. “If you’re ready, we’d better go now. I have the ship waiting. ”
A little startled at how quickly things were moving, Kyle nodded and found some clothes that belonged to Taz in his clothing drawers. They were too big, but better than the thong he had on, so he quickly dressed, rolling up the trouser legs and tying the shirt around him. He looked odd, but it was the best he could do. He took one last look around and then pulled out the note he’d written the day before where he’d hidden it under the mattress. Wyn had told him things might move quickly once he contacted Tarr’s friend, so he had the note ready.
The note told Taz how much he loved him and promised him he’d be back. There wasn’t much more to say really. He wondered if Taz would even read it or just rip it up in a rage when he found out Kyle was gone. Propping the note up on his pillow, Kyle followed Jex to the front door.
That had been almost a day ago, and now Taz was refusing to even speak to him. Kyle felt like some winged creature was inside his stomach, beating its wings and trying to batter a hole through it. He’d never felt so discouraged.
Someone cleared their throat behind him and he turned to see Jex standing by the hatch into the room. “We’ve entered Lycanus 3 airspace, and been contacted by your people. We told them we had you on board, and they agreed not to shoot us down and eat us. A fair trade, I think. ”
Kyle tried to smile, but he couldn’t quite pull it off. Jex gazed at him and shook his head. “Don’t worry so, Lycan. Taz Bonnet will come around. His pride is hurt now, and he thinks you betrayed him. He’s never trusted Lycans, and he probably thinks this only proves his point. ”
Kyle turned back to the porthole. “Well, that makes me feel a lot better, Jex. Thanks for that. ”
Jex chuckled and came to stand beside him, clapping a big hand on his shoulder. “An ancient Nilanium poet once said, ‘The course of true love never did run smooth. ’”
Kyle quirked an eyebrow at him. “I think that’s an ancient Earthan poet, William Shakespeare. ”
“Oh? Well, he must have stolen it from our man. ” He nudged Kyle with his shoulder. “Come on and get strapped in your seat. We’ll be landing soon and then you can get all of this straightened out and go back to your big Tygerian. They are a handsome people. A little crazy, but very handsome. ”
“Will you stay in our airspace and take me back with you?”
He shook his head. “Your people said in and out—quick-like. They’ll have Tarr on the docks waiting for us. We push you out the door to their waiting arms, grab Tarr and take off. But don’t worry,” he said, at seeing Kyle’s crestfallen expression. “Your family will take you back to him once you explain. Or to some neutral ground where he can come for you. ”
Kyle shook his head. “I don’t think Taz wants anything more to do with me. He wouldn’t even answer when I tried to contact him earlier. ”
“Hmm…maybe. But I’d hate to get between you and him if you showed up at his front door. He may beat you a little, but he’ll get over it in a year or two. Maybe three. ”
Kyle laughed in spite of himself, and punched Jex on the shoulder. “Thanks, Jex. I’ll go sit down and get ready for the landing. Things will probably be wild for a few minutes once we land, so I want to thank you now for helping me. I know you did it for Tarr, but I still appreciate it. ”
Jex blushed and turned away, mumbling something under his breath that may have been a thank you. Kyle liked him a lot, even though he was an unabashed thief and a scoundrel.
Some twenty minutes later, the transport was coming in low over his home planet for a landing. Through the window, Kyle could see the desolate hills of his home planet. Kyle got a sudden pang as he thought about how very far away from Taz he was, and wondered if he’d ever get back to him again. He knew he could convince his family to let him go—that wasn’t the problem. It was Taz himself, and his damnable pride. Kyle hadn’t counted on the fact that he might be feeling too damn angry and betrayed to let him come home to him. Still, there had been no other solution that he could see to recover Tarr safely. Not when everyone involved were such asses.
The transport hovered briefly right over a tiny spaceport landing dock, as the pilot prepared to land. It looked like it had been raining recently and the ground looked muddy. Kyle could see what looked like all the alphas standing on the docks, along with a slightly larger form, wearing shackles. It was Tarr Bonnet and he looked much the worse for wear. Bruised and battered, he’d lost his shoes at some point and his clothes hung from him in tatters. Kyle realized he must have shifted to his tiger sometime during his capture or subsequently. He was waiting patiently enough now though as they came in for a landing. Kyle glanced out the side window again and saw his brother and his cousins, their faces tense, their hands on their weapons. They must still suspect some kind of trick.
He unbuckled himself and hurried to the door of the transport, which was slowly rising. When he came into view, he saw his family’s face light up and he started to jump down and greet them, when he felt Jex’s hand on his arm.
Lucas, who was standing closest to him snarled and started forward, but Jex took out a gun and held it to Kyle’s head, whispering in Kyle’s ear. “I’m not going to hurt you, boy, but they don’t know that. All I want is Tarr, and I’ll let you go. ”
Nikolai made a move to rush forward, but Lucas grabbed his arm. “Let him go, asshole. ” He pulled his own gun and stuck it to Tarr’s head. “I’ve got your man, too. ”
When Lucas put the gun to Tarr’s head, Kyle noticed Larsson, way at the back of the group, gave what sounded like an involuntary sound of anger. Tarr glanced back at him and shook his head. What the hell was that about?
“Wait a minute, now, Lycan,” Jex said quickly before things escalated even further. “I have no wish to double cross you. Why don’t we both put down our guns and let our boys go at the same time, hmm?”
Lucas bared his teeth into what might have been a smile. “You first. ”
Jex shrugged and lowered his gun, removing his hand from Kyle’s arm. Before he did, he gave him a final squeeze. “Go on, boy. Go to your family. ”
Kyle jumped down from the door and Lucas released Tarr to step forward. As he passed Kyle, he gave him a dark look, but Kyle grabbed his arm and made him turn around. Kyle could hear the uneasy movements around him as the others tried to figure out what he was doing.
Tarr looked down at his hand contemptuously, but Kyle leaned in toward him. “Tell Taz I only did this to get you released. I want to go back to him. ”
Tarr looked surprised, and stared back at him without acknowledging what he’d said. Kyle released his arm, and saw him glance once more at Larsson, who was watching them both. Tarr turned back to the ship and Kyle took another few steps before he was caught in a massive hug by Lucas. He passed him over to Nikolai next for more mauling. Blayde was slapping him on the back and the other cousins were crowding around him, shouting questions at him, when Kyle heard the transport powering up behind him. He glanced up at it as it hovered above them for a moment before shooting off at a rapid speed. He was happy to be home—happy to see his family again. But what in the name of all the gods was he going to do next?
* * * *
Nikolai insisted on taking Kyle home with him, and of course, all the others trooped along with them, despite Kyle’s need to crawl in a bed somewhere and go to sleep. The gorgeous Jagger met them at the door, and threw his arms around Kyle’s neck. It was good to see him, but his presence only reminded Kyle of his own mate, so different from little Jagger, yet the way he felt about Taz was the same as Nikolai felt about Jagger. Yet they were here together, and his own mate was light years away. In more ways than one.