Chapter 42

“Charlie and I were trained to lead from young ages, Theo too but he was training to be beta you know so it was different,”

“I didn’t have much training at all if it was for Travis, Steven’s father I would have been lost. He was very stern but he taught me right from wrong and I could go to him for anything,” Gryason told me with a wistful smile on his face.

“My mother did most of my training, my grandmother helped while they were around, they enjoy traveling and seeing the monoliths of the old wolves in europe,”

“Your mother seems to be a very passionate woman, she loves her kids a lot,” He gave me a knowing look.

“She does, I know my father thinks it's her fault. She’d shield us from the world but that’s not how the world works as you know,” I agreed with him.

“So you’re saying you wouldn’t be the exact same?” Grayson squinted at me accusingly.

“Oh I would probably be worse, but I would do my best to fight against my instincts and let them fumble so that they could learn to pick themselves up again,” I confessed.

“My mother I-I argue with her of course but she was my whole world. Everything she did, she did for me. She built the pack up enough so we could survive and then she found an alpha to train me, she without knowing built the foundations for all we have,”

“I’m so glad that you had her, you deserve a mother like that,” I was being completely honest. Grayson was flawed as anyone was but he didn’t deserve a loveless life.

He shifted in his seat a little. “I don’t know, sometimes I think after everything I did she still sees me in a bad light, I’m not trying to get you to pity me. I just-“

“As your wife you are allowed to confide in me,” I tease him. “Perhaps and this is just a thought, you could talk to her?”

He folded his arms and looked away from me “I don’t really enjoy talking about my feelings,”

“I noticed,” I smirked leaning my head on my hand. “But you’ll feel like this until you do. Taking is what healthy people do,”

“I’m healthy,” he nodded to his very impressive physique.

I laughed looking away so he wouldn’t see my blushing cheeks. “I mean a healthy relationship. We’re doing much better since we’ve started to talk,” I looked down at the table my cheeks refusing to cool down.

“You’re very beautiful when you get embarrassed,” he spoke and I snapped my eyes to his.

“That is not helping!” I turned away again covering my cheeks. His rumbling laugh hit my ears and I felt my stomach flutter.

“So, how is the harvest?” He changed the topic mercifully.

“It’s going to be wonderful , we will have plenty of corn and potatoes. I would like more onions and I still think we had enough time to plant some more beans but it will last us through the fall and winter so long as we get some good meat during the hunts,” I explained.

Typically you grow your food in the summer and hunt your meat in the fall. Grayson and most of our warriors would be going on hunts once it felt colder.

“I was thinking maybe we should hunt what we can now,”

“Why?”

“We still don’t know if we have a threat and I don’t like the idea of us having any less warriors when it’ll be expected,” He grasped one of his hands into a fist.

“If that’s what you think, I think it’ll be fine,” I nodded to him.

It had been three days since the tracking group left. Grayson seemed to be more on edge each day we got closer to the source of the intruder.

The idea that this wolf was from the same pack as the sigma that attacked Ella was becoming more and more possible.

Brian called each morning and he said it was getting stronger and stronger. They had decided to double back for a second and follow the scent less closely.

They think they’re being watched. The scent is so strong that it means someone left it for them. Grayson wanted the pack protected but I think knowing what was coming has made him even more determined to keep the threat at bay.

I still haven’t told anyone that I had dreamed of pups too. I didn’t think it would help at all and I had responsibilities to keep my people together. Well not really my people but my mate. Grayson would kill in droves to protect me if he knew a pup would come from this heat.

“I should go and see Elizabeth we are close to the trials for the pups,” I stood and he did too talk me out of his office.

He had asked me to eat lunch with him each day. He wanted us to get closer emotionally so that when my heat came I felt safe with him.

“I’m sure each group will pass with flying colors,” he said unbend my back.

In our pack at the end of their year of training the groups of children faced a set of trials and exams to pass them onto the next group.

At the end of this week Grayson and I would sit and watch each group perform their trials and exams and bestow them with gifts if they passed.

The door flew open and a panting Charlotte came in and grabbed onto my arm. “Marie is in labor she’s much to early I need you Luna. I need you now!” She turned on her heel and tagged me out the door before I could say goodbye to Grayson.

We hurried our feet. Marie was only eight months so she was too early. Apparently her water had just broken moments ago. She hadn’t felt any contractions yet which meant she’d need to be induced.

