Saved By Her Dragon (9 page)

She could hear his distress and worked hard to focus. “It’s
them.” She pointed behind him at the two identical men, her voice
shaky with fear. “How are there
two
of them?”

Squeezing Devon’s hand as tight as she could, she added the
other; trying everything she could to anchor herself to him. He had
promised to protect her and she knew he meant it. Just about to beg
for that help, her words were cut off when the tiny blonde
shrieked, “Oh shit! It all makes sense now.”

She
moved around the older woman, stopping between the two men. Her
eyes were brighter than before, and she smiled a knowing smile.
“You,” she pointed to the man by the window.” Then swung around and
pointed at the other and said, “And you…are twins.”

The one she was facing said, “Yeah,
no
shit
. And…?”

“And, when we finished the ritual, I was just about to tell
y’all that I had sensed a crazy mixture of black magic, Earth
magic, and what I thought was dragon magic during the Cleansing.
But she screamed, we ran, and well...now...here we all are.” She
took a breath and continued her explanation, “I’m now
positive
it was that
stupid dickhead.” The tiny woman put her hands on her hips and
continued, her brow furrowed like she was deep in thought, “It
kinda felt like him, but it’s been a while since I’ve had a good
sense of his special brand of crazy and
never
when it was mixed with any Earth
magic but my own.” She spun around and spoke to the older woman,
“His dragon magic is seriously stronger than before.”

The mention of the guy the tiny woman had called ‘dickhead’
caused Devon to tense and every other male to growl in anger.
Apparently, there was a nasty history between her true abductor and
the nice people that were trying to help her. She wondered what he
had done to make them so mad and was just about to ask when the
petite blonde woman took a few more steps in her direction.
Stopping at the end of the bed, she grinned nervously, “I’m
so sorry
for blurting all
that out. You must think I’m a
fucking
loon.”

A
picture of her mom in the greenhouse behind the barn, the entire
back wall covered with bookshelves that overflowed with old books
and notebooks came to mind. Mom had called them her ‘Recipe and
Spell books’. She giggled and surprised even herself with her
response, “That’s okay, my mom was a witch. Well, not my birth mom,
but the woman who raised me. She did spells and made teas and
ointments for people who needed her help. It’s all good. I know
you’re not crazy. Besides, you have a beautiful light. You’re a
really good person.”

“Well,
thanks.” The petite witch’s smile lit up her whole face. “I’m Kyra,
and that’s my mate, Royce,” she pointed to the huge man with
extremely red hair.

Kyra’s
next words came out rushed. “So here’s the deal. These two are
twins.” She motioned to the two guys that had freaked her out just
moments ago. “And they have a little brother that’s bat shit crazy,
Andrew. He’s the one that I believe abducted you. Now, I know all
of this is hard to believe, but I want you to do two things for me
and I promise you’ll see that what I’m saying is the truth.
Cool?”

She
looked at Devon and he nodded his approval. She could feel him
lending her his strength and reassurance through their joined
hands. Figuring she had nothing to lose, she answered the only way
she could, “Sure, what do you need me to do?”

Kyra
motioned for Aaron to come towards her while she spoke, “I want you
to focus on Aaron and get a good read on his spirit. Can you do
that for me?”

She
nodded her head, looking right at him. His aura was brilliant. It
shone blue and red with bright white all around. There was
absolutely nothing malevolent about him. Looking at his twin, she
saw exactly the same colors, but with bits of green and yellow
added to the mix. The additional colors had to be from the gorgeous
brunette at his side. The love between them was evident and
something she longed for.

Looking back to Kyra, she smiled and said, “Their auras are
clean and bright. You’re right, they’re nothing like him. But the
resemblance is scary…
literally
.”

Kyra laughed, “Wow! You’re quick. Two at once–I’m impressed. I
can see where you’d think they look like their
younger
, demented
brother, but the more time you spend around these two, the
less they’ll look like the little shithead, I promise.” The petite
witch winked before speaking again. “Now, one more thing to
make
really
sure
and put all your fears to rest.”

The tiny
woman motioned for the twins to join her at the end of the bed
before she continued, “Do you remember the color of Andrew’s
eyes?”

She thought for just a second and took a deep breath to brace
herself, calling up the memory of her abductor. In a split second,
it all came rushing back…
the day she woke
up in the strange locked room with two young men and an older
woman. She pictured the man with little round glasses who brought
them food and clean clothes. He’d been somewhat kind when he
instructed them to get ready to meet their Master. The wait was
awful. The sudden sound of a key in the lock made her hands shake.
She, along with the other three, had collectively held their breath
as the one they all called Master O’Brien walked into the room. His
smile had been chilling and his eyes cold.
The scary recollection vanished and blessed reality
returned.
His eyes!
That’s it!
She screamed, “His eyes!
One is blue and one is the color of whiskey!” she pointed to the
men standing on either side of Kyra, “Yours are blue and yours are
whiskey!”

The
remaining tension in the room evaporated. Aaron visibly relaxed for
the first time since she had laid eyes on him and she immediately
felt bad for having freaked out. He turned to leave and she called
to him, “Aaron…?”

He
stopped, turned, and half-grinned. After a moment’s hesitation, he
took a step back. “Yes?”

She
tried to stand but her legs buckled, causing her to land in a heap
on Devon’s lap. “Take it easy, Sweetheart,” Devon said as his arms
steadied her.

