The Enthralled Question

[Demeter]

Isis sat in the window seat that overlooked the street while attempting to untangle a snarl of yarn. She'd found one end and was patiently trying to unweave the mess so that she could make a sweater for Ben. She shook her head as she followed the yarn through loops, thinking that it was Ben's fault the yarn was tangled in the first place. She'd been balling it a few nights ago when he'd pounced and rolled her off the couch. Later, when she'd held the randy dragon at bay with the tv remote, she'd discovered that they'd been rolling around on her yarn, now knotted. Snickering, Isis leaned her head back against the wall and looked out over the town.

The snow had finally stopped and the people were getting back to the business of living. May was down in the shop and would buzz her if anyone needed something more than aspirin. Ben was out there, somewhere, working with the others to keep the roads clear. It was still early so the sun was bright and strong in the sky but it wouldn't be long before it dipped below the horizon and stayed there. Which meant that they were that much closer to packing it up and trying their luck with another clan of white dragons. Ben couldn't hold out much longer and they needed to find someone who was willing to accept an unorthadox situation.

Isis shook her head one more time and started to bend back to her knotted yarn but something flashed in the corner of her eye and caught her attention. Curious, she turned to look and gasped. Some beat up old truck was fishtailing down the road. She leaned forward, climbing to her knees, as the driver overcorrected and jumped the corner where an SUV was idling. Isis heard the sound of shattering glass and squealing metal before she realized that she'd just seen that truck slam into the driver's side of the SUV.

She scrambled up, flinging yarn around, and ran for the door. She hopped into her boots and was tugging on her jacket while racing down the interior stairs. She ran into the shop, yelling for May to call the sherriff and the town's medical clinic. She skidded out the door, sliding a little on snow and ran for the corner. She wasn't the only one running towards the scene of the accident. People were pouring from the houses and shops along main street. Other were leaping from their stopped cars. Isis reached the scene along some others. While they stopped to check on the driver of the truck, she hurried around the passenger side of the SUV.

She carefully opened the door and climbed into the seat. Kneeling on the captain's style seat, and muttering a little as she felt glass shards slice through her yoga pants. Brushing aside what pain she felt, Isis leaned forward, one hand braced against the center console, and felt for a pulse on the slumped over woman driver. She heard someone climb into the back of the SUV and looked over to see the town doctor angling between the front seats. "She's alive, Chastity, though I don't know how. That truck slammed into this thing and shoved it across the street. Should we risk moving her through the passenger door?"

In the end, it was decided not to chance moving her across the car. Isis ran into Ben's shop and told Timmy, the mechanic on duty to fire up the tow truck to get the totaled truck out of way. While the town Sheriff ran for the jaws of life, the two vehicles were seperated. Once the door was pried open and the woman carefully pulled from the SUV to be placed on a stretcher. Chastity went right to work, kneeling down in the snow to to a quick on scene assesment. While the doc was taking vitals and examining the wounds, Isis glanced around and spotted the driver of the truck sitting on the curb, talking to Rhea. It was someone who'd moved up from the Lower 48 - the way Lower 48 - during the warmer summer months and had probably never driven in snow before. Naturally the man didn't have a scratch on him. Isis turned back to the scene just as Chastity and her nurse raise the stretcher to cart the woman down the street. And she would swear that she heard Chastity telling the woman not to shift.

Thinking fast, Isis scurried around to the SUV and rooted around the wreckage until she found the woman's bag. Brushing off a few shards of glass, Isis trotted down the road to the medical clinic, bag in hand. She peered into the clinic, scooting in and standing in front of the fire. She could hear the sharp orders and waiting until Rhea came into the waiting room. She held the bag out the woman. "Her bag. Is there anything I can do?"

Rhea gave Isis and quick smile. "Wouldn't happen to know of a place where we can stash Lilia, would you? Chastity doesn't want to move her too far and Lilia would probably throw a fit if we took her to her parents."

Isis chewed on her lower lip. "Ben and myself, we have a couch and we have the spare room. We can take her for a few days if she needs supervision."

Rhea smile increased. "That would be perfect. I think Chas is planning on prescribing her the really good drugs. The ones that are designed to knock a dragon on her ass for a few days while her bones heal."

Isis perked up. "Dragon? She's a dragon? I thought we met them all?"

Rhea chuckled. "Lilia is tricky and yes, she's a dragon. I've tried to get her to meet you guys but she always has something going on and you two so rarely go out."

Isis shrugged. "It got uncomfortable after the first few months. Ben doesn't like it when other men hit on me like that."

Rhea knew the truth about the Peytons and shook her head. "Dragons are jealous types. You'll take care of her then?"

Isis nodded. "It won't be any problem. I'll head back home and get things ready. Just have Chastity send the prescription to the office and just break her over once she's ready."

After getting Rhea's agreement, Isis scooted from the office and back to her store. She called out to May to let her known when the prescription for Lilia came in and headed up the stairs. She quickly cleaned off the couch and made it up. It was long and wide, perfect for Ben's frame, and unbelievably comfortable. She'd just finished fluffing the pillows in the spare room when May called her down to the store.

After filling the various prescriptions that Chastity had ordered, Isis carted them upstairs. She had them set on the kitchen counter, next the coffee pot when the door open. Rhea, with Chastity's help, carted Lilia into the room. Between the three of them they got the woman onto the couch and covered with a blanket. "I take it she's already had a dose?"

After the two women left, Isis peered at the woman sleeping on her couch. She was very pretty, Isis thought while inching the blanket up a little more. Dispite the bruises, the woman had a very pretty face. Biting her lower lip, Isis turned and headed into the kitchen. She'd make a pot of soup. That would distract her from the pretty, if banged up, dragon on her couch and the very naughty idea that had just popped into her head. It would be very bad to just enthrall the drugged up female dragon, wouldn't it?

She alwasy said she would never enthrall a person for her own purposes but Ben's instincts were going haywire. Still biting her lower lip, Isis peered around the doorway and stared at the woman on her couch. She couldn't do, could she?

[Maira]

Nothing like the first snow of the season and idiots who didn't know how to drive in it crashing into somebody to ruin a girl's day. Lilia had been minding her own business, waiting at the stop when a big, beat up old truck plowed right into the driver door of her small SUV. She'd bought it because it had good gas mileage for getting out to the mountains and her family's Holding and also because it was supposed to be good in snow. Apparently her having a snow-savvy vehicle did nothing to keep her safe when other people didn't.

