Page 8 of Protector Dragon's Shattered Mate

Levi

Levi sat back on the ground, which was convenient since he wasn’t sure his legs would hold him up.

His heart had nearly stopped when the bear had taken off running. He was afraid she’d get lost and they’d never see her again. And then when he realized Kellan’s youngest child had found her… for a moment he was paralyzed. He tried to remind himself that McKenna was a dragon shifter, and that she couldn’t be killed by the bear. But that didn’t mean the bear couldn’t attack her. And if the bear harmed Kellan’s daughter in any way, then Levi knew Kellan would react strongly. That was understandable. But Levi wanted to do everything in his power to prevent that from happening.

Well. Because if Kellan attacked Sofia… Levi would have to step in. But hopefully it would never come to that.

He needed to call Nora. She was a powerful witch who lived in Ireland. She was mated to a dragon shifter who was a university professor, and every year they hosted a festival around Halloween that lasted a full week, as a way for all the shifters they knew to bond. Shifters came from all over the world.

She and Kellan, and his three brothers had been close for many years, and she was always willing to help any shifter or magic user who was in need. Levi himself had met her a few months before when they’d flown to South America to help a group of witches and wizards who’d been trapped on a cursed island.

So, surely, she would have some idea of what to do. She’d gained the reputation of mentor to Kellan’s clan, and she insisted that she always wanted to help. He felt like he needed to ask Kellan before he called her though, just to make sure. And he needed to check on McKenna.

He leaned forward. “I’m going to go into the house for about twenty minutes. Please stay here, okay?” He pointed at the fence in the distance. “If you leave, I can’t protect you.”

He had no idea if she understood what he was saying, and he wanted to sink his hands into her soft fur, just as McKenna had done, but he resisted.

His stomach churned, and even his dragon was on edge, which had never happened to him before, not even once. He had todosomething. He always had tools to help suffering animals, whether they were hurt or just scared.

She’s not an animal.

But it didn’t matter. Someone should be able to help. Fellow shifters, healers, magicians. But knowing where to start was nearly impossible, without knowing what was wrong.

He made his way back to the mansion and found Kellan on the back patio, grilling.

“Kellen, how’s McKenna?”

“She’s fine. I didn’t mean to come running out there yelling, but I just didn’t know what McKenna might do. She’s the baby and the most fearless of the group. And she loves animals. Most of our family are dragons, and we have a few wolves, but getting to meet a bear really excited her.”

“Well, I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. I’m always cautious because anyone can have magic, or anyone can have an enchanted dagger, no matter what they look like. As you know, our extended clan has fought aliens, evil witches and wizards, Fae, and demons. We’ve even had humans attack our house.”

“Humans?”

“Yes. It was years ago, but they burst right into my living room. They were after Quinn’s mate.” He shook his head. “McKenna is quite excited about our adventure. She had to call her mother and her aunts and her cousins who are on their grand college tour. She was pretty indignant to be left out, but getting to pet the bear has made up for it.” He cracked his neck. “How is the shifter?”

“Iknowshe’s a shifter. I can feel it.” Levi considered telling Kellen about the photograph image he had received in his mind but decided he might sound crazy. “But she shows no signs of understanding me, or any of us. We can’t leave her out there indefinitely. She’ll eventually get hungry and one of your cows could be a victim,” Levi said. “There’s something else I wanted to ask you. Do you think it would be okay if I call Nora? I know everyone thinks of her as the first resource available, and I don’t want to wear out my welcome.”

“I appreciate you thinking about her. But the truth is she would be quite irritated with me if I told you no. She says she knows how to say no by herself. We all get protective of her because of her past, but she knows what she’s doing. So yes, call her.”

“Thank you,” Levi said.

The brothers werein the kitchen making dinner. Even though Kellan and his mate lived in this house with their hatchlings, now that the other three brothers had moved out to the surrounding land, they were always in Kellan’s mansion. And that’s how they liked it.

Liam caught sight of Levi. “How’s the bear?”

“The same. I’m going to call Nora.”

“That’s a good idea. Do you want to join us for dinner?”

“No, I’d better get back to her. She’s so skittish,” Levi said.

“Right. Kellan said that she was afraid of McKenna.”

“Yes. she was.”

Helpless wasn’t a feeling he was accustomed to. As a large-animal vet, he was used to having solutions. He might not always be able to fix every problem, but he had a wide array of methods that he would try. This shifter’s dilemma had him out of his element.

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