by Liv Rider
Protector Dragon
Liv Rider
Protector Dragon © 2019 by Liv Rider
Cover design by Camberion
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the author, except where permitted by law or for the use of brief quotations in a review.
This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
Contents
1. Joel
2. Thomas
3. Joel
4. Thomas
5. Joel
6. Thomas
7. Joel
8. Thomas
9. Joel
10. Thomas
11. Joel
12. Thomas
13. Joel
14. Thomas
15. Joel
16. Thomas
17. Joel
18. Thomas
Epilogue: Joel
A note from Liv Rider
Special Sneak Preview!
1
Joel
The morning shift at Hampton’s Café wasn’t Joel’s favorite. His bosses, Claire and Charlie Hampton, were both morning people, and their cheerfulness made Joel want to crawl back into bed even more. Next to him, Steven stifled a yawn. At least he wasn’t the only one.
Charlie was just talking them through this week’s special. It was called Brew-tiful Morning. The name made everyone groan while Charlie beamed at them. It wasn’t anything complicated, fortunately. It was a deal where the customer got a ginger and cinnamon muffin if they got two coffees to-go.
“What’s so beautiful about that?” Nancy, one of the other servers, asked.
“Just wait until you try ‘em,” Charlie replied. “Besides, what’s better than one coffee in the morning? Two.”
No one could argue with that.
As everyone got ready for the morning rush, Joel reminded himself that things could be worse. He could have a job with incompetent colleagues and horrible bosses. He could have a job where he had to get up this early every day.
He could still be living with his parents in Barnhill rather than in his one-bedroom apartment in Lewiston. It was four years and eight months since he had packed up his most important belongings and bought that bus ticket. He hadn’t known much about his destination. All he wanted was to go somewhere large enough to disappear and close enough that the bus ticket still left him with some money to make a new start.
Living in Lewiston had been a shock after growing up in a town with only a few hundred people. In those first few difficult weeks he’d clung to the thought that anything was better than being the only non-shifter in a shifter town.
His mom was a wolf shifter and his biological dad had done a vanishing act once he’d found out about that. His mom had re-married a few years later and as far as Joel was concerned, Travis Davies was his dad.
The two of them had had two more sons. Joel was five when Adam was born and two years later Dylan came along. Together, they were a family, and Joel remembered his childhood as a pretty normal, happy one.
Joel had always known he wasn’t a shifter. He knew he was different from his family and everyone else in town. He didn’t recognize any of the things they would talk about, like their animal’s instinct, or enhanced senses. He had long ago accepted that he would never be able to shift himself. Sure, shifting into an animal sounded pretty cool, but he wasn’t exactly burning with jealousy.
Mom had held out hope the longest, always insisting there was still time. Not every shifter was able to shift young. It took practice and patience. But even she gave up when Joel’s voice started to break and he still couldn’t shift.
He’d been the least surprised out of his entire family, although he thought Adam and Dylan suspected it. They could see the differences between the three of them as well as Joel could. His brothers weren’t idiots.
Brothers. He could hear Dylan’s disgruntled voice in his head. Half-brothers, Joel. Half. Geez, you’d think you’d remember that by now.
Was that how it had started? How he’d gone from ‘one of the Davies kids’ to ‘that other one’?
He still didn’t really understand why. He hadn’t changed at all. He’d been the same Joel Davies he’d always been.
People who had been kind and friendly to him became colder and distant. Friends from school stopped inviting him over to play, and always had an excuse why they couldn’t meet up.
One day, when he was seventeen and completely exhausted with how everyone treated him, he reported the matter to the local shifter council, figuring that if anyone could step in, it would be them. The council oversaw seven shifter towns in the area. Their job was to make sure everyone was treated fairly, settle disputes, and make sure problems got solved. He never even got a response.
Then he’d gathered what remained of his courage and written to their Keeper of the Peace, who outranked the shifter council, taking care of matters they couldn’t or wouldn’t resolve. Their local Keeper was an old dragon shifter, Douglas, who visited Barnhill three or four times a year to meet with the council. Joel assumed that Douglas would at least take an interest. That was his job, right? For one glorious moment when he had gotten a letter back, he’d been certain that his misery would be over soon.
Douglas’ reply was short. Non-shifter issues do not fall under my jurisdiction.
Joel had been crushed by that single sentence. It didn’t matter that he was raised by shifters or related to shifters. He wasn’t a shifter himself. There was no one he could turn to for help or advice.
“Where’s my name tag? Joel, have you seen my name tag?”
“Huh?” Joel was jerked out of his thoughts.
Steven checked the pockets of his jeans again. “Dammit, where is it?”
Before Joel could say anything, Steven walked over to his bag to rifle through it.
“Looks like you need more coffee.” Nancy smiled at him, looking sympathetic.
