by Jools Louise
“I’m your mother,” she said, sounding puzzled.
“No,” he said, frowning, wanting her to remember. “Who are you?”
She paused, then her face cleared, and she smiled slightly. “I’m your Forever Fairy,” she chuckled, wiping her eyes. “The one who’ll stay beside you, no matter how far away I am from you.” Then she closed her eyes, looking pained. “I didn’t do so good, did I?”
Fly stood slowly, for once ignoring the state he was in, and took the four steps needed to hold her close. “Mom,” he whispered, letting the dam break on his emotions, and hugging her tightly. Forever Fairy was a nickname she’d coined for herself when he was a tiny tot, and it had been their secret name, one only he and his mother knew about. When the bitch who had taken over his mother’s life had begun being mean, he’d hated her, and prayed every night that the Fairy Folk would come and take her away, or make her the way she was.
“Fly,” she cried, embracing him. “My baby boy. I’m so proud of you. You did what you always wanted to. Ryder told me that you’re a beautician and masseur, and work at the local salon. That’s what you said you wanted to do, even as a little boy. To make people feel better about themselves. To make people pretty.”
Fly inhaled her scent, and an unbidden memory returned, of his mom and dad, and Mercury, on vacation together, running free across a vast plain somewhere. His dad had been so kind and loving, and Fly’s abiding recollection was of love and their happiness together, as a family.
“I didn’t understand why you changed so much,” he sobbed, clutching at her as though she was a lifeline. “You were so mean, after dad died.”
“Morag was evil and vindictive,” she said bitterly. “She never accepted any responsibility for the things she did to hurt those around her. I found out that she had something to do with your father getting killed. She apparently made a phone call to the organization she worked for, and gave up his location. He was murdered by her, even if she didn’t actually pull the trigger.” She eased away, staring into his eyes, cupping his face tenderly. “I tried so many times to get away from them. They told me that you and Merc had been killed, and I gave up trying. I didn’t even wonder why they would still keep me a prisoner, if you were dead, until a few weeks ago. Then things started happening, they all got nervous. It made me hope again, but by then I’d almost become part of them, believing that what Fortress and Flashpoint were doing was the right thing.” She snarled viciously. “I allowed them to brainwash me, and believed their lies. They kept telling me that they were only going after people who hurt them. Ryder showed me what they were really doing, after I debriefed. When I found out that you and your brother were still alive, I finally realized what I’d done, and how stupid I’d been to believe anything those bastards told me.”
“Nothing they’ve done has been in retaliation,” Fly advised her. “They attack us, shifters and humans alike, because they don’t like the fact that we oppose what they’re doing. We’re making dents in their operations, and are standing up to them. They murdered two wolf shifters recently, with Morag’s help. She died believing they actually like shifters…but we’re just a means to an end. The end game being making money…at any cost.”
“Did Flashpoint do this?” Meredith asked, looking at the destruction of the restaurant.
“We think they’re involved,” Fly replied, staring at the carnage, as well. He wondered where Merc had gone. One moment he’d been cleaning the broken tables and chairs, and now he was nowhere to be seen.
“Noah, have you seen my brother?” Fly called to his mate. Noah was in the kitchen area, helping Shark and Oliver deal with the damaged fryers and grills. The vandals had smashed them beyond recognition, and they were unusable. One grill had been saved, but they would need a gas engineer to install new appliances.
“He went down to take the wasted food to the trash bins,” Shark said, looking up from where he was wiping offensive graffiti off the walls. He frowned. “He’s been a while.”
Fly was worried. The dumpsters weren’t that far away. He had a sinking feeling in his stomach. “I think I should check on him.”
“I’ll go, too,” Meredith said. “Just in case.”
“I’ll stay here,” Noah said, glancing at the wolverines. “This could be a trap to get these two alone. They were the targets. Mikhail, would you help my mate out?”
Mikhail, sweeping the floor, nodded and propped the broom against the wall, then escorted Fly and Meredith from the restaurant.
“I’m probably over-anxious,” Fly said timidly, wringing his hands. He hated all this cloak and dagger stuff.
