Amethyst Storms (Primordial Protectors #1)

28. Chapter Twenty-Seven

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Ionus

“Sarah, it’s Ionus. Something is wrong with Alexander. Come quickly!” I disconnected the call before she had a chance to reply. My mate needed me, and he’d get one hundred percent of my…

Our.

Our attention.

“Could’ve said that owie, owie, owie, a lot fucking nicer!”

“As could you, my love, but I can’t deny how worried I am. This is early, even per Sarah’s standards, but there isn’t a doubt in my mind we need those eggs out of you. For your own safety as well as theirs.”

Brothers, I’ve called out to Sarah. Alexander is in distress.

Seconds later I heard the door that led to the tunnels that connected our homes open and close.

We are here, Ionus.

Thank you, Caro. Many thanks to all of you.

Let us know whatever you or Alexander need.

Thanks, Quint, I will.

They waited just on the other side of the tapestry that led to my office. They’d not intrude unless I called upon them, though they could hear everything. Helplessly I watched as my mate lay atop the bedding he so carefully placed inside the nest and prayed to the Goddess to help us through this. All of us. Life without my mate or our younglings wasn’t a life I’d live.

Tell your brothers to let Gramps know I’m okay.

Yes, my love.

Is Knox out there with you?

Aye, brother. Frantically pacing.

Mattias, Alexander asked that you guys let Knox know he’s okay.

Will do.

“Coming through, coming through.” Sarah’s voice was loud and clear as she pushed through the growing crowd.

“Just couldn’t wait another week, could you, Alex?”

“Me? Blame it on the overexcited Denarius offspring!” Alexander ground down as another painful contraction hit. “Sorry, Sarah. I don’t mean to be cross.”

“Love, if you weren’t I’d be worried. Ionus, help me undress him.”

I felt the familiar heat as my clothes were removed dragon style. Sarah sat there dazed and wide-eyed.

“Well, burning is less traditional than expected but garnered the same affect. Now, let me check you.”

“Son of a!” Alexander bellowed.

“As expected, you’re nearly fully dilated. On the next contraction pull your legs back, Ionus, you can assist him with that, and push with all your might, Alex.”

No sooner had she said the words than Alexander moaned again. I moved behind him and pulled his legs back as he pushed.

“Ahhh!”

“I see the tip of a glistening plum egg. Here comes another contraction, push, Alex!”

About that time Knox stormed in. “That’s my grandson and I have every damn right to be in here!”

“Push!” Sarah demanded and out came the rest of the egg.

“I was gonna leave because, yeah, didn’t think it would be that graphic but damn it if that isn’t the prettiest egg I’ve ever seen.” Knox’s formally strong appearance toned down at the sight of his first great grand egg.

Sarah wiped it off and set it beside us in the nest.

“Goddess, Alexander, it’s glorious. We made that.” Poor guy was covered in sweat. He opened his eyes and when they landed on the egg beside him, he burst into tears.

“That’s Griffin, our eldest son.”

“How do you know this?”

“He just told me.” Alexander moaned again. “I think it’s time for number two.”

“Too right you are, Alex. As soon as it hits…”

“Push!” Alexander cried out as he did, cutting off Sarah’s words.

“We have a lilac tip poking out. This egg is smaller than the first so it shouldn’t take much.”

“Ahhh!”

“And there we are, halfway out already. One more push and we have egg number two.”

Alexander closed his eyes, beyond exhausted. He’d been sleep deprived the last few nights due to our overly active offspring.

“My love, I wish I could do this for you, I really do. Take a couple of deep breaths. I can hear Griffin chatting away at his sister, telling her to hurry up because Papa is tired.”

“Isn’t it amazing how quickly their thoughts become ours?”

“It’s beyond words, mate. Truly. Now, let’s get our daughter out. Call to her.”

“Luna, my sweet Luna. This is Daddy and we need you to help your Papa, please.”

There was the chatter of a tiny voice, chirping away as her Papa pushed.

“And there she is. What a beautiful girl. Welcome, Luna.” Sarah wiped our daughter’s lilac egg down and gently placed her beside her brother. Such a pretty color for our tiny princess.

Alexander’s reprieve after hours of labor lasted a mere thirty minutes before the twins decided they wanted to join in the fun.

