"animals"

Elias:

“So, where is she?” M looked around the house, smiling brightly with a flicker of hidden agenda laced across her face, catching our gaze with those golden orbs that suited her royal aura of strength.

“Yeah, where is the little lady?” JR chuckled lightly, taking a scotch from Mama Eve after he greeted her with a kiss to the cheek, sliding into the sectional with a steady exhale of relaxation.

“Resting.” Roger rubbed his neck, shuffling his feet in discomfort as everyone stared at us with questioning eyes. Grabbing the brandy from Ben as he leaned against the couch with a straight face, watching his ball of ice roll around in his glass with a deep concentration no one could break.

“More like “Blacked-out”.” Mama Eve chuckled lowly, sliding into the brown leather wing back, crossing her leg gracefully as two scary sets of golden and a pair by-colored orbs bore holes through our heads.

“Not on purpose. Things have been a little chaotic, and she’s slowly finding out about “us”.” Pointing between everyone in the room, emphasizing the “supernatural elephant” currently standing in our living room with twisted smirks of amusement at our expense.

Bad enough, she forgot about last night.

But what was up with that strange Egyptian music and those sensations?

Shivering in dark euphoria, remembering how it consumed every fiber of our being, rolling over in today with her wild freak-out after she heard my private link with ma.

Shit is getting crazier by the second.

Soft tugging on my pant leg, drew my attention to Azalea’s fiery red locks and those vibrant jade eyes as she reached up to me with that beautiful smile of hers.

“Hey Lea.” Grabbing her hands, carefully tossing her up in the air before catching her like we always did when she wanted me to pick her up. Chuckling softly at her bright giggles as Akai and the twins dive bombed my brothers from the back of the couch. Halting our explicit conversation of our mate and being overwhelmed by our genius plan to bait Bain, resulting in our current “fuck-up”.

“Yias, who da pwetty gurl?” Lea smiled brightly, cupping my cheeks in her palms turning my head towards the doorway, clapping her hands together in excitement. Elicia stood quietly studying everyone with her hands twisted in her shirt, feeling the overwhelming sensation to run and hide, blindsided by the fierce surge of strength as she stepped out from the hallway with a bright smile.

Akai and the twins ran up to her giggling, reaching for her hands as she kneeled with her arms draped casually along her knees, pressing her finger to Nikola’s nose as he stood up tall puffing his chest out like he ruled the world.

“That little shit.” Ben chuckled softly, leaning back against the couch with his leg crossed over the other as Lea watched her brothers flirt and “peacock” like hormonal teenagers with an eye roll felt across the world.

“Would you like to meet our mate, but you have to keep that quiet, she’s human.” Whispering along her cheek as she nodded to my request, letting her slide down my leg to the floor as she smoothed out her cheetah print blouse and black leggings. Smiling at Lea as she looked over her shoulder, making sure it was still alright to meet Elicia as she strolled over with her fingers laced behind her back, stopping a few steps from my “kitten”.

“Hi-ee, I yam Azalea Whitetail-Rockwell. Cwas me Lea for yhort.” Her sweet voice barely registered above a whisper as Elicia just stared at her with bright misty eyes, scooping her into a hug and a quick tickle along her side as the boys pouted with crossed arms.

“At least she pronounced her name perfectly.” Chris chuckled softly behind his fist, receiving a warning snarl from the ladies.

“Go fyind yar owin whouman, myne.” Lea wrapped her arms around Elicia’s neck, looking up at us with a confused expression that matched the mental car crash exploding along our links as we stood dumbfounded.

“Lea, that’s no way to address a guest. People would think I raised a bunch of “animals”, and not the respectable young children before them, now would they?” M had a strange way of saving the day as she leaned down with her hands pressed firmly to her knees, reaching out to Elicia with a hand to shake.

“Mei Rockwell, but call me M. That’s my husband JR or Jack, and my other husband, Max.” M pointed to JR lounging peacefully on the sectional with a quick salute of his glass, followed by Max doing his finger salute with a tilted smirk, staring us down like he was going to drill us into the next century.

“Pleasure. Elicia DeWalt.” She shook M’s hand as she stood with a triumphant Lea hugging close to her side, sticking her tongue out at her brothers as they hissed and snarled at her. Shocking Elicia with a short laugh as M shooed the boys back into the kitchen were Izzy stood with a stern brow, pointing between us to save her from the awkward introduction.