Lilia woke up briefly when somebody she didn't know started poking around at her neck, and then again on the stretcher as she was wheeled somewhere. After that she was awake in Doc Chastity's office for a short while but before she could really get her bearings the doc was poking a needle in her arm and she was out again in moments. Now she was awake again but she had no idea where she was. She knew she was on an extremely large comfortable couch bundled under a blanket, but that was it.

This wasn't her place, or Rhea's. It certainly wasn't the Holding. Maybe it was Chastity's place? Curious, she tried to sit up and look around but the pain in her left side when she moved was what she imagined lightning striking the body felt like and before she could even try and steady herself she flopped back onto the couch with a yell and tears streaming down her face.

She heard a noise, maybe a voice, coming from the other room and instantly Lilia tried to stop the tears but as she couldn't even move to wipe them away without causing more to fall because of the pain she was kind of out of luck. So, her first meeting with her nurse/warden, was with Lilia doing her best not to writhe in pain and with tears streaming down her face. As it turned out, the voice didn't belong to Chastity at all and that meant the place likely wasn't hers either. Great. So she was making a horrible first impression on somebody she didn't even know.

[Demeter]

Isis jumped when her guest cried out. Picking up the spoon she had dropped, Isis shook her head and told herself to stop being so jumpy. No one, not even Ben, knew what she was thinking. He was to busy racing the other boys and their snowplows to really notice that she'd tuned him out. She dropped the spoon into sink and went into the living room. "Lilia, is everything okay?" She sat on the coffee table and twitched the blanket straight. She frowned at the sight of tears. "Oh, honey. Don't try to move yet. I'm Isis Peyton and this is my place. You were in a car accident earlier this evening and you were pretty banged up."

Isis stood and walked over to the laundry basket tucked into a corner. She plucked out a washcloth and smiled. "We're great at doing the laundry here but not so great at folding and putting away." She returned to the couch, this time sitting on the edge. She gently dried the tears on Lilia's face, taking care not to press against the still darkening bruises. "Rhea and Chastity wanted to take care of you but Rhea didn't have the space and neither one of them had the time to keep an eye on you," Isis paused and chuckled, "not that you need supervision but you've got some really good drugs. This kind that can, and will, knocks dragon on her ass for a couple of hours. Chastity said that she would come by tomorrow to make sure you are doing okay."

Isis set the cloth on the table and brushed Lilia's hair out of her eyes. "I know you are scared and in pain and confused but please just sit tight for a few days. You are going to need help doings things and I bet you'll be in agony when those bones of yours really start healing." Isis rose and smiled down at Lilia. "When Ben gets home later this evening, he'll get you into our spare bedroom. I'd do it but I fear I am far to short to manage it without banging you up even more. Can I get you anything to eat? A pill for the pain? Sorry, but only get juice, tea or water to drink for the next few days."

[Maira]

The woman who was her nurse/warden turned out to be a shockingly pretty woman with surprisingly purple hair. Despite her own annoying tears, and the woman speaking nearly too fast and too much for Lilia's pain fogged brain to grasp much of what she was saying, Lilia found herself smiling at the woman. Her voice was soothing, her touch more so, and it was obvious that her concern for her patient was sincere. In response to Isis's questions about what she needed, Lilia answered easily and with a bit of her normal sass, "I stiff drink would be nice, but a pain pill and some chamomile tea would be great so long as we can try and get me sitting up. I don't care how much it hurts I just really don't like not being able to see where I'm at."

The wary look in Isis's eyes at the mention of getting her upright had Lilia second guessing the request and she asked, "Or did Doc tell you not to sit me up?" Then, a little worried she asked more seriously, "Just how bad -am- I banged up?" While she waited for Isis to answer, Lilia mentally made checks of all her appendages and was happy to note she could feel all of them, though her left arm did feel wrong. As did her shoulder, collarbone and ribcage on the left side.

When Isis told her all the damage, it matched up pretty well with how she was feeling. Hearing it out loud though was more than a little shocking. Under her breath she mumbled without really realizing, "If I were human I'd be dead..." Then, louder and with actual thought she asked, "Did anybody happen to call my brother Grae? He lives down in Washington and I'm not sure our parents would make that call. Speaking of, has anybody told them?" While Lilia wanted her brother to be informed, she really -really- hoped that nobody had told her parents or they'd be sending members of the clan out to fetch her and bring her back to the Holding to recouperate and be treated "properly". She loved her parents, but they were more than a little sheltered and close-minded when it came to interactions with non-Brood.

[Demeter]

Isis listed the damage, ticking each bruise, cut, scrape, broken and cracked bone off on her fingers. At the end, she gave Lilia a look. "Yep, if you were human, you'd be dead. I don't know if anyone has called your brother but I know that Rhea was muttering about you throwing a fit if your parents were called or notified." She spoke while arranging pillows. She half turned and as gently as possible tucked an arm under Lilia's shoulders. "This is going to hurt. One the count of three, we'll get you upright. You can cry alone while I get your tea ready."

She took Lilia's right hand in her own. "Squeeze my hand when it hurts," she whispered into Lilia's ear. She counted out and then with as gentle a shove as possibe, hoisted Lilia upright. She cringed at the woman's cry of pain and held onto her until the whimpers quieted. When she finally drew back, Lilia's face was gray with pain and exhausted. Isis stroked the pale hair and nuzzled the unharmed side of her neck. "I know, just breathe through it, lovely, just breathe through it and it was ease down."

After a few moments, just enough for the nerves of both of them to settle down again, Isis stood and gently propped Lilia's left arm up on a pile of pillows. She ease the woman's left foot up onto the pillow she'd placed on the coffee table. "Try to keep that bent just a little. Doc said it isn't broken but it might be wrenched. I'll be right back with your tea."

Isis retreated to the kitchen and, letting out a long sigh, she foraged for a stiff drink. She belted down one shot of vodka, followed by another. She'd never wish that kind of pain on any one person. She took a deep breath and, while the kettle boiled, seached for her loose tea leaves. It took a few minutes but she assembled a tray for Lilia and brought it out to her. Isis flipped the legs downs to set it over Lilia's lap. "I brought you some toast and jam. Try to eat a little of it otherwise that pain pill is going to make you sick. I wouldn't want to be sick and injured at the same time."

