The Dragon's Dilemma (Lochguard Highland Dragons Book 1)

by Jessie Donovan

  Chapter Sixteen

  As soon as Fraser pulled the car into its assigned spot near the Protectors’ central command building a few hours later, his phone buzzed in his pocket. With a smile, he took it out to read the text message: Next time, I pick the place. Let you know soon. xxx

  Relief flooded his body. The meal with his human had made Fraser want Holly more than ever. Not just because he was reminded of how beautiful or clever she was. No, just being around her had brightened his day.

  While he was pretty sure Holly had enjoyed their time together too, he hadn’t gotten his hopes up. But thankfully, it seemed that his human wanted him as well.

  And the next time he saw her, he wouldn’t settle for kiss marks via text message. He’d claim her kisses for real.

  His dragon spoke up. Good. Holly will be ours soon. I give it three days.

  That’s ambitious, dragon. We haven’t even found a way to let her father live here, yet.

  Someone will. Just make sure not to scare her away again.

  Fraser snorted. Yes, because Holly spooks so easily.

  You never know. The traitors might look for her again.

  At his dragon’s words, Fraser sobered a bit. Finn and Grant are doing everything they can to find information on the dragons who attacked us. If Holly was in danger again, they’d tell me.

  Are you sure?

  For a second, Fraser hesitated. Based on the conversation he’d heard the day before, Finn hadn’t made up his mind about whether to invite Holly back or not. His cousin might not even know that Fraser wanted the lass back more than anything he’d ever wanted in his life.

  Glancing at the time, it was only four a.m. As soon as Finn was awake, Fraser would talk with his cousin and convince him to invite Holly back. Then he’d wheedle out any information Finn might be keeping from him. Fraser needed to think of how to protect his mate in the future.

  His beast chimed in again. She hasn’t said yes.

  It doesn’t matter. She will.

  His dragon snorted. I see you’ve crossed over to my side. Confidence really does make things happen.

  He was about to scold his dragon when he heard a small rock clang against the side of his car.

  Despite what had happened back in Aberdeen a few weeks ago, Lochguard had been safe for months. If a threat had emerged whilst he’d been away, Finn would’ve called him.

  Another small rock hit his car and Fraser’s curiosity was piqued.

  Opening his car door slowly, Fraser clenched his fingers into a fist, ready to punch if anyone attacked. His dragon was also on standby, in case they needed to shift straight away.

  Standing up, he listened for any sounds as he scanned his surroundings. Even in the early hours of the morning, he could see nearly as well as in daylight. But all he saw were rock formations, cottages, and the other clan cars parked nearby.

  Inching his way to the back of the car, someone jumped up and clocked Fraser in the jaw. He flew backward and landed on the ground with an oomph.

  Before Fraser could do anything, Fergus’s voice drifted into the air. “That was for keeping a bloody secret from me.”

  Fraser’s heart skipped a beat. His twin brother was home.

  But it was best not to sound too eager just yet. Fraser needed to figure out how upset Fergus was with him first.

  Rubbing his jaw, Fraser sat up. “Aye, I reckon I deserved that. Should I brace myself for more?”

  Fergus shook his right hand. “I’m tempted, but my hand bloody hurts.”

  Fraser smiled. “You always said my head was made of stone.”

  “And it seems I was right.” Fergus took a step toward him. “You should’ve told me Holly was your true mate, brother. I would’ve stepped aside.”

  Fraser stood. “Maybe I should have, but she was possibly your last chance at happiness. And I wanted to give you a chance to snare it.”

  Fergus moved to stand directly in front of Fraser. “But that was my decision to make, Fraser. Not yours.”

  He shrugged. “I don’t know, Fergus. When we drink, you often need me to make your decisions for you. I’ve never seen such a lightweight before.”

  Fergus frowned. “I am not a lightweight. Half the time you spike my lager with vodka or some other strong liquor and dare me to drink it.”

  “Hey, you’re the one who accepts the challenge.”

  “Only because you’ll keep daring me until I do.”

