The Protector (Fire's Edge #4) - Abigail Owen Page 0,61

days. It’s why I had to fit this inspection in now. To be sure things were safe for his arrival.”

“Who?” Lyndi was still whispering, seeming hardly able to get one word out at a time. Levi had never seen her so shaken in all the centuries he’d known her.

Tineen’s smile turned brutally smug. “Me.”

He took a step toward her, but paused, maybe thinking better of it, especially when a growl ripped from Lyndi’s throat, echoing off the cavern ceilings. Only by a miracle did Levi hold his own back. The panic-dipped realization that he couldn’t give this asshole anything else to use against her was the only thing keeping his dragon in check.

Instead of snarling back, Tineen’s smile only broadened. “I look forward to taming that fiery spirit…mate. But I can see I have surprised you. I’ll give you some time to become accustomed to the idea before we talk further.” Abruptly, he turned to Drake. “Let’s see the rest of the mountain.”

Moving closer to Lyndi, Levi took her arm and blocked her view of the Alaz leader as Drake took him away. Because her expression said she was ready to rip the fucker’s gizzard out. Most of the others followed, only her boys remaining behind. As soon as he was sure Tineen was out of earshot, the sound of the elevator telling him the others had gone up a level, he turned to face her.

Lyndi stared over his shoulder in the direction the Alaz leader had departed, eyes still flickering red, lips clamped so tightly, he had to wonder if she was trying to keep herself from vomiting.

Then she stepped into him. Automatically he wrapped his arms around her, absorbing her small body, trying to give her his own strength.

“What are we going to do?” she whispered.

Levi said nothing. What could he say? The crushing weight of all of this shit hitting at once was threatening to crush him. To pulverize him until he couldn’t move. Couldn’t breathe. He had to fix this. But how?

How? The word echoed inside him as he tried to comfort Lyndi and settle the fury that wanted to be released.

His dragon railed inside him with a violence that threatened to drag him under.

Chapter Twelve

What do I do? What do I do? What do I do?

Lyndi sat in her room, where Delaney had finally managed to convince her to wait until Tineen left. Vaguely she was aware of how she was sort of rocking back and forth, staring blankly at the wall, but she didn’t care. The phrase had been repeating in her mind for a solid hour as she scoured her brain for a single plan that could get her out of this mess.

Where could she possibly take all her boys and run to?

She couldn’t stay. With a few words, Tineen had ripped everything safe and good about her home out from under her feet, sending her tumbling down a mental black hole that kept sucking her deeper, trying to crush the life from her.

No fucking way was she mating that asshat. No way.

But every possible move she made put someone she loved in danger. Her boys, her brother, Levi, the team.

Taking the boys and running was out. It put her brother and the team in the crosshairs. Everyone running—team, boys, and all—was also out. No way could they move that many people at once without getting caught easily. Mating wasn’t going to happen. Sending her boys to the Alliance just wasn’t going to fucking happen, either. Ignoring either order—mating or sending her boys away—when they came wasn’t an option, though. The Alliance would simply send the other enforcer teams to take her and probably lock her away until she could be forcibly mated.

Gods help me. She sent the plea to the heavens and the hells. She’d take any aid she could get at this point.

“Tineen is gone.” Finn’s voice ringing in her head had Lyndi out of her room and running downstairs.

“Don’t speak out loud,” came Finn’s next warning as she hit the grand staircase. “Assume he’s planted bugs all over the damn place. Meet up top and shift. We’re going to have an impromptu deep night training session.”

Lyndi changed directions so fast, she ran into the wall of man who’d had to go off to his own room each night rather than share her bed. For appearances’ sake.

“Calm down.” Levi mouthed the words, giving her arm a squeeze.

She stared back wide-eyed for a second, physically holding herself back from launching into his