“Yeah, I guess so.” Joel was glad his colleagues had distracted him out of his dark mood, even if they didn’t realize they’d done it.
He wasn’t in Barnhill anymore. He wasn’t alone. He had people now who cared for him. He had a job he liked. Yes, being on his feet all day was exhausting, but he had great colleagues and better bosses than at any of his previous jobs.
He took a slow, deep breath in and let it out. There was no need to dwell on his past. Today would be another normal day at Hampton’s Café and he would worry over normal things like rude customers, and whether or not they’d run out of the popular pastries before Claire had a chance to bake new ones.
The morning rush was just the distraction he needed. There was no time to think about your childhood when you had to focus on making your orders without getting in the way of your colleagues.
Once things were slowing down, Charlie called him and Steven into the back room. “You stay in front, Nancy!” Charlie said, just before coming in as well.
Joel looked at Steven, who shrugged. He didn’t know why Charlie had called them back here. Nancy had only been working with them for a few weeks, but things were going well. Did Charlie want their opinion?
“Okay, so you know how Claire’s been busy with the catering side of things, right?”
Joel and Steven nodded. They had already worked at a couple of small events for local businesses, a few morning and lunch meetings here and there, and two weddings. Joel had been involved with two lunch meetings so far and preferred working in the café. People at business meetings were more likely than not busy with their phone, barely even acknowledging him as he handed them their coffees and teas along with the sandwiches or pastries.
“We’v
e got another one coming up this Saturday. It’s all very last-minute, and I told Claire not to confirm until I could talk to you guys,” Charlie explained. “You’re experienced and neither of you is scheduled for Saturday. Yet.”
“What time?” If it was only for a couple of hours, Joel would be happy to help and earn a little extra.
“Between eleven and four,” Charlie replied. “Their event starts at noon and ends at three.”
Joel nodded at that. “Works for me.”
“I have to check my schedule first,” Steven replied. Like Joel, Steven was in his early twenties, although he was working part-time as he also went to the local college. “Make sure there’s no deadlines or exams coming up. I’ll let you know later.”
“That’s fine, just let me know today. Claire needs at least one extra pair of hands there on Saturday, but two is always better,” Charlie told them. “Thanks, Joel. I’ll have Claire email you the details.”
“What’s the event?” Joel asked.
“Oh, some animal charity hosting an event to thank their regular and biggest donors, and to get them to donate some more, obviously. Swift South, or something.”
Joel felt his stomach turn to lead. No, it couldn’t be. “Shift South?” he asked, his mouth suddenly dry.
Charlie grinned. “Yeah, that’s the one! You a donor or something?”
He had only read that name once. Back when he’d first arrived in Lewiston, he’d searched online to learn more about the local shifter community. The older generation of shifters didn’t like it, but he knew from his brothers that plenty of younger shifters had their own online communities to talk with each other.
Shift South was the name of the charity used as a front by one of the shifter councils and pretended to help local street dogs and cats. Their website hadn’t updated in three years, there was no information on activities or ways to donate, and a confusing menu eventually led to a log-in page for the forum Joel had used to find out more about shifters in Lewiston. It was how he’d learned that Lewiston had three different districts with their own shifter councils, and where shifters in the area liked to gather so he could avoid those locations.
“No,” he managed, leaning back against the wall before his legs could give out underneath him. “I, er, I’ll get back to you.”
“You okay?” Steven asked, frowning as he put a hand on Joel’s arm.
“Joel?” Charlie looked worried too.
“I’m gonna get some fresh air,” he said instead, pushing himself away from Steven and the wall. “Back in five!”
He rushed through the building until he was out back. The alley was quiet and, okay, fresh air was a big word since he was now standing next to the dumpster. He walked around it so he was out of sight, then sank down to the ground. He bowed his head and focused on his breathing.
His heart was racing as a million thoughts whirled through his head.
Shifters. I’d be in the same room as dozens of shifters.
Just imagining it made him run cold.
He had been avoiding shifters ever since coming to Lewiston. Being born and raised in a shifter town had made him very good at recognizing shifters, even without enhanced shifter senses. It was hard to pin down, but there was something about the way a shifter moved and carried themselves that gave it away. It wasn’t completely foolproof, but enough to help him avoid businesses run by shifters. Shifters, in turn, usually did their best to avoid humans in order to keep it a secret that shifters existed. It was a win-win as far as Joel was concerned.
Joel didn’t know if anyone from back home had any connections with the shifter community here. After all, there were several hundred miles between Barnhill and Lewiston, but he’d rather be safe than sorry. He didn’t want any word getting back to his parents or brothers. The thought of them showing up here to demand an explanation or that he return home made him sick with fear.
