Saving Jax

by L. M. Brown

  "I do."

  Timon frowned. "He denies ever having touched Jax."

  "He's lying."

  "How do you know Jax isn't the one being untruthful?"

  Cal shook his head. "Because I saw them together with my own eyes."

  Timon stared at him for several long moments. "When was this?"

  "On the first day of the festival," Cal replied.

  "And what did you see? Exactly."

  Cal knew what Timon was asking. He wanted to know whether what Cal had witnessed could in any way have been misconstrued. He decided to be as blunt as possible. "I saw Lyndon fucking Jax."

  "And Jax's uncle didn't know about this?"

  "He wasn't there to know about this particular incident, if that's what you're asking. He was still in the main hall. I'd stepped out to get some air and it appeared Lyndon and Jax had done the same. It was in the sheltered grassy alcove between the servants' door and the path leading between the sky cars and the formal gardens."

  "I know the place. How is it they didn't see you? Or did they?"

  "They didn't see me. They were rather caught up in the moment."

  "Then Jax was a willing participant?"

  "Yes."

  Timon tapped his fingers on the control panel.

  "Or as willing as a feline can be, when his only food source demands he spreads his legs or starves," Cal continued.

  "Jax is claimed now, he has you and Ty to feed him. If Lyndon joins your household he would be nothing more than a servant, working at whatever tasks you feel he is qualified for."

  Cal shook his head. "He will not honour the claiming."

  "You don't know that. You all made your escape from Furyne before he even arrived at the lodge."

  "Actually, I do know that," Cal replied. "When I went to check on Jax while he was doing his packing I found him pinned to the bed by Lyndon. I heard him threaten Jax and I saw him groping him, and this time Jax wasn't willing at all."

  Timon rose, the white stripes on his face turning crimson. "Are you saying that Lyndon touched your mate—my son's mate—in a sexual manner after you and Ty had claimed him?"

  "Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying. I saw him with my own two eyes. If I hadn't walked in when I did, I have no doubt at all that Lyndon would have raped him there and then."

  "Did Lyndon know that Jax carried his litter?" Timon asked.

  "No. Jax had only realised himself the night before."

  "And he definitely didn't tell him, maybe before you interrupted?"

  "No."

  "But you only have Jax's word for this."

  "I trust him. He was terrified of Lyndon finding out he was pregnant again."

  "To attempt to fuck the mate of another feline is very serious," Timon said.

  "Lyndon had never claimed Jax," Cal argued. "He refused to when Jax was pregnant the first time."

  "That wasn't what I meant," Timon clarified. "I meant Lyndon forcing himself on Jax. Ty told me before we arrived that Lyndon is the father of both of Jax's litters. Do you believe it?"

  "Yes. Don't you?"

  Timon sighed and nodded. "Yes, I do, but black and white patches are common markings. Lyndon can easily deny paternity and there's no way to prove otherwise. I spoke to Orin shortly before we came off-world and he tells me that several other felines claimed they could be the father of Jax's first litter. Whether your mate is true to you and Ty now is irrelevant, not when other felines are willing to testify to his promiscuity."

  Cal hissed at Timon, his own temper rising with every word. "Jax has told me exactly how many felines have taken him in the manner that could result in pregnancy, and that is just one, Lyndon."

  "And how many have taken him in other ways?" Timon asked. "You have to understand my position here. Your Jax is claiming innocence when there are several other felines of upstanding birth who are willing to swear an oath that they have fucked him."

  The baby in his arms cried again, probably disturbed by the rising voices. Blanche took him from Cal and moved a little way from them, though she stayed in the room.

  Cal rounded on Timon, his voice low but firm. "Let me set you straight. Jax has never claimed innocence to myself or Ty. He has been honest with us about his relationship with Lyndon and his sexual relations, brief though they were, with other felines, who, incidentally, were friends of Lyndon’s. Ty and I accept Jax as he is and the three of us wish to make our relationship a permanent one. But we will not, now or ever, have Lyndon as part of our household. We're raising a family together, one that is shortly going to be growing with Ty's litter. None of us want the stress of being constantly on our guard, watching over our shoulders in case the faithful servant, Lyndon, suddenly decides to rape Jax."

