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EVERETT

I hold Aurora’s cold, lifeless hand in mine, rubbing it gently, trying to bring back some warmth and life. Chaos is inconsolable, whining, ~She’s dead, our mate is dead.~

~She’s just in the spirit realm. She’ll come back. She always comes back.~ I keep repeating it, trying to get us both to believe it. Every time this happens, I’m terrified she’s gone for good.

I can hear the babies fussing, making small, unhappy sounds. Freya is tending to them, glancing at Aurora frequently. She’s biting her lip, clearly worried.

I want to go to them, but I can’t, not while Aurora lies here, still and lifeless. It may not make a difference, but I feel like if I stay with her, she’ll be able to find her way back.

I kiss her hand. ~Please, please, come back to me. To us.~ I don’t want to raise our children alone, I want them to know her, for her to be more than a story to them.

At last, I hear Aurora’s heart begin to beat, slow and weak at first, but steadier all the time. She gasps for air and coughs, her skin flushing again with life and warmth.

T~hank you, Moon Goddess, Achlys, and whoever else brought her back to us~. I hope my fervent prayer is heard, waiting anxiously for my mate to open her beautiful eyes.

When she does, she looks around the room, her gaze settling on me. She gives me the sweetest smile in the world, bringing our joined hands to her lips to press a kiss to my knuckles.

“Welcome back,” I say hoarsely.

“I missed you,” she says. Her voice is rough, too. She raises it, turning to look at Freya. “Now, is someone going to bring me my babies, or am I going to have to make a fuss?”

“Jeez, Rory, don’t scare us like that!” Freya says, hurrying over with my son in her left arm and my daughter in her right.

She carefully gives them over to Aurora, who settles their heads against her chest. Their crying stops at last; the only noises they make small, puppyish grunts. They know her already.

“Hello, my beautiful ones,” she whispers to them. She’s crying, and a few tears fall from my eyes as well. “I’m so sorry I went away, but I’m here now. And I love you.”

She sits with them, rocking them gently, as enchanted with them as I am. She’s still exhausted. I can tell by dark circles under her eyes and a slight tremble in her shoulders. “Hey, can I cut in?”

“What?” She looks up, surprised. She really was in her own little world. She lets me take the babies. I breathe in their sweet, milky scent, thrilled to hear their tiny heartbeats.

Aurora’s voice calls my attention back. “Everett, I need to tell you something.” Her voice is heavy with sleep, her eyes half-lidded.

“Here,” Freya says, coming over. “I’ll put them in their crib.” I let her take them, kneeling down by Aurora’s side again.

“What is it, little mate?” I ask, smoothing her hair back from her face.

“In the Spirit Realm… Achlys told me…” She’s mumbling, eyes drooping shut even as she tries to get the words out.

I’m desperate to hear what she learned, but she’s been through enough today. Dying isn’t restful. “It’s alright. We can talk later. Get some sleep, for now.”

She fights to keep her eyes open, but exhaustion overtakes her. I’m glad to see her breathing peacefully, alive and well.

Freya comes up behind me quietly. “I’ll keep an eye on her and the little ones. You’ve got alpha things to do, right?”

She is right, even if I hate the idea right now. “Thank you, Freya.”

Ace and Lucius are waiting when I step out of the room, and most of the female members of the pack are downstairs, pretending not to be listening. “How’d it go?” Lucius asks, anxious.

I dig deep to find a smile, but I’m almost as tired as Aurora. I hate being away from her, each second an ache. “She’s alright, and so are the babies. Let’s leave it at that for now.”

Lucius eyes me, and I know he’ll be getting the whole story out of me once he has me alone.

Ace, on the other hand, is squinting at me. I can practically hear the gears turning in his mind. “Wait, babies? Multiple?”

“Yes.” My smile grows a little more real as I think of my perfect children. Already they’re such a source of strength and wonder. “Twins, a boy and a girl.”

The pack erupts in hushed joy. I know the news will be everywhere within half an hour. “Congratulations, man!” Ace hugs me, and Lucius claps me on the back.

“Thanks.” I sigh, feeling my shoulders sink under the weight of reality. “Unfortunately, we have to deal with the Red Mooners.”

“They’re going to be even more pushy now that there’s two powerful children on the line,” Lucius says grimly.

I scrub my hand over my face, trying to think. “We’ll tell them that she’s given birth, but she’s very weak, not up for visitors. Send two messengers. I don’t want anyone going alone.”

“Right, will do,” Ace says. “I think Leslie would be a good choice–”

Mia bursts in, dressed to the nines, looking like she’d run here from a date. “Am I too late? Did she already have the baby? I just got word!” Everyone stares at her, startled by the interruption.

“Hush, girl!” Mama says. “Yes, she did. If you like, I can take you up to meet them, with Everett’s permission?”

“Of course.” I know that Aurora will want them both to meet the babies. “Go and say hello, just try not to wake her.”

Mama and Mia head upstairs, along with my Aunt Ophelia. Aurora will be well supported by the women of the pack. It makes me happy to see her properly welcomed, at last.

“I don’t want to ruin a happy day, but we never decided what to do about Martha’s demands.” Lucius genuinely looks pained, but he’s just doing his job as beta.

“I know. I think we need to be ready for anything.” Chaos prowls inside me, eager for action. “We should put together a plan of attack and a plan for if they break the truce and come at us.”

We discuss details for a few minutes, what squads we’d send where, how we’d defend our actions to a full council, before someone calls my name.

“Everett?” It’s Freya, hovering outside the door to our room. She’s shooing Mia and Mama out, too. “Sorry to bother you, but Rory’s awake, and she’s demanding to talk to you.”

Mama puts her hand on my arm and whispers, “Congratulations.” I spare her a smile. She’s the babies’ grandma, after all. She’ll be a very important part of their lives.

I frown at Freya after Mama and Ophelia leave, hustling Mia along with her. “I told her we can talk later; she’s barely gotten any sleep.”

“I know, but she won’t listen to me.” Freya rolls her eyes. I shouldn’t be surprised. I know how stubborn my little mate can be.

Then, Freya says, “She says she knows how to keep your son safe from Martha.”

My heart swells with hope. Aurora’s done it again, come back from the Spirit Realm with just what we need to save our family. Can it really be?