“How fucking adorable is that?”
Nodding, Makar patted him on the arm. It’d been forever since he’d seen his mate this animated. From the moment they’d met this precious woman, it seemed as if years had peeled away from his handsome face. Deep warmth engulfed his chest at the sight. He gifted him with a wide smile.
“Very much so.” Realizing they’d landed, he unbuckled and rose from his seat. “Stay with her. She can sleep while we figure out what’s happening.”
“No problem.”
Makar lingered long enough to watch Baruch reach out and pass his hand gently across her curvy hip, the side of her thigh, and down her shapely leg. He couldn’t blame him. Once she woke, he knew they’d have great difficulty getting this close again. He’d gotten the pleasure of briefly holding her in his arms, so he could definitely understand the need to connect. He turned away before he got caught up in the fantasy of having a female in their life again.
Realizing the others had already left the transport, Makar raced to catch up. He was surprised when Geleon and Haemon broke through the lines and approached them. After the usual knuckle bumps and shoulder shoves, Ludo asked the question that was on everyone’s mind.
“I’m surprised to see you two on this side. What’s going on?”
Haemon snorted and jerked his thumb back toward the crowd.
“The emperor shut down the entrance, and we’ve been out here for the last four hours handing out water and snacks. He wanted to make sure everyone stayed hydrated. I figured most of them would head home, but they’re too excited about the festival.”
Ludo’s voice grew wary. “Must be serious if he’s had to make that decision. What happened?”
“Maxim had just stepped through the tent with his new mate, and according to Kallon, they both just disappeared…and no, they didn’t mist. Ulixes claims the air just opened up and sucked them in. That’s all I know.”
“No shit?”
“Yup.”
Petrus chuckled. “Ah, come on. It’s Maxim. I’m betting it’s an elaborate joke. You know how he is. I’m sure he’ll get his ass reamed over this one.”
After a round of hopeful laughter, Makar tapped Ludo on the shoulder. Can you grab some water and bring it back to the helicopter? Since we don’t know how long we have to hang around, we might as well get comfortable. I need to get back before Keely wakes up.” At Ludo’s nod, Makar started to turn, but halted when Geleon’s low voice drifted through the night air.
“You have a female aboard? Is she your mate?”
The male’s eyes were locked on the craft, and he carried a look of desperation that Makar had never witnessed. Fighting an insane urge to lunge toward his friend and beat him to the ground, Makar willed his muscles to relax. Truth be told, he was positive he’d carried such an expression at one time as well. He softened his voice.
“Not yet, amici, but we know that the odds are great. We experienced the recognition within seconds of meeting her. I’m sorry.” Sadness permeated Makar’s emotions as he watched Geleon fight to gather his wits. Embarrassment colored his cheeks as he nodded and offered an apologetic smile.
“Of course. I wish you and Baruch nothing but good fortune.”
Makar watched his chest quickly expand and contract. Slowly, the male he’d known for many years returned. He gave a quick shrug, and one eyebrow rose.
“Say, does she have a sister…a cousin, perhaps?”
Makar’s laughter joined the others upon hearing the common line that every Insedi spewed to a male that had snagged himself an Earth female. The tension of moments ago rapidly dissolved. Clapping him soundly on the shoulder, Makar leaned forward and smiled.
“As soon as I find out, you’ll be the first to know.” He wasn’t surprised by Geleon’s searching eyes and serious tone.
“I’d appreciate that, my brother.”
Unable to help himself, Makar clasped Geleon in a tight embrace and pounded twice on his back before stepping away. “I’ll see you at the games?”
“You know it.” He quickly glanced to Haemon. “Come, we need to start the rounds again.”
Makar stood rooted to the ground as he watched Geleon, Ludo, Petrus, Sotarios, and Haemon disappear into the darkness. He couldn’t seem to chase away the tightness in his chest as he thought about all of the males out here that had been actively seeking their mates for years, only to experience failure stacked upon failure. So many more were due to arrive on this alien planet, their bodies inevitably vibrating with excitement and hope at the possibility of changing their lives. He was suddenly glad that another year had passed and the festivities would at least give his brethren a happy diversion, if only for a short time.
