Adam's Pulse

Part 16

“Threaten my mate again, and I’ll kill you,” Zeke snarled in her face.

Blinking, Sloan knew she should have been afraid, but all she could think of was getting to Drew, to doing whatever the man needed her to do. 

“Zeke,” a soft voice whispered.  “She’s not thinking.  Come on, Zeke.  Let me touch her.”

“She tried to hit you.”

The soft voice turned into a touch, and all of the fear that Sloan knew she should have been feeling earlier hit her at once.  Her eyes widened as Zeke hovered above her.  His eyes were a little too bright, and his lips were curled back to show teeth that were too sharp to be human.  “I’m sorry,” Sloan whispered.  “I didn’t know it was her.”

Charlie smiled at Sloan from over Zeke’s shoulder even as she held onto Sloan’s arm.  “It’s okay.  He’s just a little protective right now.”  Charlie tugged on Zeke with her other hand until the man finally rolled off Sloan with a deep sigh.

“This is horrible,” he groaned from his spot on the floor.

When laughter echoed through the room, Sloan glanced over at Sebastian with shock.  “Now you know how I felt.  Every little piece of dirt feels like a threat.”

Charlie tugged on Sloan’s arm, bringing her attention away from Ally’s fiancé and towards her.  “Come on, let me help you up, but unless you want a repeat of what just happened, I’d advise you keep touching me.”

Licking her lips in nervousness, Sloan allowed Charlie to help her to her feet.  “I won’t let go,” she promised as her eyes turned towards Drew.  To her relief, she felt nothing but kinship towards the man, even when he sent her his most charming smile.  “What was that?”

“That was Zeke threatening you for swinging at his pregnant mate,” a man behind Ally said. 

Sloan squinted towards him, trying to make out his features, and when he took a step further into the room, she wished he hadn’t.  The look in his eyes made her want to run.  After everything that had happened that night, nothing had scared her as bad as the completely blank eyes that stared back at her. 

“Barron,” Ally snapped.  “Leave her be.”

The man Sloan now knew as Barron turned towards Ally.  He opened his mouth as if to argue, but instead a caring expression flew onto his face.  Sloan had to blink a couple of times to see if what she was seeing was real, but as the man reached towards Ally with such carefulness, Sloan had to wonder if they weren’t related.  There was no other explanation.  Barron didn’t look towards Ally as if she were someone he wanted to be with, but more as if she was someone he cared for deeply, a sister.

“Barron,” Sebastian mumbled under his breath.  “What is she hiding?”

Ally’s eyes snapped towards Sebastian and narrowed, even as Seb took Noah from her arms.  Barron reached out, putting both hands on the side of Ally’s head, and when the woman made a move to struggle, Zeke bounded towards them. 

“Not hurting her,” Barron growled as Zeke reached towards the man as if he were going to rip them apart. 

Zeke froze, watching as a pained expression flashed on Ally’s face before disappearing.  When Barron dropped his hands from Ally, he smiled at everyone in the room before reaching up and wiping the blood running from his nose.  Sloan shivered as the smile reached her.  It wasn’t friendly, if anything it made her want to run even more.  “All better,” Barron said with a wink.

Sloan took a step back, but didn’t get too far as Charlie stood her ground. “Don’t let him frighten you,” Charlie said.  “The man wouldn’t do anything to displease Ally, and at this moment, it means that he can’t kill you or me.”