Chasing the Shadows - 9. Chapter 9

Kieper charged the front of the main building while Garrett rushed in from the back. The Vampire disconnected the power lines, pitching the building and the entire compound into total darkness, just as the Werewolf’s massive paws hit the front door of hangar.

The two unsuspecting guards inside never saw them coming!

Kieper tore out the first man’s throat with one snap of his powerful jaws. The other guard was scared. He jumped up from his post and tried to run, but Kieper got him too. Vampires were fast, but the Werewolf was faster.

The sudden darkness washed over Shade, still tucked away inside his prison. She comforted him like an old friend, wrapping her soothing arms around his aching body. This must be what it feels like to die. He sighed at the wonderful relief. It had taken so long, but the darkness was finally here to welcome him home.

“What the--” The Captain’s muttering was cut off by a loud bang from outside. He whirled around just as the door exploded into the room. Shards of metal flew through the air, ricocheting off the floor and walls.

There was nowhere to go, nowhere to hide. There was only one way in and one way out and the Vamp was now trapped inside his own prison, which had just became his tomb.

“Get him,” Garrett hissed. His eyes were blazing with rage.

Kieper happily followed the command and lunged at the man. This was the guy that had kidnapped and tortured Shade, their Shade. His punishment should be long, painful, and very drawn out, but unfortunately, they didn’t have time for that.

Just because only two guards were posted outside, that didn’t mean that more were not on their way. The compound was big, yet someone still could have heard the commotion from them taking down the guards and gotten away, warning the Queen and the others of their attack.

Garrett rushed forward to help Kieper, but froze when he saw Shade’s lifeless body chained up, dangling from the ceiling. He stopped and stared at him not moving. His chest didn’t move. His arms did not fight the restraints holding him.

“Shade…” Garrett choked back a sob. Were they already too late?

The chains were part of an old-fashioned hoisting system. Garrett quickly maneuvered the release, dropping Shade to the cold concrete floor with a thud. “Please be okay, just please, please, please, be okay,” the Vampire chanted over and over again.

Rushing to his motionless side, Garrett rolled Shade onto his back. Even in the dark, his vision was perfect. His temper flared when he saw the extent of Shade’s injuries. If Kieper weren’t tearing that fucking Blood Sucker into pieces right now, Garrett might be tempted to drag the guy’s sorry ass behind their getaway van and then string him up somewhere along the way, leaving him to burn up in the morning sun.

“No,” Garrett’s voice hitched in his throat. “You can’t die, Archabolt Shade. I won’t let you…”

Noticing the gaping puncture wound in his chest, Garrett immediately sank his fangs into the fleshy palm of his hand. Blood poured from the bite. He clenched his fist, spilling precious blood into the wound before pressing both palms to Shade’s chest as he compressed his heart and lungs, forcing more blood into his damaged body.

“Don’t die! Please don’t die!” Garrett begged as he stared into Shade’s lifeless face.

Kieper roared as he and the Vampire Commander rolled on the floor. It only took a moment for the Wolf to get his claws into the man’s flesh. It should have been a fair fight. The Wolf should have been so much weaker than the Vamp with the pull of the waning moon, but his raw rage made him an unstoppable beast.

Before the Vamp could regain his footing, Kieper ripped the Captain’s arm off and tossed it aside. A scream pierced the night, but Garrett wouldn’t leave Shade’s side. Garrett glanced up just in time to see Kieper crush the man’s throat between his powerful jaws.

The evil Vampire gurgled out his last breath just as Shade gasped for fresh air. One life was lost while another was returned. “He’s alive!” Garrett shouted to Kieper, “Shade’s really alive!”

The Shadow Chaser’s black eyes flickered for a moment before rolling back into his head.

“What’s happening?” Kieper panicked, seeing Shade slip back into unconsciousness.

Garrett felt for a pulse. The rise of his chest was shallow, but Shade was still alive. “I don’t know.” The Vampire glanced around, fearful of another attack. “C’mon, let’s get him out of here before any other Vamps show up.”

They hoisted Shade up and rushed him to the van waiting outside, just beyond the trees.

*** 

“Your Majesty,” Thyssen trembled as he addressed his Queen. “The prisoner has escaped.”

“WHAT?!”

The Vamp flinched as her shrill scream echoed off the palace walls.

“I just came from the hangar and the Captain and two guards are dead and Sha--” he caught himself before speaking the outlaw’s name, “your prisoner is gone.”

“Find him!” She demanded, growing angrier with each passing second. “I don’t care what you have to do; take as many guards with you as you need, but you find him!”

