"Ooh, I"m shaking. You going to shoot me out of the sky, lover?"
"Don"t tempt me," was the response. "Five minutes, and I"m starting to count."
"I didn"t know you guys could count," Tyler slurred.
Bryce didn"t bother to respond. He watched the clock beside him, keeping close to his tail. He had spoken to Jack Rose on the phone before he went on shift tonight. In fact, he had insisted on interrupting him. He had told him in no uncertain terms that no one was above the law, not even his own grandson.
Rose had contemplated his words for a second. "I understand," he replied on the phone. "He needs taming.
He"s out of control. I know that the others have let him get away with a few things."
"A few things?" Bryce had countered. "His input file was filled with numerous crimes, including lewd behaviour, illicit drug use, and so many traffic violations, I couldn"t even keep track; none of which he was ever disciplined for."
"You do realise though that he cannot be imprisoned with common criminals. Because of his future obligations, any punishment he would receive would have to remain confidential."
"That does present a problem," Bryce conceded. "So, you want me to get him under control, yet there is to be no consequences for his actions."
"I didn"t say that," Jack Rose replied demurely. "From now on, you will punish him for his crimes, privately.
If you have him in your custody, call me and I will tell you where you can bring him."
"Now I"m a disciplinarian?"
"You are whatever I say you are, Commander Donovan," Jack Rose said stiffly. "My grandson is a priority.
He must a.s.sume his rightful place as head of this corporation one day, and you are going to help me make sure he does that."
Bryce Donovan sighed. What a s.h.i.t a.s.signment this was. He checked his clock again. One minute left. That a.s.shole had no intention on landing her. In fact, he was having one h.e.l.l of a good time.
Luckily, he had managed to force him out of the heavy traffic area. Tyler was now running the machine around in circles over the Ruby Processing Plant.
Bryce broke in on his transmitter again. "Okay, Rose. Time"s up. What"s it going to be?"
"f.u.c.k yourself, sky freak." Tyler laughed.
"Whatever you say," he replied, punching in the code which would release the automatic tow apparatus he had at the back of his vehicle. Doing a one eighty in the night sky, he aimed and then fired the flexible magnet that was attached to a thirty feet line directly at the front of Tyler"s s.p.a.ce mobile.
Bull"s eye!
"HOLY s.h.i.t," Tyler cried out as he saw the vehicle turn itself around at lightning speed in front of him.
"What in h.e.l.l is that guy doing?"
His entire body jerked forward as a loud bang sounded against the front of his vehicle. Suddenly, he felt himself being pulled forward. Out the window, he saw a hand emerge, and then slowly the middle finger shot up in the air.
"s.h.i.t, this guy is insane!" Tyler cried out as the pa.s.senger beside him slumped forward on the seat. He had pa.s.sed out.
Tyler attempted to use his brakes to operate his controls. It was no use. As his machine flew forward at breakneck speed toward a shopping stop landing surface, totally vacated for the night, Tyler clutched the ID in his hand. What in h.e.l.l was he going to do with it? He didn"t want to waste it. It was half full. On impulse, he shoved it down his pants, and quickly did them up.
He leaned back now, his arms folded across his chest, grinning. There was nothing they could do to him anyway. He was Jack Rose"s grandson.
BUSTED
He landed with a thud. "You better not have broken anything, Cop," Tyler complained under his breath as the door of his vehicle was wrenched open.
"Get out," a deep male voice demanded.
Tyler crawled out of the vehicle, running his gaze over a tall, muscular leather clad hunk of man.
The man removed his helmet and thick black hair tumbled down around his shoulders. Tyler ran a hand instinctively over his naked chest. He knew the rouge was smeared all over. "If I knew you looked like that, I might have slowed down," Tyler smirked.
He didn"t smile. Beautiful chocolaty brown eyes were filled with anger. "Do you know how fast you were going?"
"Not as fast as I would have liked," Tyler drawled, glancing over at the pa.s.sed out pa.s.senger in the vehicle.
"Who"s he?" Bryce demanded.
"Never mind him, baby," Tyler replied. "Who are you? I swear I"ve never seen a sky cop who looked this good, and I"ve had most of them. Did my pals set this up?"
Bryce walked over to the pa.s.senger side of the vehicle and pulled open the door. "Hey, buddy," he said, nudging him. "Wake up."
The man moaned and curled up into a tight little ball. "What"s he on?" Bryce asked, looking up at Tyler Rose, who stood shivering in the night air across from him.
"h.e.l.l, I don"t know."
"What"s his name?"
"I don"t know that either," he told him.
"Looks like you don"t know much," he scoffed. The Sky Cop walked back around the car again, his high black boots echoing on the pavement. Switching his phone on, he said, "Smart, this is the Commander; get a patrol vehicle out here to landing pad sixteen, three miles north of the plant. We got a pick up."
"Commander?" Tyler gave him a look. "Woo hoo, and I bet you"re good at it too."
He glanced at him, dialling another number. While he was speaking, he reached into the vehicle and retrieved Tyler"s shirt. He threw it at him. "Put it on," he mouthed.
