Chapter 3
Chapter Three
Kayne
The council would take my mate away and use her against me.
I knew it without a doubt. Everything we'd built together would be stolen away by them because they didn't like our lifestyle.
Their antiquated beliefs threatened everything about the shifter world.
It was bad enough that they didn't like shifters mating humans, but our dwindling numbers had pushed them into allowing it. They'd never accept
"The helicopter is on the way, but I don't know if it will get here in time." The sounds of a tactical team breaching the building below punctuated Atticus's words. We didn't have much time.
"We can't let them take her." Fritz turned to me with a desperate look.
I shook my head. "Not going to happen." A whomping noise grew louder. "Come on mate, it's time to go."
Blythe took my hand the second I offered it to her. Fritz shot me a surprised look but didn't say anything as I pulled my mate close. "What's happening and where are we going?"
The shifter I'd chosen to be the head of our film crew crossed his arms. "Graham said there's a helicopter landing pad on the roof. The access stairs are over there. I'll hold them off as long as I can."
Fritz gripped Atticus's hand as they pulled each other into a quick embrace. "We owe you."
"Heh. Normally I would say not since you've given me so much, but there's a good chance I'll end up in jail for this one. Just promise me you won't stop what you're doing." Atticus pressed his hand over his chest, then went back inside and blocked the door to the balcony.
"Come on you. First we'll get out of here, then I'll explain." I threw Blythe over my shoulder and sprinted up the stairs. We'd move faster if I carried her.
Fritz made a strange noise as he followed. "That feels too fucking weird." I barely heard him mutter over the sound of the helicopter as it neared the roof. The moment we were safe, I would ask him what was missing. I had a sneaking suspicion it would be funny as hell.
We emerged onto the landing pad as the helicopter touched down. The door swung open and we sprinted to our only escape. I tossed Blythe into a seat as I jumped in after her. Fritz had one foot inside when he froze. His eyes went wide as he muttered. "Shit."
Grabbing the front of his shirt, I shoved him into a seat as I slammed the door.
"Get us out of here." I didn't even look at the pilot.
Didn't need to. We'd built a network of trusted individuals over the years.
I'd made sure teams of shifters were available to help us if the council jumped to arrest and seize us for not following their mandate fast enough.
The council's tactical team swarmed the rooftop, but the helicopter lifted before they could stop us. Their weapons pointed at us, but they wouldn't risk killing a human. Especially since our film crew had probably found a way to broadcast the entire thing.
Fritz screamed as he exploded into popcorn.
Then all the pieces flew back together and he shifted into a bear.
Blythe jumped back as the giant bear convulsed.
I noticed a small piece of metal on his back.
Fucking council. I snarled as I switched places with my mate, then put a headset on both of us.
"Stay here. I don't want him accidentally hurting you as he seizes. "
She gripped the headset, clutching it in place. "What happened?" Her gaze didn't leave Fritz as he exploded into popcorn again.
I patted her knee as I watched my best friend's agony.
"Nasty little weapon the council came up with.
Like a taser, except it burrows into the skin.
Only way to make it stop is wait for us to get out of range of the controller, or try to cut off him.
With how quickly he's changing forms, it would be impossible to remove it from him. "
"That's awful." Blythe's hand covered mine as she squeezed it. "But he'll be okay, right?"
"Eventually. Until then, he's in excruciating pain.
It's far more painful to shifters since they're being forced to change forms." Anger swirled in me, but I forced it back.
If I popped right now, it would make everything worse.
"It doubles as a tracking device, so we have to keep moving until he stops, remove it, then we head on to our final destination. "
Blythe stared at Fritz for several seconds then gestured to the side door. "Can we open that for a second?"
I nodded, and watched as she shook out her hands. Not sure what she was up to, I remained still as she leaned over and gripped the door handle. Fritz exploded, and Blythe reached into the shower of popcorn.
"What the hell are you doing? That will--" My words died off as she plucked the metal disc out of the mess while it was still attached to three pieces of popcorn.
She slid the door open right as Fritz shifted into human form, then tossed the disc out.
A few remnants of popcorn were sucked out before she slammed it shut.
Once the door was locked, I clenched my jaw as I glared at her. "Never do something like that again."
"What? I noticed the prongs were embedded into bits of popped corn, so it wasn't likely to get me." She slid to the floor and pulled Fritz into her lap, resting his head on her thigh.
"And what if you'd fallen out of the helicopter, what then?"
