The Dragon Shifter’s Desire by Harmony Raines

Chapter Seventeen – Larisa

“Is there a spell we could use that will keep Ivan hidden while also letting him sense his treasure?” Larisa followed Hannah back inside, convinced there had to be a way to protect Ivan without dimming his senses too much.

“I could probably figure something out. But it could take days.” Hannah clasped her hands together as she stared at the shelves filled with ingredients. “We don’t have time.”

“Is there anything you can do?” Larisa glanced toward the front door. Ivan was still outside, he looked dazed and confused and she was worried he might grab the keys to the truck and take off alone.

“I’m thinking.” Hannah rubbed her hand over her chin as she stared at the shelves.

“If the other dragon isn’t moving, we could wait a day or so. Would that be enough time?” Larisa was getting tired of everyone sensing this and sensing that while she was...senseless. Which made her useless to Ivan.

“It isn’t moving now. That doesn’t mean it can’t move.” Hannah’s eyes went out of focus before her attention snapped back to the room around them. “No, that won’t work.”

“What won’t work?” Larisa’s instinct was to grab hold of Hannah and shake her until she made sense. She balled her hands into fists as she fought the temptation.

“Nothing, I was thinking out loud.” Hannah turned to face Larisa. “There is something we could try.”

“And that is...” Larisa followed Hannah around the room.

“At the moment Ivan can sense his treasure. It’s not so strong that he can’t control himself...” She spun around and headed back outside.

Did all fae and shifters act crazy? Larisa missed the days when all she had to deal with was normal humans. Life was a lot simpler when no magic was involved.

“What are you looking at?” Larisa stood next to Hannah on the porch as she stared at Ivan. “Oh, I get it.”

“Of course you do!” Hannah clapped her bony hands together.

“What’s going on?” Karros asked.

“Can you tell Ivan is a dragon shifter?” Larisa went down the steps to where Karros and Zara were watching over Ivan who was mumbling to himself as he turned slowly in a circle.

“No.” Karros shook his head. “Can you, Zara?”

“Sort of.” She frowned and focused her attention on Ivan. “But only because I know him so well. If I were meeting him for the first time, I’d probably be confused as to what he was.” She licked her lips. “I can’t taste him.”

“Taste him?” Hannah wrinkled her nose.

“Dragons leave a metallic taste on the tongue,” Zara explained. “Right now, I can’t tell what he is. I just know he’s a shifter.”

“Okay.” Larisa turned to face Hannah. “That’s good, right?”

“Yes.” Hannah nodded as she whirled around and went back inside.

“And why is that good?” Zara asked.

“Oh!” Karros nodded and grinned. “I see.”

“What do you see?” Zara asked hotly.

“The concealment spell blocks out his sense of where his treasure is. If we use it in a small enough dose, he’ll be able to hear his treasure but the fae and other shifters won’t be able to tell he is a dragon. He’ll still be able to guide us to his treasure.” Karros waved his arm at Ivan. “He’s just going to look like a crazy person.”

“Do you think it’ll work?” Larisa asked.

“Yes. I don’t see why not. We’re just going to have to be careful. And keep away from people as much as possible.” Karros headed toward the house. “We should eat and get ready to leave. As soon as Hannah has cast the spell, we should leave.”

Larisa went to Ivan and put his hands on his shoulders. “Come inside and eat, Ivan.”

Ivan blinked at her, his eyes focused on something in the distance. Did his treasure have more of a hold on him than the mating bond?

“Ivan.” She dug her fingers into him. “Wake up.”

He took a sharp breath as if she’d woken him from a deep sleep. “Larisa.”

“We need to go inside and eat.” She took hold of one of his hands. As their skin touched, he seemed to come back to himself.

“Sure.” He nodded. “I am hungry. What time is it?”

“A little after midday.” She tightened her hold on him. “What time did you think it was?”

“I don’t know. Everything was fuzzy.” He put his fingers to his head. “There was this sound. It filled my head until I couldn’t think of anything else.”

“It’s your treasure.” She stopped on the porch and reached for his other hand. “We’re going to go find it, but you have to get a grip.”

Ivan nodded and tensed. “I can control it if I use the techniques Fiona taught me.”

“Can you try that? It’s really important.” She watched his face as he struggled to relax. “You’re going to need to take small amounts of the spell Hannah is preparing. We must figure out the right dose so we can keep you hidden while you can still hear your treasure. Do you understand?”

Ivan nodded. “I can do this. I can control the urge.”

“Are you sure?” Larisa hated seeing him like this, it was as if he was being pulled in opposite directions.

“Yes.” He nodded and his features relaxed. “It crept up on me and took me by surprise but now that I know what to expect, I can control it.” He held her hands tight. “With your help.”

“I guess there is a reason why you found me when you did.” She laughed even though she didn’t find their situation remotely funny.

“You’re my anchor.” He leaned forward and kissed her cheek. “You keep me grounded.”