[Maira]

If she had thought the small movement to try and look around upon waking had been painful, the gentle shove from Isis to get her sitting upright was excruciating. She could tell that Isis was trying to be careful with her but there were somethings that just couldn't be helped. Once she was upright and was able to breathe again without crying out in pain, Isis finally let go of her before smoothing back her hair away from her face and then nuzzling at the right side of her neck. If her body weren't already highly sensitive thanks to her injuries, the nuzzling would have put it on high alert. As it was she had to fight her body's normal reaction of shivering in pleasure at such a gentle touch on her neck.

If Isis could still stand her after her time spent being Lilia's nurse, Lilia had a sneaky feeling she would want to get to know the woman better. Not only her personality appealed to Lilia, but also her touch. If in such an injured state her body could still respond with attraction to the woman, there was clearly some chemistry there. At least on Lilia's part. Maybe Isis didn't go for girls, who knew, but Lilia was pretty sure she wanted to find out.

The food and the tea that Isis brought out made Lilia's stomach rumble a bit. She'd had breakfast that morning but had totally skipped lunch and now it was nearing dinner time she guessed from the fading light coming in through the windows. At Isis's encouragement to eat the toast and jam to prevent the pain pill from making her sick, Lilia answered, "Oh don't worry, I've got an appetite. If I ever don't have one then I'm either dying or already dead." With that said, Lilia popped the pill in her mouth and swallowed it down with some of the tea, and followed it quickly with the toast slathered in jam.

It didn't take long for the chamomile tea and the pain pill to both kick in, and soon enough Lilia felt her head nodding and her body slipping back toward the horizontal. She was loathe to try moving that much when she was drowsy again but with the pain pill in her system she hoped it wouldn't be that bad. She didn't get a chance to even ask Isis if they could lay her back down though because at that moment a tall silvery blond haired man came strolling through the door.

Immediately Lilia knew the man was another white dragon, but he wasn't one from her own clan's Holding, and she started to put the pieces together. She'd heard the story from her friends still back at the Holding, how there was a male looking for a mate but how he already had a Custos wife. Most female dragons looking for a mate would tolerate a bonded partner of the female gender so long as the bonding were platonic, but rarely would they like the idea of sharing the affections of their mate with somebody he considered a wife. She'd heard just how hard a time the poor guy was having and while she'd been curious about the duo, she wasn't really looking for a relationship herself with anybody (despite her instincts to mate and produce little dragonlings of her own) so she had just avoided going out to the Holding to meet the male. Funny that he was actually living just across town from her though, and they had somehow never met. He was handsome for sure, but of the two Isis caught her attention more.

[Demeter]

Isis had grabbed her yarn and moved to the chaise opposite the couch. She'd worked on untangling the yarn while watching Lilia. She'd known the moment that Ben had returned. First because she'd heard the jeep pulled up behind the garage and second because the moment he'd realized that she'd shut him out, he'd mentally yelled at her. Ben really didn't like when people tuned him out.

She told him to keep it down, saying that they'd had a special guest and she'd been injured in a car crash. She could only assume thats why his entrance had been quiet. Isis set down her yarn and watched the two react to each other. She wanted to know Ben's opinion of his female dragon. Isis had an idea that enthralling the woman, even very lightly, wouldn't be a problem. Or even needed.

***

Ben looked from house guest to wife before sitting on the edge of the coffee table. He lightly kicked Isis with his sock clad foot. "Going to introduce us?"

Rolling her eyes, Isis made the introductions. "Ben, this is Lilia. Lilia, this is Bennett, my...brother." If Lilia noticed the hestitation, Isis didn't notice. She didn't know if Lilia knew about them or not but for now, Isis thought it would be best to wait. She turned to Ben and lightly touched his arm. "Ben, can you help Lilia into the spare room for the night? I would do it but..." she shrugged.

Ben shook his head. "Why don't you run ahead and make sure that the heater is on and that the covers are pulled back." He stood, shook out the kinks in his shoulders. "Lilia, please hang tight. I've never been hit by a car but I have an idea about how you are feeling. Took a nasty fall from a horse once," he said while picking the woman up.

Ahead of them, Isis looked over her shoulder and scowled. "Don't feel any pity for him, Lilia. It was his own damn fault. I'll never forget it, there I was, waiting for the idiot to come home, like any good sister would have, when his friends bang open the door and haul him in. He'd taken a bet that he could, while stumbling, arse over head, drunk, that he could ride a horse, while blinded folded and backwards. Idiot deserved to tumble off the horse and be trampled. I certianly felt no sympathy for him."

Ben looked down at the woman in his arms and turned sideways to get her through the bedroom door. "Woman was a harpy for the three weeks it took me to heal. A complete Nurse Ratched." He set Lilia down and stepped back to allow Isis to tuck Lilia in. "I see she is treating you better than me."

Ben watched as Isis added pillows to prop up arm and leg and smoothed the sheets over their guest. He tilted his head when Isis gently ran a hand along the curve of Lilia's cheek. One eyebrow winged up at that and he smiled. It may have been the drugs but Lilia didn't seem replussed by Isis, which had been the problem with many of the others.

Isis puttered around the room, making sure that Lilia had a glass of water within reach and that the heat was just right. "You just yell if you need anything, Lilia, otherwise we'll see you in the morning. Good night, Lilia," she said before turning off the light and leaving the door open a crack.

She and Ben went through their normal lock-up routine and retreated to their bedroom. After shucking off his clothes and changed into a pair of flannel sleep pants. Sprawled on the california king bed, he watched as Isis ran a brush through her hair. He'd always liked watching her when she sat at the vanity table she insisted on dragging around. He got up and went around to the vanity. He took the brush from her and ran it through her hair. "You like her, don't you?"

"She's very lovely but I'm not the only one that matters." Isis turned on the stool and looked up at Ben. "What do you think?"

Ben shrugged. "I don't know her yet."

Isis licked her lips. "I could enthrall her. You're running out of time, Ben, before things go completely haywire."

Ben blinked down at her. "I thought you said that you would never do that, even for me?"

"I lied," Isis said.

Ben bent down and rubbed his nose against hers. "Well, why don't we hold off on that for now until we see how receptive she'd be and use your special talents if she needs just a little prodding or a little help relaxing to the idea of three of us together."

[Maira]

Lilia knew that the male dragon and his wife were posing as brother and sister, so as not to scare the locals, and if she hadn't been so groggy she may have called them on that little story right then and there. As it was, she was just too tired and loopy to think to say anything. Thankfully the pain meds were in full effect and when Ben lifted her off the couch, Lilia barely cringed. The pain was still pretty intense, but compared to how it felt unmedicated this pain was completely manageable. Once she was up and in his arms, Lilia couldn't help but catch his scent and again she felt her body react. She was a female dragon, he was a male dragon, and they were both in their prime and her body was well aware. Even though her body was reacting to Bennett's, it wasn't the same reaction she'd been having to Isis earlier.