Walking back to the helicopter, Makar couldn’t stave off the full body shudder upon the thought that hundreds of males that might kill for a chance to find their mate now stood only yards away from his precious Keely. He suddenly understood what Lucien must have felt upon boarding the Prometheus and he’d yet to solidify his relationship with Tana. Makar powerwalked to the craft, markedly pleased to see her gorgeous, sea-green eyes dart to his. Her brows immediately rose in question.
“Baruch told me about the vortex and that it’s not normal for so many of your people to be hanging around here. What’s happening?”
“It’s okay, nothing to be concerned about.” Opening his mind upon Baruch’s insistent knock, he sensed his mate’s discomfort.
You briefly dropped your barriers earlier, and I felt a lash of fear as soon as you broke from the crowd. Have you come to the same conclusion as I?
If it’s the hoard of unmated Insedi just feet away, then yes, we’re of the same mindset. Even our ever-calm Geleon was fighting from traipsing over and doing a quick neck rub.
Fuck.
I know. We’ll just have to be vigilant. If any begin to approach, I’m flying this damn thing out of here.
I can live with that.
So, why are they all out here?
Keely interrupted their crazed thoughts.
“You know, if you want to calm me down, then you need to quit doing that unspoken conversation you two are having. I’ve watched you do this too many times not to think there’s more to it than understanding eyeball movements and facial tics. Give it up.”
Baruch laughed and plopped back against his seat. “I see that we must constantly be on our toes with this one. She’s too observant. Go ahead, tell her.”
“Might as well. Insedi can read one another’s minds, Keely. No, you can stop looking at me that way. Permission has to be granted first before we do so. We can’t read yours. Only a full mate acquires the ability.” He wanted to chuckle as her eyes narrowed and she leaned forward.
“Good. Consider yourself lucky that you can’t. Any other fantastical feats I need to know about?”
“Other than being infinitely stronger than an average human male, that’s about it.” He smiled when he caught her eyes roving over their bodies before she blinked a few times and adjusted in her seat.
“I think I knew that one already. Uh…so what’s up with the crowd?”
“The emperor blocked the entrance until they can figure out what happened to one of our friends that stepped out of the tent and disappeared. It may be nothing. We don’t know yet.” Makar briefly flicked his gaze to Baruch.
It was Maxim, so he’s probably playing around.
Ah. I’m going to kick his ass.
“Since you already have the ability to go poof, I’m assuming that it happened in a way that they’ve not seen before?”
Gods damn, Makar. You better stop me before I snatch her up and kiss the shit out of her.
You’ll have to stop me first.
“That’s correct. Don’t worry. It’s just a precaution until they can determine the area is safe enough to allow others to pass.”
“Well, you’re running out of time to explain yourself. I’ve got work tomorrow, and I can’t be late. I’m already in trouble enough with my boss for
reporting what the patients…uh…yeah, I’m sure you don’t want me to get fired, do you? You can tell me all about your world on our way back. I promise I’ll listen with an open mind.”
Baruch cocked his head and chuckled. “Ah, my lovely doctor. You’re so used to analyzing everyone else’s words that you’ve failed to temper your own. So, our ability has been exposed in more places than just your journal. Interesting. Do tell.”
Makar watched Keely’s face pale upon recognition that she’d been busted. Jumping up into the craft, Makar sat across from her and stared into her wide eyes.
“Your boss knows? From what I read, we’d assumed that you were just told not to converse with the police officer that Cato subdued. You said you got in trouble. Why?”
Keely huffed out a hard breath and relaxed back against the seat. “Screw it. Here’s the deal. I reported the Sewell and Foster incidents, but he just blew me off. When I told him about Wharton’s claim that Caelius disappeared, he threatened to write me up if I mentioned it again. He thinks I’m just as cracked as the patients are. So, you don’t have any worries there. I’m not going to bring it up again. It’s over.”