We made our way into the maternity wing of the clinic Marie was there red faced and writhing tears streaming down her cheeks.

Her contractions must have started still I needed to look before.

“Thank goddess you're here she almost tore my hand off,” Jessica whined rubbing her hand. “Do you need me or not?”

“Get out,” I snipped, almost growling. She pursed her lips and left instantly.

I checked her and the baby was indeed coming but she wasn’t ready. She had to be hurried along. If she didn’t get the baby out soon he wouldn’t make it.

“Luna is the baby okay?” She gasped through tears.

“The baby is okay but I want to get some medicine in you to move the labor along this baby can’t stay in you much longer,” I told her.

I didn't know what had caused the baby to come early it could just be his time to come or it could be he’s in trouble which is why I wanted him out now.

Charlotte got me an IV and we got the meds in her and some pain relief much to the relief of her mate.

I couldn’t imagine watching the person you love carrying your child inside them writhing in pain with your whole world teetering on the edge.

“It’s going to be alright. I want an ultrasound to double check the baby okay,” I told them and Charlotte and worked to get it set up.

He was breathing but his heart rate was higher than I’d like. I wasn’t sure but he could be in distress.

I went back to Marie and felt around. It felt like she just had a weak cervix I didn’t think it was anything to do with her baby but his heart rate scared me so I decided to give her another round of meds.

“It’s going to be hard for you, we need to monitor you closely, anything feels off you tell me anything,” I told Marie, her husband Jacob grasping her hand and nodding to me.

I looked between the two of them and sent a prayer up to the goddess to get us all through this.

*I can do this, I can do this. *

Before long I had her ready to push. She had a hard time of it as her baby did his best to get stuck, his shoulder lodging itself in a tight spot. I sadly had to make an incision to get him out.

There was nothing but adrenaline running through me as I got the baby out and he let out a loud strangled cry. He squished his tiny eyes and I set him on his mothers chest as he continued to wail

In the end their baby came and he had what looked like a minor virus. I made sure he got some medicine but I wanted mom to give him lots of breast milk as that would help him get on track.

I sat down, my heart pounding as Marie held her screaming boy. Charlotte cleaned her up and stitched her back together. I felt like it had happened in a matter of seconds.

I loved bringing children into the world but in those moments where you see it all in your hands it feels like I should pass out instead of helping.

A knock sounded at the door and Aarron entered. “The alpha would like to know if the newest member of our pack is healthy?”

“A virus is all he has,” Charlotte nodded to him. “Mom and him are both doing well,”
“Ill go tell the alpha,” Aarron nodded. “Congratulations you two,”

“L-let me tell him,” I stood up keeping myself composed as I headed out.

“Luna?” Aarron called after me but I went straight to Grayson.

I walked through the clinic into the offices of the Keep and straight to the end of the hall where he worked. I braged into his office Matt sitting beside him.

“Matt I would like you to leave,” My voice shook as I spoke.

“Ye-yeah yes luna,” He shot up, shocked at my stern but shaken demand.

“Annette?” Grayson came over to me quickly as the beta closed the door.

I leant into him sobbing.

“The baby didn’t make it?”

“It did the baby fine, Marie is fine, they both are doing well,” I wept again, hitting my head against his hard chest grabbing fists into his shirt. My body was shaking at the stress I had just endured.

He grabbed me, sitting me down. “I don’t understand if the baby and Marie are okay, why are you so upset?”

“I COULD HAVE LOST THAT BABY!!” I screeched at him, my emotions gaining on me, my face was no doubt red and blotchy, I felt all control I had bundling itself like a messy ball of string.

He placed his hands on my shoulders. “It’s okay, it’s okay, you did well, they’re both alive just breathe and try to calm down, just remind yourself it’s over, everyones okay, and you're here with me,” He wrapped me in his arms, rubbing my back and allowing me to cry into him.

“I had never been in charge of a situation like that, it could have gone so, so wrong,” I whispered, staring blankly ahead.

“You need to give yourself more credit, you kept them both safe, but it’s all over now,” He rubbed my back and wiped the tears from my face.

“It was just so much,” I looked down, my sense starting to return to me clearing the fog of distress.

“I know,’ he leaned me against him, “But you are strong enough to handle anything, that I know,” He kissed my forehead with his velvet, magical lips.

I brought my lips to his finding my way to reality and present time. It was all over, there was a new member of our pack, and I was here in his arms.

"Thank you, Grayson,"