6. Levi

6

Levi

L evi 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 to do something. 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?”

“I know she’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 were in 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.

He left all of them gathered in Kellan’s mansion. They didn’t have to wait for an invitation, they just had an open-door policy. They lived seamlessly in the human world but also had a clan. It seemed like the perfect set up to Levi.

“I will take her some more food,” Levi said as Quinn helped him pack up some roast beef.

He didn’t want to call Nora in front of him, so he went ahead and dialed the number. “Hello Levi,” she said in her lilting voice. “How are you?”

“I’m well, but we do have a situation. I’m at Kellan’s house and there’s a bear shifter on his property. I’ve been with her all day, but she hasn’t shifted, and she seems quite terrified.”

Nora was quiet for a few moments. She made a small humming sound. “I know most of you aren’t modest, but every now and then it happens. Try putting a blanket over her and seeing if that will help. And keep your back turned to her so that you’re not staring at her. If that doesn’t work, it’s possible that she’s stuck.”

“What do you mean stuck?”

“Stuck as in cannot shift back, because of a curse or a magic spell that doesn’t allow the shifter to transform. I have only seen that happen rarely. Very rarely.” Nora paused. “But there’s another possibility. Sometimes when a shifter has been through an extreme trauma, they don’t want to live in their human form anymore and they choose to stay in their animal form.”

“Permanently?” Levi had never heard of that. His family stayed in their dragon forms more than he did, but mostly because it was easier to travel in the Canadian wilderness by flying rather than by walking or trying to navigate a rocky mountain.

“Sometimes. I know you’ve only been around her for about twelve hours. But if several more days go by and she doesn’t shift and then we can talk about other options,” Nora said.

“What other options are there? Can you force a shift with magic?”

“It’s possible; I saw it done many years ago. But I would not do it. Not unless she was in danger of dying. I would never make that choice for someone. Have you met Rhett? He attends all of our dragon shifter festivals.”

“Yes, I’ve met him.”

“He runs a motorcycle club. Most of his shifters have been through extreme trauma so they don’t come to our annual festivals. There are shifters in his group that remain in their animal forms permanently,” Nora said.

“You mean they never switch back and forth?”

“Correct. Because of what happened to them they have decided to remain animals all the time. And Rhett, as their clan leader, supports them. If your shifter doesn’t change after several weeks, then we can get in touch with Rhett. She would always have a home with him and his mate Emma.”

His dragon growled, low and harsh. Fuck that . He was not sending her away.

He swallowed and forced himself to speak. “Thank you.” He wasn’t going to curse at Nora. She was trying to help. “We’ll keep trying here first. Just to make sure that there’s nothing else going on.”

“Is she injured?”

“Not that I can tell. There are signs when an animal is in pain, and I haven’t seen any of them with her, but she is terrified. I just don’t know why.”

“I would guess it’s something that happened before she arrived. If nothing changes, let me know and I’ll be happy to fly out and see if there’s anything magical going on. It takes a very powerful magician to keep a shifter from changing, but it is possible. I’m sure you’ve heard that Niall, my own mate, was a survivor of a powerful mind control spell.”

Levi had heard that story several times. It still sent a shiver straight through his spine. The idea that a powerful witch or wizard could control a shifter’s actions… It sent his heart rate through the roof.

“Thank you for your help.”

“You’re welcome, Levi. Please keep me updated. Let me know if you need to get in touch with Rhett, although Kellan has his number too.”

No way. He wasn’t calling Rhett. He appreciated the guy, but he was always on the move. Levi just had a feeling that the shifter needed to stay where she was right now. He was not ready to let her go.

Just thinking Rhett’s name had his Dragon clawing at him.

No. She stays.

“I know. I agree, but once she can let us know what she wants, then it’s up to her,” he muttered out loud to his dragon. Now he just had to get her set up to be more comfortable.

Levi had the kind of rough outdoor blankets in his truck that he used for injured cows or horses. They were clean and folded neatly in a storage basket. But he couldn’t fathom putting an animal’s blanket on a female shifter. He went to Kellan’s house and asked for a blanket.

Kellan disappeared and came back with a rose-pink flannel blanket. “This is the softest one I have,” he said. “It’s McKenna’s. I thought her scent would be the least scary.” Levi thanked him again and went back out to the female.

“Hey. This is a blanket, and I’m going to cover you up with it.” He crouched in front of the female. “If you get too hot, just shake it off.” The Texas nights were warm for a bear shifter, rarely getting below forty-five degrees Fahrenheit. “But I thought it might give you some privacy if you want to shift.” He unfolded it and moved to her side, carefully covering her with the blanket. He moved slowly and deliberately, but the female didn’t bolt. “It belongs to the little girl that was out here earlier. It should smell like her.” He pulled it all the way up, draping it over her until it reached her neck.

He was pretty sure he saw her sniff the blanket. He watched her for a moment, and then figured he was crowding her. He moved about fifteen feet away and spread out his own blanket, one of the ones he kept in his truck. He didn’t really need a blanket, but he thought it might make her feel more comfortable if they were the same.

“Goodnight,” he said.

The bear shifter looked at him, and then she closed her eyes. For just a brief second, he saw an image of her again in her human form.