Page 7 of Expecting The Unexpected

Spencer had come to the clutch to visit his only friend, Nug, at the time, when the clutch had been attacked. Chantal had killed Tamale and his inner circle, and Spencer had shifted into his sloth form in case he was found, so he would have his claws if he needed to defend himself. Most didn’t know that a sloth shifter had venomous claws almost like a snake’s fangs, and if Spencer were to slice into an enemy, they would die a slow and very painful death.

He had tried to remain hidden in Nug’s closet. It was dark and scary. Every little sound had Spencer on edge and terrified. He had heard the enemy that had attacked the clutch house talking, and knew they were ready to kill anyone not of their kind.

Spencer had drunk from the faucet in the bathroom when he knew no one was around, and Nug would slip him food when he could, but then Nug had disappeared. Spencer had waited as long as he could before hunger became so bad, he knew if he did not feed he would soon shift back into his human form, because he wouldn’t have the energy to maintain his shifted form. It was in the kitchen that Spencer had been discovered and captured before he could shift.

His time in the cells was the most painful and horrific time in Spencer’s life. He had been beaten, raped, and practically starved. He couldn’t remember how many times he had thought about just giving up and taking his own life, but it was Elijah and the others being held that had kept him from doing anything stupid. Petree had done all that he could to help them by taking on the brunt of the abuse, causing him to lose his beautiful butterfly wings in the process. Spencer would do anything to have been able to bring them back for the little Nakaka. Next to their offspring, known as chickpeas, wings to a Nakaka were what they coveted the most. Their wings were their pride and joy, and Petree would forever be without them. He had sacrificed them for Spencer, Elijah, and the others, as well as his clutch.

Petree had explained how Madame Pele and her mate had come to him in the world of in between. That was where one went when they were between life and death. He had been given a choice between passing on, or coming back and bringing back Viatas, as well as the possibility of children once more, but it didn’t come without sacrifice, and that meant no more wings for Petree.

When Spencer and the others had told him how sorry they were for what had happened to him, and especially for the loss of those beautiful butterfly wings he used to have, Petree told them that what had happened was the fault of Chantal and his goons… no one else. When Spencer had said he would have understood if Petree had chosen death, Petree had hugged him, saying he didn’t regret his choice, and would do it again if asked. Doing what he could for them and his people, was all the reward he needed, or wanted.

Spencer could almost laugh. If it weren’t for what Petree had done, Spencer wouldn’t have found himself in the position he currently held. Throg wouldn’t be his mate, and Spencer wouldn’t be sitting here waiting to discover if his piss was going to show positive or negative.

“Okay, it should be ready. If this shows positive, I’m going to run some bloodwork just to confirm,” Caden stated, as he went to check the results.

Spencer thought he might puke. This shit was nerve racking. Even though Spencer highly suspected what the results would be, to hear it said out loud would make it a reality. Was Spencer ready for that? No. He wasn’t ready. He needed to get the hell out of here. The last thing Spencer wanted was for Caden to confir—

“Yep. It’s positive.” Caden said, coming towards Spencer with a needle and long rubber thingy.

Blinking in confusion when Caden wrapped the band on his upper arm, Spencer asked, “Wha… what are you doing?”

Everything was fuzzy. He couldn’t breathe. Spencer’s mind wasn’t working right. Was his heart even beating?

Clear thought was a myth at the moment for Spencer. Nothing was making any sense. Everything and everyone was gone at this moment. Sounds were kind of heard, but the words being said didn’t make sense. Flashes of light like strobe lights on a dance floor were the only thing Spencer could see right now. Well, that was until his world went black.