Going home is a bit of an experience. We had to stay in the hospital for a few days, in order to make sure that everything had healed properly, and that Ellery's jaundice had gone away. Once Dr. Romero was satisfied that we were all healthy, she had let us check-out, after telling us that she would see us in a week for the boys' first appointment.
Now, as I sit in the nursery, nursing Ellery while Ollie changes Ezra's diaper, I can't help but feel happy. Despite the scariness that came with going into labor a month early and all the exhaustion that comes with taking care of newborns, I feel settled. There is nothing left for me to question, because this is my family.
"He decided to have another blowout," Ollie says, nose scrunched in disgust as he takes soiled onesie and diaper off of Ezra. "This is the second one today."
Laughter bubbles out of me, and Ellery whines in protest as he is jostled while eating. He definitely is the picky one, liking to be held a certain way when eating, and having to be encouraged to continue nursing if anything disturbs him. His brother is completely opposite, being able to eat is a war was happening in the same room.
"Hush, love," I whisper, brushing my fingers through the dark whisps that make up his hair. He blinks an eye open at me, before he continues to eat, making sure that I don't do anything to disturb him.
Looking back up at Ollie, I see that he has managed to completely wipe down Ezra and get a new diaper on him. The little boy doesn't seem to mind the whole ordeal, calmly waiting for his Opa to finish.
"He's a growing boy," I say, a tired smile on my face. "He eats a lot, so he poops a lot."
"He could at least save these for when his aunt and uncle come to visit." Finally, he fastens the last snap, before picking the little boy up. "You're lucky you're cute."
Ezra scrunches his face, little lips puckering in the way that tells me that he is getting hungry. Ellery is still going steady, little hand resting on his cheek as he eats.
"Give him here, or he'll wake his brother."
"How does he eat so much?" Ollie questions, readjusting the pillow on my lap before gently setting Ezra down. "It's like he is always hungry."
Humming, I pull down the other side of my robe. Ezra is quick to latch on, his nose scrunching briefly before he starts to nurse. Ellery makes another noise of discontent, but they both settle down once Olli tucks the blanket around us and I start up the rocking.
"Can you get me some water, Ollie, and maybe a quick snack?"
"Of course, love." He drops a kiss on my forehead. "I'll heat up some of the lasagna Maya brought over yesterday."
He leaves us alone then, his presence sorely missed. But, it is nice to just relax into the chair, the sound of the birds chirping outside the only noise. We have had people over every day the last two weeks, eager to help. Ama and Virginia had even made a schedule, always wanting someone to come by once a day to cook us a meal and give us a brief break while they watched the kids. It had been wonderful, but it is nice to have the house to ourselves.
Looking down, I see that both boys have fallen asleep, the satiation of being warm and full lulling them. My heart squeezes every time I look at them. Already, it is possible to see the little bits of me and Ollie in them. Ellery looks more like me, with my nose and wild hair, while Ezra looks so much like Ollie, with his perfectly straight hair, and upturned nose. But they both have Ollie's dark locks, one of the few features they share.
The sound of the door opening has me opening my eyes. I hadn't even realized they had closed, but I am not surprised. The nights have been tough. If one of the twins wakes up, it isn't long until the other one is awake, as well. They seem to be able to sense each other, getting upset when the other brother is upset. While it is adorable, it is utterly exhausting.
"Sorry to wake you," Ollie whispers. His eyes slip down to the boy, a smile spreading across his face. "How about I get the boys in their cribs, and you can eat."
Nodding, I sit back while Ollie magically gets both boys unlatched and in their cribs without either of them waking. Wrapping my robe around me, I slowly push my self up from the rocking hair. My body still feels immensely sore, and moving too fast is just painful.
Dr. Romero had assured me that the fact that my body feels like it has been hit by a truck is completely normal. However normal it is, I just want to be able to walk without shuffling around like a zombie.
Somehow, we are able to sneak out of the nursery without the boys waking up. Ollie leads me over to the couch, and together, we eat the lasagna Ollie had heated up. Emmie is sitting in her cat tree, but as soon as she notices that we are done eating, she comes over. She has mostly been indifferent to the boys, sniffing them every once in a while, but not seeking them out.
"Shower?" Ollie asks once we finish eating.
Raising an eyebrow at him, I push myself up from the couch. "Hm, want to conserve water?"
"Of course," Ollie says, his eyes wide in faux innocence. "Why else would I suggest that we shower together."
Rolling my eyes, I walk towards the master bath, Ollie following close behind.
The shower is nice. Ollie is more loving than ever, massaging my body with the shower oil that I had gotten for Christmas all those months ago but never got around to using. By the time we get out of the shower, I feel like putty.
Unfortunately, one of the boys starts up in the nursery, and not even ten seconds later, both of them are crying.
"I'll get them," Ollie says, finish drying me off as he grabs his own robe. "You lay down."
Wrapping my arm around him, I pull him flush against me. "Thanks, love," I whisper, capturing his lips with mine. "For taking care of me."
Smiling, Ollie reluctantly pulls away from me. "I'll always take care of you."
Giving him one last kiss, I walk into the bedroom. "I know."
*****
A dull thumping sound has me waking up. Blinking open my eyes, I look over at the clock on the nightstand, seeing that it is two o'clock in the morning.
