Page 18 of Kidnapped By the Beast (Beasts of the Kindred #11)

LEXI

Lexi woke early, the alien room still quiet in the violet dawn.

For a moment she lay still on the mossy bed, staring at the vine curtain that separated her from Brandt’s chamber.

Her cheeks heated as the memories of the night before rushed in—his fingers inside her, his mouth on her nipples, the way he had made her cry out.

Her pussy pulsed at the thought, traitorous and needy, but she shoved it away.

You need air…space. Something normal. You can’t just lie here thinking about him, she told herself.

She slipped quietly from the bed and pulled on a robe. Then she padded barefoot across the mossy floor. The silver door slid open quietly, leading her into the rounded hallway, then out onto one of the curved balconies.

The cool morning air kissed her overheated skin, carrying scents that were both familiar and strange: damp leaves…something musky like loam…and the sweet perfume of alien flowers that opened at dawn.

The sight was so beautiful and calming that Lexi decided to take a walk. The nice thing was, she didn’t even have to put on shoes. There was almost no pavement here—at least in the areas she’d seen. Everywhere was carpeted in moss and soft, tender grass.

She found her way down using one of the long silver bridges that stretched from the mushroom shaped building to the ground below and soon was strolling around, exploring the entire area.

The grounds stretched out before her, dotted with lush trees, glowing plants, and several enclosures that looked like small, wild meadows enclosed in vine-covered fencing.

Lexi’s curiosity pulled her toward one in particular. A faint animal scent drifted up from the small wild area—grassy, with a sharp tang of musk and something like cinnamon. It wasn’t unpleasant, just wild. She decided to get closer. What was living here and why had the Terians fenced it off?

Then—she saw it.

Inside the pen, a small, fluffy creature with enormous blue eyes and tufted violet ears nibbled at a cluster of glowing mushrooms. Its fur was a dappled green and white, blending almost perfectly with the meadow grass, and two stubby little horns peeked from its fuzzy head.

Lexi’s heart melted instantly.

“Oh my God,” she whispered. “You’re like a baby bunny…if a bunny had horns.”

A sign posted at the edge of the pen caught her eye. Etched in flowing Terian artwork was a pictograph of a hand with a red slash through it. Even without any written language, the meaning was clear: Don’t touch.

Lexi sighed, glancing between the sign and the baby. She was itching to give the little guy some scratches—she loved animals. But the sign stopped her.

Don’t do it, she lectured herself. The sign says you’re not supposed to touch it no matter how cute it is. You’re already in deep enough with this whole crazy science project. Don’t make things worse.

But then the baby spotted her. It bounded over to the edge of the enclosure, pressing its tiny nose through the vines, making a plaintive little chirping sound.

Lexi bit her lip.

“Oh, come on,” she muttered. “Just look at you, little guy. You’re practically begging for snuggles.”

She looked around. No one was watching. Surely a quick pet couldn’t hurt—right? Sliding through the vine gate, she crouched low and reached out a hand coaxingly.

“Hey, little guy…you want some scritches?” She used the same high, sweet voice she always used for her cat back home and the baby absolutely responded. Apparently the longing for “scritches” was universal, Lexi thought happily as it bounded towards her in a series of adorable lolloping hops.

“That’s right—who’s a good boy?” she crooned as the baby pressed its warm, damp nose into her palm, sighing happily.

Lexi laughed softly, stroking the silky fur between its long ears.

What a sweet little baby! She wondered if she could coax it to hop into her lap? She could cuddle this cutie all day.

That’s when she heard the growl.

It was low and guttural, vibrating the ground beneath her feet. Lexi froze, her eyes widening. Slowly, she looked up.

From the shadows of the enclosure, another creature emerged. Her eyes grew wide as she took it in—it was freaking enormous.

Its fur was dark green streaked with rust-red, its horns long and curved like a bull’s. Its glowing red eyes locked on Lexi, and the growl deepened into a snarl.

“Oh crap,” she whispered. Her stomach dropped. The thing was massive—bigger than a grizzly bear, towering over her on thick legs. The baby whimpered and darted behind it.