“Fair enough, but I need to know how you reported it to your superior.”
Keely grimaced. “By e-mail and I accidently left the case file on his desk. He’s probably deleted the messages and put the folder back in my office by now.”
“But we can’t know that for sure, can we? What about the police officer that you were to meet tonight? Is he aware of your findings?”
Adamantly shaking her head, Keely straightened in her seat. “I promise that he doesn’t know a thing. I wasn’t going to point any of this out to him until I got pushed aside by my boss. Besides, he’ll probably never speak to me again since I stood him up.”
“Is he your lover?”
Makar darted his eyes over to Baruch, surprised he’d been so blunt with the question. Quickly, he glanced back to assess Keely’s expression. He was happy with the incredulous look she was throwing at his unrepentant mate.
“Good grief, no. He’s not my type.”
Baruch’s eyebrow rose. “What’s your type?”
“I haven’t settled on that, yet.”
“Why?”
“Look, you’re getting off point. You need to take me back. I promise that I’ll get rid of the folder and the journal. I know Webb’s computer password, so I can definitely delete his e-mails if he still has them.”
Here’s our chance, Makar. I don’t want to sit here all night and wait for the word to get around that we have an unmated female that may or may not be ours. Any of them could come around for a friendly visit, but if one of them touches her and goes into the surge, I’m going to kill him.
Right there with you.
“Okay, we’ll take you back, but we’re going with you to make sure that all evidence is gone. Don’t even try to argue. It won’t work.”
Keely shrugged. “Fine. Go get your pilot, and let’s get out of here.”
“Where you going?”
Makar glanced over to the doorway, relieved to see that it was just Sotarios, his arms loaded down with water bottles.
“We’re taking Keely back to Austin. There’s more evidence floating around besides her journal. We’re going to destroy it and then come back. Beats the hell out of sitting here all night twiddling our thumbs.”
Sotarios shook his head and snorted. “Well, you’re going to have to fly it back then. This was supposed to be my last flight tonight. If I have to crawl onto that seat again, I’m going to kill something. You got the same training from Maxim as I did. Have at it.”
“You sure?”
“Positive.” He reached over and handed a bottle to Keely, his voice taking on a pleasant tone. “It was nice to meet you, Keely. I hope you decide to return for the festival. I know you’ll have a great time. Don’t be frightened of these two. They’re really just a bunch of saps. You’ll have them wrapped around your finger in no time, if not already.”
Makar grunted and listened to Baruch growling as he accepted the remaining bottles. As soon as he had them stowed away, he reached over, shoved Sotarios on the shoulder, and plopped onto the copilot chair.
“Thanks, you’ve been very helpful. Go now before I pop you in the eye.”
Laughing, Sotarios threw them a little wave and slid the door back into place. Keely had her hand over her mouth, but he could tell she was fighting her laughter. Her eyes were a dead giveaway.
“You ready?”
She composed herself, tugged on the seat belt, and nodded. The second her white teeth caught her bottom lip, he had to look away or go down to his knees and beg her to never stop surprising him with her beauty.
“Okay, let’s get this over with.” Buckled in, he ran through the diagnostic checks with Baruch, confirmed they had enough fuel to get back, and lifted away. Several long, silent minutes drifted by as he watched the mountain gradually dwindle to smaller rolling hills. He marveled at the stark difference of the landscape to that of his home.
Despite the waning light cast by the Earth’s only moon, he was able to spot the surplus of vehicles lining the edge of the Trejani’s property. The underground system couldn’t come fast enough in his estimation. If Keely could piece together separate patient testimonies to determine the Insedi’s existence, he wondered how many others might do the same. If his race continued to innocently plant glaring signs among the Earth’s inhabitants, then the odds were increasing. Baruch’s low voice broke him from the seriousness of his thoughts.
“I just discovered something new about Keely.”
“What?”
“She can’t handle air flight.” He chuckled and pointed his thumb to the back.