When the Queen turned and stomped out of the room, Thyssen couldn’t resist one last cocky jab as he muttered under his breath, “Well, now, aren’t you glad you didn’t incinerate your best tracker?”

*** 

Garrett drove north until the eastern sky paled with the approaching dawn. The sun would reach the horizon in the next few minutes.

“Kieper?” He heard the Wolf stir somewhere in the back of the van. “Kieper, honey, the night is almost gone.”

The Vampire could feel the pull of death, luring him into the deep sleep of the undead. Easing the van onto the shoulder of the deserted road, Garrett climbed into the back to wake up his lover.

“Babe,” Garrett nuzzled Kieper’s neck with his nose. Snuggling behind him, he wanted to slip off to sleep with the Wolf wrapped in his arms, but they both knew they had to keep moving. Shade was alive, but barely, and if he was going to survive, they needed to find his people.

Kieper yawned as he stretched his achy limbs. He gave a quick check to Shade before covering both of his lovers with a thick wool blanket then returned the van to the road.

*** 

The late afternoon sun warmed the chilly autumn air. Driving further than the road was paved, Kieper stopped when the gravel and dirt disappeared into the tree line. He found the Shadow Chasers by accident once before, but this time he was here for only one reason…Shade!

There wasn’t time to wait for nightfall. Kieper checked Shade’s vitals one last time. It was shocking to see him so cold and clammy. The big strong man looked deathly pale. Garrett thought his injuries would heal with the darkness, but Shade was too weak to call the shadows to him.

“Shade,” Kieper spoke against his ear. “I know you can hear me. Help is coming, okay? Just hang on.”

*** 

Paws shook the earth, scaring the birds from the treetops, as Kieper raced the setting sun. Forest creatures fled for their lives, terrified of the savage beast tearing through the woods below. The Wolf gained speed. He wouldn’t stop until he found that familiar scent.

It was heavy the first night he came across it, but now it was faint. Kieper got ready to change direction, when he caught the dark smell on the evening breeze. Shadow Chasers!

They were close. Turning his nose in the direction of the scent, he increased his speed and ran faster than the light.

 ***  

“There will be no trespassing on this land, Beast!” A voice boomed as it echoed off the hills.

Kieper tried to halt. His nose slid into the dirt and he rolled over several times before skidding to a stop. Where had that voice come from? The fur bristled along his spine. He tucked his tail between his legs and listened.

Showing no signs of aggression, Kieper partially changed back to his Human form. His long furry legs held the torso and chest of a man. “I mean you no harm--”

“Then leave!”

Kieper flinched from the bellow. The man was angry that he was here.

His animal eyes darted from shadow to shadow, trying to anticipate an attack. It came quicker than a lightning strike and was just as deadly.

“Archabolt Shade…” Kieper gasped as black shadows constricted his neck and chest.

“What did you say?” The darkness, swirling around the Wolf, suddenly stopped.

“He’s hurt and he needs your help.”

The Shadow Chaser’s body formed in the center of the black mist. He stepped back, before giving a sweep of his hand into the darkness, “Take me to him,” letting Kieper lead the way.

***

Shade’s long dark eyelashes rested against his cheeks. His icy cold skin was paler than the crisp white sheets of the big old-fashioned bed. A bluish hue made him appear dead. If it wasn’t for the faint rise and fall of his chest, Kieper would have sworn that death had already claimed their lover.

“What happened to him?” Angry voices could be heard from the hallway outside the door.

Garrett tired to explain, but the group of Shadow Chasers was enraged and beyond reason.

“Her Majesty--”

“The Vampire Queen?” One of the angry voices shouted over Garrett.

“Are you telling us that Blood Suckers are responsible for what happened to Shade?” Kieper recognized that voice. It was the man that Kieper encountered in the woods. He was tall with short black hair. With the striking resemblance, Kieper was sure that he was Shade’s brother.

“Those marks on his body are several days old,” it was a woman’s voice now. Her fears for Shade were evident. “What did you do to him?”

“Me?” Garrett shouted back with disbelief.

Kieper couldn’t believe what they were accusing, he jumped up and rushed to the door, but before he got more than a few steps, a dark figure stopped him. He stumbled back from the elderly man. His long gray hair made him look frail, but Kieper knew it was an illusion.

“Long Shadow…” Kieper gasped, staring at the old man. For centuries, the man known as Long Shadow was believed to be a myth, but here he was, in the flesh.

