When they got close enough to the fire to see again, Remi stopped and dropped his hands. Glancing over his shoulder, Remi frowned. “Really? Sticking that dragon blade in my back in the dark? Don’t you think that’s a bit too risky?”
Stepping around Remi and squatting on the other side of the fire, Tiger pointed at him with a sharp stick, which he threw into the flames. His sheathed katana was propped against the wall of the cave behind him. “Yeah, that’s why I didn’t. Come sit down and dry out.”
Remi didn’t move. “Why?”
“Why what?”
“Why everything?” Remi replied. “Why didn’t you tell us about being bitten? Why didn’t you tell us about what Chris did to you? Why did you run and leave us in the dark? Why don’t you trust us? We’re all your friends and family for fuck’s sake!”
Tiger sighed. “Please, sit down Remi. This is going to take a while. I’ll tell you everything. I’ll answer all of your questions, but I think you and TJ already know most of it.”
Remi sat down across the fire from Tiger so he could see Tiger’s face while he talked. Tiger told him everything. He told him about the fight with Severen, his recovery at the farm, the attack in the alley, including the rape, and his discussions with Lucius regarding his research and what he knew about the Fae.
“Wait, you said you thought his theory about the chest pain being due to you sensing your fated mate was flawed because it got worse after you left and then lessened several days later. How is it now?”
“Pretty much like it was in Aurora. Just a dull ache. Why?”
“Don’t you see? You thought it didn’t make sense because you thought we were still in Aurora, but we were already hot on your trail two days after you left.”
Tiger was speechless.
“Maybe Lucius isn’t so crazy after all,” Remi said. “I have another question. You said you have PTSD. Is that from the attack on the base when your friend was killed or is there more to it?”
Tiger shook his head, trying to move past Remi’s revelation about Lucius’ theory. “That’s part of it, the nightmares at least. I don’t always remember what happens in my nightmares. I just wake up in a panic, disoriented and feeling like I can’t breathe, but I think the PTSD is mostly because of the torture at the TC. You saw the report?”
Remi winced. “I’m really sorry about that. That’s something my sergeant pulled up accidently while he was searching for your identity when you were first admitted to the hospital. Honest. I wasn’t looking for dirt on you. He passed it on to me, and I started going through it before I realized what it was, but I had him delete it and remove any traces that it had been accessed.”
“He’s apparently quite the hacker and didn’t realize his “special” software was still running in the background. He, TJ and I are the only ones who read it and we will never mention it to anyone. Primarily because we wouldn’t do that to you, but it was also highly illegal.”
“Oh, fuck, so TJ knows about it too?” Tiger scrubbed his hands over his face.
Remi winced again. “I know. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have shown it to TJ, but I wasn’t sure if he knew about it and he treats you more like his little brother. I guess I just felt like he had a right to know if he didn’t already. It upset me and I just needed to talk to someone about it.”
“He’s been in the middle of this whole mess and despite how much he annoys me it just kind of made sense at the time. He was actually the one who put it all together and figured out what Chris did to you. He was devastated and completely fell apart in my office. Scared the crap out of me frankly. I know I’m rambling on, but I don’t want you to be angry with me anymore. I never meant to hurt you. Please, please forgive me!”
“Relax, Remi. You’re forgiven. That whole incident was painful and humiliating. I didn’t want anyone to know about it. I was upset that you were digging into something that I worked so hard to put behind me and I thought you’d be disgusted with me if you knew what happened. Then I found out you already knew.”
“What? Why would I be disgusted? You were a victim.”
“Well, if you read the whole transcript….”
“We didn’t. We know the basic facts, but we didn’t read all the details about what he did to you. That information was too personal, and we didn’t need to know. That’s your story to tell, if you ever want to.”
Tiger was quiet for a few minutes, drawing in the dirt with another stick, trying to decide how much to say and where to start. “Captain Harriott was my primary training officer. He was a bastard from the get-go. Didn’t like battlefield promotions, so he treated all of us like crap, but he really hated me for some reason. I think maybe he was attracted to me, but it messed up his whole ‘I’m not attracted to men’ dogma.”