And then Ben was laying her down in a big comfy bed, and Isis was propping her with pillows and covering her with blankets. She knew Ben had been talking to her, but Lilia just really wasn't able to focus. At Isis's gentle caress on her cheek, Lilia smiled warmly at the other woman, she might have even tried to kiss her hand if she'd been able to move fast enough but between the drugs and the pain, and being completely wrapped in blankets there was just no way. Before she knew it, the 'siblings' were saying goodnight and shutting the door.

*****

Something huge was laying on her, crushing the left half of her body, and Lilia couldn't move! She tried and tried, wiggling with all her strength, grunting with the effort and the pain. Finally she got free from whatever it was that was trapping here but when she rolled away, she rolled off a cliff and fell, landing on razor sharp rocks.

The scream as she landed, in a tangle of sweat soaked blankets on Isis and Bennett's spare bedroom floor made her own ears ring, and woke her in an instant. If she could have stopped the sobbing that was wracking her pain-filled body, whether from the landing on the floor or just from the pain meds wearing off, she would have called out that she was okay. As it was she heard shouting from somewhere else in the house followed by two distinct sets of footsteps running to her room. How embarassing...

[Demeter]

Isis sat bolt upright in bed when she heard the thud and cry. Being a light sleeper, she easily woke if noises were loud enough. It took a moment but she put together the sound of sobbing with her houseguest. While kicking off the covers, she elbowed Ben sharply before rolling from the bed and hurrying from the room. She crossed the cold living room floor in her bare feet and pushed open the spare room door. Gasping softly, she hurried over and knelt down next to Lilia. She hesitated for a second before pushing the woman over onto her back. She cradled Lilia’s head in her lap and held the woman’s uninjured right hand. Whenever the pain surged, Lilia’s grip threatened to break the bones in Isis’ hand but she held on.

When Ben came into the room, Isis used her head to indicate the bed. “She fell, I think. Pull back the covers, please, and then get her back up there. I can’t.” Isis may have had the strength to haul Lilia around but, with her short height, she couldn’t life and carry without risking more injuries.

Ben hauled the covers from the bed, tossing them carelessly on the floor, before leaning down to pick Lilia up. With her left side roll against his bed, she cried out in pain but he hurried and had the woman plunked down in the center of the bed. He glanced at her face when he heard no sound of sobbing. Though she wasn’t gray with pain, there were tear tracks down her cheeks and her eyelids were closed. “I think she passed out,” he said while quickly looking over her body for any new injuries. “Fall probably undid anything that had started to heal,” he said while peeking under the woman’s night shirt. He ran a down her leg but stopped when he reached her ankle. “Isis, did Lilia have any injuries to her leg? Her ankle is swelling and it’s swelling pretty fast.”

Isis, from where she still sat on the bed, shook her head. “Doc said she might have wrenched the knee in the crash but there were no breaks on the first x-rays. She must have landed on it when she fell,” Isis said and climbed to her feet. “Go call the doc’s after-hours number. The card is next to the phone and that pain medication back with you.”

As Ben left the room, Isis pulled the covers back over Lilia. She was careful to leave the leg exposed but she propped it up on a couple of pillows. After doing the same for Lilia’s arm, Isis circled the bed and climbed up on the right side of the bed. She needed to get Lilia to wake up. She poked and prodded but nothing seemed to work; Lilia was deep under, where the pain couldn’t reach. Nibbling on her lower lip, Isis spooned up against the woman and gently pressed an arm across her chest. She used one leg to weight down Lilia’s good hip and leg. And then she shoved her magic against and into the woman. For a few seconds, perhaps 30, Lilia would be aroused, painfully so, but Isis hoped it would distract her from the throbbing of her broken and bruised body.

Isis bore down when Lilia jolted awake with a strangled gasp, a high-pitched keening sound and a jerk of her body. Acting quickly, she sucked all that magic, and any arousal Lilia felt, back into her own body and held her down. Once she was sure that it was all locked away, Isis held Lilia close, stroking her head and murmuring nonsense into her ear.

Ben watched from the doorway as Isis soothed Lilia. He’d felt the punch of Isis’s magic at full blast and had had to stop in the middle of living room, willing himself back under control and then, as quickly as he’d felt it, it was gone and that was just as bad. After shaking it off, he’d continued to the room. He set the bottle of pills on the nightstand and gently touched Lilia’s face. “Doc is on her way. She said to keep Lilia warm, awake and to try to get the pain medication into her.” Ben crouched down next to the bed and turned Lilia’s face towards him. “Can you do that for me, Lilia,” can you sit up a little and swallow a pill for us?”

[Maira]

Isis reached her first, for which Lilia was a bit relieved. The whole situation was awkward anyway and the last thing she wanted was for the man looking for a mate to find her wanting simply because she was incapable of staying in her bed while drugged and in pain. That last thought shocked Lilia. Since when did she care what a male looking for a mate would think? Probably since that afternoon when she'd decided she had a thing for his wife...

She didn't have time to dwell on the strange situation she found herself in, because between the pain and Isis's arrival she had other things to think about. The other woman got her rolled over, the movement itself causing her pain to spike even more, and the Bennett entered the room and Isis started instructing him to put her back on the bed. Somehow Lilia couldn't even manage to speak, no matter how much she wanted to object to the idea of being move, and when Ben picked her up off the floor she gave one cry before darkness took her again.

Only the darkness didn't stay for long. With a gasp, suddenly Lilia was alert and incredibly turned on, not to mention in excruciating pain. She could feel every contour of Isis's body pressed up behind her, feld her leg and arm draped over her as her body jerked and a high pitched keening sound escaped her before she could stop it. Almost as suddenly as it had hit her, the arousal was yanked away from her and Lilia realized just what kind of Custos Isis was.

Her body was shuddering from the shock of the loss of Isis's magic, and also from the pain, and when Bennet asked if she could sit up and swallow her pain pill, Lilia just raised an eyebrow at him and answered hoarsely, barely above a whisper, "You've got to be kidding, right?" His touch and his tone had been gentle, and Lilia probably shouldn't have answered the way she did, but she was reeling from more than just the pain and wasn't really thinking straight. At the look in his eyes though, Lilia sighed and nodded a yes.

