The Path's End

By Vic James

vicjames2@hotmail.com

If you enjoy this story or the other stories at Nifty, please make a donation at: http://donate.nifty.org/donate.html

This story is fiction. None of the characters are based on real people.

This story takes place in the same universe as my stories Plan of the Shusheen, Son of a Wolf, Being Pack, Protecting Pack, and A Winding Path. It is a sequel to Protecting Pack and A Winding Path. You should read those two stories before you read this one. Plan of the Shusheen explains how three genetically-engineered shifter races were created.

Warning: this story contains incest scenes.

Seven

Nick looked at his son, who was staring out the side window. Nick could feel Nicky's tension.

"Are you OK?"

Nicky sighed.

"Is Bobby OK?" Nicky said.

"I'm sure he is."

"I wish I was so sure," Nicky said. He pulled out his phone. Bobby answered.

"Hey, it's me."

"Hi, Nicky!"

"Is everything OK?"

"Everything is fine, here. Is something wrong?"

"No. You're the one in danger, not us," Nicky said.

"Well, I'm with two...armed security guards."

Lobo heard that. He didn't have a weapon. He frowned at Bobby. Bobby saw him and pointed at his cock. Lobo burst out laughing.

"Who is that?" Nicky asked.

"One of the guards. Really, the only thing wrong is that you aren't here!" Bobby said.

Nicky smiled. "I agree. Shit! I miss you so much."

"I miss you."

Tom joined Jack in the room with the security monitors. He wanted to see what was taking so long. Jack was watching Bobby, Lobo, and Ed on the front porch.

"Are you jealous at all?" Tom asked Jack.

"About Lobo? No. I worry for Bobby's sake, but he at least realizes Lobo will leave again. It won't take him by surprise and he can assume he'll be back."

Tom nodded his head.

Dave, one of Jack's mates joined them.

"Damn, he is big," Dave said, looking at Lobo's cock. "I'd heard talk about how big he was, but that thing is like someone's forearm."

Jack and Tom nodded their heads.

"Are you going to forgive Lobo?" Dave asked Jack.

"I guess. Yes. But I don't want him as my mate. Partly because he left but also because I have enough mates, with more—the Kostas—on the way. I would pick any of the three Kostas over Lobo. They're my age and getting fucked by them wouldn't be scary. Plus, I'm pregnant. You know the babies develop in the large intestine. It gives me the creeps to think he'd be jabbing at them with that thing. And it's even creepier thinking of him shooting jizz all over them four or five times a day."

Jack didn't mention the fact that he was repulsed when one of the first things Lobo said to him was that he—Lobo—must be a gay man's wet dream. As though Jack should dream of Lobo's cock. It was arrogant and insulting. Jack thought it implied that he should want Lobo more because he had the biggest dick. Well, he didn't and he didn't think he ever would. He'd take Dave's, Keith's or Jerry's cock any day of the week. And as a matter of fact, he did!

Dave tried not to laugh. He did wonder whether Jack would be able to resist Lobo forever, if Lobo pursued him. He thought Lobo's pride would prevent him from pursuing Jack. Dave couldn't blame him for that.

Howard and Luke walked into the room. Luke stood behind Tom and rubbed his erection on him. Tom smiled. Without turning around, Tom reached behind and squeezed Luke's erection. Then he took Luke's erection and placed it at his asshole.

"Happy anniversary," Luke whispered in Tom's ear, as he pushed inside him. Luke began making slow, shallow thrusts that gave both of them a lot of pleasure.

"Is the dog still happy?" Tom asked.

Luke laughed. "It's a wolf!"

A year earlier, Tom had met Luke while Luke was a wolf. At the time, Luke had no control over his shifting. His wolf came across Tom camping in a park and actually fucked him. Tom had been very confused when he lost his virginity to what he thought was a big dog and found that he loved it. Tom not only loved it, but he had his first orgasm while having sex with the dog (that was Luke). He'd never been able to have an orgasm before and assumed he was impotent. But the dog gave him orgasm after orgasm. Despite the perverse nature of the sex, Tom was prepared to take the dog home as his lover. They spent hours having bestial sex together, before falling asleep on Tom's sleeping bag. When Tom woke up, he was in Luke's arms. Then it was Luke's turn to be surprised when he woke up human and realized he'd fucked a man several times. Luke was straight. But they were mates and Luke was very happy Tom was his mate. Tom was relieved he didn't have the hots for a dog!

