Slade

by Simpson, Serena

  “Remember a mall is a dangerous place,” Brandi said with a straight face.

  The others laughed. “You can’t be hard on Jabari someone tried to kill you at the mall.”

  “OMG! Are you serious?”

  “Oh hell yeah, let me tell you.” They spent the rest of the drive telling their worst moments at the mall.

  “But you still come back?”

  “You haven’t seen anything until a pissed off created, especially if he’s your mate, strides through the mall with hell on his face for the enemy,” Brandi told her.

  “Then there is the kiss,” Serenity told her. “It melts your defenses and leaves you in a puddle of goo. Your toes are curled; your pussy is begging ‘do me’ in front of this mob.”

  They all sighed slamming the doors behind them as they got out. “Oops,” Piper said. “We may have gotten a little carried away.”

  “Are we staying together or breaking up?” Rylee asked. After they stopped laughing they all said together.

  “Girl I saw that bag; I know there was nothing in it. Let’s start with the basics,” Brandi told her.

  “Lingerie,” Quinn said.

  Mila was caught up in the force of five independent women who thought she was one of them. Normally, she might have been standoffish. But she wanted this, there was that feeling that she belonged here.

  “You know Mila there is only one thing wrong with you.”

  She tried to stop as Quinn was dragging her through the mall. “What?”

  “You don’t have a cat.”

  She laughed if that was the only thing wrong with her; she'd take it. “I can live without one, besides I have a hellhound.”

  “And I thought a cat who turned into an alien cat, then turned into a teen was scary.”

  “If it makes you feel any better; he's an alien hellhound.”

  Piper made a grumpy sound. “Nope, not feeling better.”

  “What size bra do you wear?” Serenity asked her. They were all business after that.

  Mila was standing in the dressing room wearing a black silk bra. Who wore things like this, she grumbled? There was no way she was buying this. All she needed on to defeat Trogon was simple cotton. Her mouth opened tongue coming out. She quickly scrubbed it with the heel of her hand. Thinking that name when she was half naked almost made her puke.

  Then green eyes with silver specks looked back at her. She smiled wishing she could see him. Would he like her black bra? It was simple with a pink bow in the middle. She loved the way it cupped her breasts. She wasn’t going to win any awards on how big they were, but they were more than a handful and that was enough right?

  Thoughts of his hand lifting her breast holding it snugly made her tongue dip out to moisten her lips. Would the black bra that now looked seductive against her brown skin turn him on? Would this little bow that said innocent and chaste make him hard?

  She held up the matching panties. Who in their right mind came up with this idea? You should be able to slip your legs in and pull them up, end of story. No, you have to spread your legs and put the cloth through them. There was a cute little panel in front to hide what your mama gave you. Then there was a slender part behind to play peek-a-boo with your crack. That’s not why she was complaining. You had to tie the panties together on each side leaving a cute bow to match the bra. Why would anyone do that?

  Just as she went to put the panties down, she caught an image of Slade taking his big hand, caressing the edge of the bra and her chest. He’d play with that bow making her moan with need for him to really touch her. Would his teeth nip at her sensitive skin? She rubbed her thighs together happy she didn’t have the coveted thigh gap. A soft murmur of need came out.

  His hands would drift slowly over her body exciting every place he touched as if she was in heat until they finally settled on her thighs. His eyes already lit up would spark when he saw the bows holding this bit of black lace together. He mumbled something no matter how she strained she couldn’t catch the words.

  Her breath caught as his hand moved to press against the front of her panties. “Yes, please,” she gasped as if she could feel the heat of him sinking into her. That low voice whispered something in her ear as he moved to the first bow.

  Her throat worked needing him to unwrap her. She was so damn close.

  “Mila did you die in there?” Quinn’s voice pulled her from her fantasy. She was frustrated and on the edge.

  Would they convict her if she killed Quinn? It was… damn; she couldn’t kill her best friend. It broke the sister code.

  “I’m coming.” I would have really been coming if you had given me five minutes more.

  “I know, but you probably don’t want to do it in the fitting room.” Mila gasped.

  “You’re dead Quinn. You just wait and see.” Her laughter stayed behind as she left Mila to get dressed.

  They dragged her into every store on the second level of the mall. It was torture buying clothes she knew she wouldn’t live long enough to wear.

  “No more please,” Mila whined. They had gone to the SUV three times to take packages out. Her feet hurt, and her body didn’t want to try on one more garment.

  “This is the last I promise,” Brandi told her as she pulled on the dress.

  “Why do I need something so… fancy?”

  “This is just until I find time to make you a Brandi original. We like to go out at times, and then we need something nice, also the guys like to treat us to dinner on different planets. We’re representing Earth. We have to look good.”

  Mila nodded her head like any of that made sense and gave a sigh of relief when she could get back into her own clothes.

  “Lunch at the food court?” Piper asked as they all got on the escalator.

  “Sounds good, I also saw this Italian place on the side of the road when we…” Mila stopped talking every head was shaking no. “No?”

  “We never go there. Let’s just say they have it out for us,” Brandi told her.

  Rylee and Piper were shaking. She made a mental note to stay far away from there.