She shook her head as she smiled at me. "You'd never let me fall out."
Fritz lay unconscious with random muscle spasms, but his form seemed stable. Her fingers ran through his hair as she soothed him. The way she embraced him made me wish for something we couldn't have.
*.*.*.*.*
Fritz
Existing hurt. My body felt like it had gone through a meat grinder a few dozen times before being shoved back into a vaguely human shape. Something soft brushed against my cheek, coaxing me back to reality. I followed the promise of painful bliss and opened my eyes.
"You're awake." Blythe's sweet voice rewarded me.
"I am." It came out more of a pained croak.
My gaze drifted around my line of sight which appeared to be the ceiling of a small aircraft.
We appeared to be on a bed in a private bedroom on an airplane.
At some point while I'd been unconscious, I'd been moved from the helicopter to this plane.
Now I lay between her legs with my head resting on her thigh.
One of her hands rested on my chest while the other stroked my face and hair.
The sound of a door opening next to me caught my attention.
Pain richetoced through my body as I looked to see who'd come into the room.
Kayne. Guilt slid through me when I saw he realized I was laying in Blythe's lap.
I'd resolved to let him win and claim her, but now I was betraying that. Some friend I was.
Kayne sat on the edge of the bed as he placed his hand next to Blythe's on my chest. Heat surged in me, pushing the pain aside as the need to claim them roared to life. "How are you feeling?"
The concern in his voice was like a soothing balm. This entire situation was fucked up. Why couldn't the council just leave us be? "Like I imploded, over and over. Where are we?"
"Thanks to Blythe, we're on our way to Atlantis." Kayne shot Blythe a warning look. "She risked herself, but everything turned out okay."
I felt her sigh. "I was in more danger by being in a helicopter than by what I did."
"What did you do?"
"My rebellious little mate plucked the tracer out of your popcorn form and tossed it out the door of a moving helicopter." While he spoke, a tic formed in Kayne's jaw.
I looked up at Blythe and shook my head. "Never do that again. I'm not worth the risk to you."
Blythe huffed as she tapped a finger against my chest, punctuating her words. "I disagree, but we can argue over it later."
"She has a point." Kayne chimed in. "We'll be landing in Atlantis soon, and we have a few things to discuss first. The show was supposed to help you pick one of us, but it seems we've run out of time. Until you've fully mated one of us, the shifter council won't leave us alone."
A weight settled in my gut. "What are you talking about?" He didn't say anything. Nausea washed through me as I pushed myself up into a sitting position. "Kayne, tell me."
Kayne growled deep in his chest, nothing compared to what his bear could do if it wasn't trapped in him. "You weren't supposed to find out."
"About what?"
He jumped off the bed and paced the small room. "The council found out about us, about our… lifestyle. They sent a cease and desist order, threatening to take all of our assets if we didn't prove beyond a doubt that we were done."
A deep ache formed in my chest as his words. We'd been careful about sharing women. While the council had never expressly forbade it, they were predictable and antiquated. We assumed that if they ever found out, they'd put a stop to it.
Over the years, we'd tried to date on our own, but it hadn't worked. The one time I'd been with a woman alone… she'd thrown me out. It hadn't felt right without him there. I still hated to think about that day.
I'd always wanted my mate and Kayne, but fate didn't work that way.
The gods didn't care how much I loved the male.
Once mated, infidelity was impossible. Which meant that having a mated trio was impossible.
Initiating the mating bond would cut the third person out of the ritual and eventually the relationship.
So we'd relegated ourselves to sharing women we knew we'd never be able to mate.
We'd always said if our Tsigo came along, then we'd discuss the future.
A memory of Kayne calling Blythe mate came to me. He'd claimed her, and I would rip my own heart out to make him happy… Give up my Tsigo for him.
"You're an asshole." I threw a pillow at Kayne. "We don't fucking lie to each other." Another pillow went flying. "You promised… We both did." The last pillow within reach bounced off Kayne's chest as I unleashed my rage.
"Fritz, calm down before you pop." Kayne picked up the pillows and stacked them on the bed.
"No, I will not calm down. You lied to me." I stood up to storm off, but staggered as something felt off with my left foot. Looking down, I realized I wasn't wearing shoes. Three toes from my left foot were missing. "Great." I gestured at the missing appendages. "When did--"
-POP-
I pulled myself together into a ball and rolled out of the room through the open door, too conflicted to voice how I felt. While I loved Kayne, his habit of hiding the truth to protect me drove me nuts.