"What are we looking at?" Howard asked.

"Watching Bobby and Lobo. And look at Ed. He actually seems jealous!" Tom said.

"He probably feels everyone has a mate but him," Howard said. "It's understandable."

"But Ed prefers women. He's told Tom and me several times," Jack said.

"I used to prefer women," Howard said. "Things change. People change. There are plenty of women in the pack who would love to get fucked by Ed, but he has sex with you and Tom."

"He's asked me a couple of times to let him fuck me," Tom said. "If he wants to fuck, why me—why not a woman?"

"It's upsetting and embarrassing to suddenly realize your sexuality has changed," Howard said. "You go through denial, first. I think he's going through exactly the same thing I did. It took me a while to accept the fact that I wanted sex with Tom more than a woman. And it took longer to accept the fact that I enjoyed sex with a man more."

"Your self-image has to change," Dave said.

Howard nodded.

"And the older you are, the harder it is to adjust. I think Ed's sexuality wouldn't be changing if he wasn't around you and Jack," Howard said to Tom. "I've got a theory that the longer I spent around you, the less interested in women I got. It was you who changed me. I think you and Jack have a scent that attracts our wolves because you are fertile. Then it slowly works its way into our conscious minds. I think Ed probably wants to fuck you because his wolf wants to breed you and get a pup from you."

"Alephin told me he wants guards who are pack members," Dave said. "I wonder if Ed would like to be Bobby's mate. He would become a pack member, then. You said Alephin can create a mating bond, right?" Dave asked Tom.

"Yeah."

"If he doesn't leave, I think he will end up as one of your mates, anyway, the way I did," Howard said.

Jack and Tom looked at each other.

"I do not want another mate," Tom said to Jack. "Not the Kostas and not Lobo and not Ed."

"Me, either. If I take another mate, it is going to be Nick Kostas or no one."

"You should probably stop blowing Ed, then," Howard said to Tom.

Jack sighed and Tom slowly nodded his head.

"Should we warn Bobby?" Dave asked. "Or Ed?"

"Why would you warn Ed? Every Vin-Ta wants a mate, and Bobby can give him kids. He would be as happy with Bobby as I am with Tom. But warning Bobby might be appropriate."

"Wow!" Tom said, watching the monitor. They all looked to see what was happening. Lobo had placed Bobby's hand on Ed's crotch.

"That's surprising!" Jack said. "Lobo wants Bobby to have sex with Ed."

"And Ed sure looks like he wants it, too."

"Lobo likes wild sex, according to Ed," Dave said. "He told me he was invited to a party by Lobo. At the time, Lobo was dating a girl and her gay brother. The two of them were just as wild as Lobo. At the party, Lobo had the two of them, side-by-side on slings and everyone at the party took turns fucking both of them. He said after a while, the girl turned on her side so she could take cocks in her ass, too."

"Wow!" Jack said.

"Did Ed fuck them?" Tom asked.

"He didn't say, but I noticed Ed got hard while he was telling me about the party."

"He probably did, then," Howard said.

"Hey, maybe you have a sister!" Dave said to Jack.

Jack laughed, hysterically. "I could have ten clone-sisters, for all we know!"

They watched Bobby grope Ed while he stroked Lobo's erection.

"I think Ed belongs here, although I don't want him as my mate. He's a great guy. You've seen him with the kids. He loves them and they love him," Tom said. "He said he couldn't wait until they were old enough to start a baseball team." Jack nodded his head. "And I don't think we should warn either one of them. What are we going to say? 'Look out! If you aren't careful, you'll find your mate!' Like Howard said, finding your mate is a good thing. I would rather point out Ed's good qualities to Bobby and the advantages of having him join the pack. Then we should let nature take its course," Tom said.

Jack thought about that. He agreed with Tom but realized it was hypocritical. The two of them were choosing not to be Ed's mate, but not giving Bobby the same choice. But it wasn't certain Ed would ever become Bobby's mate. He decided to think about it. Nothing had to be decided that day.

