243 Test of Strength (15)

Once Kyro drove to his parents' house, he went inside without bothering to announce his arrival. He wasn't in the mood to waste time on them, or talk with people in general. His mind circled the topic of how Iris could have been marked like that, and came up empty. It shouldn't have been possible, and yet it had happened.

"Kyro!" his mother shouted out when he passed through the patio. She ran to his side, her face twisted with worry. "What happened?"

"Take care of Lucy and Iris for me, I need to return to Dioscuri."

"But wha—"

"Later. I need to think." Like that would help any. "I'll return in the evening. Maybe."

He really didn't know. The call he'd received from Gale had thrown him off-kilter, and then he saw his home raided, his girlfriend not arrested just because she had turned into a fox. It would have been hilarious had it not been his own life.

Outside, he just drove for a time, trying to rearrange his thoughts, but the only thing it brought was a headache. Who could have done it? And for what? A thought that Iris might have been lying to him all along flashed through his mind, but he threw it away as soon as it came.

It was simply impossible. Not once had he caught even a glimpse of her acting out of character. She was always the same, light-hearted and simple, a bit naive, but always good-natured.

[Come to my place.]

Kyro thought to ignore Gale's message, but then he didn't want to go to the company either. As much as it needed his attention, he couldn't concentrate. Whatever he did there today, it would end up only making the situation worse. He had to trust that his employees were working hard and that would be enough.

When he entered the building, Gale met him on the first floor. "Let's go to the gym."

The idea was a good one, and Kyro changed into his sport's clothes from his car. The hour was still sufficiently early that the private gym was empty. They did some basic exercises, then wrapped their hands and went to the punching bags.

Having done it before, the movements were almost mindless. Kyro knew why Gale had brought him here, and he didn't bother to hide. His frustrations landed on the punching bag blow after blow, one punch at a time. From the way he was hitting, it was like the punching bag had done personal harm to him.

Time passed in a blur, and Kyro could not tell if it had been five minutes or five hours since he'd come. Gale tapped him on the shoulder and pointed to the showers. Gale himself was already in fresh clothes, his hair dried.

When Kyro came out, they used the elevator to get to the top floor. "Feeling better?" Gale asked.

Kyro gave him a look. He didn't feel better, not in the least. Just tired. A mixture of high level emotions had been fueling him before, and now there was nothing. He felt like an empty vessel.

"I'd suggest drinking, but it's a bit too early for that. Especially if we're planning to think of a solution."

"Since when is there a time that's too-early-to-drink for you?" Kyro asked while dropping into an armchair. It had been a horrible idea. Exhaustion plus a comfy place to rest wasn't a good combination for anything but falling asleep.

"Since you're involved," Gale answered, and Lily came out with cups of coffee. The little girl put them on the table, smiled shyly at her brother, then scurried out of the room. "Anyway, back to the topic. What are you going to do about Jane?"

Kyro was in the middle of picking his cup when Gale spoke. The name he mentioned was more than familiar, but what did she have to do with his current troubles? "Jane?"

"Who else?" Gale suddenly leaned over the table, looking straight at him. "Wait, you don't actually think it's her."

Why would he think that it was her? "She has no motive. The scene at the gala was already out of character, I can't imagine what had come into her head."

Gale leaned back, a hand over his face. "You're blind, deaf, AND mentally challenged. Did you look at her actions once? She proposed to you, then when you refused, she came to bother your girlfriend. When that didn't work, she tried to embarrass Iris in public, which kind of backfired, but she still bought many posts to portray herself as the rightful party in that exchange."

"But she cares nothing for me…" Kyro could see Gale's point of view, but he knew Jane. She was prideful and cold, focused on her own career, not someone to give into her emotions. Which she didn't even have!

Their fling had lasted for barely a few months and had been mostly one-sided. And only two years short of being a decade ago.

"You're an idiot, I'm glad that we established that first. Now, what do we do about her? Did you know that she had connections in Homeland Security to send them on a wild goose chase?"

It would be a lie to say that he did. Even if Kyro considered the idea that Jane might be the culprit, it didn't explain how she did it. Or why she went that far. Mere police would have been fine if she had just wanted to deal with Iris while he was away.

Gale seemed to be of the same mind. He sipped at his coffee while looking at its contents with a hard expression. "I could quest around and see what comes up. I doubt it's as simple as it looks."

"It looks simple to you?" Kyro asked, lifting his own cup.

The situation was a mess, but he agreed with Gale. There was probably more to it than just someone—possibly Jane—trying to get back at Iris. The powers used were too great for a simple revenge, completely inefficient. It was the same as burning a whole house to get rid of a mouse.

"Possibly." Gale grinned. "You save the company, and I'll see what can be done about your girlfriend's situation. What do you say?"

Kyro grinned as well. "It reeks of our old plans. You know they never worked out?"

"So? We still stole Dioscuri," Gale said with righteousness, his eyes alight with the old flame of interest. There was nothing like a bunch of impossible tasks to bring out his competitive spirit.

-

"What do you mean she wasn't there?" Jane asked over the phone, her expression darkening. "I had people watching near the gates, and she hadn't left all morning."

"Jane, I tell you, back out now while you can. With Homeland involved, it's too dangerous."

The man sounded really worried for her, but Jane knew better. He was simply afraid for his own hide.

Homeland entering the picture was out of Jane's expectations—she hadn't called for the heavy cavalry—but it didn't change her plans. Even if she didn't know how her request through private channels to the police ended up in Homeland's hands, she would go till the end.

Only when the leech was forcefully pulled off Kyro would he regain his mind and see the mistakes he'd been making.