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KYRA

R elief washed over Kyra when she saw Rana and Soraya standing with Yamanu, Yasmin, and her children spilling out from another van accompanied by Rishba and Asuka.

"We made it." She put a hand on Max's arm. "We actually made it."

"Don't celebrate yet," Max cautioned. "Not until we're airborne."

She frowned. "Can they attack us in the air? Do they have the capability to do that?"

"They can do anything." He gave her a sad smile. "With their mind control ability, they can infiltrate Air Force command and have us shot down. But luckily for us, it will take them too long to get to the Air Force command. Thralling has to be done face to face, not on the phone, and not even through a video call. By the time they locate the appropriate person to do their bidding, we will be long out of Iranian airspace."

"Then we should hurry up and get airborne." Especially since they were the most vulnerable here, exposed on the tarmac.

As soon as Max parked the van next to the others, Kyra got out and rushed Parisa and the boys toward the waiting planes.

The reunion between her sisters was swift but emotional, tears and embraces exchanged in a flurry before Yamanu urged them toward the aircraft.

Max, Kyra, and her family headed toward the larger plane while the rest of their team headed toward Eric's smaller jet.

The children were ushered up the stairs first, followed by their mothers.

Kyra waited her turn with Max, but as she started climbing the stairs behind Rana, she caught a flash of movement from the corner of her eye—a vehicle approaching from the direction of the main terminal, moving faster than should be allowed in an airport.

"Incoming," she alerted Max, her hand going to her weapon.

"I count four occupants," he said, reaching for his weapons as well.

"Doomers?" Kyra asked.

"I can't tell from this distance."

"Doesn't matter," Max said. "We can't let them delay our departure."

Kyra's pendant suddenly flared hot against her skin—a warning that came too late to be useful. The approaching vehicle accelerated, clearly intending to intercept them before they could board.

"Go," Max told her. "Get on the plane with your sisters. We'll handle this."

"Max—"

"Go," he repeated, softer this time. "We've got it."

Kyra hesitated only a moment longer before nodding and going up the aircraft stairs. She trusted Max and the others to handle the threat just as they had done with all the others.

Before entering the cabin, she cast one last look at the tarmac, where Max, Yamanu, and the Kra-ell had spread out in a defensive formation. They looked formidable, otherworldly, and beautiful in their deadly focus.

Hopefully, the car contained only humans, and Yamanu could get rid of them with a simple thrall.

"Is everything alright?" Soraya asked as Kyra entered.

"It's probably just airport security." Kyra moved to a window where she could observe the confrontation.

The engines were already revving up, but the cabin door was still open, so Kyra hoped they wouldn't take off without Max.

Through the window, she could see Max and the others confronting the occupants of the vehicle, which had stopped several yards away.

She couldn't hear what was being said, but the body language of the men emerging from the car was threatening. Then, suddenly, they relaxed, nodded in unison, and returned to their car.

It was the effect of Yamanu's thralling, which meant they were humans, not Doomers.

A moment later, Max entered the cabin and closed the door behind him. The plane began to taxi immediately.

"Everyone secure?" he asked.

When a chorus of voices answered in the affirmative, he smiled. " Bon voyage , everyone." He sat next to Kyra.

"Who were they?" she asked.

"Airport security. Something about lack of proper documentation. Yamanu convinced them they'd made a mistake."

She chuckled, more in relief than amusement. "I'm grateful for his particular brand of persuasion. He could be a world leader if he chose to be."

Max snorted. "When you get to know him better, you'd realize that he's the last person who would want such a position or be any good at it. Perhaps that's the reason the Fates bestowed such incredible power upon him. They knew he wouldn't abuse it."

"I wish those Fates of yours would be that discriminating with everyone they allow into a position of power."

Max nodded sagely. "True. Personally, I don't think that the Fates are all-powerful. They are limited in what they are allowed to do, and there are other forces in the universe that don't share their good intentions. Given all that's been going on in the world in the past two decades or so, I'd say that the forces of evil are rising rapidly, but I don't want to be a pessimist. Not today." He looked back to where her family was sitting. "Today, the forces of good won. We should celebrate the victory."

"Definitely." She took his hand and squeezed it. "Thank you for saving my family."

He leaned over and kissed her cheek. "You would have done the same for mine."