Dave smiled as Jack's hands began roaming over his chest and belly. Jack loved Dave's blonde body hair. Precum began running down the shaft of Dave's erection and onto his balls. Jack knelt behind Dave and began rimming him.

"Oh, fuck, that feels good!" Dave said. Jack reached around and began stroking Dave's cock.

"Blondes really do have more fun," Tom said.

Jack pulled away from Dave's ass, and he and Dave laughed loudly.

"It's true!" Dave said.

Dave turned and pulled Jack up. Jack turned his back to Dave and aimed his cock at his asshole. Then Dave pushed inside him. Jack sighed as Dave's cock slid into him. Dave wrapped his arms around his mate.

"Love you, babe," he said softly into Jack's ear. Jack smiled.

"Have I ever told you how much better I like your cock than that turkey baster you used on me in the dorm room?" Jack asked him.

Dave chuckled. He rubbed Jack's slightly swollen belly. Jack was pregnant with Dave's baby.

"It did the job. And yes, you told me my cock was perfect."

Jack chuckled.

"I may have been exaggerating."

"I'll settle for practically perfect," Dave said, grinning.

Dave let go of Jack, but left his cock inside him. Then he leaned back and lifted Jack off his feet, held up by his cock in Jack's ass. The others watched and smiled.

"Do knee bends," Howard said. Dave tried to do one, but almost fell over. They all laughed.

Bobby pulled on Lobo's foreskin. It was long enough to stretch a couple of inches past the head of his cock.

"I love your foreskin!" Bobby said.

Lobo chuckled.

"That's what everyone says," Lobo said.

"You're kidding!" Ed said.

Lobo laughed. "I am. Strangely enough, very few people have commented on it."

"He's your mate. He should," Ed said.

Lobo looked at Ed. He didn't particularly want his opinion about everything. He supposed Ed was trying to be helpful. But Ed was the last person who should give relationship advice. Ed's relationships usually ended after the first orgasm. He avoided relationships the way some people avoided jury duty.

Ed finished the process of adding Bobby to the house's security. As he turned to tell Bobby and Lobo they could enter the house, Ed saw Alephin walking towards them.

Alephin smiled as he saw Bobby fondling Lobo's enormous erection. He continued smiling as he saw Ed give a lustful stare at Bobby's ass. Go for it, pup! Alephin wanted more guards in his pack, but not contractors. He wanted them to be pack members. Ever since Edvard Cucco managed to get a fully-credentialed guard into his pack to kidnap Jack, Alephin felt it was dangerous to rely on contractors like Ed for their safety. He had half of them watching the other half, ever since they identified another guard who might be corrupt. Old guards kept a close eye on the new guards. But guards with mates in the pack could be trusted completely. He had tried to get some of the contractors interested in his pack females, but he'd been completely unsuccessful. Part of the problem was that the women in his pack didn't shave. Not their legs and not their underarms, and some of them had hair in other places. The contractors moved in the human world, for the most part, so the pack women didn't meet their standards of beauty. Of course, just shaving didn't guarantee interest. He had suggested two women to Ed, after they'd shaved and put on a little make-up. Ed still wasn't interested. Now he had Bobby in his pack and Ed did seem interested in him. Maybe Bobby would be guard catnip. Once he had a few ex-contractors in his pack, possibly mates of Bobby, he hoped they could recruit coworkers and get them to join the pack. He wished he could use Jack and Tom to lure guards into joining, but they had no interest in adding mates.

He especially wanted Ed in his pack. Ed loved playing with the kids and they loved him. Alephin trusted him completely. Ed had extensive contacts with other Vin-Ta security men. And he hoped Ed would take over the recruiting process to get guards he trusted to join Techupawa. He wanted Bobby to take Ed as a mate. But he didn't want to pressure Bobby in any way. The more time Ed spent close to Bobby, the sooner a mating bond would develop. It worked with Tom's mate Howard. He became Tom's mate gradually. It had to have something to do with the way the Shusheen had made Tom/Jack/Bobby's race. He planned to just encourage them to spend time together and let nature take over.

"I just finished getting Bobby entered into the system," Ed said to Alephin.