  "He would not dare."

  "He already did!" Cal yelled. "He fucked Jax for cycles by threatening to withhold cream from him unless he complied. Even after Ty and I claimed Jax, Lyndon had no hesitation in assaulting him and I have no doubt he would have fucked him there and then if I hadn't walked in on them."

  Blanche coughed delicately from the corner. "Can I make a suggestion?"

  Timon nodded.

  "Perhaps give Lyndon the opportunity to do what Cal thinks he will, and see for yourself what sort of a feline he is."

  "Absolutely not," Cal replied "I won't put Jax in danger like that."

  "He wouldn't be in danger if it was a trap," Blanche said. "Someone would be there to step in as soon as Lyndon made his intentions known."

  "It might work," Timon said.

  Cal didn't like the idea at all. The thought of Lyndon even being on the same planet as Jax didn't sit right with him.

  Timon nodded as he paced the room. "If it were proved that Lyndon tried to force himself on the mate of another feline, and a high noble one too, it could make that term of the contract void."

  Now that was a reason to go ahead with the plan. Cal knew he couldn't agree to this without speaking to Jax first. Having his mate used as bait had to be a last resort, unfortunately it sounded as if they were already at that point.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Jax stepped off the spacecraft and breathed in the damp air of Furyne. He hadn't thought he would have missed it as much as he had. He held his daughter in his arms. "Welcome home, Patty."

  Ty smiled at him and kissed him. "Are you settled on that name then?"

  Jax chuckled. He had gone through so many names during the journey, but he thought this one seemed to fit. Cal and Blanche carried his sons, now named Tyme and Dem. He still wasn't entirely sure Lyndon wouldn't find a way to steal them, but with his two mates supporting him he felt safer than he ever had.

  Blanche tapped Jax on the arm. "I have a surprise for you."

  Jax frowned and she nodded towards the entrance. "I sent a message to Kelon, and he's going to meet us here. We're going to stay with him until after Ty's given birth."

  "We are?"

  "Yes," Ty's father confirmed. "This spaceport is the farthest from our home, and even if we use the private sky cars instead of the public ones, the journey is at least eight hours. You're due to give birth any day now and I would rather not have my grandchildren born on a sky car."

  Ty gave his father a suspicious look. "Are you sure this isn't just a way to ensure as few people see me as possible?"

  "No." Timon pointed at the entrance. "I've also sent messages ahead. Some of staff are here and I'm sure they will gossip about your condition as much as anyone else."

  "What about my uncle?" Jax whispered. "Is he here too?"

  "No, he's back at the palace. We'll return there after Ty has given birth."

  Ty stretched and rubbed at the small of his back. "Hopefully, that'll be soon, because I don't think my back can take much more of this."

  Jax let the others lead the way, lingering at the back of the group. What would Kelon say when he saw him? Would his children be with him? What if someone told him that Jax was the one who had fathered the babies he had adopted?

&nb
sp; "Blanche, Cal, Ty?" Jax stopped and waited for the others to move on so he could speak to his sister and mates.

  "What is it?" Blanche asked.

  "I want to ask you all a favour," Jax whispered, one eye on them and the other on Ty's parents. "I don't want Kelon to know about the babies he's adopted being mine."

  "Why not?" Blanche appeared confused at his request, although Cal and Ty nodded as though they had been expecting this. Cal had probably guessed something like this might be coming after their talk on Falcair.

  "They're a family now," Jax said. "How can I destroy that?"

  "But they have a right to know."

  Jax shook his head. "Please, Blanche, don't say anything to them."

  Blanche sighed. "Very well, but do you really think you can spend time with your own children and not give yourself away every time you look at them?"

  "What do you mean?"

  "You've never been able to hide it when you have strong feelings. The love you feel lights up your whole face."

  "I'm allowed to love my nephews," Jax said.

