by Zara Chase
“Really?” Tony winked again, but sounded convincingly surprised. “How did you get to learn that? It’s classified.”
“I still have a few friends in high places who don’t like to see me being stonewalled.”
“Obviously.” Tony paused. “You’re wondering if he made enemies over there, and they took him out?”
“The thought crossed my mind. It’s certainly one explanation.”
“How did you think I could help? I’ve never been deployed to Honduras.”
“It’s a long shot, but you worked with him several times when he was reassigned to training. I wondered, after what I’ve just told you, if anything he said could cast light on what happened to him?”
“I can’t think of a single thing. Sorry, Anais, I’d like to help, but I spent as much time as I could avoiding Gary.”
“Do you know anyone who might have been deployed with him? Perhaps they could help.”
“I can ask, but I don’t hold out much hope. If they’re still serving, they can’t say much. If they got out, the chances are they’re scattered far and wide, and still wouldn’t talk anyway.”
“Oh well, it was just a thought.” Anais shook her head, no longer acting. “It’s so damned frustrating, not knowing.”
“My advice is to let it go and get on with your life. There’s no profit in dwelling on the past.”
“No, I guess not, and I would do that, but for the break-in here. Something isn’t right. I mean, in my place, wouldn’t you be curious?”
“Sure, but—”
“Gary and I were childhood sweethearts. He wasn’t always as hard as the army made him become. We had our differences recently, but I still need to know what happened to him.”
“I understand. Okay, leave it with me and I’ll ask around.”
“Thanks so much.” Tony wheeled his chair toward the door, and Anais walked along beside him. “I really appreciate it.”
“No problem. You just lock your door and stay safe now.”
“I need to go to the store. I have no food in. Once I’ve done that, I shall follow your advice.”
Anais closed the door after Tony, and leaned against it, emotionally exhausted after her little performance. She waited five minutes until her cell phone vibrated with a text message from Hunter, telling her the coast was clear. She lost no time in leaving her apartment and jumping in her car to drive back to the guys’ place. She wasn’t surprised when a navy blue truck fell right in behind her.
“You should be an actress,” Hunter said, helping her from her car and giving her a hug.
“Did I do okay?”
“You fooled me,” Lewis replied.
The three of them moved into the living room. “Did you see anyone watching?” Anais asked.
“Lewis did, in the bar’s parking lot. A black truck with tinted windows and a whole heap of large antennae. It pulled in just after he got there and stayed until Tony left your apartment. The guy driving didn’t get out, and so we couldn’t get a picture of him, but we did get his tag.”
“Can you find out who the truck’s registered to?”
Hunter laughed. “I’ll try not to take that as an insult.”
“Sorry, I guess I’m still a bit on edge.”
“Just give me a moment. I’ll give Raoul a call and he’ll run it down for me.”
“Okay. Was it a Florida tag?”
“Yeah, it was.”
Lewis poured Anais a glass of wine, which she nervously sipped at while Hunter made his call. He returned a short time later, brandishing a piece of paper.
“Does the name Taylor Sanchez mean anything to you, babe?” he asked.
“Taylor was Gary’s father’s name,” she said slowly, “but Sanchez means nothing.”
“It’s a Spanish connection, though,” Lewis said.
“An odd sort of name,” Hunter mused. “Taylor isn’t Spanish. It sounds kinda made up. Raoul is doing a check on the guy, but I don’t figure it will lead far.”
“Where does he live?” Lewis asked.
“Not that far.” Hunter pulled up Google Earth on his laptop and put in an address in Immokalee, Collier County. “An easy distance if you want to keep tabs on your old job and your former wife.”
“If Gary’s still alive, surely he’d relocate a long way away?” Anais said.
“Not necessarily.” Hunter looked up, offering her a gentle smile. “People gravitate toward the familiar. Immokalee is sparsely populated, former Indian country, close to the ’Glades. Properties are tucked away all over the place. It’s easy to hide out, not talk to anyone, and see if anyone’s onto you before they get too close.”
“Hiding in plain sight?” she suggested.