Alephin nodded. He turned to Lobo.

"It looks like you have a mate, after all."

Lobo grinned.

"It sure seems that way. He's in love with my foreskin," Lobo said, as he pulled on it the way Bobby had.

"Anyone would be," Ed said.

Bobby and Lobo laughed.

"You don't have to tell everyone!" Bobby said.

"If you play with his foreskin in public, people won't have to be told," Alephin said.

"Oh. Sorry."

Alephin chuckled.

"Don't apologize. If you can fuck in public, you can certainly fondle in public."

Bobby nodded.

"Are you sure you want to share my wonderful foreskin with the other pack members?" Lobo asked.

"They can look, but not touch," Bobby said.

"I'm happy for both of you," Alephin said, grinning.

Bobby smiled.

"By both, you mean Lobo and his foreskin, right?" Ed asked Alephin.

They all laughed, including Lobo.

"Why don't the two of you go inside," Alephin said to Lobo and Bobby. "I'd like to talk to Ed."

Lobo pulled his pants back up and Bobby put his dick back into his shorts. They entered Tom's house.

"Sit, Ed," Alephin said.

The two of them sat on the porch.

"What do you think of my pack?"

Ed smiled.

"I love it here."

Alephin nodded.

"Are you starting to feel this is home?"

"I guess I am. I'm not looking forward to driving back to Woodville this evening."

"Would you like to begin spending the night here?"

Ed thought for a moment. Bobby wanted him to fuck him and Lobo didn't mind. Why spend the evening drinking beer and watching TV when he could have sex?

"I would."

Alephin smiled.

"I'll talk to Tom. There's plenty of room. I trust you, Ed. We need you here. And I mean living here. I would like to stop using contractors for security. I'm sure you understand why." Ed nodded. "I'm looking for a man who will take charge of that. If you are interested, and you join the pack, I will double your current salary."

Ed smiled.

"How do you know how much I earn?"

"It doesn't matter. This is important."

For the first time since Alephin formed the pack, he had money pouring into the pack. Tom had given the pack a great deal of money and Lobo planned to give the pack part of the ten billion he was getting for killing Edvard Cucco. Ed's salary would be paid with Lobo's money.

Ed was really surprised by the offer. Was he ready to settle down? He was only ninety-two. But he would be recruiting and that was something he'd never done. It appealed to him.

"You're supposed to say yes," Alephin said.

Ed laughed.

"How do you feel about Bobby?" Alephin asked him.

The question took him by surprise. Had Alephin changed the subject or did Bobby have something to do with his decision about the job? It was tough to answer because he wasn't sure how he felt. No. That was wrong. He knew how he felt, he just didn't know why he felt the way he did.

"I really like him," he finally said. "And I'm not sure why I like him so much. I feel protective towards him and I'm drawn to him."

"Does that bother you?"

"No. And Lobo didn't seem to mind, which is a relief. Bobby told Lobo he wants me to fuck him."

"Did he? That's pretty bold of him. Do you want to?"

"Yeah. And l was surprised Lobo just accepted it."

"Lobo knows he has to share Bobby," Alephin said. "I made that very clear. Allowing Bobby to have sex with whoever he wants was a condition for his joining the pack."

Ed was really surprised by that.

"Are Jack and Tom still sucking you regularly?"

"Yes, they are."

"I'm glad you are making them happy," Alephin said.

Ed smiled. "Am I making them happy?"

"Of course! Do you think they would be there if they didn't want to suck dicks? That's the great thing about sex and why I discourage masturbation. Your orgasms make you happy and they make Tom and Jack happy, too. You just need to have more."

Ed shook his head, smiling. "I agree. More would be great."

"I would appreciate it if you would make your cock available to Bobby." Alephin reached over and squeezed Ed's cock, briefly. Ed was very surprised by that.

"As a matter of fact, I'm taking you off regular duty for a while. I'd like you to stick close to Bobby. Have as much sex as you want."

Ed shook his head. "I don't understand. Why?"

"I want you to know what life as a member of my pack would be like."

"Double the salary and all the sex I want, basically."

"Exactly!" Alephin said, grinning. "This will make Bobby happy, too. And after you've decided to move here, you can start picking out other men to...entice into living here."