“No, you’re looking out for your brother,” Mik replied. “That isn’t something to be sorry for. Mercury might be in trouble. After what’s happened in this town, it is best to be vigilant.”
They approached the elevator which led to the lower level. They could hear shouts from below, and took the stairs instead, running fast and piling out into the loading bay area, where the delivery trucks dropped off. Merc was battling with three men, all in black combat fatigues, kicking and punching like crazy. Fly admired his moves, since Mercury was showing some martial arts style skills. From James Bond to Bruce Lee in the space of a high kick. The man was seriously cool. He’d love to learn, then paused in his thoughts, and looked at his hands, still encased in yellow rubber. Fighting like that might damage a nail.
Mikhail leapt into the fray, and Meredith, too, while Fly could only stand there uncertainly, watching as the three human combatants were handed their asses on the end of two pairs of boots and one pair of designer sandals. His mom was proving she was no slouch in the kicking ass department.
“Well, well,” Mik said, baring his fangs at one of the attackers. “I recognize you, don’t I? You were one of the bastards who hurt my mates.”
The man spat at him, not cowed yet. “Mates? They were animals. Freaks of nature. Weren’t worth shit in the ring.”
Mikhail smiled with chilling effect, and even Fly shivered at the feral intent in his eyes. “Sweetheart, you beat to death two men after you’d drugged them and rendered them unable to defend themselves. In a fight, they would have ripped your fucking heads off within seconds. You are a coward, who couldn’t even take down one of us without help. You’re the one who’s full of shit.”
He leaned closer still, claws extended, and scraped them slowly down the man’s cheek, leaving deep furrows. The guy screamed in pain, trying to scramble away, but Merc was in the way, and he wound up in between a pair of angry shifters, who he’d just tried to kill. Finally, he understood the danger he was in.
“I think I’m offended that you were so easy to put down,” Mercury drawled, cracking his knuckles. “I’ve had worse experiences taking a dump.”
Mikhail laughed mockingly. “Me, too,” he replied, his green eyes gleaming maliciously. The scent of urine scalded Fly’s nostrils, as the thug pissed himself. “Perhaps, though, before we finish this, we should ask them a few questions.”
“Why did you attack the fast food restaurant?” Fly demanded, deciding he should at least try to be helpful. He was shit at fighting, apparently, but he could certainly act.
The hunter smirked at him, giving him the once-over. “Princess, you look like you could use a lie down,” he drawled mockingly. “Why don’t you leave the tough stuff to these guys, hmmm?”
Fly saw red, literally, and unsheathed his claws, stomping over to the moron and hooking five razor-sharp talons under the guy’s chin, digging in deep as he leaned in close. “I asked you a question, butt wad,” he snarled, showing his fangs. “If you don’t want to spend your last moments on earth bleeding out next to a dumpster, after I tear your face off, you’d better start talking.” He snapped his jaws for effect, and smiled smugly when the man shit his pants, adding to the disgusting aromas beside the trash cans.
“We were hired,” one of the other guys said sullenly. “We were told to make sure those wolverine shifters got a message delivered, so we d
elivered it.”
“Who?” Fly asked, scraping his claws down the side of goon one’s throat, stopping just beside his pulsating jugular.
The second man gulped, staring at Fly’s clawed hand, which had pierced the yellow rubber of his gloves.
“What’s going on here?” Cracker came into the bay via the elevator, his big frame intimidating.
“Fly, are you okay?” Kaden shouted, following behind the big ex-biker.
“What am I, garbage?” Mikhail said, rolling his eyes.
“Sweetie, you can take care of yourself,” Cracker retorted, smirking.
“Yeah, Fly’s a little more delicate. He hates violence, in case he breaks a nail,” Kaden added, grinning as Fly snorted, and the rest of them laughed. The hunters remained silent, looking terrified now.
“They were hired to trash Feeling Clucky,” Fly told them, sniffing haughtily at their teasing. “I was just getting one of them to tell me who hired them, when you showed up.”
“Oh, well, let’s listen in,” Cracker said, his pale blue eyes fixed sternly on the vandals. “Before we tear them limb from limb.”
“That won’t be necessary,” Fly said disdainfully, rolling his eyes. “This nice gentleman knows that if he cooperates with us, we’ll play nicely.”