“Right.”
“Sounds like Gary’s sort of place,” Lewis remarked, pointing to the close up of the property on the screen. “Plenty of private land to keep him isolated, and close to nature so he can do all the stuff he does best.”
“I still don’t get it.” Anais shook her head. “What the heck is going on?”
Hunter grinned at her. “Only one way to find out. How do you fancy a trip to Immokalee?”
Chapter Twelve
“When do we leave?” Anais asked.
Hunter laughed. “Is tomorrow soon enough for you?”
“I guess I can wait that long.” She followed Hunter into the kitchen. “Let me help you with dinner.”
“No, I’ve got it covered. You just take it easy.”
Anais was too keyed up to simply kick her heels. If she didn’t have an occupation she would brood, and her imagination would get away from her. Hardly surprising, given that her fink of a husband had probably faked his own death. Hadn’t he heard of divorce, for fuck’s sake? Sighing, she grabbed her laptop from the study and settled on the settee with it. She was getting behind with her editing so made an effort to lose herself in the work she loved. Lewis was working on his laptop, too, but he’d brought it into the sitting room, as though he didn’t want to leave her alone. Hunter puttered about in the kitchen with his usual tight efficiency, but kept throwing her reassuring smiles. Anais cherished the domesticity because she had never had it with Gary, and hadn’t realized she needed it.
“I was right about Sanchez,” Hunter said over dinner. “I just heard back from Raoul. It’s a stolen identity. There’s nothing goes back more than a couple of years.”
“I see.”
“We managed to get the picture from his driving license,” Lewis added.
“Is it him?” she asked anxiously.
“Hard to say,” Hunter replied.
“Show me.”
“Come on then.” He stood up and held out his hand. “If you’re done here, the picture’s on my computer in the study.”
The three of them crossed the hall and Hunter pulled up the picture in question. Anais steeled herself to take a look. Now that the moment of truth had arrived, she was unsure if she wanted to know. She closed her eyes for an expressive moment and took a deep breath. Then she opened them again and looked at the screen. The man in the picture had long dark hair, a heavy beard and dull green eyes.
“Gary had a buzz cut, was clean shaven, and had gray eyes,” she said slowly. “But it’s him. I recognize his nose and the shape of his jaw, even through that beard.” She exhaled sharply, endeavoring not to hyperventilate. “He’s alive.”
Hunter slid an arm around her shoulders and pulled her against him. “Take a moment, babe. You’ve had a shock.”
“No, I’m okay. You got me used to the idea, so it’s not that much of a surprise. I’m not upset, I’m just plain mad.”
“Mad is good,” Lewis replied. “Mad helps a lot in these situations.”
“We can do one of two things.” Hunter moved to the love seat they had recently…well, made love on, and took Anais with him. He sat down with her. Lewis perched a buttock on the small amount of remaining space on her opposite side. She felt crowded by them, but in a good way. Protected, cared about, ch
erished—feelings she hadn’t known for a long time, if ever. “We can either go to Immokalee ourselves tomorrow and check out the situation, or tell the military what we’ve found out and let them deal with it. It’s your call, babe.”
“Not a chance! The military have cut me out every step of the way. I want to face the lying son of a bitch and see what he has to say for himself. Then we’ll call in the military police and have them arrest his sorry ass.”
“See,” Lewis said, leaning in for a kiss. “I told you mad was good.”
“Just so long as you’re sure,” Hunter said. “It’s obvious he doesn’t want to be found, and that he’s into something heavy. It could get dangerous.”
“Yeah, I might rip his head from his shoulders,” Anais replied, quietly seething through her hurt and bewilderment. “So he’s the one in danger.”
“Come on, darlin’,” Hunter said. “You need a distraction, and I know just the thing.”
“You won’t be needing clothes for what we have in mind,” Lewis added. “Take them all off right now.”