“Some people felt like I was partly to blame for what happened because they saw me as “choosing to look effeminate” and trying to seduce him and, knowing my skills, they thought I could have easily fought him off if I really wanted to. I’d see the looks, hear the whispers, conversations would stop when I entered a room.”
“Luckily, they didn’t send me back to the TC, but I still had to attend the court martial proceedings.” He paused, taking a ragged breath.
“I never had a chance to fight back.” Tiger stabbed the stick into the dirt savagely. “He shot me with a tranq when I wasn’t looking. I woke up in that abandoned warehouse naked, gagged and chained to the floor, with BDSM restraints and equipment already in place. He had it all planned out in advance.”
“He tortured me for five days until they finally initiated a base wide search, thanks to a really persistent friend, and found me nearly dead. Unconscious, bloody, beaten, dehydrated, drugged up. He raped me multiple times every single day without protection or lube. He tore me up. I was a virgin.”
“I hadn’t had sex with anyone since then…… until I was raped again by Chris. I was actually so out of it while it was happening that I thought I was back at the TC with Harriott. When Jake touched me in that dark alley, I thought he’d come back for me.” He stared unseeing into the flames when he finished.
Remi cleared his throat and wiped away the tears that had streamed unchecked down his cheeks while Tiger related the facts of his first rape in a monotone voice. “Did you ever seek treatment for your PTSD?”
Tiger looked up. “No, that would have meant being pulled from the team! Those guys are my only family. Really, we all have similar issues. We all keep our mouths shut and back each other up. We may be screwed up, but we still get the job done,” he said defensively. “We would die if we were separated.”
They were both quiet for a bit. “They’re dead you know.” Remi watched for Tiger’s reaction.
Tiger sat up straighter, frowning. “What? Who’s dead?”
“Both of them. Harriott and Chris. I looked him up. Harriott was found in pieces nine months after his discharge and Chris was beheaded shortly before we left to follow you. We’ll have that to deal with when we get back, I imagine.”
“You don’t think I did it do you?”
“Did you,” Remi asked.
“Hell no! If I went after him, I’d have cut off more than his damn head!”
“Like Harriott?’
Tiger was getting pissed. He’d just poured his heart out to Remi and now he was accusing him of killing Harriott and Chris?
He had enough to deal with already between the virus and his injuries. If he wanted to get even with either of those rapists, he wouldn’t resort to a sneak attack and he hadn’t had any idea where Chris was hiding. He didn’t have time to deal with Chris anyway before he left Aurora. If Chris wanted him that bad, he’d have just let Chris come to him.
“Relax. I just wanted to see your reaction. We found long silver hairs that match similar hairs found at Harriott’s dump site. Someone seems to be taking revenge for you, or they had their own grudge against those two. Sound like anyone you know?”
“No. Not personally. There’ve been people w
ith hair matching that description at some of the matches I’ve fought in. I think they were all Fae. Were they able to get any DNA off them?”
“Not in Harriott’s case. We won’t have results from Chris’ room for a while, but I think you’re in the clear anyway. You have alibis for both murders. You were with me when Chris was killed, and witnesses can vouch for your whereabouts when Harriott was killed. Also, you confirmed your innocence when you said you’d cut off more than his head. You obviously weren’t aware that the killer cut off his manhood and stuffed it in his mouth.”
Tiger cringed and reflexively reached for his crotch. “Eew…… shit!”
“I think he was already dead at the time, though that seems to indicate that the killer knew he was a rapist,” Remi mused. “I’ll check the report for Harriott’s murder when we get back to see if he had any other injuries, but it might not be possible to determine a similar injury since he was literally in pieces. I think whoever did it has anger issues.”
“So, where do we go from here,” Tiger asked. “I’m still infected. Lucius doesn’t have a cure yet and I’m pushing closer to the deadline for a full-blown mutation.” He paused, looking away. “I won’t go back, Remi. Not unless I’m cured. If you guys can’t leave me here,” he got up and retrieved his katana, “use this and end me while I’m still sane. I don’t want to be hunted down like a rabid animal and I don’t want to hurt anyone. If I have to be put down, I want you or TJ to do it. Let me at least die with some dignity.” He held the weapon out to Remi.