She didn't quite get taken by the darkness this time, but it was a close thing. If Isis hadn't been holding her and sending barely perceptible trickles of her magic into her, Lilia probably would have passed out again as the pain surged through her body. Once she had her breathing under control again, she opened her eyes and nodded to Bennet as he held out the pill and a glass of water to her. He tried to hold the glass for her, but Lilia insisted on using her good arm to hold the glass and drink it herself.

Water and pill swallowed, Lilia closed her eyes and leaned just a little bit into Isis. She was trying to force herself to relax a bit and calm the shuddering, but despite her best efforts it wasn't working very well. Instead of focussing on her broken body, Lilia decided it was time to settle something and asked Isis out of the blue, "So how many people actually believe you two are brother and sister? He's a dragon and you're a Succubus, no halfsies to either of you." When Isis stiffened, Lilia clarified how she knew, "I have a dragon's sense of smell Isis, just like your husband."

[Demeter]

Isis stiffened at Lilia's question. And than she relaxed against the woman. She looked at Ben and his subtle nod had her purring. "Well, Lilia, how do you know we aren't step-siblings?" she asked while lightly stroking Lilia's good arm. She kept sending little sparks of her magic into Lilia, trying to keep her distracted from the pain. "However, you are right. We are not siblings in any way. We are husband and wife and we are here to find a third. A mate for Bennett and a lover for me."

Ben sat on the side of the bed and lightly rested his hand on Lilia's good leg. "I'm sure that you can understand how difficult this has been for us. Not many dragons are willing to accept Isis as my wife and not just a platonic bonded partner. We need to find someone special. Someone, perhaps in need of a mate but isn't overly interested in men."

Things may have progressed farther but the doc was stomping up the stairs with the town sheriff in town. Dragon and Custos stood back to let the doc work, only assisting when they needed to hold Lilia down while Chastity set the broken ankle and wrap it tight. And than the doc gave Lilia a syringe full of enough pain medication and sedatives to knock her out for half a day.

It was early afternoon the next day when Isis, sitting in the living room and reading her book, heard Lilia call out. Setting the book aside, she headed for the bedroom. She sat down on the bed and brushed Lilia's hair out of her eyes. "I bet you have to use the bathroom. Let me call Bennett up because I can't support you."

After they had helped Lilia use the bathroom, they got her situated on the couch. Isis covered her with a light blanket and offered her some juice. "Rhea called a little bit ago. She told your brother about the crash but was unable to talk him out of coming up. He should be here in a few hours."

Bennett, rising from putting more logs into the fireplace, dusted off his hand and leaned over the back of the couch. "Your car is totaled, Lilia. I should be able to find you something reliable and cheap, though, if you would like. If you need or want anything from your place, just let me know and I can run over to get it."

[Maira]

Lilia would have loved to have continued their conversation, but soon Doc Chastity and Rhea arrived and Lilia had a very bad feeling where things were going. Her suspicions were confirmed when Chastity enlisted Bennet and Isis, as well as Rhea, to hold her down so she could set the ankle she had finished breaking when she fell out of bed. She had roared with pain and she felt her body starting to shift, first the claws at her fingertips, and then the scales on her skin. Her wings were about to make an appearance too when Isis once again sent her magic into Lilia, and Chastity whipped out a syringe that could only have some serious sedatives and pain killers in it because Lilia immediately felt herself being dragged under.

She woke with what could only be described as a hangover. Her head was throbbing, her eyes were sensitive to the light, and either she was ridiculously hungry or she was very nauseous. It took her a few moments to get her senses about her and realize that she must've been out for a really long time because it felt like her bladder was going to explode. She knew that somebody would scold her soundly if she tried getting herself to the bathroom so instead of even trying, she called out, "Hello?"

When Isis entered, Lilia smiled warmly at her and nodded understanding about the other woman's explination for needing to call Bennett in to help her to the restroom. That experience wasn't nearly as painful as she had expected, but by the time Bennett got her resituated out on the couch Lilia was feeling even more nauseous than before. At the news that Rhea had called Graethyn, Lilia cringed and muttered about meddling over-protective baby brothers.

Luckily Bennett distracted her from the news of her brother's impending arrival. Of course, the topic he'd decided upon left a lot to be desired. She had loved her car and was seriously grumpy that it was now nothing more than a worthless heap of metal. What a waste. When Ben offered to try and find her a replacement vehicle, Lilia answered him, "I know its probably a long shot but if you could find me something as close to the one I lost I'd appreciate it, it was just exactly what I need. I don't mind about the cheap part, I had to have that one shipped here from a dealership down south and I'm willing to do the same again if need be. As for stuff from my place, some of own clothes would be great, maybe my laptop so I can work on the restaurant's books while I'm laid up. Oh, and my Nook please! May as well tackle my "to read" list while I have an excuse to be lazy." This last was said with a big smile, burying her nose in books (even e-books) made Lilia almost as happy as making delicious food.

[Demeter]

Isis quickly claimed the task of fetching Lilia's things from her place, citing that Bennett would likely bring back jeans and other things that wouldn't be comfortable for a recovering from a car accident. After collecting Lilia's keys and the location of her home, Isis set out, saying that she would be back shortly and to behave. The drive over to the resturant was short enough but the moment her feet touch the staircase that led to the second floor, Isis was besiged by worried resturant workers. After she reassured the resturant staff that Lilia was going to be okay and that the damage looked worse than it was, Isis went about the process of collecting Lilia's things. She did snoop a little; she had to in order to find a bag for Lilia's clothing. And she might have a spent a little too much time rummaging around her dresser drawers but she wanted to make sure that Lilia was comfortably clothed from the skin out. Once she had the clothing squared away, Isis quickly packed up Lilia's requested electronics and headed home.

***

Bennett watched his wife go with a scowl on her face. He turned and sat on the couch opposite of Lilia. "She lies, you know. I wouldn't have brought back jeans. What I brought back may not have matched but it would have been comfortable."

He grinned at Lilia. "But it go her out of house. Just sit tight and I'll see if I can't find you something to eat," he got up from the couch he'd just sat on and spent several minutes rummaging around the kitchen. He brought out a tray of soup and toast for her and settled it across Lilia's lap. "If you can hold that down, I'll see if I can't find something more filling. If the pain gets to much, just let me know and I can get you a pain pill."