Anais was feeling so overloaded emotionally, that she couldn’t have imagined thinking about anything other than Gary’s cruel deception. The moment Hunter spoke in his Dom voice and Lewis ordered her to strip, she found out just how wrong she had been. Thoughts of Gary fled her mind at warp speed, replaced by feelings of excitement and anticipation. The guys had already taught her so much, but she got the impression things were about to heat up even more, if that was possible. Bring it on!
She shed her clothes and adopted a submissive pose, waiting to be told what to do next.
“Come with us.”
Each guy took one of her hands and led her down the stairs. Oh good, they must be going to the playroom. She rather liked their playroom, and all the fascinating toys they had in it. She had no idea what half of them were for, but was very anxious to experiment. Her anger gave way to excitement as she padded naked down the stairs. She wondered who this person was, casually parading about in the buff in front of not one but two relative strangers.
She thought of Gary’s callous behavior and realized this was who she was supposed to be. All her life up to this point had been marking time. Hunter and Lewis had believed in her, had brought her alive and awoken her sexuality. That was cause for celebration, not embarrassment, especially since she had fallen violently in love with them both. She almost stumbled when that thought struck home. Hunter’s strong arm snaked out and steadied her.
“Careful,” he said, his brown eyes softening as he looked down at her. “We need you in one piece.”
Was it really possible to fall in love in just two days?
Evidently so. Not that she would ever admit to her feelings. Neither of them was in the market for love, they had made that abundantly clear, and she wasn’t about to repay their kindness by making them feel awkward. No, she would just take what was on offer for as long as they were prepared to offer it, and then move on without making a fuss.
Yes, that was definitely what she would do.
“Okay, sweet thing,” Hunter said when they were inside the playroom. “I think you’re ready for a real high experience.”
He pointed to a contraption she hadn’t seen before. It looked as though it wouldn’t be out of place in a gym. “This is our version of a stockade, complete with impalers and just about every other toy imaginable. Wanna give it a go?”
“Yes, Master Hunter. It sounds like fun.”
“Get down on your hands and knees.”
Anais felt her juices trickling down her thighs as she got into position. Both the guys had removed their shirts but kept their pants on. Massive bulges tented the areas surrounding their zippers.
“This is our one-stop bondage station,” Lewis explained, “complete with mechanical fucker.”
With what?
They helped her climb between the various poles. She found there was a comfortable rest for her chest, and her tits fell free on either side of it. She felt shackles being placed around her ankles and wrists and a collar was put around her neck, with light-weight chains attached to it. Clamps on the ends of those chains were placed on her nipples. If she moved her head, even fractionally, harsh pressure was put on her nipples. Before she could get used to that sensation, slick fingers played with her backside. Hunter’s, if she had to guess. He seemed obsessed with her ass, and after all the amazing things he’d done with it recently, who was she to complain? Without telling her to expect it, something harder than his fingers slid into it.
“The fucker,” Hunter explained. “Turn sideways, honey, and look in the mirror.”
She did so and gasped. Was that wild woman, all chained up, taking a vibrator up her backside, and severe pressure on her nipples, really her? The guys had shed their pants now and were sporting impressive erections as they watched her watching herself.
“You have limited movement there, Anais,” Hunter explained, like she hadn’t already figured that out for herself. “Just keep real still while I punish you and you’ll do just fine. This is a mop flogger.” He tapped a multi-thronged implement against his hand. “It has wide soft leather strips that give a pleasant sensation, like a massage. Would you like me to chastise you with it?”
“Yes, Master Hunter,” she said, panting with need, feeling sexier than ever before, and totally in tune with her two gorgeous tormentors. “If it would please you.”
“Pleasure and pain, baby,” he said, bringing the flogger down hard over her ass without removing the fucker. “Gotta love those endorphins when they start flowing.”
He continued to flay her ass, while Lewis slid beneath her and nipped at her pussy. The sensation drove her crazy, making it impossible to keep still. The moment she tried to move, the collar cut into her airways, causing her to choke.
“Move again and I’ll bolt the fucker in place,” Hunter warned. “Then you won’t be able to move a muscle.”
“Sorry, Sir. I’ll try not to move, but it’s hard.”
