Mated to the Beast (14 page)

Had I considered what Sarah did now, the exact location not of our quarry, but of a safe place to transport, we most likely wouldn’t be going on this dangerous rescue mission.

It was just her and me, but still, she was thinking like a true warrior and I felt something I had not expected to feel in regards to my mate’s fighting skills… pride.

“Yes, warlord.”

The transport attendant swiped his finger once, then twice and I looked at Sarah. “Ready?”

She nodded, then took my hand. I didn’t have time to consider the gesture for in the blink of an eye we were no longer on the battleship, but in a barely lit room filled with hard-sided boxes. The deep hum of the machinery was constant, much louder and deeper than the usual cadence of a ship’s systems. Immediately, Sarah dropped into a crouch. For a brief moment I envisioned her opening my pants and taking my cock into her mouth. I had yet to discover how skilled she was at sucking cock, but I could only imagine she was just as voracious and eager as she was at the fucking we’d already done. The thought of her tongue flicking over my flared crown had me shifting my cock in my pants. I had to push the thought of her mouth’s sweet suction from my head. I knelt beside her and focused on our mission.

“We do not know if there are any Hive monitoring this level or any kind of motion sensors to indicate life forms,” she said, her voice calm and even.

She
was focused, although if she had that plug still in her ass, I doubted that would be the case. God, seeing that tight hole stretch around the plug made me—

“Remain here, I will investigate,” she said, then shifted to move.

Focus!

I was used to the charge and conquer approach to fighting. A brigade of Atlan fighters was a force that even the Hive couldn’t stand against. But Sarah wasn’t Atlan and I had to continually remind myself that patience and strategy were required now, not brawn.

I grabbed her shoulder, stilling her. “We will do it together.” I held up my wrist. “Remember, we can’t separate.”

“What if we get caught?” she asked.

I clenched my jaw. “We won’t get caught.”

“The first Hive we see I will… immobilize and we can claim their weapons and comm units.”

“And then?” I studied her, smart enough to know that we were in her territory now. I’d never set foot on a vessel this small before coming to this sector. I hadn’t survived a decade in battle by ignoring the knowledge or experience of my best fighters.

“The lifts are centrally located on all Hive ships, but there are access tunnels as well. I say we go for the tunnels. We’ll have a better chance of taking them by surprise.”

“Agreed.”

She nodded and turned to work her way around the supplies.

Sarah

Seth was on this prison ship. So were other men, men who didn’t deserve the fate that was in store for them. Hopefully, we would rescue all of them in time. Would Seth already be altered? Would he have the metallic skin and silver eyes of a soulless cyborg? Would he have the external attachments on his arms and legs? Would they shave his head? Inject him with microscopic implants in his muscles, making him faster and stronger than any human should be? Would he still look like my brother?

It didn’t matter. As long as he was alive, I didn’t care what he looked like.

Dax led the way, moving me aside when I would go first. Yes, he was a caveman, but in this moment he had two things that kept me from smacking him: the ability to rip the heads off a Hive without even warming up first, and a really fine ass. If a Hive appeared, Dax could go all berserker on them instead of firing. In the meantime, I would try to focus on rescuing my brother instead of the feel of Dax’s butt in my hands. I knew how it flexed as he fucked me. Shit, I was in trouble. He was the only male in the entire galaxy who could distract me during a mission.

It hadn’t even been two days and I’d changed so much. It wasn’t the fact that I wasn’t a coalition fighter anymore. It wasn’t that I’d been mated to an Atlan warlord. It wasn’t even that my brother had been captured by the Hive. It had been the realization that I wasn’t going to go through the rest of my life on my own. I no longer lived my life for someone else.

I’d joined the military because I was good at it, and I was good at it because I’d grown up with three older brothers who had given me no other choice. My father hadn’t offered me princess dresses or a pony or even a prom dress. I had paintball wars, karate classes, and ice hockey. I’d never chosen any of those things, only following along and participating because I was the youngest, but also because if I hadn’t, I would have been left out. Alone.