"First time a man has asked me to put my clothes on," Tyler mumbled, struggling into his top.
He ignored him. He"d wait until they picked up Mr. Strange d.i.c.k and then he"d take Tyler to the special facility that awaited him.
He closed his phone just in time to hear Tyler say, "You know, you can"t arrest me," he told him, letting his gaze linger on the curve of his a.s.s.
"Oh yea," Bryce came closer to him, glaring down at him, "and why"s that?"
Tyler backed up a little. "Well, because... because I"m... do you know who I am?" Tyler placed a hand on his hips.
"Yea, I know who you are, you"re a full of yourself little rich boy who thinks you"re going to get into my pants before the night"s through."
Tyler glared at him. "You"ll pay for that remark. My grandfather will drum you off the force. You"ll be picking berries in the field, my friend."
Bryce laughed. "Really, well, isn"t it a shame you won"t be around to see me, because you"re under arrest."
Roughly he grabbed him and pulled him around, slapping the cuffs over his wrists.
"Hey," Tyler protested, "I know my rights."
"You have no rights at all, so I"m not going to waste my breath reading them to you. You"ve been getting away with far too much, for far too long. That"s all over now."
He turned him around.
Tyler struggled out of his grasp, his face flushed. "What am I accused of?"
"You want a list?"
"Yea, I want a list," he mocked.
"Well, failure to yield to a direct order from a peace officer for one, recklessly endangering sky traffic for another," he counted on his fingers. "And," his gaze washed down over his chest to the definite bulge in his pants, "transporting an illegal substance in your pants. Need I go on?" He raised an eyebrow.
Tyler flushed. "I have no illegal substance in my pants. I..."
Bryce grabbed him by the arm and undid the top of his pants with his other hand. Scooping his hand down inside, he withdrew the slender vile of ID. When he did, his fingers brushed the top of his naked s.e.x, sending shivers through his body. "It"s a shame," he studied the vile, "and all the while I thought you were happy to see me."
Tyler gave him a cold smile.
Overhead, a Sky Patrol vehicle hovered, preparing to land. When it did, two female sky cops emerged, dressed in similar leather outfits. One of them walked over to the Commander and smiled. "We came as soon as we could, Sir."
"I"m sure you did," Bryce replied dryly. Impound the vehicle and take Mr. No-Name here to a holding cell.
I"ll deal with Mr. Rose."
The faces of the two officers registered surprise as they glanced at Tyler, but they didn"t say anything.
Grabbing Tyler"s arm, Bryce practically dragged him over to the pa.s.senger side of his vehicle. He clipped him into the seat with a special security belt that could only be unlocked with a computer code.
Tyler knew what these were. He had had friends who had been arrested. He couldn"t believe this. He couldn"t believe that this guy had the b.a.l.l.s to arrest Jack Rose"s grandson.
"I demand to know where you"re taking me," he sputtered as Bryce watched the other sky mobile take flight, dragging Rose"s machine with it.
"What?" he demanded, crawling in beside him and replacing his helmet.
"You heard me. And by the way, what is your name? I"m going to need it when I fry your a.s.s," Tyler threw at him.
"Ouch, sounds painful," he muttered, putting the craft into flight mode and taking off into the sky. "My name"s Donovan, Bryce Donovan. Anything else you want to know?" He gave him a lazy look.
"Yes, one thing. Where are you taking me and where are you taking my vehicle? If there is one scratch on her, I"ll..."
"I believe that"s two questions, Mr. Rose."
"Technicality," Tyler growled.
"Your vehicle will be impounded until I decide to release it. And as for you, well you are going to a very special place," he said. "You"ll love it."
Tyler sucked in some breath. "You"re in deep s.h.i.t. I think I"ve got whiplash or something."
Donovan ignored that comment completely, then glancing at him, he asked, "And by the way, what"s with all the lipstick on your chest?"
"It"s not lipstick, it"s rouge and it"s all the rage," Tyler threw at him.
"Rouge, all over your chest?"
"It"s supposed to go on your nipples, not your chest. It got...displaced. And if you even belonged to this century, you"d know that already."
He laughed, a deep attractive very male laugh. "That in itself should const.i.tute a crime," he mumbled.
Tyler fell quiet.
"And so, does it work?" he mused.
"Does what work?" Tyler sighed.
"Rouging your nipples?"
"Never mind," Tyler snapped.
He shrugged his broad leather clad shoulders.
"I want to call my grandfather."
"To tell him what, that you were caught transporting illegal drugs in your pants?" he asked, holding up the half filed silver cylinder for his inspection.
Tyler set his face into a scowl and looked away. After a few minutes, it dawned on him that they were flying towards the mansion. "Hey, I knew this was bulls.h.i.t. You"re taking me home, aren"t you?"
"Actually, I"m taking you to jail but you can call it what you want," he muttered.
He narrowed his eyes, watching as the Sky Commander lowered his craft unto the roof of his house.
He was surprised to see his grandfather standing there. The Commander got out and went over to talk to him.