The material must be alien. She was in love with it. Could she get some to do a line of clothes? The shirt seemed plain until she put it on. It molded to her frame. It was off the shoulder with an intricate pattern she had never seen before. Goals! It made her want to take her designs a step or two further.
She wasn’t wearing a bra, and it supported her chest like she didn’t have one. The pants flattered her ass and legs. This may be what she wore until she died it was just that good. There was a pair of boots that she couldn’t wear, and she longed to. They came up to her knees with four-inch heels. She put them on just because. They molded to her feet and supported her like they were made for her. When she stood, there was no strain in her back, no confusion in her feet. There was a wide gold belt lying on the bed. She put it on. When she did a weapon appeared on it.
Jabari walked into the room. “Defender.”
She looked into the mirror. For the first time in her life. The woman she knew she was on the inside looked back at her from the mirror. She walked over to him and wrapped her arms around him. He wanted to show her who he saw and managed it. He saw her and yeah; she loved him. Now if she could only find the courage to tell him.
“Let’s go; everyone is waiting for us.”
She frowned but took his hand. He led her to the elevator getting off in the kitchen. They walked out the side door, and around front where the hover was waiting. It was empty when she got on.
“I don’t like the idea of bringing Fie with us, but I’d rather have him than leave him even with Tee to help protect him.”
She shifted him in her arms. He jumped on her when she walked out the door, and she didn’t have the heart to tell him to stay behind.
“Why?”
“He’s young to be away from his planet. They could be searching for him.”
“I don’t want him hurt.”
“He won’t be. Most Merling’s can’t survive this young on their own. When I questioned him all he said was 'he made sure I’ll be okay.' I have no idea who he is. I don’t think Fie knows, but he trusts this person completely.”
She nodded. Her life was no longer the easy journey, she once thought it would be. Now it was all about taking it one day at a time.
“What about when I’m no longer here?”
Jabari inhaled sharply. She ached for him, but she wouldn’t pretend they weren’t approaching the point of no return. Speaking of.
“Where are we going?”
“To the ship.”
They had passed the cloud layer where it always seemed to be daylight and were approaching the heavens.
“Ship?”
“Everyone else used a transfer system. I didn’t want to take the chance with you because of your condition. I talked to Mekhi about it, and he agreed. It would be safer to bring you on board using the hover. The planet we are going to doesn’t use a transfer system. You can only get on and off with a ship.”
She was nodding her head like she understood what his words meant. They were in space, and she couldn’t talk for fear a scream might come out. She didn’t scare easily she assured herself, but she was in space. Somewhere only astronauts went. Her eyes were wide, and her hand stretched out wanting to touch the screen in front of her.
He retracted the membrane covering the front of the hover allowing her to see out the window. She fumbled with the belts holding her until she was free. Walking to the window was frightening. Any minute she expected to float away or be thrown against something. Jabari never stopped her.
The first look at his spacecraft took her breath away.
“That’s a spaceship.” The words tumbled over each other coming out.
“Isn’t she beautiful?”
“Yes.” It floated there in a magnificence she could barely understand. “We are getting on that?”
“We are.”
“What’s it called?”
“The Brie.”
She nodded. It was a wonderful name for a beautiful ship. The side opened, and her heart skipped a beat. How could she hate a life that showed her such wonders?
He got her back in her seat before he sat and brought them in. She looked around. They were in a hangar. There were other hovers waiting for someone to use them.
“Is this how you got to earth?”
“This and some twist of time and physics I can’t explain.”
She opened her mouth in a silent O and allowed him to lead her out of the hangar into a corridor.
“Where are we going?”
“To my cabin. The trip will take a couple of hours, and you need your sleep.”
“I’m awake. I want to explore.”
“Can you explore on our way back? You woke up in the middle of the night to assassins trying to kill you.”
I can sleep when I’m dead. She bit back the words with the realization that her strong male needed to take care of her. “Promise?”
“Promise.”
Then she’d get some sleep because he was right. She was tired and weak.
*~*~*~*
The doors slid open before they walked onto the bridge. In front of her was a large view screen featuring a red planet they were approaching.
“Brandi, how did you get a purple outfit? Mekhi, there’s colors?” The indignation in her voice made Brandi cover her mouth.
“Quinn.”
“Don’t Quinn me.”
Mekhi gave Jabari a look that said they would have words later.
“There are colors Quinn. You don’t have to wear black because we do.” Jabari smiled big at her before giving Mekhi a challenging look.
“You don’t want to draw attention to yourself. Remember, assassins, mercenaries.”
She nodded her head. “I still want a color.”
“Damn straight you do.” Brandi moved closer to her. "Female solidarity.” They looked at each other and grinned. The males groaned.
“See what you started.” Phoenix was laughing so hard they barely understood the words.
“Where are we?”
“Ure, it’s a prison planet.” Jabari said.
“What?”
“They accept prisoners, that have been sentenced to either death or life in prison.”
