“I’ll see you settled; otherwise, I’ll become useless. I’m barely keeping my dragon under control as it is. I need to protect my mate if I want to protect my clan.” He glanced to Liam and Tristan. “You two should understand that sentiment.”
Her heart warmed at his fierceness. “Then we’ll do whatever is necessary to get your dragon under control so you can return as soon as possible.”
Keeping one arm around her waist, he turned to face the others in the room. “I’ll be in constant contact with Kai, Tristan, and Finlay Stewart, monitoring the situation from my secret location. Thanks to technology, I’ll still be available to the clan.”
Arabella frowned. “Why include the Scottish leader? You barely know him.”
“He’s offered to help and I took him up on his offer.” Tristan, Liam, and Melanie all spoke at once, but Bram merely put up a hand and they fell silent. He continued, “The reasons are my own. While I’m getting Evie settled, I want all of you to be on alert. Our prisoner also told us how the hunters are targeting children, in addition to Evie.”
Evie jumped in. “If that’s the case, then I might know what the Carlisle gang is up to.” After explaining her theory about Simon Bourne making his own blood farm, she added, “Once I have the chance, I’ll reach out to my friend who knows more about dragon-shifters than just about anyone alive. She might have contacts in Carlisle who can help us.”
Bram nodded. “I have contacts, too. Since a clever man wouldn’t hide dragon-shifters in the city, I reckon they’ll keep Murray and any others in the surrounding countryside. We’ll find the lad and bring him back once we have a concrete plan. There no bloody way I’ll allow them to keep the wee one.” He looked to Tristan, then Liam and back again. “All of you should stay together here to protect Annabel, Jack, and Rhys. I know it might be a bit crowded, but the more adults here to watch the children, the smaller the chance they’ll be stolen.” Once Liam and Tristan nodded, he spoke to Arabella. “I know this is a lot of people for you in one place, but I want you to stay here, too. You can trust everyone in this room. They will look out for you and protect you, if it comes to that. You have nothing to worry about.”
The dragonwoman’s lips pressed together before she replied, “I understand.”
“Right, with all of that settled, I need to take Evie to the safe location. The longer we linger, the greater the chance they’ll try to take her.”
Bram pressed against her back, but she put out an arm to stop him. “Wait.” Looking to Melanie, she asked, “May I take the laptop with me? I’ll find a way to share the information with everyone, but if I’m going to be spending a lot of time locked away, I can use that time to dig through the data and look for something useful.”
Mel nodded. “Sure. Ara always keeps a back-up one here anyway, so we can use that if we need it.”
Taking the laptop back from Liam, she nodded at Bram that she was ready.
As he guided her toward the back door, she felt a tiny bit of reluctance. Staying alive was top priority, but she was growing fond of her new friends. It was going to be hard to be alone once Bram left her to take care of his clan.
Not that she would ever try to stop him from doing that. Still, she wondered where the secret location he’d mentioned was and exactly how they were going to get there. It wasn’t as if she could shift into a dragon and fly beside her dragonman.
~~~
The second they were outside the cottage, Bram’s dragon finally broke free inside his mind and roared. Protect her. Hold her. Don’t let the hunters find her.
I’m trying.
Now, do it now or I’ll make you do it.
STOP. If you take control, you might hurt her.
Never.
“Bram? Are you okay?”
Evie’s voice broke through his thoughts. The split-second distraction allowed him to stash his beast to the back of his mind again. “It’s my dragon. I don’t know how much longer I can keep him back. His usual restraint and logical brain are gone.”
“What can I do to help? Anything?”
He pushed gently against her lower back. “Just keep walking and talking. I’ll have to let him out to shift into my dragon form, so I just need to contain him until we reach the takeoff area.”
“We’re traveling by dragon? How? I somehow doubt you have a saddle or harness I can just strap on and ride you like a giant, flying horse.”
Despite everything going on, he smiled. “Even if I did, I don’t think I’d trust you with the reins.”
She slapped his chest with the back of her hand. “Be serious and tell me.”
His dragon was trying to force his way out again. He grit his teeth and said, “While carrying a dragon-shifter in human-form is rare, it does happen. Especially when a dragonman or woman is injured. We have a large basket with handles to carry them. You’ll step into the basket and I’ll pick you up with my talons once I’m in the air.”
“A basket? You mean like the ones used for a hot air balloon?”
Clever lass. “Yes, it’s very similar. I hope you’re not afraid of heights because this is the fastest way for me to take you to safety.”