Page 100 of Taken By The Wolves
“I’m here,” a breathless voice answers from the door.
Our wolf pack midwife, Annie, rushes in, her bag slung over one shoulder, followed by Caleb, who scoops Ahya into his arms. “I’ll take her for a while, until the babies are here.”
Nixon hands her over gratefully. It’s a whirlwind, and I’m at the center of the storm, keening lowly as the pressure crests into fire.
Annie’s instantly in motion, slipping beside Goldie, eyes sharp and sure as she glances over my trembling form. I’m so grateful Caleb chose her as his mate. It’s been such a blessing to have a friend take care of me throughout my pregnancy.
“You’re almost there,” she says. “Just a little more, Scarlet. You’re ready to push.”
I bear down with everything I have, breath held, body shuddering. Over and over, I work with the contractions, rocking with the pain as my wolves whisper words of encouragement and rub my back in circles that alleviate some of the pain.
Then the pressure breaks, replaced by a ripple of inferno, release, and the high,piercingcry of a newborn fills the air.
“One,” the midwife says with a soft smile. I look at the perfect baby resting between my legs. “A strong, healthy baby.”
But before I can fully register his presence, another contraction tightens in my core.
“The next one’s coming,” Goldie says gently. “One more, Scarlet.”
My head swims. I blink back tears, exhausted butincandescent. Reed strokes my arm. Finn kisses my shoulder. Nixon grips my hand, holding it to his chest like a lifeline.
I push again, shaking now, crying with effort, and after three more contractions, and the last of my strength sapped by pushing, a second cry joins the first.
“Two,” the midwife says, awe in her voice. “Smaller, but fierce.”
My legs are shaking as I stare at our sons. Their little faces are red and creased as they cry. Tears of happiness spill from my eyes in hot streaks.
Annie is gently wiping their faces and covering them with a blanket. I want to hold them so much but it’s more important to let them continue to benefit from their connection to the placenta. Only when it’s born and has stopped pulsing to deliver nutrients will its cords be cut.
“They’re so beautiful,” I gasp, stunned to realize that one has my red hair and the other the intense dark color of his fathers’. I thought they’d be identical, but I’m relieved to discover they’re not. I want them to forge a path of their own rather than live in each other’s shadows.
“I want to name him after my grandfather, Thoren,” I whisper, touching the face of my copper-haired son. “And this one… Fredrik after your father,” I say, looking at Nixon.
His eyes shine, no trace of his usual control left. “He would’ve been proud.”
It’s a peace offering and a promise, wrapped in the name of a man who stood beside us when the world threatened to split in two. I know what it means to Nixon to carry his father’s name into the next generation. He kisses my hand, his eyes lingering with warmth and wonder.
The next few minutes pass in a blur. Eventually, I’m helped to the sofa, covered with a blanket, and handed two slippery perfect babies to hold against my chest. They’re warm, soft and impossibly real. One of them lets out a tiny grunt. The other curls into my collarbone and immediately quiets.
They’re perfect.
Ahya is brought back in, toddling shyly into the room with Goldie and Caleb at her side. Her eyes go wide at the sight of me, then the babies. She tiptoes forward, cautious but curious, and then she nestles against my side, resting her head gently against my hip.
“You want to meet your brothers?” I whisper.
She nods and strokes their tiny fists with one finger, her expression soft and solemn in a way that's so much older than her years.
“I think you’re going to be the best big sister in the world.”
She doesn’t answer with words but with a smile that could melt even the coldest heart.
And like that, my heart splits wide open, overflowing.
Here I am. A mother with her children, her bonded mates surrounding her. My heart is full of wolves. My home is filled with the sounds of joy and life and new beginnings.
This… this is everything.
My mom always warned me about strangers. But if I never allowed three men to show me the path to my future, I’d still be trapped in the past.
This is the life I never knew I was allowed to dream of.
And it’s all mine.