“You're bringing Gerald here?”
“And everyone who helped him.”
She nodded and turned back to the screen. This was wrong, but was it? On Earth, all he may get was a smack on the hand or even a few years. That wasn’t long enough. Here he’d never be free.
“What if this is wrong?”
“I can live with it. But I knew you couldn’t. Your friend's career is not the first one he ruined. This wasn’t his first time hiring professionals to take care of his dirty work. If we leave him on Earth, he will target someone else.”
He was right, and she knew it. However, playing judge and jury didn’t sit right with her.
“Gerald would have had me killed.” Jabari didn’t respond, and she didn’t expect him to. Gerald was still alive because she didn’t want him dead. She wanted him in jail. This was her wish, and she wasn’t going to back out. He would pay for his crimes, but he would live to see another day.
“Thank you.” It was low, but he still heard her. He kissed her throat as they established orbit around the planet.
There was a low chime in the room.
“Incoming call from the planet.”
“Put it on screen,” Slade said.
The male on the screen tended towards a deep red skin color. He was wearing an elaborate hat with several points. She opened her mouth to tell him she liked his hat, but the subtle shift of Jabari’s head told her to stay quiet.
“I’ve come with several prisoners,” Slade said.
“What have they done?”
“They conspired to kill my mate.” Jabari moved to the center of the screen.
“Where is your mate?”
She moved to Jabari’s side.
“Defender.” He took a step back and bowed. “They have sealed
their fate, and we will receive them. When you land on the planet ask for Nagear.” The transmission was cut.
“Nagear?”
“The one we spoke to. They do not give a name unless they agree to the transfer of the prisoner.”
She nodded and took his hand. He led her off the bridge and to the brig. They had a full house, but Gerald was in a cell alone.
“Where are we?”
“You’re at a prison planet named Ure.”
“You can’t do that.” The male who tried to kill her in the mall screamed. “This is a life sentence.”
Jabari looked at him before turning back to Gerald. “The only way on or off this planet is a ship. When you are processed, they will shoot a chemical in your arm that will bind with your blood. If you are on the planet, it is non-lethal. If you leave, it will blow you to shreds.”
“You can’t do this to me. Brandi, have a heart. I have a life and future.”
“What about my life, my future?”
“You’re dying, anyway.”
“And that’s why you’ll have all the time you need to rethink your answer. By the way, thanks. I almost thought I was doing the wrong thing.”
Jabari stood in the door keeping it open, so she could walk through. He led her back to the hangar.
“What about the others?”
“They’ll use the bigger craft after we leave the ship. I don’t want you in the same hover as the prisoners.”
It made sense. Her hands were shaking. She placed them under her thighs and smiled at Jabari. She was getting weaker as if it was a race to see who could get to the finish line first and her body was in high gear. His hand reached out to stroke her.
“I know.” His voice was low. The ache in her heart hurt more. She wasn’t hiding anything from him.
She placed her hand on top of his. “If I could change my fate.”
How many times had she fallen asleep in the last few days praying for a different ending, for more time with him? Sometimes she dreamed of having his child. In her perfect world that would happen. In this world, she would take what she could get.
He touched a button and asked for permission to land on the planet which was granted. He landed in what looked like a parking lot for hovers. The building they were going to wasn’t far away.
The planet was as red on the ground as it was from space. It felt like a desert, but it had more trees than she had ever seen in one. They were tall and thick; the leaves were long and waxy. The bark was black against an ocean of red.
“Is the whole planet hot like this?”
“Yes, this is what they call mild weather. Go to the south of the planet, and you can’t come out until the sun goes down.” She looked where he was pointing. There were two suns in the sky. No wonder it was so hot.
Nagear was waiting for them outside a large building.
“Defender,” he bowed. “It is a pleasure to meet you.”
She placed her fist over her heart and then extended it with a slight tilt of her head. “The pleasure is all mine.”
“This is my first time coming to your planet; it's beautiful.” And it was, red sand and all.
The door to the building opened. Slade walked out first. The alien prisoners were behind him. Their hands and feet were chained. Behind them was Gerald, who wasn’t chained. The rest of the brothers followed them.
“I’m not guilty!” Gerald screamed. “You can’t keep me here.” He started running. No one stopped him.
She wanted to protest, but everyone, including the alien prisoners watched him like he was putting on a show. The sand in front of him moved. Her hand went to her chest when a large dark figure rose. Scorpion? Hell worm?
She backed up into Jabari’s chest. Gerald stepped backward too fast and fell.
“Did I forget to mention that Ure was named after the fierce predator that defends it? If you manage to escape, before you can make it to a ship, you’ll be eaten alive.”
Jabari looked down at Brandi. “Now we can leave.”
A smile lingered on her face. Justice was served.
Chapter Nineteen
“Do you know what I was thinking?” Quinn said.
Brandi and Quinn were sitting downstairs in the living room. The television was on, but they were ignoring it.
