Craved by the Dragon

by Jessie Donovan

  I can control myself. The pull to claim her is faint compared to before. I want her, but I would never force us on her.

  I'm not risking it, dragon.

  Although he hated to contain his beast, Adrian quickly constructed a mental prison and tossed him inside.

  Turning away from Elsie, he looked to Jane. "Let's go."

  He followed her lead. He hoped she would leave him alone, but she asked, "How do you know her?"

  "That's a long story for another time."

  "Maybe one day you'll trust me enough to tell me."

  Jane picked up her pace and they walked the rest of the way in silence.

  It should've given him the perfect time to come up with a plan, but the image of present-day Elsie kept flashing inside his mind.

  Given what had happened between them, he never would've expected her to become a DDA inspector. He yearned to find out the reason, but knew that would be unwise.

  The best thing he could do was lay low until he could go back to Northcastle and put the Irish Sea between them once more.

  Chapter Eleven

  Fire raced through Brenna's body and her eyes popped open as she gasped. A familiar, stern voice filled the room—Dr. Sid's. "Brenna, who's in control?"

  Her dragon roared and spoke aloud. "I am. Where is he? I want Killian. He is mine to claim."

  Sid cursed and Brenna tried to take control of her mind. However, her dragon must've constructed some sort of invisible prison because her hands came across a barrier that refused to budge. Let me out.

  No. You'll let him get away.

  Sid's voice cut off her reply. "Sorry about this, Brenna. But it's the only choice."

  Something pricked her arm. Her dragon tried to sit up, but something restrained their body.

  With each second that passed by, her dragon's strength waned a little more. When her dragon fell completely silent, Brenna tried pressing against the former barrier and her hands moved freely. After briefly checking on her snoring dragon, she took control of her body once more and looked at Sid. "Thank you."

  "I prefer not to drug dragons into silence. Sorry I couldn't ask your permission beforehand."

  Brenna knew that since Sid's dragon had been overdosed into silence for more than twenty years, she was always careful when it came to using drugs.

  She replied, "It's okay, Sid. It had to be done." She raised a hand to her forehead. "Although I have an awful headache now."

  "You're a little dehydrated, but we'll fix that. Are you well enough to tell me what happened? While I received a secondhand report, you might have details they missed."

  At Sid's question, Brenna glanced about the room. "Where's Killian? They didn't send him back to Ireland, did they?"

  Studying her, Sid shook her head. "No, he's with Kai and Bram right now. What happened? By all accounts, this wasn't your first kiss with him. So why did the frenzy erupt now? A few dragons can hide the pull from their human halves, but you've always been open with yours."

  Her first impulse was to ask her dragon, but the sleeping form in her head reminded her it would be a day or two before her other half would be awake again.

  She tried to sit up, but the leather restraints dug into her skin. Sid added, "They'll come off soon. I want to ensure your dragon is out for a while. Now, answer my question."

  Sighing, Brenna looked to the ceiling. "I'm not sure. I've kissed him a few times. The only difference is the baby dragon is with him now." She met Sid's gaze. "Could that be the cause?"

  "Possibly. Dragons don't place much stock in memories, but a dragon-shifter without their dragon half is an incomplete person. It's likely that your dragon only recognized him as your mate once the dragon returned."

  She frowned. "But how is that possible? I never felt the pull in the months I worked with him before he had amnesia."

  After jotting a few things down on the clipboard in her hand, Sid said, "Female dragons don't always notice a true mate until after a kiss. It's entirely possible the mate-claim frenzy pull would've started if he'd kissed you back then."

  Dr. Gregor Innes, Sid's mate and a former Lochguard doctor, waltzed into the room and said, "Or, maybe not. Judging by Dr. Silver's notes from Killian's time on Northcastle, the wee dragon is described as blue with white patches. Killian had been a blue dragon before. Maybe a new dragon personality has emerged."

  Sid jumped in. "Unless it split, as we discussed earlier."