He really don't know where to start with Lilia. Most of the time, he'd laid it out for the other women he'd talked to, saying that he needed a mate and wasn't too terribly picky and they'd all run off when he'd told them about Isis. Except, this time he seemed to be one that was the problem. His wife and the female dragon sitting on the couch opposite him were very much interested in each other. Normally, he mused, most men would be concerned about this but he thought it was a very good sign. He sighed and looked over at Lilia. He probably should ask Lilia while she was still sober enough to consider it.

"Lilia, do you recall what we started talking about before you took an enforced nap?" when she nodded, Ben shifted to end of his couch. "Would you even remotely consider being my mate, if only for the sake of Isis. It wears on me, fighting what nature intended for me, but it also wears on her whenever we are met with failure. I wouldn't be such a bad bet. I'm healthy, not too horrible to look at, finacially solvent and I've kept a succubus happy for 200 years."

[Maira]

Once Isis left to go pick up her things Bennett took it upon himself to feed her, for which she was cautiously grateful. She still wasn't sure if her stomach was actually hungry or if eating was going to make her sick but she was hopeful it was the former. It didn't take him more than a few minutes before Bennett brought out some toast and soup for Lilia, the toast was plain white toast so she knew it would be bland enough for even an upset stomach but the smell of the soup set her mouth to watering and it took all of her restraint to start with the toast. She nibbled on it a bit and wondered just what Bennett was thinking about as he sat on the other couch just watching her in silence. Finally when he sighed, Lilia set her piece of toast back on the plate and looked at him curiously.

The questions that came from the man didn't exactly shock her, but Lilia wasn't expecting them to come without Isis around for some reason. Of course once she took a moment to think about just what he was saying, Lilia realized just why he wasn't asking those things around Isis. Sometimes being a Brood was complicated, especially if one reached 300 years old and didn't have a mate to make little Brood babies with. She too had felt the demands that nature was putting on her body to reproduce but as of yet she had been able to ignore them by avoiding living at her family's Holding. If she had been among other Brood on a daily basis she likely would have had a much harder time resisting finding a mate.

When Bennett started to wiggle a bit with either impatience or nervousness, it alerted Lilia to the fact that she'd been kind of gazing off into la-la land for a bit there while she processed what he'd said. Brought back to reality, Lilia silently cursed the narcotics still lingering in her system making her easily distractable then she used her good hand to pat the couch next to her urging Bennett to come sit next to her. Before he sat she quietly said, "Here, move the tray for a minute." Once the tray was on the coffee table and Bennett was sitting next to her, Lilia placed her hand in his and twined their fingers. It amused her to notice how her normally large seeming hands looked tiny compared to his and a small smirk tugged up the corner of her mouth.

Looking up from their joined hands, Lilia answered him finally, "If you are sure that both you and Isis could be happy with me, sharing me, then yes I'll happily consider becoming your mate." The look of surprise and relief on Bennett's face made Lilia laugh and she couldn't help but give him her biggest smile. "I'm not sure why you're so shocked. We are both in our prime and nature is making her demands known, you really are very nice to look at and, I'm almost ashamed to admit, I seem to be rather attracted to and infatuated with your wife." The last bit was said with more than a little blushing on Lilia's part. Even just mentioning Isis brought an image of the other woman into her mind as well as memories of the feel of her gentle hands and her magic.

With a quick shake of her head to clear it of the succubus in question, Lilia added, "If you can tolerate looking at me for the forseeable future and all three of us are able to get along between now and whenever we decide to make things official, and don't think we won't have to because my mother would kill me if I didn't let her plan a ceremony, then I really think this will be a good situation for all of us."

[Demeter]

Ben cringed at the thought of an official ceremony. He loved a good party but hated having to attend ceremonies. He knew that some holdings where big on making everything an official ceremony; he’d come from one of them. Ben slanted a glance at Lilia. “So long as it’s not big, or over the top or insufferably long, I think I could handle that so long as Isis is involved. And, perhaps if everything works out between us, she could become your bonded partner as well. That is, if you don’t already have one?”

Ben half turned so that he was facing Lilia. “I do have one favor to ask of you. No matter what happens between the three of us, please don’t tell anyone that Isis is a succubus. She’s not really trained in the ways of the succubae. She has control over her magic but cannot use it like most of her kind. If she trusts you not to take things to far, any experience with her will be intense. Mostly because she cannot funnel off the sexual drive from her partner so it is up to the other person to know when to stop otherwise the magic will keep everyone going until they collapse from exhaustion.

“And if things get out of control or if her power limiter comes off, the magic will rebound on her. Please be careful with her, Lilia. In the past, before I got her out of London and was able to protect her, people would get weird when they found out what she was. Kidnappings, being held like an animal in captivity and rape, though many would argue that a succubus couldn’t be raped, happened not often but frequent enough. She refuses to talk about it, or train how to use her magic like any normal succubus would, so that is why I am telling you. Please, Lilia, promise me to be careful with her.”

***

Isis stood in the hallway and listened to the two dragons talk. They seemed to have reached some sort of agreement and Ben was pleading with Lilia to be gentle. Isis’ body gave a little involuntary shudder as she thought about her life before Ben. She didn’t like thinking about that time. And she still refuses to train. She’d seen her mother, drunk on the power she’d taken from others, and she’d seen the bodies of the human men who’d summoned her mother being hauled out of houses to be buried in shallow graves. She didn’t want that. Not even the temptation to be able to do that. So, she was vulnerable to others but now she had one, maybe two, dragons to keep her safe.

Isis backtracked a few steps, quickly opened the door and then slammed it shut. She hoped it fooled the two others. She came into the living room and dropped the bag holding Lilia’s clothing on the floor. “I’m back. Lilia, I told your employees that you were okay but out of commission for a while. Your restaurant is still standing and I gave the kitchen staff the number for here in case there are any emergencies.”

Isis set the laptop bag down on the chair and walked over to the couch. She lifted their joined hands, glanced between the two dragons before snuggling between them. “So, I take it this means you don’t have any objections to being with a married woman, Lilia, if the husband not only agrees but wants in on the action?”

[Maira]

Lilia smirked at bennett's conditions for the ceremony. her mother was going to be in for a big enough shock when she told her that she'd decided to take a mate. Then to find out that her prospective mate had a Custos wife that she also wanted to be joined to... There were either going to be fireworks and grudging acceptance or she was going to be flat out disowned. Either possibility was equally likely, knowing her mother. Luckily though her father was a lot less volatile and more open to things that strayed from tradition and he would hopefully balance out, or completely nix her mother's general craziness.

