“Mayday,” the human pilot yelled in the headset. “This is Reservation Blade One. We’re under attack from armed fire coming from the woods and have taken damage.”

Shock reverberated through Tiger. He wasn’t even sure what that meant. Something else hit the helicopter and the glass spider-webbed on the door across from him. He realized someone had fired some type of weapon and struck them again. The alarm from the front grew louder and the pilot shouted out coordinates and veered so hard to the right that Tiger would have been thrown out of his seat if not for his belt.

“We’re going down,” the pilot shouted. “They hit a fuel line and we’re losing pressure. Mayday, I repeat, mayday. This is Reservation Blade One. We’re under fire from the ground and we’ve suffered multiple hits.”

Tiger’s gaze met Zest’s, saw the other Species’ fear, and knew his own expression must mirror it. He glanced at the two other males. Both stared at him for guidance until the power cut out and everything went dark.

“Brace for impact,” the pilot yelled at them. “We’re going down.”

The helicopter tilted dangerously to one side. The feeling made Tiger’s stomach protest and the engines that were usually so loud just cut out. No one yelled. It was a sick feeling as they dropped in the eerie silence.

Seconds later they hit something hard, stunning Tiger since he had expected to fall for a while. Glass and metal took the brunt of the impact with the treetops. The helicopter seemed to roll over before it slammed with bone-jarring force into the ground.

Pain gripped Tiger around his middle where the belt held him in place. His leg and arm ached badly. Lights flickered inside the damaged interior and he saw movement from the bench across from him. Something wet blinded him and he tried to wipe his eyes. One arm refused to move and dizziness gripped him.

“I smell gas,” a deep voice growled. “Are you alive?”

He knew that voice but his brain couldn’t identify it. He hurt and breathing caused stabbing pains in his chest. The stench of blood and gas did seep into his fogged senses. A hand touched his throat.

“Tiger?”

He fought to open his eyes and when he did, he could barely make out Zest’s face. The male was bleeding from his nose and had a cut along his forehead. Tiger tried to speak but nothing came out.

“I’ve got you, Tiger,” Zest growled. “The helicopter is leaking gas. We need to get you out of here. I’m sorry. This is going to hurt.”

The pressure around his waist suddenly disappeared and hands caught him. He snarled from the pain and nearly blacked out. He knew he was being lifted and another pair of hands gripped him under his arms. His leg bumped something and he cried out. It felt as if that leg had just been torn away from his body.

* * * * *

Tiger woke to the sound of moaning. His eyes opened and flames blinded him. He blinked a few times to try to clear his vision but the fire was too bright. He thought he could make out the outline of the destroyed helicopter on its side somewhere in the high flames.

A big male dragged someone away from the fire and he recognized Zest’s back. He brought whoever he pulled closer and Tiger knew that was the person making those horrible sounds.

It was the human pilot. The injured male had some burns on the arm he waved in the air when Zest backed away after releasing him. His friend dropped to his knees, blood staining his side and a howl tore from his open mouth.

* * * * *

Tiger woke again when someone touched his face. He peered into a pair of blue eyes. Zest looked like hell with his bloodied face and his matted dark hair with streaks of blood.

“Hang on, Tiger. We got you out before the helicopter caught fire but the pilot wasn’t so lucky. He’s got some severe burns.” Zest put his hand over Tiger’s forehead, holding it tightly. “You have broken bones. We crashed close to Reservation. Help is coming.” He turned his head. “Ascend?”

“They are close,” the other male answered. A howl came from him and a distant one answered in seconds. “Hear them? They aren’t that far.”

Zest leaned in. “Did you hear? They will be here soon. Medical will be on alert and ready for you. Don’t give up. Fight to breathe, Tiger. Do not die on me.”

Tiger closed his eyes, too dizzy and weak to try to focus his failing sight anymore. He wouldn’t be climbing into Zandy’s bed tonight. He’d probably never see her again. Agony stabbed at him with every breath and his head felt as if it were in pieces. A pair of beautiful green eyes filled his thoughts and the memory of her face was all that kept him fighting to live.

He never should have gotten involved with Zandy Gordon. She’d grieve his loss and he’d exposed her to the kind of hatred that most likely had killed him. The helicopter had been shot down. They’d been approaching Reservation when the attack happened. It couldn’t have been unintentional.

He wouldn’t be around to protect Zandy anymore. She’d be defenseless against the humans who hated Species and they’d come after her for working for the NSO. It would only make her a bigger target if anyone found out she’d shared sex with him. He wanted to roar in rage at the thought of anyone hurting her.

Regret filled him. He’d been selfish to be with her and should have thought of her safety first. Fury had taken Ellie as a mate and humans had tried to shoot her. Slade and Trisha had nearly been killed by hunters who’d stalked them after striking the vehicle they’d been traveling in. Valiant’s Tammy had been kidnapped just for being his mate. Justice couldn’t fall in love without it causing a bombing at the gates of Homeland from the idiots who believed Species and humans shouldn’t form relationships.

Tiger admitted that was real reason he’d been so reluctant to ever consider taking a human mate. He’d watched all his friends suffer the terror of having the females they fell in love with tormented in some way. Being with a Species had caused them grief. Guilt ate at him, knowing a stronger male would have thought of that before it was too late. He’d been selfish to expose Zandy to danger.

“Tiger?” Zest kept hold of him. “I hear engines. They are so close. Hold on, my friend.”

His mouth parted. He wanted Zest to swear to guard Zandy with his life. The male was his friend and would do it. A soft groan came out but no words. He tried to focus harder but he was slipping away. The pain intensified and everything faded into blackness.

* * * * *

Zandy stared at her cell phone. Tiger hadn’t called and it had been over an hour since he said he would. She lifted her gaze to the clock with a loud sigh. It was almost ten thirty. She had to work in the morning, needed sleep, and tried not to feel hurt that he must have forgotten about her.

She stood and carried her glass to the kitchen. A string of excuses formed in her mind. He could have been stuck in a meeting or was so exhausted he’d fallen asleep. Whatever the reason, she missed hearing his voice. She longed to talk to him but had no idea how to contact him. She scooped up her cell phone and turned off the lights as she headed to bed.

It was empty and cold without Tiger’s big body and his heated skin. She tossed and turned, thinking maybe he’d forgotten her phone number. He could have misplaced the number. Maybe the switchboard had been too busy to connect his call.

“Fuck,” she sighed. He hadn’t called. It wasn’t the end of the world. He had a life and more important things to do than tell her good night. An emergency had happened at Homeland and he should be focused on that.

She tried to drift to sleep. She’d see him at some point tomorrow, hopefully. They’d have dinner at his house. She wanted to tell him how she really felt. He might dump her when she admitted that she was falling in love but at least they wouldn’t be pretending their relationship was just sex anymore.