  As Fraser and Fergus stared at one another, they both grinned.

  Fraser may not voice it aloud, but he’d missed his twin brother dearly.

  Fergus lightly punched him in the arm. “At any rate, for a bloke who likes to talk as much as you do, you seem to keep quiet when it actually matters. You’re an idiot. Don’t do it again.”

  A sense of relief washed over him. Fraser knew he and his twin were on good terms again. “I’ll work on it, aye? The bigger question is why are you stalking about in the dark?”

  “Well, I talked with Finn earlier. He and Arabella knew you’d gone to see Holly. Pulling the car into its parking spot quietly in the wee hours of the morning is your usual trick, so I waited. I wanted to see you before anything else happened. I don’t like discord between us.”

  Fraser blinked. “Wait, Finn and Ara knew I’d gone to Inverness?”

  Fergus raised an eyebrow. “Do you know Finn at all?”

  “The bastard and his tricks. I’m definitely going to have a talk with him later. He tends to see us as children still, but that needs to change. We’re twenty-eight years old, for fuck’s sake.” Fraser smiled at his twin. “But putting that aside, I’m glad you’re home, Fergus. I could dance around the issues and pretend it’s nothing, but I’ve missed you, brother.”

  “Aye, well, just don’t do anything daft to drive me away again.”

  Fraser winked. “I’ll try my best, although I can’t make any promises.” While he was relieved his twin didn’t hate him, there was something else Fraser still needed to address, so he added, “But I hope you can welcome Holly and treat her as part of the family when she comes back.”

  Fergus raised an eyebrow. “So she is coming back, then? From what I heard, she hasn’t contacted you in two weeks. That doesn’t sound like a lass who is pining for you.”

  “She’s gone through a lot recently. But let’s just say I’ve convinced her to give me another chance.”

  “I’m sure Mum will be pleased. She’s been secretly wishing for a grandchild for some time.”

  A flash of sadness coursed through Fraser’s body. “She may wait a while yet. Finn must not have told you, but Holly lost the bairn.”

  Fergus gripped Fraser’s shoulder and squeezed. “I’m truly sorry, Fraser.” He gave Fraser a little shake. “However, judging by your boasting with the lasses in the past, I’m sure there’ll be another one along before much longer.”

  Fraser and his dragon growled in unison. “Don’t bring up other lasses. They don’t matter. I only want Holly.”

  Fergus whistled. “You’ve fallen hard, brother. Just make sure not to fuck up again.”

  Fraser opened his mouth to reply when Grant came into sight, pumping his legs as fast as he could carry them. Fraser muttered, “That’s not a good sign.”

  Grant skidded to a halt. “Good, I found you. I need your help, Fraser.”

  Fraser’s stomach dropped. “I’m guessing it’s not for a construction emergency, so what’s happened?”

  Grant motioned toward the Protectors’ central command. “Some of the rogue dragons are keeping a hospital and its inhabitants hostage in Inverness.”

  He drew in a breath. “Which one?”

  “I’m not going to beat around the bush. It’s the one Holly is staying at with her father,” Grant stated.

  Fraser’s dragon roared. We must go to her. She needs us.

  Grant grabbed his shoulder. “Don’t even think about rushing off. I have something far more important for you to do.”

  Fraser clenched a fi
st. “What?”

  “I need you to contact Holly and find out what you can about the situation.”

  Fergus jumped in. “Are they jamming the wireless signals?”

  Grant shook his head. “Not yet, which is why we need to act fast. Holly will know your voice and hopefully trust you. I need to know how things are going on inside of the hospital. I have plans in motion, but the more details available, the better plan of attack I can devise.” Fraser took out his phone and Grant added, “Not out here. We need her on speakerphone in case Finn or I need to ask questions.”

  Fraser shoved the phone back in his pocket and strode toward the central command building. “Then hurry up. The longer we dawdle out here, the longer Holly is in danger.”

  As they made their way inside, a small part of Fraser wondered if his recklessness had yet again put Holly in danger. He’d been careful about leaving the clan, but had someone followed him? Or, had the rogue dragons been lying in wait for days?