As their conversation progressed, their fingers still entwined, Lilia listened as bennett explained about the type of existence he had rescued Isis from. Just hearing what isis had gone through, Lilia started to get angry. Really angry. She had learned long ago not to show her feelings too strongly on her face when she was bullied as a child for being so openly emotional. Because of this, only a slight grimace flickered across her face at the telling. Her hand, however, had tightened noticeably in Bennett's. She had just opened her mouth to promise Bennett that she would do her best to keep Isis safe when the door opened and shut and Isis reappeared. Instead she closed her mouth and told the other dragon silently as she smiled at Isis, **I will never hurt her like that, and anybody who tries will find themselves face to face with a very angry dragon.**

When Isis came over to snuggle between Bennett and her, after putting her clothes and technology down, Lilia's smile at the other woman grew. When Isis then made a comment about Lilia not minding being involved with a married woman she laughed lightly and answered, "I think I'll manage."

*****

The first visit with Grae had been short and sweet. he really just wanted to see for himself that she was as okay as Rhea claimed and that the people taking care of her were doing an acceptable job. When he left he seemed satisfied, if a bit amused by her obvious change in feelings toward relationships. After Grae left, the rest of the evening was spent with the three of them relaxing, sharing stories, and just generally getting to know each other. At some point Chastity stopped by to check on her patient and she must've been pleased with how well Lilia was healing because she didn't re-drug her and left shortly after arrival, promising to bring crutches by in the morning.

By the time she started getting tired it was getting quite late. She was a little surprised that neither Isis or Bennett had already wandered away to bed. After all they'd both been up since morning, while she had slept half the day away. With Bennett's help Lilia managed a slow hobble to the spare room, which she was quickly coming to think of as hers. As Bennett helped her onto the bed, Lilia was not for the first time immensely grateful for the rapid healing of her race. Just the day before the actions of scooting around to get comfortable in the bed would have caused her to black out with pain. Tonight however, the pain was very noticeable but it didn't even make her dizzy or do more than grunt with effort.

Once she was mostly comfortable, both Isis and Bennett said their goodnights and she was left to herself with only her Nook for company. For the first time in a very long time, Lilia truly regretted not having a special somebody in her bed.

[Demeter]

In the morning, Ben woke up and bounced down the stairs to open the shop and start to search for Lilia's replacement vehicle. After starting a fire in the woodstove and booting up the shop computer, Ben sat at the counter, clicking through websites. Part of him was tuned to the apartment over his head, shoulder either woman need his help for something. Often, he was called upstairs when Isis couldn't reach something but today he expected to be called up to help Lilia.

There was also a part of him that expected Lilia's younger brother to come stomping up to him, demanding to know his intentions towards Lilia. He also expected someone to come out from the local holding to snatch Lilia up and haul her away to the mountains. He got the feeling that this wasn't a desired event. He was still thinking this when his full-time mechanic rolled into the shop and up to the coffee pot. Not long after that, Isis called down the stairs for him to get upstairs and help her out.

***

Isis really hated behing short. Normally, it was just an inconvience when trying to reach things on tall shelves, or trying to get the cobwebs out of the corners. However, Lilia wanted to shower and, having cleared it what Doc so long as she took it easy, Isis's short stature made assisting the woman difficult. Isis could understand Lilia's desire to be clean and she wouldn't have been satisfied with a sponge bath either. This would be a group project. When Ben came up the stairs, Isis drew him aside and explained the situation. He colored at the thought but he knew that he would help out.

Following Isis into their master bath, as it had a walk in shower, he saw Lilia sitting on the toilet. "I think we can manage this with as little fuss as possible. I'll help you support your weight and Isis will help with everything else."

It took a little bit of time but he and Isis stripped down to their skivvies and Lilia down to her skin. Despite their agreement to attempt this triad thing, Lilia was still healing and Ben hoped this would be as quick and painless as possible. But, he thought as he stepped into the shower to fiddle with the controls, he could only imagine how things could happen if the three of them were naked, or nearly so, and wet and helping with something like a shower.

And indeed, as he leaned against the wall, supporting Lilia while Isis, standing on a stool, soaped up her hair, Ben's imagine was running just a little wild and he was wishing that Lilia wasn't injured. He was glad for the heat of the water for that would cover the flushing of his face but it didn't explain away how other parts of his body were reacting to the situation. And, judging by the flush on Lilia's face, she could feel his reaction as well.

[Maira]

She hadn't slept well at all the night before, her dreams hadn't been dreams at all but nightmares. She couldn't remember them in full detail but she had a few vague images left floating in her mind and they alone were enough to explain waking up in a cold sweat.

Once she was sure that she didn't look like she was recovering from a night full of nightmares, Lilia called out to Isis. She really wanted a shower, some breakfast and some coffee. The last two were easy enough to come by, the first was going to be more tricky since she still couldn't put any significant amount of her weight on her left leg. When Isis said she would get Ben up from the shop to help get Lilia showered, the brood nearly objected. They may have agreed to try out a triad, and she may have wanted somebody in her bed the night before, but that didn't mean she was ready to be in a hot steamy shower with the pair of them. Maybe if she weren't injured and the joint shower was purely for fun it would be different, but being at somebody else's mercy to get her clean wasn't in Lilia's comfort zone. Still, she desperately wanted to get clean so she held her objection and watched as Isis went off to summon Ben.

*****

It had been decided that all three of them would be getting in the shower together and Lilia did her best not to blush as Isis and Ben stripped down to almost nothing. Naturally she had to take all her clothing off and she was shocked to discover that for the first time in her life she felt shy at revealing her naked body to somebody. Luckily the warmth from the hot water Ben was running in the shower was already creeping out into the room and he skin was already slightly flushed when she felt herself blush.

Once they were all in the water, Isis went to work on getting her clean while Ben supported her. She had not been bathed or cleaned by another person since she was a small child and as Isis gently lathered up her hair, Lilia felt herself relax and as she relaxed, she wound up leaning into Ben. As she did, Lilia realized just what effect being in the shower was having on him. Her eyes widened only slightly and only for a moment before she tamped down her reaction to his reaction. Instead of backing away like he probably expected, Lilia moved her hands from his shoulders to behind his neck, linking her fingers together which pulled her body just a bit closer to his own.