The old man smiled. His grin pulled at the corner of his mouth in a familiar lopsided grin, when it suddenly hit him…he was Shade’s father!

“I can see that both of you care very deeply for my son.” Long Shadow’s eyes cast back to the bed.

“Yes sir, we do.” Kieper was nervous speaking to a man considered to be a legend.

“His brother, Slate, is very upset right now.”

“If he gives Garrett a chance, he’ll see that we brought Shade here to save him...not to cause him any more harm.”

The man considered Kieper’s words as he walked around the dim room, no longer blocking the doorway nor keeping him away from Shade. His feet appeared to almost float above the hardwood floor in an inky black mist.

Kieper reclaimed his position beside Shade’s unconscious body. He could smell the infection permeating the wounds. Even with them cleaned and properly dressed, any one of his dozens of injuries could potentially be life threatening.

“Why isn’t he healing?” Kieper whispered into the dark.

Long Shadow joined him by the bed. He placed his hand on the Wolf’s shoulder and gave a slight squeeze. “Because he’s too weak to break free from his Human form. It takes more than just darkness for a Shadow Chaser to command the night.”

Kieper wrapped his fingers around Shade’s icy cold hand and silently said a prayer.

***

The vigil at Shade’s bedside was somber. The Shadow Chasers rotated shifts every few hours, but Garrett and Kieper made sure that one of his lovers were by his side at all times. During the day, Kieper changed into Wolf form and kept watch from the foot of the bed, and at night, Garrett spent hours endlessly pacing the floor.

They waited.

Days passed…it turned into weeks…and then it happened.

It was so sudden, so very unexpected. Surrounded by love ones, Archabolt Shade woke up. At first his eyes fluttered just slightly then they opened as he peered into the faces of his friends and family.

“Where am I?” Shade asked, before recognizing his own bedroom in his family’s home.

Everyone clamored around him and started to speak at once. His mother, overwhelmed by her emotions, closed her eyes and cried.

“Silence!” Long Shadow shouted above the rising voices. That got everyone’s attention as the room suddenly went quiet. The elderly man was usually soft spoken and gentle, but he needed to hear his son.

“Shade,” his father ran his fingers over the back of his son’s hand. “Do you know what happened to you?”

Shade didn’t want to remember the painful treatment at the hands of his capturers; he closed his dark eyes, bit his lip and nodded his head. “But…they saved me…” His voice was hoarse as he spoke barely above a whisper. “Queen tricked me…didn’t work…” Shade’s eyes filled with tears as he glanced at Garrett and Kieper, “you came for me…I was dead.”

The Shadow Chasers had their confirmation. Everything that Garrett and Kieper had told them was true. Someone produced a glass of water. Shade struggled to sit up. The cool liquid soothed his burning throat.

“How long have I been here?” Shade’s voice was still gravelly, but he spoke a little easier.

Garrett kneeled beside him, “It’s been almost three weeks--”

“So we haven’t missed the next full moon?” Shade’s cheeks pinked under his excitement.

Kieper shot Garrett a questioning glance, not sure if his family would understand the importance of the next moon cycle, but sure enough to know that his question meant revenge was the first thing on Shade’s mind.

***

“Will you slow down?” Shade panted as he tried to keep up with Kieper.

The bright sunshine was warm against his pale skin. They had spent every waking daylight hour training and he wasn’t getting tired as quickly as he did right after he had first woken up, but he was getting bored.

Kieper changed pace and jogged a few laps around Shade. “C’mon, you need to get your Human form in as good shape as your Shadow form.”

With a playful grin, Shade leapt in front of Kieper. When the Wolf faked left, Shade anticipated his move and was able to intercept him.

“Shade, no!” Kieper laughed at the wicked smile on his lover’s face.

“Oh, why not? You and Garrett have been teasing me for days--”

“We haven’t been teasing you. We just think you need to conserve your strength for the transformation.” A lock of blond hair fell across Kieper’s eyes as he took a step away from Shade, who only grinned and stepped closer.

“Look at me,” he pointed to his unmarked chest. “I’m healed, I’m stronger than ever and the shadows listen to my--”

“That’s the entire reason you need to train. What if, after the full moon, you can no longer manipulate the shadows? Humans who are infected with the Werewolf virus can only change once a month, unlike those of us who were born this way. I can change at will.”

Shade frowned. There were serious risks involved with what they were about to attempt. Losing his Shadow Chaser ability was only the beginning; if things went bad, he could end up dead.

