Free Dragon's Fire [PUP Squad Alpha 3] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) by Abby Blake Page B

ice water. He took the drink gratefully, downing the liquid in only a few swallows.
    “Is Brody ready to go to the hospital, yet?”
    “He’s on the phone to his boss, but it should be soon.” She hesitated a moment. “I was thinking…”
    “No!” he said sharply, already pretty sure what she was going to suggest. Keira’s story was heart wrenching—a teenager abandoned by parents who believed more in the purity of their race than in protecting their own child. Keira was broken, bruised, alone, and very afraid. With three of her parents in custody and her brother missing, Keira very literally had nowhere to go. But she was a dragon. She’d been raised by fanatics, and there was no way in hell Nathan was letting Ava risk her life and their baby’s life to help the girl. Brody had assured them he’d find a home for his niece, but even he saw the danger she represented.
    “Damn it, Nathan,” Ava said in an uncharacteristic show of temper. Even when Ava was really angry she kept her cool and he was fairly certain he’d never heard her swear out loud. He moved to comfort her, but she stepped out of his reach. “Don’t you see that by rejecting her it makes us no better than the fanatics who raised her?”
    He did see, but it didn’t mean he’d risk Ava’s life to help a child who could one day very soon turn into a dragon and kill her with one deep breath.
    “Just let me meet her. Just let me go to the hospital with Brody so that she can see I’m not the enemy, that I’m not someone to be hated.”
    Nathan glanced over her shoulder to see Brody standing behind her. Brody didn’t look happy, but it was obvious that Ava’s impassioned pleas had hit a raw nerve for him. Brody grimaced but threw his support behind Nathan.
    “I’m sorry, sweetheart. We need to keep you and the baby safe. “
    “I will be safe. You said yourself that Keira isn’t yet old enough to shift into dragon form. Right at this moment she’s just a scared, confused teenager. Just let me meet her so that she can know that the baby and I are no danger to her.”
    Brody seemed torn. Even though he hadn’t seen his niece since she was three years old, he’d visited her every day in the hospital since her injury. It was obvious he was as concerned for the child’s welfare as Ava.
    “Fine,” Nathan said, praying that he wouldn’t regret his decision, “but I’m coming with you. Dragons aren’t the only species with an irrational dislike for humans. You stay beside me. You do what you’re told, when you’re told, and we leave at the first sign of trouble.”
     
    * * * *
     
    Brody led his family through the wide corridors of the hospital. Ava seemed to have coped quite well with the vortex jump. Perhaps being pregnant with a dragon child helped, but he’d made them all stay in a sitting room for several minutes to let her and Nathan recover from the nausea.
    The hospital only had a few beds, most of them occupied by children. Almost every species of paranormals had rapid healing abilities once they reached puberty. The place was usually half empty so it also doubled as a base of operation for some of the PUP squads. Brody nodded to yet another familiar face before finally stepping into Keira’s room.
    Nathan held Ava at the door, and thankfully despite her eagerness, Ava waited quietly.
    “Hi, Keira,” Brody said when he realized his niece was awake. She sat up awkwardly, but it was obvious she was glad to see him. “I brought a couple of visitors with me.” He tilted his head toward the door. Keira’s eyes went wide when she saw Nathan and Ava.
    “What are they?” she whispered nervously.
    “They’re humans.”
    “ The human? The one grandmother wanted dead?” Her gaze darted around the room, seemingly looking for escape.
    “It’s okay, Keira,” Brody said, moving closer. “Ava and Nathan don’t want to hurt you. They just came to say hi.”
    “They did?” she asked in wonder. She peeked over his shoulder,