Page 58 of Shifting Years
A fire seared my lungs while I ran. "Bobby, you were right. I'm not the wife type. But maybe, maybe I could be."
I turned into a monster before I escaped. If a man can shift into a wolf, then maybe I could shift myself straight. The years were gone—erased. There used to be someone with warm hands and a soft voice, but even his name was lost to me. With nothing left to hold onto, I should become someone else.
Someone who could still make a difference.
***
"Did thatreallyhappen?" asked Kim.
"That's the thing," I said. "You don't always know. Humans use Disbelief but we grew up around them. Makes sense we'd use their 'not sure' magic."
"Sounds like something I'd say back then," teased Mike. "Magic can be wonderful. Sometimes it lets you find the one, even if you have to work at it."
Kim's eyebrows under bright-red hair rose.
"Magic gives and takes," I said. "Tina and Dawn demand we help others, in return for their assistance."
The young Omega stared out, obviously thinking of his Alpha. No matter how much help and experience we had, we couldn't break the chicken out of the egg. He and his Alpha had to do their part. Otherwise, they'd poison each other by existing.
Mike stared at him, guessing my thoughts and the upcoming destruction. "How about we rewind a bit?"
***
Chapter Twenty-One
April 5th, 1972
Mike
Stabbing pain pierced through me like a knife. This wasn't just delivery pain. Something was wrong.
Penny rushed over, nostrils flaring. Her grip tightened around my hand, pulse steady. She inhaled again, deeper this time, then whispered to Mary, "He's afraid the baby won't make it."
"Get him indoors, don't you think?" shouted Mary to several Omegas.
"No!" A bed was fine, but shifters delivered in the woods. Distant leaves rustled and it was the closest thing I had.
"At least get another blanket," Mary snapped. She tossed out commands while Omegas scrambled, arranged pillows, and fetched water. She'd make a better pack leader than most Alphas.
My hand flew to my stomach, trying anything to deal with the internal twisting motion. Mary let out another melodic howl. "Sheriff's not coming."
"Neither is the pack leader," I said through gritted teeth.
Her sneer mirrored mine as other Omegas hurried with pillows, blankets, and drinking water. Penny squeezed my hand tight. She's 'good people' and kept me company whenAll in the FamilyandCombat!weren't enough. I got along with her Alpha—perhaps too well—since I was a missing piece she didn't fill, but I didn't have the right parts as Mary teased.
Penny's hands rested over her heart, and she mumbled so low that even my shifter ears couldn't make out the words. Did she whisper a prayer, a spell, or a plea to the universe? I'd take anything.
"This town needs a permanent doc, but we don't have one," said Mary.
I didn't see a solution. An Alpha doctor shouldn't touch an Omega not his own. An Omega could help with deliveries, but they could never treat an Alpha if mated. Vampires would be too attracted to the blood. Humans might work, but they couldn't know about the paranormal.
"You gotme, Mike." Mary turned to Penny silently asking for her okay and she quickly nodded.
I mirrored her breathing while wondering about other Omegas. Usually, it was just mates and sometimes someone with delivery experience. Most didn't have a crowd around them.
I guess on some level they felt sorry for me, even if they had their own sorrow. Some came to a town known for drawing soulmates, but they didn't arrive at the same time. Others got tired of waiting and found someone 'decent enough', while the man or woman of their dreams appeared years later. A few lonely souls waited, staring at the empty road and hoping the next truck, car, or hitchhiker was their missing love.
Pressure grew along my spine, and my insides twisted. The pack knelt, heads bowed. A mourning song rose, a slow, pulsing howl—like an unbroken heartbeat. I let my breathing sync to their melody, grounding me, easing the weight inside me.