Remi stood up and took the katana, then walked over and placed Dragon Slayer back against the wall where it had been. He spun around and pulled Tiger into his arms, crushing him like he would never let him go.
Resting his cheek against Tiger’s, he said “time enough for that later if it becomes necessary. It’ll have to be TJ though because I could never harm a hair on your head.” Murmuring into Tiger’s ear he said, “I love you Tigger. I want to spend the rest of my days with you, however long that may be. What say we test out Lucius’ theory?” He pulled back giving Tiger a sultry look. “It couldn’t hurt right?”
“It might. We don’t know if you’ll be infected. So far, the infections have all been from bites, but we don’t know if exposure to…. you know…. other bodily fluids will spread the virus.” Tiger tried to push Remi away, but Remi pointed out that they’d already crossed that bridge at the pool. Tiger was horrified. Had he unwittingly exposed Remi by keeping silent about his infection?
“Oh my god!” he groaned, slapping his palm against his forehead. “We need to get you tested!”
“No, we don’t. We just need to test out Lucius’ theory. We’re in this together, Tigger.” He kissed Tiger passionately, devouring his lips and grinding hard against his groin. When they finally came up for air, Remi grinned at Tiger and dropped to his knees.
Wrapping one arm around Tiger’s thigh to anchor him in place, Remi reached up and popped the button open on his pants and slowly pulled the zipper down with his teeth. Smirking, he slipped his hand into the opening and rubbed against the cock hidden behind Tiger’s black briefs. The damp spot he encountered told him all he needed to know, but he kept his eyes on Tiger’s face to make sure he was okay with what was happening.
Tiger’s hips jerked forward involuntarily, and he squeezed his eyes closed, sinking his fingers into Remi’s thick locks like a drowning man grabbing onto a life preserver. He shivered and sucked in a deep breath.
“Open your eyes and look at me Tigger. I need to know you’re with me on this. Do you want me to stop?”
“Yes! No! No don’t stop, yes keep going!”
Remi jerked Tiger’s pants and briefs down to his knees and stared at the impressive cock that was oozing precome already. Clearly Tiger’s dick was onboard with Remi’s plan. “Beautiful” he whispered. Remi moved his hand up from Tiger’s thigh to clutch at one butt cheek, kneading the flesh as he sucked Tiger’s cock in till his nose was buried in Tiger’s dark pubes. The smell was all Tiger and something faintly floral and spicy.
As much as Remi wanted this first time with Tiger to be slow and romantic, he was too desperate and eager to see if Lucius was right about the mating hypothesis. He licked and sucked, getting Tiger wet and sloppy, then stuck his fingers into his mouth as he continued, getting them soft and slick. Pulling them back out after a few minutes, he reached back and pulled Tiger’s other cheek aside and started rubbing and teasing at Tiger’s tight hole.
“Aggh! Oooh! Oh, fuck, Remi! I don’t know if….” Tiger groaned. Remi started to withdraw but Tiger gasped, “Don’t stop. Please!” Remi continued sucking, taking Tiger deeper, then shallower, alternating the sensations to distract Tiger as he worked at stretching Tiger’s hole.
He worked one finger in, then two, stretching and thrusting in and out, fucking Tiger with his fingers. He found Tiger’s prostate and Tiger jerked, tightening his hold on Remi’s hair. Remi smiled as much as was possible with Tiger’s dick buried in his mouth.
He took Tiger’s cock to the back of his throat, swallowing as Tiger’s hips began to fuck his mouth. Once he had three fingers in, he teased Tiger’s prostate mercilessly till he felt Tiger tighten up. Knowing Tiger was about to come, Remi backed off a little to keep from choking when Tiger released down his throat.
Tiger spasmed and would have collapsed if Remi hadn’t had his arms locked around his legs. Remi swallowed every drop, then pulled off Tiger, licking him clean and kissing the tip of his cock.
“Oh, sweet mother of mercy, what the hell was that?” Tiger gasped, finally dropping to his knees and wrapping his arms around Remi’s neck, holding on for dear life.