“Alex, I know you wanted the eggs to come naturally, but there is no way the twin egg will do that without risking your life. I’m sorry, but we need to call upon my magic.”

The plea in Sarah’s voice and the fact that Alexander was in and out of consciousness scared me and our dragon to death.

“Please, my love. Let Sarah help. This is too much, and I can’t bear the thought of losing you or our twins. Please?”

Mate, her magic will not hurt the babies.

Are you sure, Dragon?

Positive. Please, let her help.

Oh, you’ll listen to him and not me?

That at least got a tiny, albeit brief smirk from my tired mate. He and our dragon would give me a lifetime of trouble, but they were more than worth it. Their bond was strong, and I couldn’t be more thankful for that. He’d been at this all day, and it was far too much for any labored body to endure. Knox was a bundle of nerves, pacing the cavernous space and it was time to set everyone at ease.

“Okay, okay,” he breathlessly whispered.

Sarah raised her palms, and the magic sparked between them as she silently evoked the desired incantation. I watched in awe as Alexander’s err, um, birthing canal widened, and Sarah was able to guide the oversized aubergine egg out into the world.

“Kane, Hunter, welcome to the family.” Sarah wiped them down and set them beside the other two.

“That’s ironic,” Alexander whispered.

“What?”

“That our rowdy twins are the color of an eggplant.”

“What am I missing here?”

“Ask Odem to explain.”

Brother? Is something wrong with the twins?

Odem’s laughter rang through not only our connection, but the office and down the hallway.

Nothing is wrong with them, but you probably should’ve named them Mischief and Mayhem. The eggplant emoji in modern day lingo refers to anything and everything, um, naughty? And, um, sexual.

Dear Goddess, what have you done to us?

If I wasn’t mistaken, I heard a distant feminine giggle.

By now my brothers were all in a fit of laughter at my expense. Raising young meant having to learn these terms or I’d never keep up with them. They’d say one thing and I’d think it meant another and all proverbial hell would break loose.

“Laugh now, brothers, but I will feel no sorrow when they ruin your fine things.” I knew every dragon inside our home heard that. Oh yeah, Odem one and Odem two would be spending a lot of time at that uncle’s house. See how well he liked it when his fine linens are aflame. “And Odem, to put it into your terms, payback is a bitch.”

That silenced one but the others still mocked me. I’d get them. In time, what goes around comes around—tenfold.

“Alex, you did wonderfully, love,” Sarah ran her hand across Alexander’s sweat-laden forehead. “Sleep well and I’ll be by in a day or two to check on you and the eggs. Congratulations to you both. Ionus, you know what to do.”

“Aye, thank you, milady.” I hugged her. As soon as she was out of sight, I undressed. “Knox, could you step out a moment? It’s going to be a tight fit as I shimmy into place. As soon as I’m settled you may all come in and meet them.”

“Will do.” He glanced back at my sleeping mate. The marred worry lines on his face were replaced with pride. Alexander had done well, very well indeed. For our family as well as for dragons as a whole, for these hatchlings were the next in line to protect and defend.

Not only did I now have the family I longed for but in mating as well as I had, thank the Fates for that. Alexander and I brought bloodlines together, strengthening the future for all our kind.

Our dragon took no time to surface. He’d been a wreck through the entire birth and wanted nothing more than to hold our family. Once we’d curled up around the nest, tucking each life firmly between our scales, yet comfortably within our warmth, I called out for the others to come in.

“Ionus, Alex, well done, brothers, well done.” Caro patted my side. “What beautiful shades of your mighty color. I can’t wait for the day they hatch. Little ones, Uncle Caro will spoil you rotten.”

I had no doubt about that.

One by one my brothers and our extended family came through and shared their well wishes, each rubbing the eggs for good luck and introducing themselves. It was important our children felt their love and connection.

My tired mate didn’t so much as stir the entire time. I felt awful he had such a long, arduous and painful labor but when I glanced over at what it had produced I was filled with a love like no other. How I wished our parents were alive to see this, though I knew they watched over us from the other side.

“What are the names?” Baird asked.

The plum egg is our eldest, Griffin. The beautiful dainty lilac is our only daughter, Luna. The large aubergine egg, I purposely didn’t use the word eggplant to describe it , with our feisty twins inside , I felt their giggle through our connection, are Kane and Hunter.