Noticing the worried look on Shade’s face, Kieper stepped closer and ran his fingers along his thick black chest hair, “Besides, I wouldn’t want to spoil anything when Garrett and I have something special planned for you tonight.”

With that little taunt, Kieper turned and ran back towards the mansion knowing that Shade would be less than a step behind him.

***

The Shadow Chasers easily welcomed Garrett and Kieper into their family. When Garrett asked them for some privacy in such a huge home, they easily agreed to give them some space.

At dusk, Garrett awoke and quickly searched for Kieper and Shade. He found them sitting in the dining room finishing a bottle of wine. They glanced up when he walked in wearing nothing but a sexy grin.

“Looks like dessert has arrived.” Kieper giggled.

Garrett chuckled as he walked over and gave Shade a toe-curling good evening kiss. It was delicious, yet over way too fast. Walking over to repeat the sensual lip lock with Kieper, Garrett teased, “Since you boys have already eaten, who’s going to be my dinner tonight?”

Shadow Chaser’s fingers traced along the Vamp’s spine as his lips lingered on the Werewolf’s heated skin.

Shade longed to feel that rush of pleasure when a Vampire’s fangs puncture Human skin, but he knew with the full moon only a night away, Garrett would refuse to feed from him. He would insist that he save his strength for the transformation. If he couldn’t talk the Vamp into biting him, he would get the next best thing.

“Why don’t we move this little dinner party upstairs?” Kieper purred. Shade and Garrett both smiled and quickly followed the Wolf up to their bedroom.

It only took a second to slam the door, dim the lights and clothes to hit the floor. They landed on the huge bed in a tangle of arms and legs. It’d been weeks since they had been intimate. Garrett and Kieper never left Shade’s side while he was unconscious, and with the rest of his family nearby since he woke, each of them had been in a constant state of arousal.

Kieper’s warm lips pressed a kiss to Shade’s hard cock. He swirled the silky drops of pre-cum around his tongue before popping the head past his lips and into his moist mouth. Shade trembled. He closed his eyes, enjoying the sensation. When his jaw fell open with a heavy sigh, Garrett filled his mouth with his dick.

Not missing a beat, Shade palmed the smooth hairless balls bouncing in front of his face as the Vamp pushed his cock deeper into his throat. He moaned around Garrett’s cock. It brought a smile to his face when he felt the man shiver with delight. The Vamp tossed back his head and pulsed his hips in rhythm with Shade’s hungry mouth as he continued fucking his face.

The only cock not getting attention was Kieper’s and Garrett quickly corrected the situation. He maneuvered his weight around without dislodging Shade from his cock and was able to fill his own mouth with the Werewolf’s thick dick.

Kieper growled when Garrett’s cool lips touched his swollen cock. It bounced, painting his face with pearly drops of pre-cum. The Vamp licked along the sweet, liquid trail that dripped down the shaft before burying his face into the soft blond pubic hairs at the base of his erection. Garrett sucked a plump ball into his mouth, nibbling along the tender flesh. He noticed how tight they were pulled. Selfishly, he wanted their encounter to last much longer, but he knew that Kieper was going to blow his wad too soon.

Together, they made the perfect daisy chain. Each man sucked another’s cock and balls while having his own erection satisfied. Garrett released Kieper’s tight balls and returned to his thick animal dick, if he didn’t get it back in his mouth within the next few seconds, he was sure that it would explode in his face.

The thought of Wolf cum dripping down his nose and chin was almost enticing enough to play with the slit in his lover’s cockhead and wait out the impending blast, but he wanted to give him as much pleasure as he was giving Shade, and in turn, Shade was giving Garrett.

The Vamp rolled his lips past the wide cockhead and sucked in the hard shaft. He ran his tongue along the veins throbbing just under the flesh, mimicking what Shade was doing to his own dick. It felt incredible and only took a few strokes for Kieper to buck underneath him.

Shade’s breathing grew labored. He gasped, but didn’t back off Garrett’s dick; instead he sucked harder. Kieper squeezed Shade’s balls, bringing another moan. Garrett could feel both of his lovers grow tense.

Release was coming and each wanted it as much as they wanted to satisfy their other partners.

Simultaneously they convulsed. The waves of pleasure crashed, bringing about a gush of cum from three trembling cocks. Cum filled mouths and throats and even leaked past lips with the overwhelming force of the joined eruption.

They pulsed together as heart rates slowed. Lapping remnants of man juice from still swollen cocks brought electric shivers of the aftermath of passion.

Satisfied for the moment, the three men climbed into the bed and under the sheets to cuddle as they recovered their strength for what was coming next.