“We’re hard for you, sweetheart, and we’ll give you what you need when we’re ready, not a moment sooner.”
“The more you disobey us,” Lewis added, “the longer we’ll make you wait.”
She wanted to tell them that was just plain mean, but wasn’t prepared to risk them backing off. She wouldn’t put it past them. Their control appeared to be absolute, while she was literally falling apart because she wanted them so bad.
Every muscle in Anais’s body burned with the need to move. She could actually smell the genital scent of their arousal, could see their massive cocks twitching in anticipation in the periphery of her vision, and understood this was a test of obedience. They wouldn’t really hurt her, would they? No, she was being foolish. Of course they wouldn’t. She heard them moving again and glanced in the mirror. Both of them were standing to one side, staring down at her, grasping their cocks in their hands and working them like they planned to ejaculate over her. No, not over me. Come inside me, please! She dared not say the words aloud, but willed them to hear her thoughts. She was on the verge of safe wording them because she couldn’t hold this position for a second longer when Hunter appeared to notice the trembling in her limbs.
Without saying a word, he and Lewis released her and helped her to her feet. Blood flowed into her cramped limbs as feeling gradually returned to them. Hunter swept her from the floor, tossed her over his shoulder and paddled her ass with the flat of his hand. He threw her into what appeared to be a wide leather swing suspended just above the floor, and crawled into it with her. It swayed, and she thought at first they might topple out of it, but the motion slowed and they were fine. They hadn’t removed the collar from her neck, and Lewis reached up to fasten it to the top of the swing, anchoring her in place but leaving a little bit of play on the chain, and her limbs free.
“On your side,” Hunter said curtly.
She swiveled in position, careful not to put any pressure on her neck. She felt Lewis climb up behind her. Surely this
contraption wasn’t strong enough to take all three of them? There was no ominous creaking, and so Anais slowly relaxed, enjoying herself now as the hammock swayed gently beneath their combined weight. Lewis’s hands rubbed patterns on her shoulders, while Hunter’s tongue slowly worked its way across her aching tits.
“Did you know,” Lewis said, “that frequent orgasms increase the level of the hormone oxytocin? You need oxytocin, so we’re doing you a favor by fucking you. It’s linked to personality, passion, social skills and a whole bunch of other emotions that are beneficial for sexual health as well as empowering brain function.”
“No, Master Lewis, I didn’t know that, but I like to be healthy so it sounds like a good reason to have lots of orgasms.”
Hunter, in the process of teasing a nipple between his teeth, choked on a laugh and almost bit it off. Wild sensation sizzled through Anais’s bloodstream at the harsh contact. Lewis chuckled as his hands progressed south to her backside, and played with her anus. She didn’t hesitate to let his fingers penetrate her. After that object Hunter had just used, they felt almost soft and nonintrusive.
Almost.
“That’s it, baby,” he said in a soft, hypnotic voice. “You’re really getting turned on by this, aren’t you?”
“Yes, Master Lewis. I like to please you.”
“Enough to let us fuck you at the same time?”
* * * *
Lewis held his breath as he waited for her to answer. They probably weren’t being fair to her, and should have asked her before they got her so turned on that she would agree to just about anything. They were taking her too far, too fast. They had brought her in here to distract her from thoughts of her jerk of a husband, and hadn’t intended to go down this road. But somehow, when they were with Anais, the usual rules of engagement went out the window. She was so frigging hot, so responsive and yet also so vulnerable, that they both had trouble holding themselves back.
He hadn’t talked to Hunter about it yet, but Lewis already knew Anais was more than just a sub-in-training. She was special in oh-so-many ways, and Lewis was falling for her. Unless he missed his guess so, too, was Hunter, although with his history he would have a harder time admitting it. His buddy had told him when they drove over to Anais’s apartment earlier that he’d spoken to her about his childhood, and about Sandy. Now that had surprised Lewis. Hunter never talked about his troubled past, even though Lewis had always thought it was a bad thing to keep all that negativity bottled up. Seems like the empathy of a good woman—the right woman—was all it had taken for Hunter to see the light.