Lexi realized with sick dread that she had just been petting this creature’s cub.

The mother pawed the ground, gouging deep furrows. Then she lowered her massive head and charged.

Oh my God—Ohmygod-Ohmygod-OhmyGOD!

Lexi screamed and ran for the nearest tree, heart in her throat.

She grabbed a low-hanging branch and pulled, using her feet to scramble up the trunk as she hung on, trying to get higher.

Her fingers were slipping on the slick bark as adrenaline surged through every part of her body.

She hauled herself up onto a low branch just as the beast slammed into the tree with a bone-jarring crash.

The entire trunk shuddered and bark splintered beneath the impact. Lexi’s teeth rattled and she almost lost her grip.

“HELP!” she shrieked, clinging to the trunk for dear life. The creature backed up and rammed the tree again, her horns gouging deep grooves in the alien tree. Crack! The branch she was standing on was breaking!

Panic rising in her throat, Lexi climbed higher, scraping her knees and palms on the rough bark in the process. Tears of fear sprang to her eyes.

“Somebody, please—HELP!” she shouted again.

The branch she stood on wavered, groaning under her weight. Oh God, was she going to die here? Was she going to be gored to death by a mother grizzly-rabbit on an alien world light years from home?

It seemed like a distinct possibility.

Below her, the beast bellowed again, rearing back for another strike. Lexi didn’t know how much longer the tree could hold up. How much longer did she have? She should have told her Aunt and Uncle she loved them more often. She should have—

“Alexandra!”

The roar of Brandt’s voice cut through her panic.

She twisted her head and saw him sprinting across the grass below, his golden eyes blazing, his black hair wild around his shoulders.

He was shirtless, still wearing just his long sleep trousers and he looked both furious and terrifying—every inch a Beast Kindred.

“Jump to me!” he barked, holding out his arms as he reached the edge of the enclosure. “Now!”

Lexi’s stomach lurched. She glanced down and felt dizzy—the ground seemed a hundred feet away.

“What? Are you crazy? I’ll break my neck!”

Another crash shook the tree, nearly dislodging her. She screamed, clinging harder. The mother beast snarled, its stench rank with musk and rot. Lexi gagged. Her eyes watered from the smell and from sheer terror.

“Alexandra!” Brandt’s voice was thunder. “Jump for me right now. I’ll catch you!”

Her mind raced.

You can’t do it. You hate heights. You’ll fall. He’s strong but what if he drops you? What if you smash your skull on the ground?

The branch creaked beneath her feet, cracking sharply.

“Damn it, do it right now!” Brandt’s golden eyes locked on hers, his arms outstretched. His voice was fierce, commanding. “Trust me!”

Lexi’s pulse roared in her ears. The beast slammed into the tree again. The branch creaked beneath her. As a panicked cry tore from her throat, Lexi leapt.

Air rushed past her and her stomach did a sickening flip-flop of pure fear.

For a heartbeat, she was weightless, her scream echoing in the morning air.

Then—impact. Strong arms closed around her, solid as stone.

Brandt caught her against his chest, his body absorbing the shock. He grunted, but didn’t falter.

Lexi clutched his neck, burying her face against his shoulder, trembling so hard her teeth chattered.

The beast snarled behind the gate, pacing and giving her menacing looks, but Brandt only tightened his hold, glaring at the monster with fury in his golden eyes.

Then he turned his attention back to Lexi.

“How in the Seven Hells did you wind up in a tree with that creature coming after you? You could have been killed,” he growled, his voice shaking with barely suppressed emotion.

Lexi couldn’t stop trembling. Her heart thundered, her breath came in gasps and tears were squeezing out of her eyes as the realization hit her—he was right! She’d come a hairsbreadth from meeting her maker.

I almost died—Oh my God, I ALMOST DIED!

The thought pounded in her head and she started to cry. She couldn’t speak, couldn’t answer any of Dr. Brandt’s questions. All she could do was cling to him desperately and try to believe that she was finally safe in his arms.