When she looked back to Aaron, his hands were out ready to
catch her should she fall. It just further confirmed that he was
absolutely
nothing
like the man that had her kidnapped and held her against her
will. She smiled up at him. “Thank you so much. I guess a month in
bed makes for weak legs,” she chuckled and then met his eyes. “I
wanted to tell you how
very sorry
I am that I accused you of having anything to do
with what happened to me. It was
completely
my mistake.” She looked
away for just a second and when she looked back, he was grinning,
“I hope you won’t hold it against me.”

He shook his head and scoffed. “
Hell,
no
. Don’t think about it again. My little
brother’s an asshole. He seems to hurt everything he touches. I’m
just glad you’re gonna be okay and I promise you…he
will
pay for what he’s
done.” He looked over her shoulder and gave a quick nod before he
touched her shoulder and said, “Now, take care of yourself. Cause
Dev’s been a
real
pain in the ass while you were out.”

The room erupted in laughter as Aaron left, assuring her he
would see her later. From there it was a parade of faces and names
as she met everyone. Devon said they were all members of his
Force.
She had been so
busy trying to put names with faces that she had forgotten to ask
what that meant.

Nerves
almost got the best of her when she met Siobhan, Devon’s mother,
but the elderly woman was so gracious and welcoming, all her
insecurities simply melted away. “It is nice to meet you and I am
so glad you are feeling better. I heard the good doctor say you
should eat and get some rest. Kyndel has cooked up enough food for
an army and her cooking always makes me feel better. Would you like
me to have them bring you a plate?”

Her stomach growled before she could answer. Siobhan chuckled
and Devon barked a laugh as her cheeks warmed for about the
hundredth time.
At the rate I keep
embarrassing myself, I’m never gonna need makeup again.
His voice brought her out of her thoughts. “Would
you like to sit at the table or eat here in bed?”

She really wanted to get out of bed but knew she would hit the
floor if she tried to stand on her own. “I…” Her words were cut
short as Devon picked her up and carried her to the small table in
the corner of the room. He delicately placed her on the cushioned
chair, and then knelt before her. She sighed as just the tips of
his fingers touched her cheek. “Never hesitate to tell me what you
want or need,
a chumann,
your happiness means everything to me.”

Thankfully, Siobhan spared her from trying to speak past the
lump in her throat when the older woman returned with a tray
containing two heaping plates of food and two huge glasses of iced
tea. As she placed the tray on the table, she said, “I know I gave
you a lot but I wasn’t sure what you liked, so there is a bit of
everything. Just eat what you can. Don’t worry if you can’t eat
much, it has been a while since you had solid food. Whatever you
get down will help your strength return.”

“Thanks,
Mom, I’ll make sure she eats.” She looked up to find a lopsided
grin on his lips and a twinkle in his eye.

Everything looked and tasted delicious, but Siobhan had been
right; she was only able to eat small bites, and even those seemed
to take much longer than usual to swallow. Every time she paused,
Devon would give her a look that said ‘you
need to eat’,
which made her giggle
nervously
.
The tea
absolutely hit the spot. It was a blend of black and green tea and
she could taste herbs just like her mom used to blend. It became
increasingly obvious that she was much more thirsty than hungry.
When her glass was empty, Devon handed her his, saying, “Drink as
much as you like. I’ll go get us some more.”

Kyra and Siobhan entered the room with Devon close behind,
just as she was finishing his drink. He placed two fresh glasses of
tea on their table and grabbed two chairs from the corner for the
ladies. Once seated, Kyra spoke first, “I know you must be tired
but I wanted…I mean,
we
wanted,” she looked to Siobhan and then continued, “to talk to
you about your memory.”

When she
nodded for them to continue, it was Siobhan who spoke, “You said
your mother was a witch, correct?”

“Yes,
ma’am, she was.”

“And
from what you said, it sounds like she was an Earth witch, one that
specialized in healing. Does any of that sound familiar?” Devon’s
mom asked.

She felt
all eyes on her as she answered, “That’s what she always said. Her
talents came from the Goddess and were passed down from generation
to generation. Everything she ever taught me she said had to be
used for good or we would get in trouble with the
Council.”

“Did
your mom belong to a coven?” Kyra asked, leaning forward like her
answer was very important.

“She
did. They were a small group. There were only five left, at least
that was what they said the last time I talked to them about a year
ago. They’re all healers in the small communities around our
farm.

Siobhan
spoke and the waves of acceptance and reassurance flowed over Anya,
“Our Kyndel is a lot like your mom was, only not magical, just an
extremely strong healer. I am also a healer and Kyra is a white
witch, as you already know. She performed a rite to find what was
keeping you unconscious and removed the offending magic. We were
hoping that it cleared up all the effects of the tainted magic, but
apparently, some residual effects remain. We think we have a way to
help you with that.”

She
almost jumped off the chair, so excited to hear what they had to
say. They were going to help her remember who she was! “Absolutely,
what do we need to do first?” she asked.

Both of the women and Devon smiled, but it was Siobhan that
spoke, “First of all,
you
need to get a good night’s sleep.”

When she
would have argued, Kyra spoke up, “She’s right, you really do. The
magic we got rid of earlier was some nasty stuff and you did just
return to the land of the living. Rest up while Siobhan and I get
all the goodies ready. Tomorrow at twilight we’ll all be calling
you by your name,” the little witch added, looking just as excited
as she felt.

Kyra and
Siobhan explained everything that would happen during the ritual,
and she was surprised how much it sounded like the spells that her
mom and her friends had worked. All through the evening, the people
she had met earlier stopped back in her room to tell her how happy
they were she was feeling better and to say good night. Devon was
lucky to have such a tight-knit group of family and friends. She
was confused about who was actually related and which ones were
just friends, but none of that seemed to matter. They all seemed
great.