Page 41 of The Healer

She gasped. “But…how’s that possible? Lions don’t roam these lands.”

“Over the centuries, shifters migrated to safe harbors, so to speak. Now we’re a mismatch of species, our genes blurring. The odds of all your cubs shifting into the same animal have more to do with luck than anything else.” Jake grinned. “But my genes are dominant. All my cubs are lions.”

“Does the purity of those genes matter? I assume, as an alpha, your polar bear must be strong.”

Dane beamed, rubbing his chest like she’d complimented him.

She pushed through the swinging doors, heading for the faint voices in conversation.

He shrugged. “Works the same as humans, Doc. In a family of brown eyes, a kid with blue eyes is born.”

She pursed her lips, surprised at his insight. With a sigh, she nudged the consulting room door open. Two boys sat on the bed scrapping and swinging punches even as they nursed their injured arms.

With no overprotective furrowing of their brows, two women chatted, their shoulders relaxed. When Dane squeezed past Ilona into the room, they unfolded their arms, sharing smiles in greeting—neither were flirtatious.

“All right, who do we have here?” Ilona paused in front of the fighting boys.

In torn jeans, grubby shirts, dirty fingernails, and their hair standing on end, they were the poster image of rambunctious boys.

“I’m Cammy.” The blond raised his gaze to meet hers, nudging the brown-haired boy beside him.

“I’m Jonny.” He waved with his good hand.

“So, what happened?” She smiled to soften the question.

They snuck glances at each other. Barely suppressed laughter brightened their eyes and split their cheeks with mischievous grins. When neither explained, Ilona couldn’t help but smother a smile. They must have been doing something they weren’t supposed to.

“We’ve broken bones before. This time, Mommy noticed.” Cammy rolled his eyes. “She damn near lost her shit.”

“Language.” A woman behind Ilona grumbled something, and Cammy stilled his fidgeting.

“Who’s first?” Ilona schooled her features into a stoic expression, hoping she appeared professional behind her chuckling.

“Me.” Cammy offered a cheeky smile and held out his arm, not bothering to suppress a wince.

“Let me see.” To assess the damage, she clasped his arm with a gentle touch.

It had begun to heal. Yellow and green bruises along his ulnaris and minimi muscles didn’t prove he had broken his radius or ulna. She assessed Jonny’s arm, which had similar bruising, almost like they had clamped their left arms in a vise.

“X-rays?” She arched a brow at Dane.

In a small town, she wasn’t sure what technology was available. At Amity, the best and latest machines and techniques helped her treat the sick and injured children in her care. Then again, despite having all the equipment and knowledge at her disposal, she couldn’t save her father.

“We used to have an old one tucked in the storeroom.” Dane gestured down the passage. “It died.”

She grimaced. No X-rays meant assuming the worst. There was a high probability they weren’t compound fractures as evidenced by no bones piercing the skin, but that wasn’t a definitive diagnosis. Shit, all she could do was prescribe orthopedic arm guards. No X-rays worried her. She needed to see how the bones had broken, to ensure they would heal aligned.

Facing the mothers, she plastered on a polite smile. “Any idea what caused this?”

One blonde shook her head. She peeked around Ilona at Cammy. “Knowing him, he launched himself from tree to tree believing he could fly.”

The other mother nodded. “That was the cause last time, but we only found out afterward.” She wrung her hands. “We’re shifters, and if our alpha trusts you…” She thrust out a hand. “I’m Denise, Jonny’s mother.”

The blonde woman blushed. “Sorry, I must have left my manners in the other truck. I’m Beth Dunn, Cammy’s mom.”

“Dunn?” Ilona flicked a glance at Jake hovering in the doorway.

“Guilty.” He grinned. “Beth’s my mate, and Cameron’s my youngest cub.”

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