Page 21 of Kell

Kell touched Alana’s wrist. “This spell is dragon, but not. Do you think Breggar used the magic his mother taught him to distort the linking spell?”

Legion nodded. “It is possible. We never considered that his mother’s thirst for power affected him. He was young when she died.”

Kell huffed. “We all were. He has no excuse for the direction he chose to take.”

Alana rubbed her hand. “I don’t think Breggar is working with Allorin. He seems too... confident in his own abilities. He has some powerful magic.”

“All dragons do,” Legion said.

“I know, but you have lines you will not cross. He is unfettered by morals. He once poisoned an entire tavern in Liverpool because I slept in. I know better than to sleep more than four hours a night, but I was exhausted after my acquisition, and he was on his way to retrieve me. I barely made it out in time.”

Mara’s jaw dropped. “Why would he poison innocent humans? That won’t make you stick around.”

“He called the CDC and said there was an Ebola outbreak due to a traveler in the lodge above the tavern. I slipped out before the quarantine was set up, but only barely. He has used similar tactics to slow me down, but so far, I have evaded him.”

Kell ran a hand down her arm. It was meant as a supportive gesture, but it sent a shiver of heat through her body. “That cave in. Was it tripped by you retrieving the circle or was that him?”

“I don’t know. It occurred to me that he might try to trap me, but he usually collapses an exit route. He doesn’t try to kill me, so I assumed that I tripped a natural ward when I removed the circle.”

Mara frowned. “It’s your circle. It has been waiting for you. Why would you taking it, trip an alarm?”

Alana touched her chest. “The pendant shrouds me from anything magical. Breggar needs the rune to track me. I never considered I should take the pendant off so the circle could recognize me. I am not sure how I survived until Kell got to me. My magic flared to break the fall, but it was a mortal wound. I felt it.”

“I am really glad you did, but none of this explains why Adara’s realm is failing.”

Alana closed her eyes. “Yes, it does. This started with the cave. As usual, this is my fault. She was already weak from saving Draco. She saved me. Kell wouldn’t have gotten to me in time, so she sustained me until he did. Shit!”

“She is weak from helping you? Why would it affect her like that?” Mara asked.

Legion sighed. “She is not part of this realm yet. Her power here is severely limited. To avert a death is against mother nature and exacts a price. Neither Draco nor you were meant to die. These attacks were dark in nature, but she used her power in a realm that does not currently belong to her.”

Alana took out her phone. “I have to retrieve the next artifact.”

Kell pulled her against his body. “Alana, you are exhausted. You need further rest before you risk your life again.”

Mara wet her lips. “This Breggar. He is the real reason you stayed away from me. From us?”

Alana’s mouth went dry. “Yes. I brought him to our doorstep and none of you could have fought him. Mom didn’t have the wards to stop a dragon. Though I thought he was the devil back then.”

“I am sorry, Alana. I wish you had told me once you realized I was a druid. I understand your need to keep Mom’s confidence when you were younger.”

She was uncomfortable with everyone staring at her. While she had always gravitated to busy warm taverns or pubs, she simply watched the real people go about their lives. To laugh with family and feel comfortable around them had become a foreign concept. One she never thought would happen to her again. “Me too.”

“Let’s get some rest and then I will take you to any location you desire.”

Alana held out her circle. “I need someone to take my circle to Adara. It should help strengthen her until I can retrieve a better... Battery.”

Mara closed her eyes. “I am not able to connect with Adara. How do we get the circle to her if she can’t bridge the connection to us?”

Alana sighed. “Then I will need a more powerful artifact. Kell is right. I will need some sleep for this next one. I can return the circle when I use an empowered artifact to call her. Hopefully, I will have most of my power and can place it in the temple myself.”

Kell took her hand and led her to the stairs without another word. She nodded to her sister and Legion as she left, but was unsure how she felt about their family meeting. It wasn’t as corrosive as she had feared, but she and Mara weren’t hugging it out either.

When they reached Kell’s room, he slipped her jacket from her and waited for her to lie on the bed. The room was large with the same tartan coverings and similar medieval weapons. She wasn’t sure why it was comforting. Maybe the thought of a sword nearby.

Kell took off his shirt and lay beside her on the bed. His warmth enveloped her, and she squirmed closer as he slipped his arm under her neck. “You will make the coming centuries quite interesting, little fox. Dragons are excellent hunters, yet I feel I will always be a step behind you. Why is that?”

She smiled against his arm. “Since I have been on the run in one way or another since I was fifteen, I admit it might take me a minute to slow down.”

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