  Brenna looked at each of them. "What are you talking about?"

  Gregor turned to face her. "It's just a guess, but I think the shadow dragon and the baby dragon form a whole, and together they comprise Killian's former dragon. Whatever drug was used on Killian could've split them into two. One of which holds his memories and the main thrust of his dragon's animal-like personality, and another that's more innocent and placid. Their goal might be to find a way to banish the more instinctual half and be left with the innocent side. A less angry and instinctual dragon makes for an easier catch."

  "To harvest their blood," Sid added. "Although I'm not sure if it's the dragon hunters, Knights, or a new foe entirely. Dragon's blood on the black market is sold for small fortunes. An enterprising person could be trying their own hand at it. Although I suspect the person experimenting on dragons isn't fully aware of Killian's case, or they would be kidnapping more dragon-shifters to use as test subjects."

  Despite everything going on, Brenna's mind put it all together. "If whoever did this finds out that it doesn't kill a dragon completely and successfully changed their personality, it won't be good. If enough dragons are kidnapped, then it could bring about one or more wars, especially if the DDA doesn't intervene as it should."

  "Aye, that's possible," Gregor stated. "But let us and Kai worry about that. The question is what do you want to do about your current situation, Brenna? Repeatedly drugging your dragon into silence may end up hurting you both in the long run. Sending Killian away may be best, especially if it's to Lochguard so I can go and easily study him."

  Sid crossed her arms. "Don't let Gregor's suggestion sway you one way or the other. This is your choice, Brenna. I can continue to administer drugs if you request it, but there are cases when either the dragon becomes slightly insane or gets so angry that your relationship will be rocky for years to come. Gregor's suggestion is the second option. The third is to have the frenzy. You need to make the decision soon, too. Otherwise, Bram may end up making it for you."

  Going through the frenzy would be the easiest choice. She wouldn't have to give up Killian and her dragon would be pleased.

  But having a child simply because it was easy for everyone else wasn't a good decision. Brenna was twenty-one and wanted to continue being a Protector. If Killian was sent away or, in a worst-case scenario, died, then she'd be on her own. A single mother would have a hard time remaining a Protector.

  Unless she asked her parents for help. Her mother would enjoy that moment, she was sure.

  Gregor cleared his throat. "You have a day or two to think about everything. I'll ensure Bram waits that long for an answer."

  Sid drawled, "Because Bram listens to you so well."

  "On medical matters, I can make him listen, Cassidy."

  Shaking her head, Sid focused back on Brenna. "Now that you have the facts, I should let your parents in."

  Her stomach dropped. "They're here?"

  "Of course. They've been waiting since word reached them about you being brought to the surgery."

  A part of her wanted to keep them away, but with everything going on between her and Killian, not to mention the looming frenzy and the unnatural silence of her beast, she needed to sort out matters with her parents. It would be one less thing to fret over.

  Besides, she could do with hearing her dad's advice. "Show them in. The sooner I get this over with, the sooner I can think about what to do regarding Killian."

  Sid gestured at Gregor and he exited the room. Sid didn't waste time in removing the straps around Brenna's body
as she said, "I can't fully disclose anything, but listen to what your parents have to say, Brenna. That's all I ask."

  She barely resisted frowning at Sid's words when the door opened. Gregor ushered in Brenna's mum and dad.

  Her mother, Sharon, came in first. While her blonde hair and brown eyes were the same, there was one major difference—she had to be eight or nine months pregnant.

  Brenna opened her mouth, but her father, Gabriele, spoke up in his accented English. "We'll answer your questions in time, cara." Her father closed the distance to her bed and gently cupped her cheek. "Are you okay? The doctors have been vague about what's wrong with you."

  She finally tore her gaze away from her pregnant mother and met her father's kind eyes. She'd never lied to her dad and she wasn't about to start now. "I kissed a male and it started the frenzy."

  "And yet you look unhappy. Why?"

