Slag: Book Four in the Galaxy Pirates Alien Abduction Romance Series (Shifter) Alana Khan (love letters to the dead .txt) 📖

we enter the castle, I try to pay attention as we follow a servant down so many long halls and corridors I get lost.

“Well, let’s see the creature. I’ve paid the equivalent of an entire year’s tribute from the planet’s largest country for him. You did say it’s a male, correct.”

“Yes.”

“I’ll have to get him neutered right away. I hear the males can get vicious.”

Did my translater get that right? Neutered? Right away?

“Oh, my lord, that might not be a good idea. I hear it’s the neutered males who get vicious,” Thantose intervenes.

“No. I’m paying five million credits for this little ball of fur. I’ve done my research.”

I’m willing to do a lot to pay Thantose back for his hospitality, but this, this is too much!

When Thantose reaches into the carrier, I have a mind to bite him, but don’t. I’m plopped onto the king’s desk and inspected.

“You outdid yourself this time,” the king’s voice sounds pleased. “Perfect markings.”

Of course, they’re perfect markings. I studied every available vid!

He lifts my tails and remarks, “Yes, we’ll have to do something about these,” as he squeezes my balls. I squeal with pain and indignation as I try to escape his grasp.

Fucker! I find I like this Earther curse word as much as Thantose does.

“We must have read different articles,” Thantose insists. “I read in ten different places how this species gets aggressive after neutering.”

“I’ll look it up again, but I’m sure I’m right.” He releases my aching balls and gives my head a pat. “I’m going to introduce him to my daughter and unless she’s unhappy with her present, I’ll transfer your credits.”

I sit obediently on the desk, hoping the girl hates me and we can leave. When the princess arrives, she runs to me, picks me up, and presses me against her chest.

“You got me a dreambaby!” Then she inspects me more closely. “I wanted one with more purple than blue. This one has more blue than purple,” she whines as she drops me to the floor. It’s a good thing this species has good reflexes. I land on my feet.

“Honey. This nice man got your dreambaby at much personal sacrifice and brought him across the galaxy for you.”

Not to mention the king’s personal sacrifice—five million credits worth.

“He’s not as cute as the pictures.”

Glancing up, I see her decidedly plain face squinching in a not-adorable pout.

Being a team player, I sit up straighter, wrap my tail around myself, and try to look cuter.

“See, darling? He’s going to make you a wonderful companion.”

“Hmph. Okay.” She picks me up by the scruff of the neck and we leave Thantose and the king behind.

I’m sure a real dreambaby would be scratching Veryl by now in an effort to escape her rough grip, but I try to nestle against her to make myself more comfortable.

“I suppose,” she says, “he’s going to want me to feed you, or clean up after you. I’ll just get my personal maid to do it.”

Although my neck is screaming in pain and I’m dangling from her grip, I try to get a sense of the layout of this huge structure.

On To’mah we lived in small wooden structures that kept out the rain and the wind. At first, when Thantose showed me pictures and schematics of the castle that could easily accommodate everyone in my village, I thought he was joking. I studied what he showed me, but it looks different as Veryl strides angrily through the hallways.

“You’re going to love me,” she orders. “That’s why I wanted a dreambaby. If you don’t, I’ll punish you.”

Punish?

We enter her room through an arched wooden doorway, she slams it, then tosses me onto her bed.

When I agreed to this caper, I thought it would be easy—lounge around all day, move through the castle without interference, and carry a few trinkets in my mouth to the appointed drop-off location.

KJ said it would be a ‘piece of cake’. Maybe that phrase means ‘awkward and uncomfortable’, because I can’t wait for this to be over.

“Come here,” she orders from the other side of the enormous bed.

This animal isn’t an advanced sentient, nor have I been trained to respond to commands yet. If I come to her, that might tip her off to the fact that something’s wrong with her pet. If I don’t come to her, though, she’ll punish me.

I get up, stretch, and wander over to her. Slow enough for it to seem like natural pet behavior. Fast enough to avoid punishment.

“Good boy! I’m going to dress you up!”

I was filthy and almost naked for a decade. Perhaps this will be fun.

~.~

A long time later, I’m practically suffocating under the covers where the princess has forced me. Evidently, her father had promised her a dreambaby for a long time, because he had already bought her dozens of outfits for her new pet.

She has pulled me into every outfit, pulling my shoulders and hips out of joint in the process. Right now, I’m in red fur pants and jacket. Between the clothes and the heavy bed covers, I can barely breathe.

I’ve been pushed, pulled, and prodded the entire afternoon. I’ll have to dredge up the energy later today to steal a few things on the list and hide them in a kitchen cupboard where KJ knows to pick them up.

Veryl locks me in her room when she goes to dinner, but I shift to open the door, shift back, and go into hunting mode. While everyone is eating, I make three trips to the kitchen, stashing three trinkets from the top of Thantose’s list in the bottom cupboard of the pantry.

The door to my room is still open when I arrive back, so I sneak in, kick the door closed and jump onto