"Will they fuck Bobby as much as they want, too?"

"If Bobby wants that, why not?" Alephin said.

Ed chuckled.

"You are unique, Alephin."

"And that is exactly what I've always wanted to be."

Ed had the feeling he didn't understand what was going on. He knew he was being manipulated, but he couldn't think of a reason to object.

"Can I ask you something?" Ed asked.

"Of course!"

"Why are you encouraging me to have sex with men and not women?"

"I set you up with two pretty ladies. You didn't seem interested. Admit it. You are more interested in Bobby than in Ella."

Ed frowned. He was. But why?

"I think you want hotter, wilder sex. Am I wrong?"

"No," Ed said.

"When you stick your cock through the gloryhole, you have two mouths working on it. I've watched Jack and Tom pass it back and forth. And all they want out of you is your orgasm."

Ed grunted as his cock jumped at the thought. "I like that."

"I know you do. Like Bobby, his brothers, the Kostas, and Lobo, you aren't monogamous by nature. There is nothing wrong with that, but it does mean you may be more compatible with a man, like Bobby, than a woman, like Ella.

Ed nodded his head slowly. That made sense.

You'd probably prefer having three or four men sucking your cock and balls than having one woman do it."

"Yeah. The times I've had wild, no-holds-barred sex with women, it was with human women. It seems like Vin-Ta women decide they want a relationship with me before they even hear my name! Lobo feels the same way."

Alephin nodded. "His girlfriend is human, I believe."

"Since I've known him, all of Lobo's lovers have been human."

"And I bet none of them were monogamous, either," Alephin said.

"I don't know about all of them but a lot of them weren't. I had sex with a lot of them."

"If you join my pack, you will have a lot more sex." Ed didn't doubt that. "I know you'll be working a lot of the time, but you seem to be getting along very well with Bobby. I'm sure he would help you out. There's no reason you can't recruit while Bobby is sucking your cock."

Ed gulped.

"Your current employer wouldn't let you do that."

"You're right."

"So?"

"I've got a question. Why do Jack, Bobby, and Tom want to suck me, when they each have several mates?" Ed asked.

Alephin grinned. "Because they love sex as much as we do, and they aren't monogamous. I've got a mate and I spend all day having sex with other people. I don't do it just for them, although it makes them happy, too. I love having sex. I don't neglect my mate, though. I spend half the night having sex with Rince. There's not much I would rather do than have sex."

Ed nodded.

"Do you have any interest in taking Bobby as your mate?"

"Taking him? What does that mean?" Ed asked.

"It means he can be your mate. If you join my pack, I can command your wolves to mate. He would be your mate in every way."

"I've never heard of that. Have you done it before?"

"Yes, several times. I mated Hephin, my grandson, to Elepan, one of my favorite pack members that way."

Alephin didn't mention that it could happen naturally, too.

"Think about it."

"I will."

"I've got someone replacing you this shift. I'd like you to stay with Bobby the rest of the day. Lobo has to go out of town and the Kostas left to get their things from home. Give him a tour of the pack. He's probably very hungry by now, so take him to the canteen. Whatever else you do is up to you two."

Alephin stood and walked to the door. He placed his hand on the security plate and after the door unlocked, he walked into Tom's house. He would give Ed time to think about it.

Ed sighed. Did he want to find his mate? His female mate. Monogamy. Would he desire her so much he never wanted to have sex with someone else? Would he suddenly desire kids? Every mated couple he ever knew wanted kids more than anything. Would he be different? He thought about the stress of trying to get his mate pregnant for thirty years. It could easily take longer than that. He shook his head. Give it up, Ed. That isn't for you, he told himself.

He stood as Roger Cabo, another contractor walked up to the house.

"Hey! You got a day off! Or did you get fired?" Roger asked.

"Just a day off. Alephin asked me to show the new guy around the pack and give a lecture on security."

"Oh, yeah. I saw them in the hospital parking lot. Why are they all gay?"

Ed ignored the question. Roger was straight-laced.

"Alephin offered me a job," Ed said. "I may take it. I'll live here."

"Really? I thought you liked new horizons or new pussy, anyway."