“I won’t,” Mik cut in, snarling maliciously. “They killed my mates.”
“Someone calling themselves Sir Aaron Fielding,” the hunter who’d been helpful before said. “He’s British, talks real nice, and paid us a lot of money to get the wolverines to shut up shop. Apparently, someone they know isn’t happy that they’re in business by themselves, and wants a cut of their takings. It’s business.”
“No,” Mercury said angrily. “That’s extortion. When Pace gets here, we’ll see how you feel spending time in jail, explaining yourselves.”
“Can’t I play some more?” Mikhail whined, playing the deranged shifter role perfectly. “They killed my mates, they need to have a taste of what that feels like.”
“They just pooed their pants,” Fly retorted. “I think they’re getting the idea.”
“Yeah, but I didn’t get to pummel them with an iron bar,” Mik said, his tone hardening perceptibly. “I didn’t get to inject them with slow-acting poison, and watch them slowly breathe their last breaths, in my arms. I didn’t get revenge.”
“You will,” Fly whispered, slicing his claws along the hunter’s throat, leaving a bloody trail to add to the marks on his face. “By the time we’re done with these guys, they’ll know exactly what it’s like to be tortured, utterly helpless against their abusers, and experience a world of pain and terror they couldn’t dream of.”
The lead douchebag whimpered, trembling now, all the tough having disappeared into his trousers. “They’re not going to stop,” he said hoarsely. “Sir Aaron says he’s put a lot of money into his enterprise, and doesn’t intend to have it ruined by a bunch of butt-loving, half-breed weaklings.”
“He has people everywhere, and the money to recruit more,” the third man, quiet until now, piped up. “We weren’t hired to kill anyone, just cause a ruckus.”
“You targeted a pair of men who’ve survived a living hell, at the hands of Flashpoint and Sir Aaron’s network,” Fly said angrily, spitting mad now. “They nearly died, but not once have they given up their dream to live on their own terms. They’ve risked their own lives to defend others, and you’ve tried to destroy all their hard work.”
The bell dinged on the elevator, and the door opened, releasing Sheriff Pace, Deputy Mabel, and Deputy Skull, Kaden’s mate.
“Two more Flashpoint friends went back to the restaurant,” Pace said, his eyes glittering with fury as he stared at the three miserable thugs. “Noah took care of them. Shark and Oliver finished them off.”
“They’re dead?” Meredith asked, speaking up for the first time, standing guard beside the third attacker.
“Yeah, they didn’t surrender, and tried to kill the wolverine boys,” Skull said grimly. “Noah had to take them down. He’s got some skills with a mop and bucket, I tell you,” he added, with a healthy dose of respect, tinged with dark humor.
“We weren’t supposed to kill anyone,” the third guy said nervously. “Those weren’t our orders.”
“I guess the orders got changed,” Fly snarled. “Don’t you get it? The people you work for will do anything to get what they want. Do you think murdering innocents is justified?” He stood up, turning his back on the man he’d been tormenting.
In a flash the guy reared up, knife in hand, and lunged for Fly. The cheetah shifter turned aside at the last second, instinctively, and avoided a nasty stab wound. Following through, still acting without thinking, he grabbed the man’s knife hand, twisting it viciously with all his shifter strength, and snapped the man’s wrist. Before the man had a chance to scream, Fly whirled, using the momentum to aid him, and placed his foot on the guy’s back, kicking him to the floor. The idiot refused to give up, and tried to attack again, obviously thinking Fly was the weakest target, but forgot who he was dealing with. Fly snap kicked the moron under the chin, nearly ripping his head off, shattering his jaw. Slumping to the ground, the man finally collapsed into unconsciousness.
The other two held up their hands, submitting instantly, eyeing their friend as though he was daft. “He always was a hothead,” the second one said.
“Why don’t we discuss that, down at the police station,” Pace suggested, taking his arm, and helping him to his feet. “I’ll call a medivac to take this idiot out of town, to a secure prison hospital, then they can deal with him there. Apparently, he’s on parole for another incident…including the attack on your mates, Mikhail.”