Logically Lilia knew that the slippery shower while she couldn't support her own weight was -not- the best time to initiate anything. Something in her though, likely her earlier insecurities coupled with the feel of Ben's body against hers and Isis's hands now washing her body, was making it really hard for her not to. She didn't like feeling shy or embarrassed or weak, and by not acting on her normal tendencies of appreciating the two very attractive people in the shower with her, that was exactly how she felt and that was just unacceptable. So, in spite of her injuries and the likelihood of her getting injured further, Lilia ignored logic and let her body enjoy itself.

Before long, Lilia found herself shivering with pleasure at Isis's touch and pressed more firmly against Ben. This made his own arousal more even more apparent, and that just tipped Lilia over the edge and she couldn't stop herself. She didn't think standing on tip-toe to reach the man's lips was the best plan and neither was letting go of him to turn and face Isis, so instead she used her joined hands behind his neck to pull his face down to hers and she kissed him square on the lips. She wanted Isis too, but the woman was just going to have to come into reach.

[Demeter]

Obviously, fooling around in the shower wasn't the best idea if Lilia was injured but common sense wasn't big on Bennett's list of things to do. And so when Lilia yanked his head down for a kiss, he went willingly. He wrapped his arms around her, hitching her frame up against his. He returned the kiss with as much enthusiasm as she gave.

Isis, biting her lower lip, watched the two of them twine around each other. She inched forward, fully intending on stroking Lilia's wet skin until the woman melted into a puddle of pleasured goo. She'd just started to slid her fingers over Lilia's back when she heard a muffled gasp from the door of the shower. She turned, quick enough to spot Rhea as she back out of the bathroom. "Shit," she muttered and scooted out of the bathroom after the Sheriff.

She would have left the room if she hadn't heard Rhea loudly greet Lilia's younger brother on the interior stairs. Isis squeaked and she dashed back into the bathroom. She bumped Ben and Lilia, still twined around each other apart, and shoved Ben out of the shower. She grabbed Lilia around her arms and spun her around to lean against the wall. "Stay there for a moment. Your brother is outside."

She stepped out of the shower and tossed a towel at Ben. "Dry off and hide the evidence that you find Lilia hot before her brother kills you," she said as she passed through the bathroom and into the bedroom. She grabbed the stool in front of her vanity table, ripped off the slip cover and brought it into the bathroom. She plopped it into the shower and sat Lilia on it. "Stay there," she said while wrapping a towel around Lilia's body.

In the bathroom, Ben, dressed in his jeans, leaned against the counter and held a towel over his front. He waved a hand with Lilia's brother when the man peered in. "Hey, Lilia's taking a shower. Whatcha need?"

[Maira]

She was a dragon female in her prime and when Ben kissed her back with so much enthusiasm there was no denying that he was a male dragon in his prime. A thrill of excitement shivered down her spine as he pulled her body up tightly against his and when Isis started running her fingers over her back a soft growl of pleasure escaped her. But then the smaller woman's delicate, knowledgeable fingers were gone. Lilia didn't hear Isis mutter before she disappeared, but she knew something was wrong when the succubus hurried back into the shower and split her and Ben apart and shoved him out of the shower before making sure she was propped against the wall. Then, Isis told her to stay put because her brother was outside and Lilia's face flamed, though whether it was from anger, embarrassment or a strange combination of the two at her brother's timing Lilia didn't know.

By the time that Isis came back with a stool and a towel, Lilia was shaking. She did her best to hide it from the other woman but she wasn't sure it worked. She was now getting cold, her body wasn't happy at the sudden loss of Ben and his dragon hormones, and just that brief period of her standing on her own in the shower added up to too much for Lilia's body and that was why she was shaking. When she heard Bennett talking, she knew by the words that he was talking to her younger brother and Lilia's face flamed again. She really wanted Grae to go away so that Ben would rejoin her and Isis in the shower so they could finish what they started. Only, when she heard Grae's words in response to Ben's question she had to stifle a groan and hid her face in her hands. Now Grae? Really?

*****

He knew that if he didn't make a trip out to the Holding that his mother was going to come hunting for him herself instead of just having waiters from his sister's restaurant spy on him. So, with a dual purpose, he headed over to Isis and Bennett's. He needed to check in on Lilia, and he wanted to ask Bennett if he had a loaner car that the shop let people use while their cars were being worked on. He hated asking Rhea to drive him, and Lilia's car was trashed, so his options were pretty limited when it came to transportation.

He still wasn't sure why the pair of them had taken Lilia in while she recovered from the accident but he was glad they had. The little time he'd spent with them he knew that they were good people. Not to mention, he just really liked Bennett. The guy was somebody he could totally see himself being friends with if he actually lived in Point Hope full time.

When he arrived, Grae checked in first at the shop to see if Bennett was around but the other employees said that he'd gone upstairs to help his wife with something. So, knowing he could get both his errands done in one go, Grae quickly went up the stairs to the apartment over the shop. He was just about to knock when a skittish looking Rhea practically bolted out of the apartment.

"Oh hi Grae!" Rhea greeted him in a volume way louder that was probably necessary in an echoey stairwell.

Grae did his best not to cringe as his ears rang, and answered back, "Hey Rhea." Then, because she looked bothered by something he couldn't help but ask, a bit worried, "Are Isis, Bennett and Lilia alright?" Rhea's answer was a quick nod as a slight flush showed on her cheeks before she darted past him and down the stairs.

Confused and a little curious, Grae watched Rhea disappear around the bend in the stairwell before letting himself in the still open door to the apartment. "Hello?" he called loud enough to be heard throughout the apartment before stepping inside. When there wasn't an answer, Grae relied on his senses to lead him to where the occupants of the home were. It didn't take him long to find Bennett, still wet and flushed from a shower standing in the bathroom. At Bennett's greeting an single eyebrow crept up Grae's forehead. Uh-huh, sure Lilia was in the shower. He highly doubted she'd been in there by herself until just a moment ago, and judging by the scent of dragon hormones he had a feeling he knew what the towel Bennett was holding was hiding. And, as he thought about he it realized he hadn't seen or heard Isis anywhere else in the apartment so he was pretty sure he knew where she was.

The fact that his older sister had sex was not shocking at all. What was shocking was that she was getting it on in a shower with a man and a woman, while still injured. Doing his best to keep his mild shock at the situation under control and not pummel the man who'd either been having his way with his sister, or really wanted to, he answered Bennett's question surprisingly calmly. "I just came to check on Lilia and to ask if your shop had car I could borrow to take out to the Holding before my mother came to town hunting her children. I don't think any of us want her to find Lilia injured, she'd drag her out of here so fast she'd probably rebreak something on the way out."