"The pay is excellent. It's worth trying."

"Security?"

Ed nodded.

"So what? Contractor supervisor?"

"Yup. Manager."

Roger nodded. "I'm not surprised. Alephin looks annoyed whenever he talks to us."

"Not annoyed. Suspicious."

Roger shrugged. They all knew they had more reason to suspect other contractors than anyone on the outside. The problem was, there weren't enough Vin-Ta in security. If a client like Alephin needed fifty men and only thirty of them can be trusted absolutely, he still needed fifty. There had been discussions about using humans, but no one thought that was a good solution. What's the point of being in a pack if you can't shift?

Ed wondered if Roger would be interested in joining the pack. He was about to mention Alephin's plan, when he realized he'd made his decision. He was taking the job.

As soon as they were in the living room, Lobo began pulling off his clothes. His mate seemed in awe of his body and his lust saturated the air. Lobo couldn't hope for a better reaction from his mate. Bobby ran his hands over Lobo like he couldn't believe his luck. Bobby knelt. He reached up and wrapped both hands around the shaft of Lobo's cock. Then he pulled the foreskin back to expose the head. Lobo shuddered as Bobby gave the head a thorough tongue bath. Lobo looked down at the erotic sight. His erection was angled down since Bobby's mouth was a few inches below Lobo's crotch. Lobo had always produced a lot of precum when he was very excited and from the heavy flow of his sap, anyone could see just how much he lusted after his mate. He watched precum flow down into his mate's hungry mouth. Bobby's hands moved slowly and sensuously on the shaft. How could someone so young give him so much pleasure without any coaching? Lobo approached orgasm and almost told Bobby to stop. He wanted it to last. But this was his mate and he could have orgasms all day long.

"I'm close. Do you want it in your mouth?" Lobo he knew what the answer would be. Alephin told him that to his knowledge, none of the brothers had ever spit out cum. They seemed to love it.

Bobby groaned.

"Always! I love the taste."

Lobo grinned. He put his hands on his hips and looked down at his boy.

"Do you want Daddy to feed you now, boy?"

"Yes...Daddy."

A couple more licks on the head of his cock pushed him over the edge. Lobo threw his head back and grunted as his cock and his mate gave him his first perfect orgasm. Lobo closed his eyes to concentrate on the sensation. It was a very quick blowjob, but it gave him the most intense orgasm he'd ever had. He could feel muscles from his belly to his thighs contracting and relaxing with each powerful ejaculation. And each was followed by the sound of his boy swallowing. Bobby clearly loved what he was fed. He made soft noises of pleasure. Lobo caressed his mate's head as he came.

A cell phone rang. Lobo had despised the things before Bobby stopped sucking him during their first sex act because of one. Lobo was tempted to grab it and throw it against the wall, but he forced himself to calm down. He needed one himself, but he looked forward to the day when he didn't. Lobo told himself it was probably Bobby's family and it could be important. And to be honest, Dag was on his way and he could interrupted them as easily as the phone did. Bobby reached down and took his phone out of his shorts, while Lobo's orgasm petered out and his cum dripped to the floor. Lobo sighed. Once they were settled in the pack, there would be no use for cell phones. He looked forward to that day. He put his arm around Bobby's shoulders and Bobby smiled up at him.

"Hey, baby," Nicky said.

"Is this Jordan?" Bobby asked, joking.

"Jordan? Who the hell is Jordan?"

Bobby sighed. "You couldn't say that yesterday, Nicky. I still have trouble believing you can talk normally."

"Yeah. So who is Jordan?"

Bobby laughed.

"I was just joking. There's no Jordan."

"I thought you already met someone else. I just had to hear your voice. I miss you, Bobby. It was a big mistake leaving you."

"I miss you. Uh...I need to warn you, I do have another mate. His name is Lobo."

"I always knew you are irresistible. Am I still number one?"

Bobby smiled.

"Always. Always. I love you, Nicky."

"I love you. I'll call you later. Bye."

Lobo heard Nicky. Alephin had warned him that Bobby had a clear favorite, and it wasn't him. He thought it would be childish of him to try to fight that. Favorites could change over time. Maybe he would be Bobby's favorite someday.