  A small part of her wanted to fall into her father's arms and cry. But she refused to show weakness in front of her mother, so she slowly sat up and answered, "It's complicated. The short version is that the male who started it lost his memory and only recently regained his dragon." Her father's brows furrowed, but Brenna hurriedly asked her mother, "Why didn't you tell me you were pregnant?"

  Sharon Rossi placed her hands over her protruding belly. "Since I wasn't supposed to be able to have any more children, it was a surprise and high-risk. I didn't want you to worry."

  "I'm not a child anymore, Mum. You should've told me."

  Her mother smiled sadly. "But you are barely an adult, Brenna. And I didn't want you thinking I was trying to replace you."

  As she tried to think of how to reply to that, her father spoke up. "Please no fighting right now. We came back to Stonefire to be closer to you, Brenna. Your brother should know his sister."

  "Brother?" she echoed.

  Her father stood tall. "Yes, I will finally have an ally."

  She couldn't help but smile. "You will outnumber Mum this time around, Papa. After all, I won't be there."

  "But I hope you will come around often," her father said softly.

  Bram must not have told her parents about wanting to stay in Ireland. Although given recent events, Brenna wasn't entirely sure what she was going to do in the future.

  However, as she looked at her mother again, she decided to be nicer to her. It was almost a miracle her mother had carried a baby to term; her parents had gone through several miscarriages after Brenna was born and had eventually stopped for her mother's health. No matter their rocky past, Brenna wasn't going to be the cause of any distress.

  Although the fact she was about to have a brother twenty-one years younger than her would be strange. Not only that, if she went through the frenzy, her child and their uncle would be almost the same age.

  The frenzy. She'd almost forgotten about her own complicated life.

  Dr. Sid peeked into the room. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but Bram wants to talk to you in about thirty minutes. Since I have some more tests to do, Sharon and Gabriele, you have about five more minutes with your daughter."

  Her father bobbed his head. "Of course, Dr. Sid." He moved his gaze back to Brenna. "That should be just about enough time to tell us what is so complicated, cara."

  From experience, she knew that trying to deny her father an explanation was pointless. While Gabriele Rossi was the kinder, more patient of her parents, he held a hidden core of steel. He might even do something foolish such as try to bar Bram from the room until Brenna explained her situation.

  Sighing, she explained events from her time on Glenlough to the present as best she could. When she finished, her father asked, "And what do you want to do, Brenna?"

  "I don't know. One decision can change my life in so many ways."

  Patting her hand, her father said, "Whatever you decide, we will be here to help you."

  She glanced between her parents. "You're not going back to Clan LupoForesta?"

  Clan LupoForesta was one of the Italian dragon clans, located in the Abruzzo, Lazio e Molise National Park not far from Rome.

  Her father shook his head. "No. LupoForesta sees Stonefire in a negative light now, after what happened with Aaron Caruso and his mother." Aaron had been kicked out of the clan and his mother had followed him. "But your mother and I knew we wanted our second child born here, near his sister. So, we will stay here."

  Brenna glanced at her mum. The years of reliving the arguments with her mother, about Brenna not being strong enough to be a Protector, seemed to fade away as she took in her mother's pale face and dark circles under her eyes.

  Killian's condition had taught her a few things about living in the moment and she wasn't about to waste what time she had with her family, especially over something that could be seen as a mother merely being protective of her only child.

  Raising her hand, her mother came and took it. "We should talk more later."

  Her mother smiled. "I'd like that. If you need to talk with someone about the frenzy, feel free to come find me.”

  "Thanks, but I think talking with Killian will help."

  Her mother squeezed her hand. "Once I have your brother and regain my strength, I'll help you any way that I can, Brenna. I'm sorry for not believing in you earlier. I was just afraid that I'd lose my only child."

  "I somehow understand that now." Dr. Sid popped her head in the doorway, signaling it was time for her parents to leave. Brenna quickly added, "Go rest. I need to talk to my mate and figure out what to do next."

