Page 82 of Bitter Heat
Janus didn’t need to see much more to ascertain that he would need to stop the contractions, but he did have to check the mouth of Kerry’s womb. If it remained closed, it was likely these were preparatory contractions, often seen a week or so before the child’s due date. So, still a bit early, but not as horribly so. If the mouth of his womb were open, however, then they’d need to prepare for a gruesome and sad outcome at this stage.
With a gentleness that didn’t betray his anxiety, he smiled up at Kerry and soothed him. “It’s all right. I’m here now. I’ve got you.” He eased Kerry onto his side, putting the pillow beneath his head, and running his fingers over Kerry’s brow. “I need to check inside. All right, sweetheart?”
Kerry whispered, “Yes.”
“Let me get something to ease in, in case your omega glands are inflamed.” He turned his head as he heard the thunder of many footsteps coming up from below.
“Zeke, I need you to get to Dr. Crescent’s house as soon as possible. If he’s not home, then talk with Fan. He’ll help you. I need Cramp Bark in both pill and cream, same with Black Haw. And might as well grab some Partridgeberry and Oat Flowers too. Tea form and pills.”
Zeke’s eyes had flown wide, but Yosef was there with a note pad and a pen, writing down what Janus said. “I’ll go with you,” he said, taking Zeke by the shoulder. “Let’s hurry.”
Zeke looked wary about leaving Kerry, but when Janus shot him an urgent glare, he didn’t dally any longer.
Caleb lingered in the doorway with the babe strapped to his chest, being blessedly silent for now. Janus didn’t know what else to ask of him other than the most basic of help. “Please boil water for the teas they’ll come back with. And…bring me the tube of slippery grease I keep by my bed.” His face flushed a little, knowing that Caleb would understand what that tube meant. But his friend said nothing, hurrying off for the tube and then disappearing downstairs as soon as he’d handed it over.
This left Janus alone with Kerry, who was still clutching at the bottom of his stomach and groaning. “Let me have a look. I’ll need to take your pants off.”
Kerry nodded, breathing in between gritted-teeth groans.
Janus made haste with the drawstring waist and dragged the pants down over Kerry’s thighs and down to his ankles. Then he removed them altogether, knowing that he would need to check multiple times before this was all over. He left the room quickly to wash his hands and returned drying them on a clean towel. He knelt again.
“Bring this top knee forward. That’s good. You all right?”
Kerry shook his head and groaned again.
Janus smoothed a good amount of grease over his right hand, and then, kneeling by the bed with one hand clutched in Kerry’s, he slipped the other down past Kerry’s cock and balls to his hole. He felt the rim—a bit puffy, but that could be from the use he’d made of it the night before—and then pushed just inside. A rush of slick pulsed out, and then another burst of it, almost a river. That wasn’t as promising as he’d like. Yes, it’d make his way in easier, but it also meant Kerry’s body was preparing for something big to enter or exit. And in this case, it seemed likely that it was readying his body for the baby to be born.
“Shhh,” Janus said, gripping Kerry’s hand more tightly as he moved into him with his fingers, and then his thumb, and finally the thickest part of his hand at the base of his knuckles. “Don’t push out like usual,” Janus said softly. He didn’t want to risk expelling any part of the child from the womb at all, though the contractions themselves were strong enough to do that, regardless. “Just relax and let me in.”
Kerry glared at him a moment, tears standing in his eyes, but he took a shaky breath, let it out. His thighs released their tension, then his lower back, and finally his ass seemed to release around Janus’s knuckles, allowing his whole hand to slip inside.
“That’s my sweet boy,” Janus said, kissing Kerry’s hip and squeezing his hand again. “You’re doing great.” He released Kerry’s hand to kneel up and get some leverage. “Now, a bit deeper. Not too much. Your womb is low…and, ah!” He blinked hastily, hoping his dismay didn’t show on his face.
The mouth of Kerry’s womb was not entirely open, but it was starting to blossom like a flower. The tight, closed bud had softened.
“What?” Kerry gasped. “What do you feel?”
“It’s a bit soft,” he murmured. “A good paste of Cramp Bark and Black Haw will tighten it back up. It’s all right. You’re going to be fine.” He prodded again to make sure he understood what he felt, and then he slowly withdrew his hand. Kerry turned his face into the pillow and breathed as his asshole clenched and spasmed before closing tight again. Janus pulled blankets over his lower half for modesty when Zeke and Yosef returned.
“What happens if we don’t stop it?” Kerry asked when another cramp had washed over him and passed again.
“He’ll be born, most likely, and…he won’t make it.”
Kerry’s expression twisted up, and he chewed on his bottom lip, his dark eyes going tortured and bleak. “I don’t know what I want to happen,” he said softly. “Wolf-god, help me, but I don’t know what’s right.”
Janus kissed his forehead and wished he’d also asked for Kava root, too. It’d help calm Kerry’s nerves now. He didn’t know what to say in the face of Kerry’s brutal honesty. He thought Fan’s suggestion that he say nothing—that he let Kerry feel whatever he felt and not place any demands on him about what he should want, or how he should see things—was probably good advice for this moment, too.
After all, Kerry could still refuse treatment. He had that right. And while a court of law and the Holy Church of Wolf might, if prompted, give a second look for his refusal to medicate, they probably wouldn’t. Religion often went hand-in-hand with a belief in wolf-god’s will, and that sometimes meant rejecting science. The establishment’s hypocrisy around science was well known, but in all likelihood, no one would ever look into Kerry’s situation beyond the superficial.
Zeke and Yosef returned with tins and teas, and bottles with tinctures, and a hastily scribbled note from Fan about how to employ some of the lesser-known medicines sent. Including one that would “hasten the miscarriage along should it reach an irrevocable point, reducing the trauma and pain during the expulsion.”
Janus swallowed hard and set that bottle aside carefully, putting it far from the others he planned to employ to stop the miscarriage, assuming Kerry gave permission. He didn’t explain each medication to Kerry, but he saw how Kerry watched him place the tins and bottles in a row.
“Tea will be up soon, too,” Janus said. “And the paste I’ll need to apply internally.”
Kerry stared at him with dark, wide eyes. Then he nodded.
Unable to stay away, Zeke entered the room, and fussed around Kerry’s bed, until he came to where Janus sat, reading over the note from Fan again. Then, with an urgency, and no apology for leaving Kerry alone, Zeke pulled Janus out into the hallway. “What’s the plan?” he whispered, looking around Janus into the room where Kerry seemed calmer between his cramping.