Mikhail nodded. “Then he shouldn’t be hurting anyone else for a while.” He looked at Fly, smiling slightly. “Good moves, for a princess,” he smirked. “There’s hope for you yet.”
Fly started trembling as the adrenalin crashed from his system, and nausea replaced it. Clutching his stomach, he turned and stumbled away a few feet, then vomited up his last meal, tears flooding his eyes, then racing down his cheeks. He really hated violence.
“Aah, baby,” Meredith said, kneeling beside him and wiping his forehead gently with a clean tissue. “So brave, even when you don’t want to be.” She held him close, and he closed his eyes, glad that for the time being, the danger was over.
“I’m such a wuss,” he warbled, sniffing. “All I seem to do is faint, cry, or just stand frozen in place.”
“You just interviewed a subject who’d attacked your friends and put others in mortal danger,” Pace corrected warmly. “Between you, Mikhail, Merc, and your mother, you stopped more of Flashpoint’s hitters from hurting anyone else. We now know, for certain, the name of their benefactor. Sir Aaron Fielding, wasn’t it? We’ll get more intel from the other two, once Rafe arrives to help out.”
“John will be pissed,” Mik drawled. “He hates missing out on any action.”
“Cameron’s banned him from leaving that hospital bed until Lex gives the all-clear,” Pace replied with a grin. “John’s not going anywhere. His head injury was quite severe.”
“What did Cameron threaten him with?” Skull asked, grabbing the other thug by the collar and hauling him to his feet, with Mabel keeping a careful eye on things, her weapon drawn.
“I don’t exactly know,” Pace replied, shaking his head. “John did go extremely pale, though, when I asked, and told me I needed to leave him in bed, or he’d be in time-out for years.”
They all laughed at that. John was always getting into trouble with his husband, since he seemed to lead his children into all kinds of shenanigans, without really trying. The fact that he’d nearly been killed, rescuing Noah, was the last straw for Cameron, his mate. Fly would love to know what the threat had been.
“I bet the kids could find out,” he said, feeling a bit better, and leaning on his mom as he stood up. “They’re good at digging up stuff.”
Cracker laughed. “Those mi
schief makers are already a handful, don’t give them any more ideas,” he said.
Fly shuddered. “Sorry, it was just a thought.”
“Why don’t we get out of here, and go finish up the clean-up at the restaurant,” Meredith suggested, linking her arm with his. “Then we can go and eat. MJ’s sounds promising, what do you say?”
Fly’s mouth watered at the thought of a large steak, home fries, and lashings of sauce. Hold the veggies. He ate healthily most times, but he needed the protein, after recent events.
“I’d love to,” he said, smiling. “I’m glad you’re back,” he added.
Merc came over and they exchanged hugs. “So am I,” he said, closing his eyes as they embraced. I didn’t want to believe everything you’d become, who I thought you’d become, but nothing made sense. I should have done more investigating into Morag’s disappearance. I guess I’m not such a great agent after all. I ignored what was right under my nose. I’m glad you’re here.” His voice was choked up.
“Well, you’ll be seeing more of me,” she said with a smile. “I’m staying in Sage, and offered to sign up as a deputy sheriff. Pace here needs more help, corralling the miscreants.”
“Amen,” Pace retorted with feeling, as they trailed out of the loading bay.
Chapter Twelve
Noah groaned hoarsely, gripping his lover’s blond locks, losing his mind as the man sipped at his dick, taking his time, despite Noah’s desperate pleas for relief. He heard a low chuckle, the sound reverberating along his cock, sending a rush of energy right to his balls.
“Sweetie, please stop tormenting me,” he begged.
“Hmmm, I’m enjoying myself,” Fly said teasingly, swirling his tongue along the rim, then dipping into Noah’s slit, hooking up the bead of cum that perched there.
“Fly, I’ll come too soon, baby.” Noah jerked when the head of his cock was swallowed, and Fly mouthed the spongy flesh mercilessly.
“Fire when ready,” Fly invited, taking another few inches into his mouth, then bobbing up and down, sucking gently. Noah cried out, rolling his pelvis as he fucked his mate’s succulent mouth with gentle thrusts.