  “I vote food court.” They all gave her a smile.

  “Brandi and I will take the last of the packages to the SUV. You guys find us a table,” Quinn gave them a wave and started out.

  “You’re one of us,” Rylee told her. “Although we would be nice even if you weren’t.”

  “One of you?”

  “Mated to one of the brothers,” Piper gave her a smile.

  “Umm, no. I mean Slade and I are just friends. I think we’re friends. He’s keeping me close because he thinks I’m a menace.” She gave them a helpful smile, hoping she cleared up the misunderstanding.

  “Before we left to come to the mall, I called one of my friends. His name’s Rory, I think you met him last night.” Rylee said with a secret grin.

  Mila dropped her eyes and hoped her cheeks weren’t as red as they felt.

  “I think, in passing.”

  “He works at The Vortex, and he told me this story about a male who came in with a beautiful woman. He stressed that she was beautiful and kind. Anyway, the DJ called for a dirty dancing contest. It turns out, she didn’t know how. Several of the patrons taught her. Long story short, Rory said she spent a good part of the night with her rear plastered to the males front.”

  Mila reached blindly for the drink in front of her inhaling then coughing. It wasn’t water. She cleared her throat then sip slowly on the kiwi lemonade in front of her.

  “Smart woman.”

  “Yeah, that’s what I told him.”

  “We better get home, you know they’re going to start worrying soon.” Heads nodded at Brandi’s words. They cleaned up and headed for the SUV.

  “I don’t know why Slade was so freaked out. I’ve had so much…”

  “Mila!”

  Chapter Ten

  “They’ve been gone too long.” Slade was pacing in the living room.

  “Every trip to the mall does not bring d
estruction. I’ve been living with the fear longer than anyone. I tell myself every time she leaves this house, she’ll be fine. I prepare myself to kill anything that dares to touch her. Why? Because any other thought or strategy would drive me crazy.”

  “Mekhi’s right,” Jabari told him. “None of us believe that just because we are now successfully mated that the danger no longer exists.”

  “Just last week we were fighting off the Toll’s from Earth’s still undetected tenth planet,” Phoenix reminded him.

  “We kept it from the females because they needed to feel safe with the children,” Akron joined in.

  “It doesn’t matter Slade, from this day forward, you will always be concerned. Heck, there will be times she goes to the bathroom and stays too long that will send you flying across the room to make sure she wasn’t snatched under your nose. You will want to stand up and lay down the law then you’ll look into eyes that own your heart and a smile that makes you melt, and you’ll do extra patrols to keep her safe.” Thrice adverted eyes not wanting to bare his soul to his brothers.

  “I’ve watched you all and wondered how you did it. I didn’t know.” He stopped to answer his phone.

  “You need to come here immediately.”

  “Hellhound how did you get this number. Where is here?”

  “Here is where your mate is. I’m doing what you should have been doing.”

  Slade was running before the connection ended. His brothers were behind him. They took two SUV’s.

  “I’m calling Rylee,” Phoenix told him before he got in the second vehicle.

  “If you kill us, we can’t save Mila,” Mekhi told him conversationally as he held onto the bar above the window. Slade took a curve like the devil was on his trail.

  “It won’t help if we are pulled over by the cops,” Akron told him.

  Slade grunted and flipped a switch. No one was going to see them. He made the thirty-minute drive in less than ten. They stopped in front of a house at the end of a street. The other houses looked either deserted or boarded up for the winter.

  “Took you long enough to get here,” Me’akal growled, his red eyes flashing.

  “What happened?” Slade asked him around teeth that were lengthening.

  “They were leaving the mall when someone locked onto her coordinates and pulled her away from the others.”

  “How did you find her?”

  “She’s my charge until I’m released. I’ll always know where she is.”

  Slade nodded and headed for the house, the time for talking was over. The bomb that went off shook the earth. They fell, unable to maintain their feet. The front side of the house collapsed.

  “Mila!” Slade screamed running to the house. There was no way in, he circled around back to stop in his tracks. Mila was outside fighting. This wasn’t the female who barged into his home talking about demon seed and calling him the big bad.

  Mila was perfectly coordinated. She moved like a deadly dancer. One jump, she was in the air doing a twist, he was sure he couldn’t execute. She came down using a long knife to take the head off the male she was fighting.

  “She’s beautiful when she fights. Are you going to gawk all day or help her?” Me’akal taunted as he dove into the fray.

  There was a loud noise as reinforcements headed for Mila. Slade allowed his body to morph into his half form. His nails elongated while his body bulked up. He ran joining the fight. He tore and disemboweled anyone thinking to get close to Mila. Blood spilled while his mouth curved into a deadly smile. You want to touch what is mine? He thought as he watched a male think he could use the mass of bodies as a cover.

  Slade waited. There was a joy, a freedom in protecting the person his heart was claiming as his own. His brain would have to catch up. Part of him felt free while the other half was in chains. That was a thought for a different day. He rose from where he laid in wait. Death his personal friend was reflected in his eyes. His lips bloody from the massacre curled into a genuine smile as he caught the male who thought he could kill the one who belonged to Slade. He used his claws to tear his neck out before allowing his body to fall to the ground.

