Chapter 77

(**Irina**)
*Three hours later*

After my water broke, Sebastion went into the instant action. He mind-linked Dr. Gregory to let him know the babies are on their way into the word. I am still surprised at how smooth and fast the delivery went after that. I am also surprised at how well Sebastion handled everything.

From the moment the doctors and nurses arrived, it was chaos in our bedroom. They hooked me up to a fetal heartbeat monitor, an IV for blood and fluids, then Sebastion took my hand and soothed me the best he could.

The delivery itself went smoothly, with only one minor complication. Baby b was breach, so Dr. Murphy had to turn the baby the right way while two nurses cleaned and checked Theo’s vitals. When I was told to push again, I did until I heard the cries of my second baby. Dr. Murphy held the baby up for me to see then smiled at me as she told me I now have a baby girl.

Nurses whisked both babies away to be cleaned up in the bathroom. While that was being done, we completed the rest of the delivery process. I was cleaned up, then wrapped in a blanket. Sebastion lifted me ever so gently off the bed so that he could move me into the spare bedroom down the hall from ours.

Lenore insisted I rest in there while she had our bed cleaned up. Once Sebastion laid me down on the bed, he left me briefly to go see to our newborns. My mind wandered to what I wanted to name my little girl.

We talked about names already, but now that she is here, none of those names feel right. There was a time in my life that I had baby names I loved. That was a much different life than the one I have now. I see things from my past in a different light now that I know all the secrets that were kept from me.

Sebastion has brought so much light back into my like since then. I want to give our daughter a Russian name to pay homage to my heritage. Naming her after my mother also crossed my mind, but that brought too much pain with it, so I decided against it.

Now here I am, laying in the guest room waiting for Sebastion to bring me our babies. When the door opens, I expect it to be him, but it is Dr. Murphy instead. My face falls as she approaches the bed.

“Your little ones are in perfect health. Sebastion is with them now, getting them both ready to meet you. I just want to check your vitals and make sure everything looks good before I leave you two to be with your family.”

“Thank you.”

She takes my wrist in her hand to check my pulse, then she uses her stethoscope to listen to my heartbeat. After she takes a few notes, she nods before raising the sheet covering my lower half to check for any signs of bleeding.

“Everything looks well. Wait until the morning before you shower. Call me or Dr. Gregory if there is any blood. I would like to see both babies in the morning as soon as possible.”

“We will be down to your clinic as soon as we can.”

Dr. Murphy gives me a wide smile, then she leaves the room. Thankfully, the next person who enters the room is Sebastion. In one arm, he has Theo, wrapped in a blue blanket with little snowflakes on it. In the other, he has our daughter wrapped in a pink blanket with little yellow daisies on it. His smile is radiant as he walks to the bed.

Slowly, he eases Theo into my waiting arms. His ice-blue eyes stare up at me as studies my face like I am his. Other than the eyes, he looks just like his father. He has Sebastion’s nose, lips, and dark hair. The Drakos family’s Greek heritage has stamped itself on our son.

“He is so like you,” I tell him in awe.

“He has your eyes, which, to me, makes him perfect.” Sebastion grins at me. “Are you ready to meet our daughter?”

Oh boy am I ever. I move Theo into my other arm, make sure he is secure, then hold my now free arm out for him. Just like he did with Theo, he gently lays our daughter in the crook of my arm. A gasp escapes my lips as my eyes meet hers.

Her eyes are all Sebastion’s, but the rest of her is all me. She has his dark eyes and my pale blonde hair. What made me gasp was how much she looks like my mother did when she was a baby. It is like a sign from the Moon Goddess telling me that my mother is still with me.

“I always loved my mother’s middle name,” I whisper to Sebastion.

“If it feels right to you, then let’s go for it. You agreed to give our son my brother’s name. It is only fitting that we name our daughter for someone in your family.”

“Then meet Oksanna Drakos, our amazing daughter.”

Sebastion sits on the edge of the bed to look down at our newborns. My pregnancy shocked me to my core, then learning that was having twins made me nervous about the future. Now that they are both here, I can’t stop staring at them. Our twins are the perfect combination of the two of us.

With strong Alpha blood running through their veins, they will be a formidable force to be reckoned with. It will be up to us to instill the values they will need for their future. I can see good things in their future. One where they will always have each other, their parents, and their pack behind them.

“Thank you.” Sebastion says.

I look up to find that he is staring at me rather than looking at the twins. My breath hitches at the look in his eyes. Our link is wide open and the strength of his love for me is like a bright, shining star. A star that is mine to hold forever.

“You have given me three beautiful children and I will forever be grateful. Zasha has humbled me with her ability to love me like her father. I will treasure that gift until the day I die. Now, you have blessed me with these two. Thank you for naming our son for the brother I lost and thank you for Oksanna. The two of them will be so loved.”

“Thank you for believing in my and loving me the way you knew I needed.” I whisper to him as tears slip down my cheeks.

He leans down the best he can to kiss my lips. When he breaks the kiss, he stands up, then walks to the door. I smile when his mother and father come in. My eyes widen at the bassinet that Julian is carrying into the room.

Julian carries the bassinet to the side of the bed so that I can look at it. The wood of the bassinet is a beautiful, lightly stained redwood. It is simple in design, but bassinet’s headboard makes it amazing. The design on the headboard is a forest scene at the base of an enormous mountain. I know that forest and that mountain.

“Your father gave us the image, and we had the rest made,” Julian says.

“We were originally going to give you the one we used for Sebastion and Arianna, but I thought having one made just for your babies would be better. More special,” Lenore says as she walks up next to her mate.