Glancing over his shoulder, Makar couldn’t help but smile at the sight. Keely was once again smashed against the window and sound asleep. “You would be correct. Hopefully, she’ll sleep all the way back. I think all of the excitement has completely worn our girl out.”
“Yep. Did you notice that she’s not as pissed as when we first snagged her in the alley?”
“Yes, but don’t let your guard down. She probably has about ten different scenarios planned for ditching us as soon as we land.” He enjoyed watching Baruch attempting to stifle his laughter.
“Yeah, I’m expecting a baseball bat on the back of my…Fuck! Bank right!”
Years of trust and intense flight training with his mate left him immediately obeying the instruction. Head whipping forward, Makar narrowed his eyes, unable to stop the anger lacing his words.
“Son of a bitch.”
Chapter 8
“What the hell?” From the corner of his eye, Makar watched Baruch swing around in his seat at Keely’s shout.
“You okay, baby?”
“Yeah, I just smacked my head on the window. I’ll live. What happened?”
“Two helicopters just whizzed by. The idiots were way too close.”
Makar reached out and shoved Baruch on the shoulder. “Eyes front, they’re coming back. Wait. Their hovering now.” As soon as they passed through the small gap the two had left him, Baruch swiveled and peered out the window.
“They’ve turned and are following now.”
“I knew this was going to happen. We might as well have a beacon over the vortex. Even with the Trejani’s filing of the drilling permits, we’ve drawn someone’s curiosity. I hope it’s not government.”
Shaking his head, Makar switched to a common channel and tried hailing them, but got no response. He frowned when they approached from the flank and kept pace next to them. He couldn’t see inside, nor were there any of the markers Maxim had trained them to look for. Baruch’s deepened voice confirmed his thoughts.
“Be careful what you wish for. Look at the body style. Seem familiar?”
“Shit. Chinati Engagement. Not good.”
“What’s the Chinati Engagement?”
Makar heard the fear lacing Keely’s hushed words and tried to st
ifle the growl rumbling up his throat. “We had drug runners squatting on the property. The guard wiped out their ground unit and Maxim helped to run their helicopter into the ground.”
“Maxim? The one that’s missing?”
“The same.” Baruch popped him on the arm.
“Look, the one on your side is closing in. The one over here is keeping the same distance. They’re pushing us south.”
Makar’s anger grew with each attempt to readjust course. It didn’t matter if he dropped lower or tried lifting higher. The two helicopters remained parallel and continued the slow push to the right. A quick surge forward to outrun them finally revealed how serious the situation had become. A rapid-fire spay of bullets across their bow brought a squeal from Keely and curses from Baruch. Dropping quickly, he attempted another adjustment and received the same result.
“Gods damn it! Contact the vortex base. Tell them what’s happening.”
“No response.”
“Mind call to the warriors.”
“Not happening. I’m getting a total blackout. They must’ve gone over already. We’re on our own.”
They flew for another ten minutes before Makar attempted a quick lift and turn. This time they received fire from both transports. He settled back between them, and guilt slammed into his gut. They’d pulled Keely into a nest of danger, and there wasn’t a damn thing they could do that wouldn’t place her in further harm. Baruch reached over and patted him on the knee, emotions mirroring his own. Keely’s sweet voice drifted over his shoulder, enhancing his need to keep her safe.
“Uh, guys?”
“I’m sorry, sweetness. I won’t do that again. Until we figure out what the hell they want, I’ll play it safe.”
“No, it’s not that. What direction are we flying now? All I’m seeing below is trees.”
“Southwest.”
“Okay, so they’ve had every opportunity to shoot us out of the sky, and they don’t want us going east. So it’s safe to say that their motive is to keep pushing us in the direction they want. If we keep going this way, I’m betting they want us to fly into Mexico. We sure as hell can’t land here. If they force us down over their turf, we’re screwed. It’s not like the United States. We won’t have any recourse there. We can’t let that happen. If you need to do something crazy, I’m totally on board with that.”
Fueled by Lust: Makar and Baruch (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) Page 7