  He turned around to find Mila staggering in front of him. What would she think? He was bloody and emotionally gorged on protecting her. His claws were on display. His face no longer had the human look to it. She would be scared. How could she not?

  “Slade, you're so… hot.” Her legs gave out.

  He reached her before she hit the ground. With a tenderness, he didn’t know his half form was capable of, he held her against his chest.

  “We need to get her back to the house to be looked at.”

  Mekhi's voice prompted him to run. His form changed as he carried her. The only thing on his mind was Mila’s safety. He never saw the team arrive to do damage control or the smile on a certain face with vibrant blue eyes.

  *~*~*~*

  “Stop pacing and growling Slade,” Mekhi demanded. “You’re worse than the hellhound pup.”

  “Aww does someone need a toy to chew on? His little bitty teeth bothering him as they come in?” Me’akal asked as he watched Mekhi hover over Mila.

  “Both of your asses can leave.”

  “Not happening,” they both growled.

  “Why does she need two IVs?” Slade asked. Mila looked fine there was only one mark on her. It was a cut that started at the top of her thigh and stopped just short of her knee. It wasn’t clean suggesting it had been made with a claw and not a knife.

  “Poison. There were four different species with poison in their claws. I don’t know which one got her, or if it was someone who was gone before we got there. There are two different antidotes I can give her, but they can’t mix. That’s why the two different IVs on different sides of her body.”

  “What if it wasn’t one of the four?” Me’akal asked.

  “That’s what the blood work is for.” Mekhi left the room carrying the vials. “Do me a favor and don’t kill each other.”

  “He’s protective of you.”

  Slade barked out a laugh. “He doesn’t want to clean up the blood.” Slade changed his voice to sound more like Mekhi. “Disinfecting this place after one of you gets yourself killed is a bitch. Stay alive and make my life easier.”

  “Brothers can’t live with them…” Me’akal said.

  “Can’t live without them,” Slade finished. “How did a hunter take on a human charge?”

  “It’s a long story. I’m not a hunter.”

  Slade cocked his head and looked at him. Hellhounds were the hunters of the galaxy. They were feared where they went usually because death and destruction followed in their wake.

  “Mila could have no better champion.”

  Me’akal tilted his head thanking Slade for the compliment while giving him one in return. “When this is over, I will be released from my assignment. I assume that she will be in good hands.”

  “I’m working on it,” Slade replied softly. They both went back to watching her.

  “Why do I feel like a pin cushion?” Mila complained as she tried to open her eyes. “Why is it so dark in here? Why do I keep saying why?”

  “Open your eyes and you’ll find out the lights are out. Mekhi has you hooked up to two IVs. It seems you like to jump into fights that you should run away from,” Slade teased her trying to hide the sound of relief in his voice.

  “I’m Mila, killer of the big bad; I don’t run away.” She coughed until Slade picked her up and ran his hand over her back.

  “I’m Slade, killer of the monsters who come after Mila,” he whispered in her ear.

  “Oh, that’s good. Someone needs that position. I’ll knight you when I feel better.” She tried to smile as he laid her back down. “Seriously, why do I feel like death warmed over?”

  “You were fighting some nasty aliens. One clawed you. The poison in his claws invaded your body the minute his claws pierced you.”

  “Did he live to see another day?”

 
; “No bloodthirsty Mila, he did not.”

  “Good, he would have just tried to kill someone else. How long have I been out?” Her fingers were slowly inching over the bed towards his hand. She didn’t want to seem needy, but something inside her needed to touch him. She was alive; she survived when she was sure her life was over.

  Slade took her hand before sitting on the edge of the bed. “Six hours.”

  “And still I feel sleepy.”

  There was a knock at the door before Mekhi stuck his head in. “You’re awake.”

  “Yeah, thanks for this. I didn’t think I was going to make it.”

  “Next time you’ll wait for us,” he told her teasing.

  “I tried; I knew you would come for me.” She was watching Slade as she spoke. “They threw me into this room like I was no threat to them. The whole place was filled with parts to assemble a bomb. The only thing missing was the accelerate. They had a nominal amount. Not enough for all the supplies in the room. I couldn’t escape and leave it all untouched. Hence the bomb. I waited as long as I dared before I set the timer and snuck out.”

  The silence in the room stretched as Mekhi checked her over. “You need to spend the rest of the night here. There is still some poison in your system, but the antidote is destroying it. Tomorrow after your blood work comes back negative, I’ll take another look at your leg and decide if you need stitches, or if I can use the sealer.” He checked the IV before he left them alone.

  Me’akal stood. He looked at her but shook his head refusing to speak. He left the room, leaving Mila and Slade alone.

  “You could have died.” He pulled the recliner to the side of the bed.

  “I know; this is me. I will fight.”

  Warrior the word tugged at his brain and took up residence in his heart. Mila was raised to fight a being not from her planet. She wasn’t given the advantages he was, but it didn’t stop her. Today she did things that some of the most highly advanced people on her planet couldn’t do. Why? Because she feared what those who held her would do with the bombs they were going to make.