Then my dad threw the biggest life sucker of them all. A deathbed promise. I’d gone into the coalition because I’d promised my dad I’d find Seth and keep an eye on him. I’d been so focused on that I hadn’t realized my dad had taken my entire life away. I had no choices. Nothing was my own. I just had to find Seth. I’d found him, fought beside him, but then he was captured. Once I pulled Seth from the Hive brig and transported him to safety, what then? Would I have to remain by his side forever? I’d done what my father had wanted and I would get Seth back to safe ground. I’d joined the coalition, left Earth. Hell, I’d even agreed to be a mate of an Atlan to keep my promise to my dad.

What was mine? What choices had I made in life that were all mine? Remarkably, it was Dax who made me see that there was someone who wanted me for me, who wanted what I wanted, was willing to do something for
me.
It was different, it was surprising. It was endearing.

This huge hulk of a space alien wanted what was best for me. Yeah, that included his acting like a Neanderthal—like now, when I had to remain safely behind him. He agreed to help me get Seth back because he knew it was important. He always checked to see if my head was in the right place before he fucked me, ensuring I was wet and eager for him. He even put that stupid plug up my bottom because he knew it would give me pleasure—even when I’d been completely skeptical. I was a little sore there now, but really, all my girl parts were sore. I hadn’t been fucked like that in… well, ever.

His goal was to give me nothing but pleasure, so when this was over, when Seth was safe, I’d think long and hard about how I could please Dax. Not because I was told to do so. Not because I had to in order to be accepted by my mate, but because I
wanted
to know I’d made him truly happy.

Loud footfalls broke me from my thoughts. It wasn’t a large group of Hive, probably the usual three. When Dax came out from behind a cube of supplies to fight them, I had a moment of panic that something would happen to him, but it was too short-lived to even get my heart rate up. Grunts and groans, an ion blast, hard metal striking the floor, a crash of a supply box as it tipped over, then quiet. Dax’s breathing was ragged. “Clear.”

I stood then and saw that there were indeed three Hive. Two were missing their heads and one had been shot. Dax reached down and grabbed a Hive weapon for me. It was slightly different than a standard coalition blaster, but after a few seconds of checking it out, I felt I could easily work it. I now had a weapon in each hand.

Dax’s breathing didn’t calm and I could see his heartbeat thrumming against the tight tendons in his neck. “Sarah,” he growled.

My eyes widened. “What? What is it? They’re dead, I’m safe.”

He nodded his head, albeit jerkily. “It’s… shit, it’s the fever. Fighting these three brought it on.”

“Then use it. Let’s go get my brother, the others. On the way, you can rip the heads off as many Hive as you want.”

“It’s really strong. God, it came on so fast.” He took a step back. I recognized that he was trying to protect me from himself.

I glanced around, realizing we were on a Hive prison ship and had to find Seth, but we couldn’t go further until Dax was back in control. I had to soothe him. I had to somehow get him back in control… I had to figure out something that didn’t involve fucking. I wasn’t going to get it on where we were. All was quiet, but it might not stay that way.

“I know. It’s dangerous for us. I can’t function like this, can’t see who’s bad or good. If your brother touches you, I’ll kill him.”

He’d warned me it would get bad, that the fever would be overpowering. But now? Here? A quickie might work, but neither of us would have our senses about us. Three Hive or three hundred could come upon us while he was fucking me and neither of us would know. Neither of us would even care.

I had to soothe him, but fucking was out. We didn’t have time to stand here and linger either. I had to think and think fast or I’d be pressed up against the wall, my pants down and a cock deep inside my pussy. I got damp at the idea. Hell, I was already damp from staring at his ass.

Placing a weapon on a nearby box, I walked up to him and stroked his face. He hissed out a breath as he wrapped his arms about me.

“We can’t fuck,” I breathed as he ran his hands over me, even if I wanted it so badly my pussy ached.

“No,” he replied, breathing raggedly.

“Kiss me,” I said. “Touch me. I’m here. I’m with you. It’s going to be all right.”

I lifted up on my tiptoes so I could kiss him. Dax didn’t resist, but met my mouth eagerly. His tongue instantly plundered as his hands roamed over my body; my hips, my ass, my breasts. It was easy to sink into the kiss because the feel of him, the taste of him was overwhelming. I was sinking fast, but I had to keep my head. I had to kiss him with all the pent-up need and desire I felt since we’d climbed from bed, but I had to be the one to pull back. Dax was clearly in charge when it came to fucking, but now, in this moment, I had to take the lead.

