Bram must not have told her parents about wanting to stay in Ireland. Although given recent events, Brenna wasn't entirely sure what she was going to do in the future.
However, as she looked at her mother again, she decided to be nicer to her. It was almost a miracle her mother had carried a baby to term; her parents had gone through several miscarriages after Brenna was born and had eventually stopped for her mother's health. No matter their rocky past, Brenna wasn't going to be the cause of any distress.
Although the fact she was about to have a brother twenty-one years younger than her would be strange. Not only that, if she went through the frenzy, her child and their uncle would be almost the same age.
The frenzy. She'd almost forgotten about her own complicated life.
Dr. Sid peeked into the room. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but Bram wants to talk to you in about thirty minutes. Since I have some more tests to do, Sharon and Gabriele, you have about five more minutes with your daughter."
Her father bobbed his head. "Of course, Dr. Sid." He moved his gaze back to Brenna. "That should be just about enough time to tell us what is so complicated, cara."
From experience, she knew that trying to deny her father an explanation was pointless. While Gabriele Rossi was the kinder, more patient of her parents, he held a hidden core of steel. He might even do something foolish such as try to bar Bram from the room until Brenna explained her situation.
Sighing, she explained events from her time on Glenlough to the present as best she could. When she finished, her father asked, "And what do you want to do, Brenna?"
"I don't know. One decision can change my life in so many ways."
Patting her hand, her father said, "Whatever you decide, we will be here to help you."
She glanced between her parents. "You're not going back to Clan LupoForesta?"
Clan LupoForesta was one of the Italian dragon clans, located in the Abruzzo, Lazio e Molise National Park not far from Rome.
Her father shook his head. "No. LupoForesta sees Stonefire in a negative light now, after what happened with Aaron Caruso and his mother." Aaron had been kicked out of the clan and his mother had followed him. "But your mother and I knew we wanted our second child born here, near his sister. So, we will stay here."
Brenna glanced at her mum. The years of reliving the arguments with her mother, about Brenna not being strong enough to be a Protector, seemed to fade away as she took in her mother's pale face and dark circles under her eyes.
Killian's condition had taught her a few things about living in the moment and she wasn't about to waste what time she had with her family, especially over something that could be seen as a mother merely being protective of her only child.
Raising her hand, her mother came and took it. "We should talk more later."
Her mother smiled. "I'd like that. If you need to talk with someone about the frenzy, feel free to come find me.”
"Thanks, but I think talking with Killian will help."
Her mother squeezed her hand. "Once I have your brother and regain my strength, I'll help you any way that I can, Brenna. I'm sorry for not believing in you earlier. I was just afraid that I'd lose my only child."
"I somehow understand that now." Dr. Sid popped her head in the doorway, signaling it was time for her parents to leave. Brenna quickly added, "Go rest. I need to talk to my mate and figure out what to do next."
As her parents said their goodbyes and left, Brenna wanted nothing more than to talk with her dragon about her parents' return. The silence inside her head reminded her of why she was lying in a hospital bed to begin with.
The only question is whether she wanted to allow her dragon to come back and go through the frenzy, or continue to drug her for months until the mate-claim frenzy faded.
Maybe talking with Killian would make the decision easier.
~~~
Killian O'Shea followed Stonefire's head Protector into a cottage. Neither one spoke as they moved down the corridor to an open doorway, where Stonefire's leader, Bram Moore-Llewellyn, sat at a desk. The dark-haired male motioned toward the two chairs in front of his desk. "Sit."
While he may have been able to get away with acts of defiance back in Ireland, he was completely at the English dragon-shifter's mercy. Pissing him off wasn't an option, especially since it could mean never seeing Brenna again as a result.
His dragon spoke up. Then be nice.
Bram prevented Killian from replying to his beast. "It seems the Glenlough dragons are out to make my life difficult through stealing my clan members."
Killian frowned. "What are you talking about?"
"Your sister took one of my Protectors, and now her brother is trying to do the same."