Roger and Chris were quick on their feet, motioning for her to take a seat on the sectional, while Ben grabbed her a water and some pain pills from the kitchen.

“E, this is our Aunt M, the one we mentioned a while back at Randi’s. Max was like a “Big Brother” after our birth mother passed and our birth father placed us in his care to train.” Leaning down from the back of the couch, winking at Max and JR as she leaned back with a side glance.

“Keep it basic. She doesn’t know about the “Underground”.” Linking Max and JR as they replied with quick nods and questionable smirks, watching as Mei snapped a perked brow over her shoulder.

“And what were you mentioning specifically, because now I can defend myself in person.” M snapped her hand out with a head roll like some diva fixing to throw down.

“Nothing bad, just they made a comparison about me being barefooted the day they came over for coffee. That was our first-time meeting, besides the awkward run-in at the club between them and…” Her trembling voice broke apart as Randi and dad stopped mid-step, feeling the swirling energy erupt from her stone-poise as she jumped to her feet, rushing over to Randi with a wallop of a “Bitch Slap”.

The amused “Damns” stifled the cracking echo as it bounced along the plastered walls and hardwood flooring, standing firm in her place as Randi stared at her with his red-stricken cheek in his palm.

“I deserve that.” Randi exhaled heavily, gently rubbing his cheek as Elicia looked over shoulder with a cold expression that rocked our cores, choking back that primal urge to protect her as her head snapped back to Randi, stepping into his chest with a solid finger.

“I thought I lost you for good.” Her voice whispered out in an even tone, almost ghostly as her eyes avoided his gaze, still pressing her finger into his chest as she fought with the words scrambled together in her mind.

My brothers looked concerned as her body began to pulse with a strange crackling-like electricity crawling along a transformers coils, charging the surrounding air with a static energy that had our hair standing on-end as she slowly looked up to Randi’s paled face.

Dad stepped back with a shocked expression.

“Her eyes are glowing white.” Dad and Randi linked us in a strange, excited, panicked tone as ma and mama Eve quickly shooed the kids into the back living room.

“Four-point barrier, Now!” Throwing the command out quickly, appearing behind dad and Randi without spooking Elicia as her body began to release little electrical charges. M, JR, and Max stood behind each brother, gripping their shoulder to stabilize the barrier against the influx of charged ions in the air that would cause the natural energy of the barrier to explode.

“E, girlie. I’m so sorry, we should have informed you and Rex of our plans.” Her head tilted in an odd motion as her arms floated and swayed through the air, rolling the energy along her fingers as they curled in and out in lazy fists.

“Ready.” My brothers linked firmly with a nod, pressing my thumb into the open cut of my other palm, releasing the barrier just as her body sparked to life with cracking whips of electricity. Flinching with each cracking snap as her energy whips, sparked tiny blasts of glittery energy to crackle and fizz against the translucent barrier that shielded us from her uncontrollable outburst.

“Kitten, listen to me! You need to come back to us. You’re scaring the kids.” Using the one thing that seemed to be her only anchor in all her turmoil, watching as the energy whips faded back into her body, quickly grabbing her as her body tumbled forward. Randi cupped her ombre locks to his chest as her sobs devastated our hearts, rubbing soothing circles along her side as she clenched to his white shirt with white knuckles.

“D-Don’t ever d-do that again…. I c-can’t lose you.” Her cries sank our souls as dad guided Randi and Elicia back to the sectional with a pained expression.

“You guys really “fucked this up” for sure. How could you not consider her emotional well-being in all of this? I get this Asshole needs to be taken care of, but this right here is why you never risk the mate bond.” Max snarled out in our links as Randi gently rocked her back and forth, kissing her head apologizing to her cheek with a pained expression.

“We had no idea that she would react like this. Hell, she Fucking forgot about last night then almost exploded in panic when she managed to hear me and ma talking through our link.” Sinking into the matching chair with my head buried in my hands, defeated and confused, questioning everything I always held firm in conviction.

“What happened last night?” Several angry snarls roared through our links as Elicia sat upright, staring at Randi with a stony expression.

RUNAWAY!