Pulling my head back, I rested my forehead against his. Our breaths mingled and we both were panting as if we’d run a marathon.

“Better?” I whispered.

“I love the taste of you. Your lips, your pussy,” he replied, his voice rough.

“Calm that beast of yours so we can get Seth and get the hell off this ship. When we’re safely back in our quarters, you can taste all of me.”

I hoped the promise—and it was a promise—was enough to soothe him.

Dax growled deep in his chest. “Better,” he murmured, then pushed me away from him. “You are forewarned that as soon as I get you alone and not on an enemy ship, I’m going to fuck you until you can’t walk right.”

“Noted,” I said, my pussy clenching at the promise in his voice.

“Let’s get your brother and get the fuck out of here.”

As Dax led me to the nearest tunnel, I couldn’t have said it better myself.

Chapter Nine

Dax

Sarah’s kiss soothed the beast brought about by the Hive blood on my hands. The mating fever had come on so abruptly and so intensely that I’d been unable to stop it and had no way to tame it. I’d killed the three Hive without even blinking, but when I was done, I saw Sarah stand and knew I had to have her. The beast within wanted her with an intensity that was painful. I wanted to toss her over one of the supply cubes and fuck her, filling her again and again with my seed, my beast telling Sarah that she belonged to him. But not here, not now. And not on a Hive prison ship.

I couldn’t even fuck her now. Sarah knew I needed something, and the kiss helped. Just being able to touch her, to feel that she was right there with me eased the harsh need. If she hadn’t soothed me, kissed me, I would have been unable to stop the beast from taking control.

My breathing had calmed, my heart rate lowering. I could be near Sarah without the risk of hurting her. My mind cleared of the red haze of desire. Licking her taste from my lips, I was soothed. It was only temporary, but we were on this fucking ship for a short time. We weren’t lingering.

As I came out onto the fifth floor, I turned to Sarah. She nodded and we went in. We didn’t talk, we didn’t even have to share commands. We knew exactly what we needed to do, trusting in the other.

There were three groups of Hive, easily wiped out. While the life sensors probably picked us up on their displays, we weren’t staying. Sarah found the control panel and disarmed the doors on the holding cells.

“Seth!” she cried, stalking down the central corridor searching.

About a dozen men came out of the various holding cells, her brother one of them. The men looked worn, but well. Alive. Whole.

“Is this everyone?” I asked. A man looked around, took a head count, then nodded.

“Anyone too injured to walk out of here?”

“No. We’re all ready,” Seth spoke up and I nodded. Good.

“They were going to begin the transformation once we reached the IC. None of us have been touched.”

I was relieved they had avoided true Hive horrors.

As Seth hugged Sarah, I ordered the other men to collect the Hive’s weapons, to arm themselves for our extraction.

“What the hell are you doing with
him
?” Seth asked, glaring at me. It was fortunate he was not yet armed.

Sarah looked at the floor, then at me. “I’m mated to him.”

Seth did then grab an ion pistol from one of the other soldiers and stormed over to me. “You mated her? Are you fucking kidding me? You landed in the middle of a battle and had me taken by the Hive! And now—” he ran his hand through his hair, hair the same shade as his sister’s, “—now you drag Sarah back into dangerous territory, onto a fucking Hive prison ship? Are you an ass, or just stupid?”

I felt the tip of the weapon against my chest and I did not blame the man. He’d transported out of the battle before I’d said more than
Mine.
He hadn’t heard that she was my mate, that I had claimed her. He knew nothing but the fact that I’d inadvertently fucked up their last mission.

“Seth, leave him alone. It was my decision to rescue you, not his. He tagged along to protect me.”

Seth whipped his head around and looked down at his sister. “Are you kidding me?”

“If you are so worried about Sarah’s safety, let’s argue about this once we get back to the Karter,” I said. “But your anger is to be directed at me, not Sarah. You will not raise your voice to my mate again.”