  Fraser clenched his fingers. Whatever the reason, he would do everything in his power to get Holly back to Lochguard.

  Inside, Grant barked orders at the various Protectors and then motioned Fraser over. “Sit here so we can listen in.”

  Fraser nodded and waited for Emma MacAllister, one of Lochguard’s IT experts, to set everything up.

  As he tapped his fingers, he refused to imagine any negative outcome. Holly was alive and Fraser was going to bring her and her father to Lochguard, with or without the DDA’s approval.

  The trick would be convincing Finn of his plan.

  ~~~

  Holly watched as a large dragon-shaped shadow flew past the window again. The dragon had been doing the same thing for the past twenty minutes.

  She refused to imagine what would happen if any of the dragons outside her window started attacking the hospital.

  She knew they were being held under siege by a group of dragon-shifters, but no one wanted to divulge any details. The rationale was there might be someone inside the hospital feeding the rogue dragons information.

  Whatever the reason, Holly didn’t think it was a coincidence the dragons targeted the hospital she was in.

  Rubbing her arms, a small part of Holly wished Fraser was still here. Then he could contact Lochguard and ask for help.

  She touched the mobile phone in her pocket. Maybe she should call Fraser and see what was going on. It was worth a shot.

  Some of the neighboring patients shouted again and she sighed. It wasn’t as if that would do any good. Glancing at her father’s sleeping form, Holly was glad her dad was a heavy sleeper. The last thing he needed was extra stress.

  After taking out her new phone, Holly found Fraser’s number and pressed call. The phone rang once before Fraser’s voice came on the line. “Holly? Are you okay?”

  “I’m fine for the moment. Although, if you could tell me a little bit more about the dragons flying around the hospital and perching on the roofs, that would make my life a little easier.”

  Fraser’s voice was a little less frantic as he replied, “Telling you about it won’t do much to solve your problem.”

  She rolled her eyes even though Fraser couldn’t see it. “You know what I mean. All the hospital will tell us is that the dragons delivered a letter with a warning—if anyone tries to step foot outside, the dragons will snatch them and start attacking the buildings.”

  In the background, she heard some murmurs. Before she could ask who they were, Fraser answered, “Finn is talking with the DDA right now. I should have more information for you in a minute. But while we wait, I need two things from you.”

  “Yes?”

  “First—how are you holding up?”

  “Stop being ridiculous. I told you that I’m fine.”

  Fraser growled. “I won’t apologize for being worried about the woman I care more about than any other in the world.”

  Holly’s heart skipped a beat as she blinked at his words. “What?”

  Another male voice came over the line, one she instantly recognized. “Holly, this is Fergus. Ignore my brother’s daft timing for a second and tell us anything that could help. Everyone here wants you back safe and sound.” He paused and added, “Myself included.”

  Despite the threat outside her window and the possible danger to her life, relief flooded her body. Fergus’s words also helped distract her from Fraser’s words; she couldn’t afford to dwell on them until later. “Good, because Fraser is grumpy when you’re not around. He needs you close by.”

  Fergus barked out a laugh. “Don’t I know it.”

  Fraser spoke up. “Stop talking about me as if I’m not here. Can we focus on the more immediate threat? I need you to tell me everything you can see or hear. How many dragons, where they’re located, the works. It’ll help us protect you.”

  Holly brushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear. At least Fraser had recognized the present wasn’t the best time for declarations of the heart. “I’m not a trained soldier or anything, but I’ll try my best. There are dragons circling the building at regular intervals. I can also see a few perched on the roof of the building across the way. I’m sure they’re on all the buildings. I’ve counted maybe ten different ones so far. Or, at least, I tried to. It’s still somewhat dark outside.”

  “Good job, Holly,” Fraser replied. “That will help. Is there anything else?”

  She glanced out the window. “I can snap some pictures with the phone and send them to you when we’re done.”

  A string of expletives filled the other side of the phone line. Holly frowned. “Fraser? What’s happening?”

  As the seconds ticked by without a reply, Holly’s heart rate ticked up. Something was wrong.

