hot shower after that one.”

  “I thought you CIA types did this sort of thing all the time?”

  “I haven’t been with the company in a long time, colonel. I think I’ve grown a bit since then.”

  Matt smiled at her. “Does somebody have a conscience now?”

  “Just have one of the guys do it next time, okay?”

  “I owe you, Laura. Next time, I’ll send one of the guys,” Mitchell said, unloading his gear from the back door of the truck. “How long did it take the Geek Squad to crack the encryption?”

  “They finally smashed through it on the plane,” she replied. “His hacker name is f3rr374tru7h, or ‘ferret for truth’, AKA Eugene Sanders. Apparently he was a minor player in the wikileaks fiasco and then went underground. How Franklin tracked this guy down, I have no clue, but it was his signature all over the algorithm.”

  “Geek squad is positive?”

  “Oh yeah. They used the routers on the plane and tracked an ISP embedded in the algorithm back to a series of user accounts tied to him. Most are still active, so he’s definitely our guy.”

  Matt set his stuff on the hand cart and headed to the elevators. “So, if Franklin suddenly wakes up one day and remembers everything and tries to go back to Plan A?”

  “He’ll call on Sanders and the whole thing gets released to the media.”

  “What are the odds Franklin will check the data prior to release?” Matt asked as he entered the elevator and pushed the down button. Laura entered with him, still rubbing her eyes.

  She stifled a yawn. “Honestly, sir? Knowing Franklin, he’ll be so manic that he’ll probably run with what he has, but should he actually be smart enough to check it first…well, then he’ll know that we’ll have something on him to go public with should he decide to screw with us again. Either way, we should be good to go.”

  “Excellent work, XO.” He gave her a light punch in the arm. “You did good.”

  “For a girl,” she said with a grin.

  “For anybody, Laura.” Matt grinned back. “Unfortunately, you only have until tomorrow to catch up on your beauty rest.”

  “Sir?”

  “First thing tomorrow I need you putting together a team that can handle our new predator drones.”

  Laura raised an eyebrow at him. She was barely off the plane and Matt already assumed they were getting them? “Are you sure, sir?”

  “Head of the OC called me first thing this morning and said that Franklin called him at sunrise blathering on about how they had to get us our own satellite and predator drones. The satellite is in the works, and the drones are on the way. Everything is approved. Apparently Franklin was the only thing standing in the way the whole time.” Matt smiled.

  “Sunrise? Jesus, Matt, we were barely out of his room…”

  “Don’t look at gift horse in the mouth, Laura. You did good.” The doors opened and he stepped out. He turned to her as she exited. “Get some rest. You deserve it.”

  Laura walked back to her office and plopped down on her couch. She lay there for a moment and thought, I really should go back to my place and get a good night’s rest. I really should just go home, crawl into a soft, flannel sheeted bed and hope to sleep through my alarm clock. I should, but I can’t get up. So maybe a catnap and then I’ll do it. She rested her eyes for a moment, and fell dead asleep.

  *****

  Jack stood at the window and stared out at the open sea. He was lost in thought when Nadia came into his room and wrapped her arms around him. He could smell her scent. He knew the full moon was close because his senses were so heightened. Nadia had been teaching him about how, as the full moon approached, his senses would sharpen and his energy levels would skyrocket. How his desires would increase and his temper could shorten. He felt so protective of her.

  “I remember when I first saw you, I thought maybe you were a vampire,” he said softly.

  “Really?”

  “Yeah. Your skin is so pale and your hair so light. And your eyes…I’ve never seen eyes that color before.”

  “Hmm. Well, you should see me as a Halfling.” She nuzzled his neck.

  “I’ve been meaning to ask you…once we mate, will you then be able to control your shift and be a Halfling?”

  “Shortly thereafter.” He could feel her rubbing her face against his neck and inhaling his scent.

  “So…no werewolf can shift all the way to the wolf? I mean, unless they’ve found their mate? Right?” he asked.

  “True.”

  “So, if I wasn’t taking the bane, I would shift into a wolf instead of a Halfling?”

  “No, sweetheart,” she explained. “Created wolves can only shift into the Halfling. Even in the presence of their mate. Only the natural born can shift to the wolf.”

  Jack only nodded, yet Nadia sensed a sadness to him. “What is wrong, Jack?”

  He sighed and leaned his head against hers. “I feel a loss.” He shook his head, the words escaping him. “I really can’t explain it, but…I want to be a wolf. Not a Halfling like you describe, but a wolf. Like I saw you shift into.” He turned and faced her, staring into her eyes. “I want to shift with you and run through the forests together, free and unhindered. I want to be wolf with you. I can feel it inside me. It’s something I want more than I’ve wanted anything in my life.”

  “Oh, Jack.” She pulled him to her and kissed him. “I wish I could give this to you, but it isn’t within my power.”

  “Could anybody give this to me?” he asked.

  “No,” she said. “It is impossible.”

  Jack slowly nodded his head and pulled Nadia close to him. She rocked slowly in his arms as he held her. “If something happened to me before we were mated, is it possible you could ever find another mate? Maybe a natural born wolf?” he asked.

  She shook her head. “No. There is only one mate for each wolf. Some wolves go their entire lives and never find their mate.”

  “So I guess your mom was lucky she found hers.”

  “Very true.”

  “Didn’t swe
eten her disposition any, though, did it?” he muttered.

  “Mother wasn’t always so bitter.” Nadia said. “It wasn’t until we were gifted to Rufus from the pack that she…changed.” Nadia turned toward the open door to hear if anybody was within earshot. “The pack has its own hierarchy, and our family was very well respected, very high within the ranks.”

  “Okay. Go on,” Jack urged her, hoping to gain some understanding to her mother’s behavior.

  “When our old pack master left and the challenge was laid out for the new pack leaders to lay claim to the head of the pack, my father was away. He was the strongest and was expected to take the reins of leadership. It was his right and he was the heir. The full moon was upon them before he could return and the rules of the pack are clear. A claim to leadership must be made and those who stake their claim must fight for the role of pack master on the eve of the full moon.” Her face was so full of sadness that Jack’s heart broke for her. “Three laid claim and the victor who became the new leader of our pack had borne a grudge against my father for many, many years. He also knew that my father would most likely kill him to take back the pack…so, he banished my family, more or less.”

  “How can he banish you if you were part of the pack?” Jack asked. “It doesn’t make sense. What little I know of werewolves tells me that they protect the pack no matter what.”

  “Usually, this is true, but sometimes, politics come into play,” Nadia explained. “The new pack master was acting as a surrogate for a female wolf…a blood-thirsty and ruthless woman who would stop at nothing to continue ruling the pack, even through a surrogate. She knew that father would take his rightful place and things would change, so she engineered the takeover very carefully.” Nadia turned her face to hide her eyes from him. “It nearly destroyed my father.”

  “Why didn’t your father challenge the new pack master when he returned?”

  Nadia sighed and shook her head. “The wheels had been set into motion before his return. For many years, we had a blood covenant with Rufus. We were familia with the vampire coven. The new pack master used the security clause to banish us, to bond us forever to Rufus.”