Remi kissed him behind his ear tenderly, rubbing his hands soothingly along Tiger’s back. “My poor baby. You’ve never had a chance to actually enjoy sex, have you? That’s called a prostate.”
He picked Tiger up and carried him to the blankets Tiger had laid out earlier. While Tiger was recovering, Remi removed Tiger’s boots and pulled his pants the rest of the way off, then removed his shirt. “Are you warm enough, sweetheart? I want you comfortable for what’s next.”
Tiger looked up at Remi, blushing with a shy smile. “I’m fine, but you need to be naked too. Oh, and I think there’s actually some kind of ointment in the backpack Tae brought me.”
Remi reached for the pack and rummaged around for a minute till he pulled out a container of something greasy and odorless. He sniffed at it, then stuck a finger in and brought it to his lips. He touched the tip of his tongue to it and smiled after a moment.
“Well, I’m not sure what he intended it for but there’s no label. Surely, he wouldn’t bring you anything harmful without warning you. It seems to have a slight tingling effect.”
“Sneaky little devil. I think he’s a huge romantic at heart,” Tiger chuckled.
Remi set the container down and started stripping, keeping his eyes on Tiger. Tiger watched Remi with a heavy-lidded gaze. His cock started to perk up again as more and more of Remi’s skin was revealed. Remi rolled up their clothes and stuck them under Tiger’s hips and his head.
“Sorry, this isn’t the most comfortable bed, or the most romantic setting, but I assume you want to do this away from the others. I’ll ask again. Are you sure about this? This is the part that may freak you out. If at any time it’s too much for you just let me know. Again, I’ll only do what you’re comfortable with.”
“I’m fine,” Tiger replied. “I trust you and it’s worth a try if it might cure me.” Tiger frowned then. “I’m sorry, that sounded so selfish and…….” He started again, reaching for Remi. Remi sat down next to him and took his hand.
“I care for you and I want us to be together. I’m not just using you to see if this will cure me. It’s kind of fast and sort of like being hit by lightning. I fell for you hard, maybe too hard and too fast, and I have years of paranoia to overcome, but I want a future that includes more than just chasing monsters around the outback.”
&nbs
p; “Does any of this make sense? I know I’m babbling. I’m just nervous. I’ve loved everything we’ve done so far. It’s just that I’ve spent years avoiding and fearing something that’s only led to pain and suffering till now.”
“I’d just hoped we could be friends at first, so I wasn’t at all prepared for this. I was crushed when I thought I’d lost all that.”
Remi smiled and kissed Tiger’s hand. “Hopefully, we’ll have time to pursue this thing and get to know each other better in the future. There’s still so much we need to talk about.”
“You understand that if this works, we’ll be tied to each other by the bond forever? No backing out, no do-overs?” Tiger warned.
“I’m counting on it,” Remi replied. He slicked up his hard cock with the ointment, then took a generous amount more and pressed his fingers back into Tiger’s hole, working it around to be sure Tiger was well lubricated. Placing his hands behind Tiger’s knees, Remi pushed his legs open and up towards his chest.
“Hold your legs up babe. Relax and breath out,” he told Tiger. He pressed the head of his cock against Tiger’s hole and pressed in slowly till he felt it push through the ring of tight muscle. Hooking Tiger’s legs over his elbows Remi lifted Tiger’s hips to get a better angle and started rhythmically rocking into Tiger, gradually working his way in until he was fully seated in his channel.
Tiger groaned and trembled, panting shallowly as he gripped Remi’s arms. His eyes were huge. “Are you okay, Tigger,” he asked softly. Remi stopped to allow Tiger to adjust to him, but he was trembling too with the need to move.
Tiger was still loose from earlier, but Remi’s much larger cock was being squeezed in his tight passage and he knew he wasn’t going to last long.
“Yes! Do something! For all that’s holy, I need you to fuck me now!”
That was all the permission Remi needed. He started thrusting in and out, building up speed till his balls were slapping against Tiger’s ass.
Tiger screamed at first from the initial pain but soon was making incoherent sounds of pleasure and raising his hips up to meet Remi’s thrusts. Remi felt the pressure building and knew he was close. He reached down and stroked Tiger’s hard cock.
Tiger Page 16