  Blanche appeared doubtful but she steered him back towards the door. "You won't be able to keep up the pretence, but feel free to try. I'm sure Kelon will understand why you've lied to him."

  "It's not like that."

  "Of course it is."

  "I won't break up their family."

  Blanche huffed. "I never said you would, but there's a difference between telling your brother that he's been raising the litter you birthed and demanding their return."

  "I'm not going to ask for them back," Jax said. "It would break their hearts, all of them."

  "I know you wouldn't do that."

  "Kelon and his mate don't need to know who birthed the litter they've been raising. I can still be a part of their lives, if they want me to be."

  "Of course they will!"

  Jax sighed. "You know Kelon and I didn't part of the best of terms. I was infatuated with Lyndon and ignored his warnings about him. He might not want a bad influence like me around his children."

  "Nonsense," Blanche replied. "It isn't as if you had a huge fight. Kelon tried to warn you to be careful of him, and you told him you knew what you were doing."

  "Kelon told you about it?"

  "Yes, of course. He was worried about you. We both were. And as for you being a bad influence around his children, don't be so foolish. Now come along and stop stalling. Kelon will be waiting for us."

  They followed Ty's parents and found them right outside the doors. The various members of staff they had summoned milled around, checking luggage, and ensuring everything was in order for the short journey to Kelon's home.

  "Um, Blanche?" Jax whispered.

  "Yes?"

  "How big is Kelon's home?" Jax hoped it was big enough to accommodate everyone, but he suspected only the palace itself would be sufficient.

  Timon smiled and turned to Jax. "Demi, myself and most of our staff will be staying at a private residence belonging to Demi's family. It's about an hour away from where we understand Kelon's home to be located, so we'll be visiting daily. We'll send a couple of staff members with you to help with the luggage. They can join us once you're unpacked."

  Jax wondered how many residences Ty's family had across Furyne.

  "There'll be plenty of room for the rest of you with us," Kelon announced as he appeared from the midst of the crowd.

  Jax handed Patty off to Ty and threw himself into Kelon's arms, clutching his brother tight.

  Kelon laughed as he hugged Jax back. "It's good to see you, too. Now, how about we all stop blocking the entrance to the spaceport and head home so we can catch up properly?"

  Jax nodded, and after taking his daughter back from Ty, he followed his brother to the sky car terminal. "Is Loris working today?"

  "No, he's at home with the children," Kelon replied. "We try to arrange our shifts so that one of us is always with them. We prefer to raise them ourselves rather than leave them in a large group with paid minders. Normally, I'd be working now, but I took some time off to meet you."

  "You didn't have to do that."

  "Of course I did. I can't wait for you to meet everyone." Kelon grinned as they all climbed into the sky car. The two servants who would be joining them followed in the next one with the bulk of the luggage. Ty's parents took the third sky car with a few of their servants. Behind them, the rest of the staff were waiting for the next vehicle to arrive.

  Suddenly remembering that he hadn't introduced his mates, Jax nodded to Cal and Ty. "These are my mates, Cal and Ty. We're all really grateful for you opening your home to us. As you can see, Ty isn't really in a condition to be undertaking long journeys right now."

  Kelon smiled at Cal and Ty. "I'm pleased to meet you. I'm glad Jax had found mates who appear to have his best interests at heart."

  Jax wondered how he could come to that conclusion when he had only just met them, before he realised that Blanche had no doubt told him about them in her message. He was just thankful she didn't appear to have told him about the true paternity of his children.

  The ride in the sky car was fairly short, and Jax soon found himself being guided into Kelon's large burrow, a dwelling built into the ground with a circular door and windows that were almost hidden from view. The majority of the feline abodes were designed in this manner, a throwback to the days when the felines feared predators, and sought to hide from those who would hunt them. Only the nobles had really embraced the idea of above ground structures, and not all of those had the funds to build them.

  Jax heard the children before he saw them. The laughter and playful squeals came from deep inside the home.