  ~~~

  Fraser walked away from the console that had Holly on speaker phone and moved into Finn’s personal space. “What do you mean those bastard traitor dragons want Holly in exchange for allowing everyone else to go free?”

  Finn growled. “Don’t take it out on me. I’m just repeating what the DDA told me.”

  Running a hand through his hair, Fraser turned away and then back again. “Please tell me you’re not considering it.”

  Finn moved closer and punched Fraser in the arm. “I’m going to pretend you didn’t just ask me that.” Finn motioned toward Grant. “Grant has his own plans on how to handle the rogue dragons. For now, you need to let Holly know what’s going on. The lass deserves to hear about their demands.”

  For a split second, Fraser considered keeping the truth from Holly. Knowing his female as he did, she would offer to give herself up if it means she could save everyone else, especially her father.

  His dragon snarled. I won’t allow her to do that.

  ‘Allow’ isn’t exactly the right word.

  Ignoring his beast, Fraser met Finn’s eyes again. Rather than annoyance or anger, Fraser only saw expectation.

  His cousin was counting on him to do his part.

  “Right,” Fraser muttered and headed back to the speakerphone.

  Holly’s voice was angry as she ordered, “Fraser Moore MacKenzie, if you can hear me, then tell me what the bloody hell is going on.”

  Taking a deep breath, Fraser answered her. “We just had some news.”

  “I gathered that. Although since I don’t have supersensitive dragon-shifter hearing, how about you tell me what the hell is going on?” Holly bit out.

  Fraser leaned against the desk. “The dragons holding the hospital have demands and Finn just found out what they were.”

  “And?”

  His dragon snarled. Just tell her.

  Fraser managed to spit it out. “They want you in exchange for allowing everyone else to go free.”

  “Then—”

  “Don’t even bloody think it, woman. They damn near killed you in Aberdeen. They’ll finish the job this time.”

  Even though he couldn’t see Holly, Fraser could just imagine her narrowing her eyes just by the tone of her voice. “Are all dragonme
n so impatient? What I was trying to ask was what is the plan?”

  Fraser blinked and Finn answered her. “Holly, lass, it’s Finn. Grant has a plan to get you all out of the hospital alive. I don’t want to say more on the slim chance someone is listening to your conversation. However, it will be some time yet before they arrive. At the first sign of trouble, you call us back, do you hear?”

  Holly’s tone was a little less irritated. “Of course. But before I go, can I talk to Fraser in private?”

  “Aye.” Finn looked to Emma MacAllister. “Sever the bluetooth connection and give Fraser a few minutes.” Then Finn gripped Fraser’s shoulder and leaned down to whisper, “Calm your lass down, but don’t take too long. We need those photos.”

  Picking up the mobile phone, Fraser nodded and walked out of the room. As soon as he was in one of the small, empty offices off the hall, he cleared his throat. “It’s just us now, honey. I just want to say you’re handling all of this remarkably well.”

  Holly’s tone was a bit lighter as she replied, “Well, you clearly haven’t been around a mother-to-be after thirty-six hours of labor. The dragons are nothing by comparison.”

  “Aye, and let’s hope I never need to witness that. My dragon doesn’t do well when our female is in pain.”

  Silence fell and Fraser wished he had Holly at his side. He’d never been very good at phone conversations; he needed to see a person’s face to gauge their emotions.

  Still, he was aware of Finn and the others needing the photos from Holly. So he blurted out, “Just be careful, lass. The thought of losing you forever terrifies me.”

  When Holly didn’t respond immediately, he rubbed his hand against the back of his neck. Maybe she meant more to him than Fraser meant to her.

  Then Holly’s soft voice came on the line again. “You’ll have to try a hell of a lot harder to get rid of me, Fraser MacKenzie. I’ve already made up my mind to be with you.”

  Both man and beast wanted to shout in happiness and ask Holly to be their mate forever.