“An anchor.” She led him into the house but didn’t let go of him. “Are you saying I’m a massive weight around your neck?”

Ivan chuckled, sounding more like himself. “You are what keeps me here. Without you, I’d shift into my dragon and fly as fast as I could toward my treasure.”

“Your dragon. How is he doing?” Larisa hadn’t thought about how the situation might be affecting Ivan’s other side.

“He’s okay. For now.” Ivan followed her through to the kitchen where Zara and Karros were preparing sandwiches with thick fresh bread and some kind of meat that Larisa didn’t recognize. But she’d tasted many foreign dishes before, and she wouldn’t say no to fae food.

“Okay. Here’s some coffee. I brought some with us since Grandma Hannah doesn’t always have any. And some honey cake and sandwiches and I found a box of chips in the cupboard. Eat.” Karros put the food in front of Ivan.

Larisa flexed her fingers as Ivan sat down on a chair. “I’m going to let go with one hand, do you think you’ll be okay?”

Ivan half-smiled and nodded. “I have it under control. But it’s mentally tiring.”

“Okay, well, once we’re in the truck, we can always tie you down,” Karros offered helpfully.

“It won’t come to that but thanks for your concern,” Ivan replied. “Larisa, you can let me go.”

She looked down at her hands and slowly let go of one of his hands. “You only need one hand to eat with.”

“Larisa, I’ve got this, you can let me go.” He stroked her cheek with his free hand. “Trust me.”

She stared at him for a moment and then reluctantly let go of him. “If I can’t trust my mate, who can I trust?”

He tensed, his muscles bunched and for a heartbeat, she feared she’d made a mistake but then he breathed out and picked up his sandwich. Biting into it, he chewed slowly, almost as if he was on autopilot.

Larisa met eyes with Karros who was seated across the small wooden table. Could he see Ivan’s dragon? Had the spell worn off completely?

“Eat.” Ivan’s tone made her jump. He pushed her plate toward her. “You need to eat.”

She swallowed and picked up the sandwich. Without asking what kind of meat was in it, she bit into the bread and chewed.

“What’s the plan?” Zara sat down next to Karros.

“I need to go find my treasure,” Ivan said.

“Do you know where it is?” Karros asked.

“Due west.” Ivan pointed at the cabin wall.

“And what about this fae Hannah mentioned? Should we go to him first?” Larisa asked. “He might be able to help us. He might have some information on your treasure.”

“Where is he?” Karros held out his hand. “Do you have the address Hannah gave you?”

Ivan slowly reached into his pocket and pulled out the piece of paper with the fae’s name and address on it. “Here.”

Karros opened it carefully and stared at it before refolding it and handing it back to Ivan. “I know how to get there. It will take us the rest of the day.”

“We need to go to the treasure first,” Ivan said firmly, a hint of aggression in his voice.

“This fae Hannah wants you to visit is in the same direction as your treasure,” Karros answered.

Ivan dropped the sandwich he was holding and leaned forward. “This fae has my treasure?”

Karros shrugged. “It would seem like a really big coincidence.” He glanced toward Hannah’s workroom. “Why don’t we keep this to ourselves?”

“Don’t you trust Hannah?” Larisa asked.

“I trust her. Of course I trust her. But the fewer people who know where your treasure is, the better. If Hannah doesn’t know where it is then she can’t tell anyone.” Karros picked up his coffee cup and took a long drink, his expression filled with guilt.

“You’re afraid someone might make her talk?” Larisa hissed. “If she’s in danger, she should go somewhere safe.”

“She’s safe enough here,” Karros replied. “We’re fae. If anyone wanted to make her talk, all they’d have to do is feed her the right fruit or cast the right spell.”

“Wow. That is messed up.” Larisa put her sandwich down and eyed the food suspiciously.

“Don’t worry. There’s nothing like that in this food.” Karros chuckled. “But before we leave, I’m going to grab a few things from Hannah’s workroom. We need to be armed and I don’t mean with weapons.”

“I had no idea.” Larisa picked up her sandwich and started to eat.

“It takes some getting used to, doesn’t it?” Zara asked.

“It does.” Larisa nodded.

“I was like you. I had no idea about any of this until my brothers arrived on my doorstep a few months back.” Zara glanced at Karros. “Now the world is filled with mysteries and danger that I had no idea existed outside of TV and movies.”

“But it’s also filled with a love that I never knew existed, too.” Larisa glanced sideways at Ivan. “Which makes all the weird stuff worth it.”

“I couldn’t agree more.” Zara winked at her mate.

“Glad to hear it,” Karros replied.

“Let’s hope we both still feel that way when this is all over.” Larisa put her doubts and fears to one side. There was nothing she could do to change the position she’d found herself in. All she could do was stand by Ivan’s side and protect him.

From anyone who could cause him harm. Did that include Ivan himself?