  As her parents said their goodbyes and left, Brenna wanted nothing more than to talk with her dragon about her parents' return. The silence inside her head reminded her of why she was lying in a hospital bed to begin with.

  The only question is whether she wanted to allow her dragon to come back and go through the frenzy, or continue to drug her for months until the mate-claim frenzy faded.

  Maybe talking with Killian would make the decision easier.

  ~~~

  Killian O'Shea followed Stonefire's head Protector into a cottage. Neither one spoke as they moved down the corridor to an open doorway, where Stonefire's leader, Bram Moore-Llewellyn, sat at a desk. The dark-haired male motioned toward the two chairs in front of his desk. "Sit."

  While he may have been able to get away with acts of defiance back in Ireland, he was completely at the English dragon-shifter's mercy. Pissing him off wasn't an option, especially since it could mean never seeing Brenna again as a result.

  His dragon spoke up. Then be nice.

  Bram prevented Killian from replying to his beast. "It seems the Glenlough dragons are out to make my life difficult through stealing my clan members."

  Killian frowned. "What are you talking about?"

  "Your sister took one of my Protectors, and now her brother is trying to do the same."

  "I didn't—"

  Bram raised a hand. "I know. It's called teasing. You'd better get used to it."

  Killian's dragon spoke up. Maybe he's not so scary.

  In my experience, the nicest ones at the beginning can turn out to be the most protective later on.

  And how do you know that?

  I'm not sure. I just do.

  He barely had a second to wonder if some of his memories were coming back before Bram's voice filled the room again. "Look, I'll be honest—if it were solely up to me, I'd send you back home and keep you far away from Brenna. But Teagan says Brenna fancies you, so I'm going to give you a chance. However, with the Northcastle bloke fighting his own mate-claim frenzy pull with the human female, I have a lot going on and am going to place you into Tristan MacLeod's hands. You'll be staying with his family."

  He frowned. "The teacher?"

  "Aye, and he's going to help you. I can't risk your newfound dragon throwing a tantrum or going rogue. Tristan will ensure that you can get a grip on your inner beast. And before you think to overpower or trick Tristan and his mate, just know various Protectors are going to be watching you in shifts."

&nbs
p; "But what about Brenna? When can I see her?" Killian asked.

  Bram grunted. "I don't know. Possibly never, if she wills it."

  Leaning forward, Killian ignored his instincts and growled, "I'm her mate. You can't keep me from her."

  Raising his brows, Bram leaned back in his chair. "Can't I?"

  His dragon whispered, Don't make him angry. Be nice and he may let us see her again.

  Taking a deep breath, Killian let it out and tried again. "I want to see her for myself and make sure she's okay. Even if it's with a guard, it's better than nothing."

  After a few beats, Bram nodded. "I might arrange that, provided your lessons with Tristan go well."

  "And how am I supposed to concentrate while Brenna is suffering?"

  Bram studied him a second. "Your sister may be right about you fancying Brenna."

  Killian slapped a hand on the desk. "Of course I care for her. She's done more for me than anyone else. Why can't you believe that?"

  "You have no idea who you really are and don't trust yourself. So, how am I supposed to trust you?"

  Stonefire's leader was perceptive.

  Killian wanted to deny it, but Bram's observation was correct. "Because regardless of the mess I am, Brenna is the one good thing in my life right now. Hurting her is the last thing I want to do."

  Bram's pupils flashed. "I think I believe you. Still, you're going to Tristan's house and will stay there until you hear from me or one of my Protectors."

  From the dominance in Bram's voice, Killian could tell the leader wouldn't budge. So he asked, "Then just tell me if Brenna is okay or is she suffering?"

  Bram's gaze softened. "Sid will take care of her. Trust me on that."

  That wasn't much of an answer, but Killian had a feeling that was all he was going to get.

  He'd started to think he didn't care if his memories ever returned, but it seemed people would only trust him if they did.

  His dragon spoke up. We are fine the way we are. And as long as the shadow dragon stays away, we are safe.

  Wait, what are you talking about?