Free Slade by Bianca D'Arc

moved to leave her, but she grabbed his arm.
    “I don’t think so. What are you going to do when you find them? There’s a buildup of energy in that house. Whoever is inside is up to something and it’s happening as we speak. Strong as you are, I don’t think you should try to handle it alone. I need to go with you. You need more magic than you have on your own.”
    Slade seemed to think about it, then gave in with a frustrated sigh.
    “You do exactly what I say, when I say it. Got me?” His tone was gruff but his eyes spoke of his apprehension. He was worri ed about her. It was touching, really.
    “I got you, partner,” she answered softly, warmed by his concern.

    They made their way with cautious steps through the magical minefield of the side yard, approaching from the neighbor’s overgrown property. There were lots of bushy things that were casting long shadows as the sun sank, leaving the world painted in orange, red and purple. And shadows. Lots and lots of shadows.
    Slade showed her how to slink from one shadow to the next, blending with them. She’d never be as good at stealth as he was, but with his patient guidance, she was a lot better than she would have expected.
    They had to stop several times while she defused magical traps. She was able to call on the powerful earth energy that lay, unsettled, far beneath the ground. It didn’t like the darkness that spread like a stain over its surface from the house. It readily rose to her lightest touch and smothered the nasty surprises the dark mage who lived within had left for the unwary.
    And the benefit of having the earth on their side was that it was vastly more powerful than either of them. It could also nullify the darkness, absorbing it and dispersing it, without anyone the wiser. Those inside the house wouldn’t know their traps had been destroyed until it was too late.
    The telltales on the darkly pulsing shields that surrounded the place were another matter. Kate had to deal with them using her own personal energy , and it was draining. She handled the first set, but there were others. Stronger ones, the closer they drew to the house.
    She was breathing hard by the time they’d gone through three sets and there were still three more to go. She felt panic rise inside her chest.
    “You okay?” Slade bent close to whisper in her ear as they crouched in the shadows behind a palm.
    “The shields,” she panted. “They take a lot out of me.”
    “Aw, kitten,” Slade touched her cheek, their eyes meeting. “Why didn’t you say so?”
    He bent his lips to hers and kissed her lightly. The kiss brought with it a flood of power, flowing from him into her, magical energy freely given and so desperately needed. He hadn’t had to kiss her to accomplish the transfer of power, but she didn’t mind. She liked the way he kissed and she wanted to experience more—as soon as they dealt with whoever was inside that house.
    He drew back and she had to stop herself from following, begging for more of his touch, his taste, his power. She felt full of life and raring to go once more. She looked him over, searching to see if he had suffered for giving her so much energy, but he looked fine. Shifters had vast stores of magic within them, she knew, though she’d never been the recipient of an infusion of their wild energy before.
    For that matter, she didn’t think most shifters would be able to do what Slade had just done. He was so much more intensely magical than any of the other shifters she’d known. He had skills and abilities that the other were didn’t even seem to be aware of. He was a mystery… and a paradox… and one of the sexiest men she’d ever known.
    “Better ?” His grin was temptation itself. Even in the midst of the most dangerous thing she’d ever done, he had the ability to blow her mind.
    “Much. Thanks. We can go now.” She had to get her mind back on their task. Slade was just too distracting.
    “Not yet,” he cautioned,