My eyes water as I stare at the scene carved into the redwood. It has been too long since I have seen my home. My heart longs to go back. Even if it is just to say goodbye.

“We will go back one day. As soon as we know it is safe.”

I look over at Sebastion. He is now on the bed with me, reaching out to take Theo. I let him take our son from me, then wrap both arms around Oksanna. She cries the minute her brother is no longer beside her. Sebastion and I share a look of surprise.

“Arianna used to do that when she was a baby, too. When they would sleep, if I separated them, she would instantly wake up and cry until I put him back down. They were like that when they were sick, as well. I can see that may be a family trait or maybe just a twin thing.” Lenore says. “Come, my love, let’s leave these four to get some rest. Tomorrow and the next few days will be chaos, as everyone will want to see the new babies.”

Julian nods his head as he allows her to usher him out of the room. His eyes lingering on the twins until he reached the door and Lenore closes it behind them. There was a mix of joy and sadness in his eyes.

“He will be ok. Now, let’s put our babies in their new bed. Oksanna is furious that I took Theo away from her.”

********

Later that night, a soft cry wakes me from sleep. Instantly I knew it was Theo, but just as quickly as I heard his cry, he goes silent. I open my eyes to see Sebastion cradling Theo in his arms. Already knowing that Oksanna will be awake soon, I sit up to pick her up out of the bassinet. As expected, she whimpered as I reached for her.

“Our little man is hungry.”

“Here, take her and I will feed him. Then we can swap, and I will feed her.”

I decided to breastfeed the twins the same way I did Zasha. However, with twins, there was a concern that I wouldn’t produce enough milk for them. We have a backup plan just in case. In the nursery is a full six-month supply of baby formula for them, along with bottles and everything else they will need.

Between his mother, my sister, and so many others in the pack, we had everything needed for the twins two months ago. I have a gut feeling that they will be just as spoiled as Jace and Zasha are becoming. Though those two don’t act like spoiled brats and I am happy about it.

I jump slightly when Theo latches onto my nipple. It has been so long since I did this with Zasha that the sudden sensation of him suckling at my breast surprised me. I look down into his ice-blue eyes. He blinks up at me as we stare at each other.

Theo kneads his little hand on my breast as he fills his belly. His eyes not leaving mine until they slowly flutter closed as he unlatches, and sleep claims him shortly after. I stroke his downy, soft dark hair for a few moments before I lift him up to hand him to Sebastion.

He passes Oksanna to me, then wanders off to burp Theo. Once I have her settled in my other arm, she latches onto my breast quickly, almost angrily. She is feisty already. Unlike her brother, she closes her eyes while filling her belly. I stroke her cheek, her blonde hair, then I rock from side to side as I hum softly to her.

As I hum the lullaby that my mother used to sing to all her children, Oksanna finally opens her eyes to look at me. I swear she smiles at me before she goes back to her meal. I shudder as I feel the last lock around my heart breaks wide open as I stare into my daughter’s dark eyes.

Memories of my mother flood my mind as I continue to croon. I can feel the tears running down my cheeks. As my mother’s smiling face flashes through my mind, I am reminded of all the happy times of my past. She always made sure we knew how much she loved us. It wasn’t always with words, but with actions.

The five of us always had clean clothes, food to eat, and a mother’s kiss to soothe our aches and pains. We never once second guessed her when she told us to do something or gave us advice. My children, all four of them, will grow up knowing I love them unconditionally.

I look down when I feel Oksanna’s mouth go slack on my nipple. Her dark eyes are opening and closing like she is fighting sleep. I lift her to rest on my shoulder so I can burp her. When she finally lets out a little belch, I lay her back in my arms and rock her to sleep.

Soon she is sleeping soundly and Sebastion takes her from me to put her in the bassinet next to Theo. Almost instantly, her little body curves towards his. Even in sleep, they must be close to each other. It is adorable, yet scary at the same time.

“That twin connection is strong. Me and Ari could communicate non-verbally well before we could speak. Then we had our own mind-link before we could link with the rest of the pack. It drove our parents crazy.”

He sits next to me as he speaks in hushed tones. His thumbs wipe the tears off my face as he cups my cheeks in his hands. Gently, he places a kiss on my lips.

“I am going to grab a new set of night clothes for us both, then we should try to get some sleep.”

“Will you be going to train in the morning, or will you stay here with us?”

“Tomorrow is a day for relaxation and family. There will be no training for the next few days. Once the news spreads about the twin’s birth, the pack will want to celebrate. So, I will let them. This is a merry time for all of us.”

After he leaves the room, my eyes travel to my sleeping babies. I can’t wait to introduce them to their older brother and sister. Zasha has been quiet for the last few months when I talk to her about her new siblings. At first, I thought it upset her I was pregnant, but then she drew me a picture of our family at school.

The picture showed Sebastion on one side of her, then Jace and me. Sebastion had a baby in one arm, and I had a baby in my arm. The thing about the picture that amazes me now is how accurate it was. Sebastion is holding Oksanna while I hold Theo.

Zasha drew them as they really look.

Something she couldn’t possibly have known when she drew it. Unless....

Unless she inherited my grandmother’s gift of foresight. If she did, that would make my daughter even more unique. On the trail of that thought, another, far more frightening thought follows.

If she showed signs of this gift with Vicktor, that means he will come for her with everything he has left. Zasha would be the ultimate prize in his mind. Fear rushes through my veins as I think of my firstborn child.

I can’t let him have her.

I won’t let him take her away from me again.