“What?”
“We should get the guys to take us out. I still haven’t worn the dress you made me. We could dress up and go to a nice restaurant.” A smile curved her lips as she thought about it. “Don’t forget the fair is in town. It’s set up in the large parking lot at the college.”
“I like both idea’s, but I’ve never been to the fair.”
“Why not?”
“I wasn’t allowed to go growing up. Then I got accepted to a college out of state. When I finally came back here, all I could think of was designing clothes and taking care of myself.”
“It’s settled we have to go to the fair.”
She spent the last four days taking it easy. The simple act of moving made her ache, but she was tired of sitting around. The thought of the Ferris Wheel made her smile and her stomach drop in anticipation. Funny since she hated heights.
“The fair it is.”
“Great, I already asked Mekhi. I hoped you would say yes.”
“I’ll ask Jabari when he gets back.” The guys had gone out. He said they needed to spend time as brothers, and she didn’t tell him she knew it was more than that. He was looking for the other person trying to kill her. She hoped it was just one person, but none of them knew.
Fie jumped on her lap and purred before he nuzzled her.
“I know; I'm taking it easy.”
“I wish I could talk to Tee like that. I can through my link with Mekhi. I get pictures from her. They are really clear when she wants food. One day, I saw a picture of a twenty-pound steak in my head. She believes that she should eat what Mekhi eats. I tried to interest her in salads, but she growled at me.”
Brandi clutched her side while she laughed. Tee decided to let her pet her. Now they were becoming friends. Fie and Tee were always together running around and getting into trouble.
“Fie gives me words. It’s strange but nice. I love how he protects me, and then he cuddles next to me and calls me mama.” She sniffed and tried not to act like he didn’t own her heart.
“What are the two prettiest females on the planet up to?” Jabari walked in followed by Mekhi.
“Just the planet?”
“If I tell you I’ve never seen a female as beautiful; your head will get big.” Jabari sat on the couch next to her. He pulled her into his lap giving her a hello kiss.
“Just remember it’s all about me.”
“I will. What are you doing out of bed?”
“I’m tired of sleeping. I want to do something.”
“Like?”
“The fair is back. I always intended to go but never had the time. I want to go now.”
“It’s on your bucket list?”
“Piper and I were going to go this year until she had to go out of town. Have you tried her? She sent me another text that didn’t make sense.”
“I haven’t heard from her, but I was planning on giving her a call.”
She nodded her head on his chest. “If you hear from her let me know.”
“About this fair.”
“I need to take a quick shower and change my clothes. Quinn and Mekhi are coming with us.”
He looked up to find Slade looking at him.
“Nope, we’re all going to be there.”
“I can’t wait.” He stood and took her upstairs to get ready.
*~*~*~*
“What is this?”
“It’s a funnel cake supreme, only the best dessert on the face of the planet.”
She took a bite of the funnel cake, fresh strawberries, and vanilla ice cream. Her eyes rolled backward, and a moan came from her lips.
“That looks good.” His voice was raw with desire.
“You need
to take a bite.” She took another bite, and he kissed her. The sweetness of the cake and the ice cream exploding in his mouth. The subtle flavor of fresh fruit danced over his tongue. It all mixed with a taste that was pure Brandi. He groaned and stopped short of begging for another taste.
She pulled her plate to her chest. “All mine,” she teased.
He stalked her forcing her backward until her knees hit the table. He set the plate down and kept coming until her upper body was laid across the table, and her legs dangled. He bent over her, his eyes blazing.
“Mine.” It came out with a roughness that touched her core making her want to buck up, so she could rub against him.
He took her mouth hard and fast. Her belly spasmed as her hands clutched his arms holding on. He was the stormy sea, and she was the boat that was being tossed against the waves. He pressed his hard cock against her, and she was almost lost. There was no way she could be saved. She would drown in everything that he was offering.
“Oh my god stop that.” An older woman began beating him across the back. “You hippy freaks should be ashamed of doing something like that in public.”
She felt her cheeks flame. “We were just kissing.”
“You call that kissing? He was trying to eat your face. If my poor departed Jed was here, he would school you on kissing.”
“Yes, ma’am. I’m sure you're right.” She sat up and tried to grab Jabari’s hand before the darkness in his eyes made it to his lips.
“Hey, that was hot. Do you need a third? She looks like way too much woman for you to handle on your own.” The sincere eyes of a guy in his twenties looked at her eating her up.
“We’re into couples, and you two are hot.”
Her mouth dropped open. “We um thank you. All of you but we have to go.”
He grabbed the plate and let her lead him away from the tables.
“We got propositioned.” Her eyes were bright, and she couldn’t keep the grin off her face. “That never happened before. Oh, and it seems I’m too much woman for you.”
He swatted at her behind and made her sit down.
“Let’s finish your dessert.”
“Where’s everyone at?”
“We’re going to meet them at the flying carpet.”
Jabari Page 11