Fox Life

Tyler's words were like knife stabs into Iris' heart. She realized that he just wanted to hit her where it hurts, but that didn't change the reality that it was her weak spot. There was only one person in the world that she had ever felt close to before meeting Kyro, and she…     

A wall built itself in Iris' mind, preventing her from finishing that thought. She wanted, needed to, but she couldn't. If it showed up to be true, then all her life would've been a lie.     

"So you're still lying?" she asked, forcing out a smile that felt pathetic even to her. "Is telling the truth really such an impossible task for you?"     

"You want truth?" Tyler looked at her with scorn. "You're a hybrid that isn't even human. And mad. Your whole lineage is of people cursed to die young. The world just hates you for being unnatural and sets you up to fail every single time you think you've won."     

His words had the ring of prophecy to them, but Iris refused to accept them. If she was really cursed to fail, then why had she met Kyro? It was her victory at that time, and she would take one now as well.     

"Cut your blabber. You're no different from me."     

For the first time, Iris saw her words deal damage. Tyler flinched as if she had physically hit him. "I'm not," he hissed at her. "I might have been born like this, but I know what it means. I understand my responsibility! If you were smart, you would have become my partner so we could give birth to talented children that would be healthy AND smart."     

"Excuse me?" Iris' jaw dropped. Was that why he had acted kind to her at the start?     

Before she could curse him though, she saw him looking to the side. Mila was standing there among the bodyguards. 'Didn't Kyro say she was going to stay behind with Sophie?' Then her eyes landed on Sophie. Hadn't that woman come with them from the start…     

"Mila, come here," Tyler ordered in a freezing voice. "You shouldn't associate with dead people like her."     

Iris readied herself to catch the girl, but Mila didn't try to run away. She watched her brother, then lowered her eyes.     

"Mila!" Tyler hollered and took a step forward.     

His advance was soon halted though by Sophie also moving forward and cracking her knuckles, but Mila still began to shiver. Her face went pale and she took a couple faltering steps back, then looked around in a panic.     

The person closest to her that she knew was Kyro, and she hid behind his long legs while holding onto his trousers. When Tyler shouted at her once more, she shook her head and made sure that even less of her could be seen.     

"Last warning Mila! If you act wilful, you're gonna stay twice as long in the lab! I will—"     

"Enough!" Iris couldn't just let him threaten the girl without doing anything. Didn't he have any self-respect? He was promising harm to a thee year old child! "Where are you all planning to go?"     

Tyler sneered at her, sent daggers Kyro's way, and glared at Mila, then turned around and returned to his room. "Scram before I call the police."     

Iris blinked a couple extra times at his threat. It sounded… so normal in comparison to everything that had happened that it threw her off balance. They were still afraid of the police… right?     

She had little understanding of what exactly was going on and how Gale had pulled out a group of armed men out of nowhere, but it couldn't be that he was above the law. At least she hoped that was the truth. Otherwise… he'd be one seriously scary man.     

"I think we've learned enough," Kyro said while tapping her on the back.     

Realizing that it had really ended, Iris nodded. When they turned around to leave, Kyro picked up the trembling girl still holding onto his trousers. She threw her hands around his neck and sniffled.     

They left the building in silence. In the car, Iris looked back at the house. "Are we just going to let them go like that?"     

"What do you want us to do to them?" Kyro asked with a raised eyebrow. He gave her a half smile then. "They'll be followed to see where they move and who they get in contact with."     

That sounded like a good idea, and Iris relaxed in her seat, looking away. A heavy weight rested on her mind, but she refused to acknowledge it. If she did, she knew she was going to break down right there and then.     

A motion in her peripheral vision caught her attention, and she turned back to Kyro. He was trying to untangle the little girl from himself and put her on the seat, but she resisted his best efforts. Her tiny hands were like steel chains that refused to unwound themselves from his neck.     

"Mila…" Iris said with a laugh and tried to help Kyro, but her efforts were just as useless. The girl held onto Kyro for dear life and no words nor actions could make her let go.     

Frustration surfaced on Kyro's face, but when the girl raised her big-eyed teary face at him, he sighed and gave up. He put his hands around her so she was more comfortable and didn't have to strain herself.     

A thought struck Iris, and she pulled out her phone. The car was a little dark, but not enough for the people in the photo she took to come out blurry.     

"What are you doing?" Kyro asked her with narrowed eyes.     

Iris grinned at him. "Don't you think you two look cute?" She then leaned over and showed him the photo she had taken. In it, Kyro was holding a little girl and was looking down at her with a gentle expression. He was so concentrated on making her comfortable that it seemed like it was the only thing that mattered to him.     

For a moment, Kyro just looked at it, then his lips pulled into a mischievous smile. "Stay like this. I've got an idea." He pulled out his own phone and changed its camera's direction for a selfie mode.     

"Wha—"     

"Just put your phone away, lean over, and smile at the camera."     

There was so much excitement in Kyro's tone that Iris didn't dare to refuse. She did as told and leaned against his shoulder, her head next to the little girl who chose that moment to look around.     

Kyro snapped the photo and all of them looked at it. A family of three looked back at them, the two young parents smiling while their little daughter's face was scrunched up a little in puzzlement.     

"Perfect," Kyro said, his grin going wider, and he clicked to send the picture.     

"What are you doing!" Iris tried to snatch his phone away, but it was already too late. "Who did you send it to?" she demanded.     

"Oh, no one important. Just my parents."