Ollie is fast asleep beside me, undisturbed by whatever had woken me up. The thump comes again, and I push myself up from the bed. Grabbing my robe, I wrap it tight around me to fight off the nighttime chill.
The carpet cushions my feet as I walk across the house. The boys are fast asleep when I peek into the nursery. We had just gotten them back to sleep a little over an hour ago, meaning they should be asleep for at least another hour.
Emmie greets me in the living room, her eyes blinking up at me as I pet her. She starts purring, rubbing her head against me as I try to locate the source of the sound.
It doesn't look like anything in here has fallen or moved in any way that could recreate the thumping. Then the sound comes again, making my head snap over to the front door.
With furrowed brows, I slowly walk over to the door, my footsteps silent. Carefully, I peek through the little peephole, and the sight in front of me has my breath catching.
Someone is standing on the front porch, and when they turn to look back up at the door, I see a very familiar face. Aaron is standing out there, and the way he is pulling his hair tells me that he is frustrated.
He looks utterly horrible, dark circles on under his eyes and a scraggly beard on his face. His hand falls down to the doorknob, and I quickly double check that it is locked. Somehow, seeing the lock turned doesn't have me calming down at all.
He reaches for something in his back pocket, pulling a small tool out before bending down to be level with the doorknob. My heart pounds when I realize what he is going to do.
As quickly as I can, I run from the door all the way back to the bedroom, ignoring the pain flaring up between my legs at the quick movement.
"Ollie, wake up," I say, words coming out shaky,
He immediately blinks open his eyes, watching me with furrowed brows. "Milo? What are you doing up? The boys are finally sleeping."
"Aaron is trying to break in."
He sits up. "What?"
"He-He's at the front door, trying to pick the lock."
"Shit." He pushes himself up from the bed. "Call the police and your brother. I'm going to get the boys and Emmie."
Nodding, I grab my phone with shaky hands. The 911 operator is quick to assure me that the police are on the way. Once she hears that my brother is a cop, she sends him a message as well. "They should be there in three minutes, Mr. Katz."
Ollie runs back into the room, both boys wide awake in his arms, and Emmie following behind him. "Lock the door."
After making sure that we are locked in the room, we huddle together on the bed. Footsteps come from the other side of the door as Aaron moves through the home. He seems to be searching for something.
Us.
Me.
We aren't safe.
The doorknob jiggles as he twists it. The sudden sound has Ellery jolting, scared and crying.
Shushing him, I pull him against my chest, trying to quiet him. But it is too late. Aaron has heard him.
"Milo, you can't hide from me." His voice is harsh, yet sickly sweet. It has my stomach turning. "Not with my kids."
His words send anger through me. I can't hold myself back. "They aren't yours, and we will never be yours."
"Ah, yes, your little friend has stolen my family from me." He slams the door, causing us all to jump. "He is going to pay for that."
"He didn't do anything, you asshole," I yell, unable to hold back my anger. "You poisoned me in order to get everything in the divorce. Then you killed the omega you cheated on me with. You're a murdering asshole who derives to rot in jail."
He is silent for a moment, before his voice loses all of the sweetness but none of the edge. "We'll see about that."
The slamming starts up again, and the door starts to splinter from the impact. Ollie is quick to react, pulling all of us behind the bed. "Stay here."
I don't have time to say anything else, before he is pulling out a baseball bat from underneath the bed. I had never even known that it was there, but I am grateful that we have some type of weapon.
The sound of the sirens is just starting to become audible by the time the door is ripped off its hinges. Aaron is standing in the doorway, chest and shoulders heaving as he catches his breath.
By now, both babies are screaming, and I pull them as close to me as possible. It takes everything in me not to look at where Ollie has plastered himself to the wall. Aaron is too focused on me to notice him, and I can't give him away.
"Milo, now we can talk."
He takes a step into the room, eyes fixed on me. Ollie takes the opportunity to raise the bat up, the motion catching Aaron's attention. But it is too late for him to stop the motion of the bat. It comes down hard on his head.
The alpha stumbles into the wall. "You fucking," Ollie doesn't give him time to say anything else, bringing the bat down once again, knocking Aaron out completely.
Ollie drops the bat, body trembling. "Don't you dare hurt my family."
The police come running into the room moments later, taking in the situation. Ignoring them, I focus on Ollie, who quickly runs over to us. The babies are screaming and I am trembling, but I just fall into Ollie, trusting him to hold me.
The police take over from there, taking our statements and getting Aaron into an ambulance, cuffed to the gurney.
Nico doesn't make it here until the ambulance is pulling away, which is probably for the best. He is practically seething, won't say anything as he pulls me into a tight hug. Together, we walk back into the house, where Ollie is cleaning things up.
I can do nothing but sit on the couch, too shaken up. We were so close to being hurt. If it hadn't been for Ollie's quick thinking, we may not have made it through the night.
The thought has me pulling my sons close, not wanting to be separated from them at such a vulnerable time.
"Oma was housing him." Nico's voice breaks the silence. "She-she was letting a murderer live with her. How could she do that."
"It's over now," I say, leaning my head on his shoulder. "It's all over."
*****
Finally, Aaron's storyline has been completed, and sadly, there are only a couple chapters left.