Yes, like this. I know it’s new, but if you’d reached out, I wouldn’t have been worried for youboth.He emphasized the ‘both’ as he met Nico’s gaze.
You want to know everything?It was hard to determine whether or not Nico liked that, as Ben nodded at him. He thought he’d explained how a mind link worked, but clearly his mates needed more in the way of examples and context.
Kylo glanced between the three of them and Ben shelved the conversation for later. “Who do you recognize?” he asked instead about Teilo’s earlier thought that was thankfully loud enough for him to pick up on.
Teilo tapped on the picture he held with a bunch of others. “This man. He was always with the dark man. He didn’t speak, he just watched.”
Ben took the offered photo and handed it to Kylo. “You know who this is?” He kept his voice low, knowing that anyone could be listening and right now, and after their earlier outburst in the reception area, they needed to be more careful. His trust expanded to his brother and his mates and that was it.
Kylo’s dark brows merged, and he cursed in their tongue. “Where did you find this?” he asked, instead of answering Ben’s question, sounding deeply pissed.
Teilo shifted to the side and then he eyed Kylo for long seconds before he pointed to the cupboard against the wall. “In there, in piles of papers. I can’t read, so I don’t know what they say.”
Kylo crouched and Ben noticed the slight scratch marks on the lock as Kylo slipped the door open easily. The three piles of paper were stacked messily, only Ben suspected that wasn’t his mate’s handy work.
Ben bent close to Kylo and heard his two mates move to the door. One glance over his shoulder confirmed they were both standing guard. Two stunning blond sentinels.
His panther stirred and purred his approval—now he could see both mates were safe, he could appreciate and revel in their protective nature.
Looking back at the cupboard, Ben worked to keep his arousal under control and focused on Kylo, who searched through the stacks. “You aren’t going to get a proper look doing it this way.”
Kylo’s scowl deepened as he glanced about the room. “I need something to carry this lot in. We need to see what else is in here and we can’t do it here.” A disheartened sigh followed with a look of apology. “We’re gonna have to go home.” He stood, leaving the papers behind.
“Ah fuck!”
“Hey, you came back.” He cupped Ben’s shoulder and squeezed. “They miss you, Ben.” Past the concern was humor.
“Like a hole in the head.”
Kylo’s grin was that of the cheeky older brother he remembered who’d tormented him. “Maybe, but you made us all proud following your heart, little brother.”
Nico, he was sure, made a noise that was all dangerous predator. A slow grin spread over Ben’s face. “He’s talking about the council, nothing else,” Ben assured his possessive mate, his ego getting a nice stroke when Nico’s pleasure at his reply came through their link.
“We can do all the posturing later, when we’re out of here.” Kylo disappeared out the door, returning a minute later carrying an old leather pack that Ben recognized from years back.
In the time Kylo had been gone, they’d emptied the cupboard and laid the papers on the untidy desk. Silently, they worked to fill the pack as his mates continued to keep watch.
Pack in hand, they were out the door and the building a few minutes later. No one questioned Kylo’s leaving, and Ben wondered at the climate in his brother’s office.
Ben eyed the SUV they’d arrived in, the one that still held the dead guy. “What are we going to do with that?” He kept the reference vague.
“We can’t leave it here.” Kylo glanced about. “You drive it home. We can dispose of the rubbish out in the rain forest.”
A curt nod and Ben swallowed the sigh at bringing death along for his first visit home in more than a decade.
The drive home was filled with questions from Teilo, with the occasional from Nico, about his family. Unsure how many would be around, Ben talked about all of his brothers. Kylo being the oldest and Niro the youngest. Ben was the second youngest after Felix, then there were Mao. Tendua was a year younger than Kylo and had left home before Ben and lived in the United Kingdom working in banking.
The hour drive meant the stench in the SVU from the trunk was ever present in the heat of the day. By the time they’d reached the boundary lands of Ben’s home, he’d happily face his brothers’ ribbing over the scent of death.
Kylo’s wagon, driving in front of them, stopped at the large electronic gates that hadn’t been there when Ben left. They opened and Ben followed Kylo, questions chasing each other over the need for such a thing.Is life here so dangerous?But then, Ben remembered his mates had been born and raised not that far away and answered himself.Yes.The moment the car passed through the gate, Ben’s body shuddered at the feel of strong magic touching him. It was like what the Thalassas used to protect their island.
What the fuck was going on?
Why are they using magic?This came from Teilo.
“I’ve no clue,” Ben answered aloud. His gaze narrowed on the vehicle that pulled to a stop outside the house Ben still called home, even though it’d been years since he’d been back.
The house was wooden and stood on stilts to cope with the rainy season. Over time, when the place needed updating/expanding and to protect the rainforest, they’d only used reclaimed wood. It showed in the different timbre and colors of the wood. It was a hodgepodge and yet it made sense to Ben’s eyes.