  Kelon chuckled. "As you can tell, it can sometimes be a little noisy around here, so don't worry if your own little ones are crying. We're used to it."

  Loris appeared with Nypper on his shoulders. Jax recognised his son at once. The distinctive black patch around his left eye and the solid black tail, helped Jax tell him apart from Jaron.

  "Jax, may I present my mate, Loris," Kelon said in a formal tone. "The only feline who could persuade me to stay on this planet."

  Jax smiled at Loris, his nerves returning again.

  "And this is our son, Nypper," Kelon continued. "He's one of a litter of three who we adopted as newborns. Where are Kelly and Jaron?"

  Loris laughed and nodded behind him. "They were right behind me, but I think Kelly has suddenly become shy at the idea of meeting so many new people. Jaron is trying to lure per through here with bribes of per favourite toys."

  Kelon gestured for them to sit down. Loris pointed the servants through a doorway and gave them directions to the guest room.

  "Are you sure there's enough room for us all?" Jax asked.

  Loris waved away his concerns. "This place is much larger than it appears. We had extra rooms dug out last cycle for when the children are older. They're sharing a room at the moment, but when they're older we'd like them to have their own rooms. We'd also like to adopt another litter in a few cycles, though there's no guarantee that we'll be able to, of course."

  Jax wondered what he meant by that and glanced at Kelon.

  "Those who have not been able to adopt yet are given priority," his brother explained. "We're actually lucky that we were able to adopt these little ones so soon."

  "Why is that?" Ty asked, and Jax knew he was wondering whether they might let something slip about Lyndon.

  Loris put Nypper down and took a seat. "As you'll have gathered, Kelly is dual-gendered. We were told that the mother of the litter had felt they were all tainted by this, and had given them all up on the day they were born."

  Kelon sighed and sat beside Loris, taking his hand in his. "You'll know how many are prejudiced against those who are born dual-gendered. Well, it seems those who wish to adopt are just as uncaring as the rest of them. We were told that while we were some way down the list, those above us had already stipulated that they would not adopt a dual-gendered feline."
<
br />   "It's one of the questions on the forms we filled in when we applied," Loris added.

  "Well, their prejudices meant that our family began much sooner than we anticipated, and we couldn't be happier about it."

  Jax caught a glimpse of a small face peeking around the doorway, then a second on the other side. He gave them a small wave and his other two children decided to join them.

  "Come on in," Kelon urged, and when Kelly approached he swung per up onto his knee. "This is Kelly, and down there is Jaron."

  Jax steeled himself not to break down as he looked upon his older children for the first time since they had been born. He cursed Lyndon silently again, not just for stealing his babies, but for lying to the adoption services, too. His beloved children would grow up believing that their mother didn't want them, when instead their papa had been broken-hearted at losing them.

  "What about your own babies?" Loris asked. "How old are they?"

  "Four months," Cal said. "This here is Tyme, Blanche has Dem, and Jax is holding Patty."

  Jax cooed at his daughter and when he saw Jaron staring up at him, he shifted aside so he could clamber up onto the seat beside him. "This is your cousin, Patty."

  The blanket around Patty slipped and Jax heard a sharp intake of breath from his brother. He could feel the heat rising in his face and met his brother's gaze.

  "I gather from your surprise that Blanche didn't mention that neither of my mates fathered my litter?"

  Kelon shot a sharp glance at Blanche. "No, she didn't."

  The tension rose and Jax didn't know what to say to break it. Mentioning Lyndon would only make things worse. Thankfully, Ty came to his rescue.

  "Jax's litter may not be mine, or Cal's, by blood, but in all other respects they are our babies. You and Loris can surely understand that, since you've adopted yourselves."

  Cal nodded and patted Ty's stomach. "And there's no question at all about who has fathered Ty's litter."

  "That would be Jax," Ty explained. "As will be obvious when they're born, which can't come a day too soon."

  Jax chuckled and leaned into Ty. On Ty's other side, Cal did the same. Then Jaron crawled over Jax's lap to insert himself between them and poke at Ty's belly.