Before he’d gotten himself a new phone, his parents had called him several times a day, but he’d never picked up. It had been the most attention his parents had paid to him in years, and it had felt good to ignore them. His dad’s text messages had been angry enough already, accusing him of being ungrateful and worthless, and that he had better get his ass back home, or there would be hell to pay.
He closed his eyes, focusing on keeping his breathing slow and steady.
All he’d have to do was come up with a good reason as to why he wouldn’t be able to be at the event after all. He could pretend he’d forgotten about a dentist’s appointment or something. Charlie would be annoyed, but he’d get over it, and Steven would probably be able to cover the event with Claire. It’d be fine.
Now that he’d thought of a way out, breathing came easy. It was kind of silly, panicking over something so small. He got back to his feet, taking a deep breath. There had been no reason for him to feel so scared and panicked.
He heard the door open and Joel walked around the dumpster to greet whoever had come through. “Oh, hey boss.”
Charlie looked him up and down. “You sure you’re all right? What was that all about in there?”
“Oh, uh, I was feeling kind of faint. Didn’t really have time for breakfast this morning,” he lied.
Charlie shook his head. “Joel, come on, breakfast is the most important meal of the day! Let’s get something inside of you.” He beckoned Joel to follow him.
“I need to talk to you about Saturday.” He didn’t like lying to his boss again. His stomach squirmed, but it was for the best. He couldn’t go to that event. Just the thought of it made him feel queasy.
“Sure, what about it? Steven checked his schedule, by the way. He’s got some big essay due on Monday, so he can’t help you.” Charlie grimaced. “I haven’t got anyone else available either, so it’ll be just you and Claire. It’ll be hard work, but I know you can do it. With some luck, some big-shot donor’ll be impressed enough to hire us for something else.”
Joel watched the frown on Charlie’s face deepen. The older man sounded far more serious than usual. “Oh?”
Charlie looked down the hall, then closed the door. It was just the two of them outside and he leaned closer. “Just between you and me, Joel, it hasn’t been a great few months financially.”
“What?” Joel was surprised. He hadn’t noticed anything. The place felt as busy as it always had.
“Don’t worry, we’re not going out of business just yet,” Charlie assured him. “But if we want to keep this place going, we can’t just rely on the café. We need to do catering as well, or we won’t be standing here next year. That’s why this event is important. We’ve only just gotten started with that, and we need to build up a reputation of being reliable and good for a reasonable price. This charity event sounds like a great way to get the word out more. I’ll get some extra business cards printed for you and Claire.”
Joel’s mouth was dry. Charlie sounded so relieved. How was he supposed to lie about not being able to work on Saturday now? He wanted this café to be here next year and the years after that. Claire and Charlie worked so hard, and the place was a breath of fresh air compared to all the big-chain coffee shops around the city. The older couple had run the café for over twenty years and it was a staple in the neighborhood. Joel had worked for them for the past three years, after being forced from temp job to temp job.
The only thing holding him back was his own ridiculous fear. Hadn’t he just been telling himself he’d been over-reacting?
Maybe he should consider this a sign that he should stop hiding. What were the odds that anyone who knew about him running away from Barnhill would be at the event? It had been over four years. Besides, those shifters would be more worried about keeping their own secret from the humans. They wouldn’t be paying any attention to Joel. They were there for their council.
“Joel?”
Joel started at Charlie’s voice. “Uh, nothing. I’ll be there on Saturday.”
Charlie smiled and clapped him on the shoulder. “Good! Now,
let’s get you something to eat and then it’s back to work. Won’t be long now before people start coming in for lunch. Let’s go.”
Joel followed Charlie, but his stomach was twisting and turning.
2
Thomas
Thomas wished he had something better to do than attend his council’s meeting. Unfortunately, as Keeper of the Peace for the southern district of Lewiston, this was the most important part of his job. He glanced down at the agenda and sighed. There were only five points and he’d expected a short meeting, but the council had been arguing for thirty minutes over the catering for a new ‘Welcome to Lewiston’ lunch. Thomas hoped that event would become an annual tradition.
He had been pushing for an official welcoming event ever since he had become Keeper of the Peace three years ago, but the rest of the council had disagreed. Thomas hadn’t been surprised. At 26, he’d been younger than the council members and he’d known it would take time before they would take him seriously. While Thomas could’ve used his dragon’s natural dominance to force them to do his bidding, he knew that that would only hurt him in the long run. He wanted to work with the council members, not against them, and he could wait. There were other important things to work on in the southern district.
While the council hadn’t made welcoming new shifters a priority, Thomas had. For the past three years, he had personally visited every single new shifter who had moved into his district. It didn’t matter if it was a family planning to spend the rest of their lives here or a student who would only spend one semester at the local college. Thomas wanted to know who lived in his district and let them know that they could come to him or the council with any problems they might encounter.