Fifteen minutes later, Nicky looked at the time. They'd only been gone an hour, but he missed Bobby terribly. He'd just talked to him, but he had an almost uncontrollable urge to call him, again. He was also worried. What if something happened to Bobby at the pack? It wasn't like he was at the mall! He was surrounded by werewolves or shapeshifters or both. He couldn't even imagine what the dangers could be. The pack had all those guards for a reason. Bobby could get kidnapped and Nicky would be hundreds of miles away. He wasn't going to see him for hours. It would be another three hours before they got home. Then they had to pack and then they faced a four-hour drive back. Anything could happen.

Nick was following Chris and Chris was speeding. It would take even longer if they got a ticket. Nick looked at Nicky. Both Nicky's hands were clinched into fists.

"Are you all right?" Nick asked his son.

"No. I'm upset and worried," Nicky said.

Nick smiled. Not because Nicky was upset and worried, but because Nicky could tell him he was upset and worried.

"Bobby is fine! I don't know Alephin well, but we've seen how serious he is about protecting the people who live with him," Nick said.

"Yeah. I know, Dad. I know. But I worry, anyway."

"I miss him, too. But I keep thinking about how lucky we are. You've been healed and—"

Suddenly, everything turned to shit. Nicky and his father saw an SUV heading in the opposite direction at high speed, followed closely by two police or highway patrol cars with lights and sirens. The speeding car suddenly swerved around a car in front of him who'd slowed and he lost control. The speeding vehicle flipped and slid onto their side of the highway towards Chris' car. Nick slammed on his brakes. Nicky couldn't breathe. Neither could Nick, who was suddenly terrified Chris would be hit.

"Not again! Not again!" Nick shouted.

Chris slammed on his brakes, too and his car swerved and squealed before they heard a crash. As soon as they stopped, Nick opened the door and tried to jump out the car, but his seatbelt stopped him. While Nick cursed, Nicky got out and ran to Chris' car. Nick followed him. As he ran, Nicky felt sick. The sound of the crash reminded him painfully of his own car wreck. If he hadn't just used the restroom at a gas station, he was sure he would have peed in his pants.

Chris was getting out of his car as a highway patrol man jumped out of one of the cars and began waving at traffic.

"I'm fine!" Chris said.

Nick and Nicky saw that Chris' fender was crushed, but that was all. The car still seemed driveable, since nothing was pressing on the tires. Nick looked at the other vehicle. The same couldn't be said of it.

"Are you sure you're OK?" Nick asked his son.

"Yeah. Shaken, but OK. I thought it was all over when I saw that thing heading for me. And the sounds! They were just as scary. And there were sparks shooting out as it slid on the concrete."

"Sparks. Shit! I want you two to wait by my car. There could be a gasoline leak," Nick said. "I'm going to take a quick look at the driver, but I seriously doubt he is alive.

Nick walked over and squatted by the driver's side window. They saw him shake his head, before rejoining his sons in front of the BMV.

"Dead," Nick said.

"Are you sure?" Nicky asked.

"Oh, yeah. I'm sure. Looks like a kid." Tears formed in Nick's eyes. Nicky hugged his father.

"God! I need Bobby," Nicky said.

Chris nodded his head.

"I miss him, too," Chris said. "This was a bad idea. We shouldn't have left him. We don't know any of those people."

Nicky agreed completely.

"I want to go back," Nicky said to his father.

"Back where? Home or the pack?"

"The pack."

Nick looked at his son. Nicky looked upset before. He looked worse. Nick could certainly understand why. He was trembling, himself. Nicky's accident had been nothing like this one, but it had been on a highway. Nicky had been hit by a drunk driver going the wrong way without his headlights on. Chris had been in almost the same situation.

"Chris, let's make sure your car is driveable. If it is, you two head back to Techupawa in your car. I'll get the stuff from home."

Nicky felt an intense sense of relief. He'd see Bobby soon.

"I'll call from home and you can tell me what you want me to bring," Nick said. He could tell how relieved Nicky was.

"Are you sure, Dad?" Chris asked.

"Very sure. I've been worried about Bobby being there all alone ever since we left. He may be safe, but we shouldn't assume anything."

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