Page 72 of 20% Stud 80% Muffin
I stuffed our snaring supplies into the backpack so hard my fist almost drove through the bottom of the bag, then hustled to catch up. “That’s because I’m not truly an alpha. I’m just a fat gay guy from Earth who’s had one terrible relationship and happens to be good at building houses.”
Shit, did I say that out loud? Heat rushed to my ears, and I ducked my head.
I searched for a reaction from Bonic’s tail as he spoke. “You’ve got the tether, am I correct?” Except for when he wrapped it around Jast, Bonic’s tail gave away no emotion, unlike Makir’s.
After unscrewing the lid from my water bottle, I took a long drink. “I can sense him. It’s like he’s attached to me in some way. I found him when he was in troubleout here.” I looped snare wire idly in and out of my fingers. “But it’s more than that. I didn’t just find him. I was driven to find him.” Like my whole life’s focus suddenly existed to ensure his safety.
“You’re an alpha, whether you choose to believe it or not. You protected my brother from Raz. My brother’s eyes have turned, and he now submits to you over me. The start of a true bond is in place. His song calls to you. When full, the tether will become stronger.” His intense lavender eyes met mine, so different from his brother’s soft looks. “Lornians search their whole life to find their true mates, and many settle for a lesser bond, which can be very fulfilling, but nothing compares to a true mate bond.”
I followed Bonic through a narrow section of the trail.
“This is rare and should be cherished, not feared,” he said. Bonic found shade under a flat rock and folded his long legs over the cool moss that grew there in springy curls. I ate up every word he said. “It’s painful for true mates to be away from each other for extended periods.” He unhooked a linobee from his belt and carefully scraped and prepared the pelt for travel. “You’ll find that Makir will not want to be away from you, and you won’t want to be away from him.”
Yeah, no kidding.
“He won’t return to Lorne without you.” Bonic’s lips flattened.
My heart floated like a helium balloon as I packed a layer of moss over the hide to help it cure. “Well, all that means is we’ll have to visit Lorne when the younglingcomes.”
Bonic’s shoulders relaxed, and the corner of his mouth tilted slightly. I’d said the right thing. With a quick movement, I rolled the treated linobee and placed it in my backpack.
The wind gusted, and the air grew heavy and ominous. Slivers of rock pitched and heaved as the ground shook, sending us to our knees. The tether snapped like a live wire. Makir’s in danger. My heart leaped into my throat.
Bonic and I jumped to our feet in a flash. Vibrations rolled under us as we tripped and staggered, bolting toward our buzzing tethers. The quakes matched those from the last time the worm had surfaced. Chest heaving, I ignored the burning stitch in my side. The hot spring entrance was still much too far away. Makir…
“Fuck, they’re underground,” I shouted as chunks of rock snapped off around us and burst through the ground at odd angles below us.
They were in the worst possible place they could be. The tunnel could collapse at any moment. The tether tugged urgently, increasing the pounding of my heart. My lungs stung, searching for more air, and my legs strained as I ran faster than ever before. Idiot, why had I thought we would be safe? My alpha instincts to protect reeled. Once again, I’d failed Makir.
Bonic whipped around the sharp corner as if his life depended on it. I followed, practically on his heels. Linobee pelts smacked against his legs as he jumped the shards strewn across the path.
Pink dust filled my lungs, the displaced earth in the air choking me.
As abruptly as they’d started, the quakes stopped, and the monster grew quiet.
Why? Had it caught its prey?
Panicked, I reached for the tether hard, pouring all my desire and will for Makir to be alive and well into our bond. The message caught and held, and a sense of warmth spread throughout me.
A lifetime later, we arrived at the cave entrance, panting. My heart plummeted. An enormous boulder blocked their exit.
“Blant!”
“Fuck. They’re trapped.” Bent over with my hands on my knees, I sucked in air. Bonic’s tail lashed beside him, and I straightened and laid a hand on his elbow. “We’re getting them out of there.”
His gaze never moved from the boulder, but his chin dipped, and his jaw clenched so tightly a crowbar might not have been able to pry words free.
“We’re coming! Hang on!” I yelled, hoping Makir could hear and praying for his safety.
“We’re all right.” JayJay’s booming voice, scarily muted, carried from inside the cave. The rock rolled slightly, then fell back again.
JayJay must have been trying to push it up and out. From the grassy plateau, the bastard worm shrieked an ear-piercing warning that chilled my bones.
“Follow me. I have an idea.” I tore down the path to the plateau, scanning for the beast, but it must have retreated below ground. It was like déjà vu, only this time Bonic was in step beside me. “There.” I pointed to the mantu rib cage I’d hoped would remain and exhaled a sigh of relief. “We should be able to use those as levers.”
Bonic clasped my shoulder. “Good thinking.”
The unwieldy bones jostled between us over the broken ground as we rushed back toward the entrance. Soon a long, curved bone was wedged under each side of the boulder blocking the entrance. “On the count of three.” I tipped my chin toward Bonic.