“Welcome to the clans, little ones. We will protect you with our lives and you will never be without love.” Baird’s words drew tears to my eyes and Emerson immediately came to mind. Love, family, it was clear in all he’d said and done that was what he most desired. To be loved for who he was and not for what he could or couldn’t produce.

Wait, how is it that you hear my dragon?

“I believe Emerson touched on this. It is by a joining of our bloodlines and clans.”

How much had I missed?

Not the birth of our eggs, mate, which was most important. All else can be reiterated later. Now, it’s time to sleep.

Ah, so Alexander slept with one ear open it appeared.

Pre-parental preparation. A Papa gift, if you will.

Our dragon chuckled. Rest, my love, because we’re gonna need it.

“How’s Alex?” Knox immediately asked when I entered the kitchen.

“Good morning to you, too, Knox.” He knew I was teasing. “He’s still resting. I thought breakfast in the nest would suit him today. Not sure he’ll leave the eggs for more than a bathroom break. Have you eaten?”

“I have. Ionus, can I just say how happy I am Alex found you. Living a lie as long as I have was hard, but I really thought it was the end for all dragon kind. Now look. There’s a whole new generation starting and its brought hope to those of us who never quite fit in.”

I gripped his shoulder. “You fit in with us, Knox. We’re family and family sticks together. And just so we’re clear, I consider myself the luckiest dragon on earth to have found Alexander. Even if it was in the most unconventional of ways. Why don’t you go have a peek at your great grands while I whip up breakfast.”

He shuffled off faster than I thought he could move. I understood the excitement, my dragon and I couldn’t stop staring at them, either. The amazing variations of my amethyst amongst their shells were nothing short of breathtaking. My imagination ran wild with how stunning their dragons would be when they shifted.

We are truly blessed, mate.

Good morning, my love, and yes we are. How do you feel?

Honestly, not as bad as I expected. I’m guessing the recently awakened dragon blood has something to do with that.

Likely so. Enjoy your visit with Knox, I’ll be in shortly with sustenance.

I love you.

And I you, my love.

“Morning, brother,” Caro greeted me as he stepped inside the kitchen. How easily I’d adjusted to bodies coming and going as they pleased.

“And a great morning it is. To what do I owe the pleasure of,” in came Odem, Quint and Mattias. “You, you, and our brothers?” I nodded at each in turn, putting the finishing touches on the omelets.

“We came to check on you guys and let you know we’re heading out to visit a site Raven and Carver pinpointed as a potential dragon clan.” Quint grabbed the bunch of grapes off my plate, and I snatched them back.

“Get your own, these are for my mate.” Some things would never change. “How far away is it?”

“Only a couple of hours so if all goes well we’ll be back tonight. They’re still trying to find the Wynter clan, though I have a bad feeling they retreated to Antarctica.” Odem shivered. “Never been a fan of that much cold.”

“True, we’re only meant to weather typical winter storms.” I nearly shivered myself. “Keep in touch and let me know. If they show signs of anger you know what to do. While not a fan of showing our power, use it when faced with opposition. Understood?”

“Aye,” they readily agreed.

“Is Baird and his men accompanying you?”

“Aye, we are.” In came six more bodies. “Just wanted to check in on the new Denarius additions before taking flight. All is well, friend?”

“Couldn’t be better, Baird. Knox is in there now, why don’t you take a peek for yourself?” With a nod, he headed toward the nest area to check on his great grandson and great-great, that was a lot of greats, soon-to-be hatchlings.

To know I had eons of greats ahead of me made me want to be the best man and dragon possible.

“Gentlemen, help yourselves to whatever you need. I am off to stand in line to see my family.” They chuckled as I left the room, though when I reached the nest, it was standing room only and in the middle of it all was my smiling mate and our gorgeous eggs.

“That smells wonderful,” Alexander inhaled deeply, and his stomach rumbled. “I’m starving.”

“I’d imagine so, you’ve been eating for everyone but you.” I scooched in beside him and set the tray down. “Coffee fixed just the way you like it.”

“You are a keeper,” Alexander wiggled his lips at me. Who was I to deny my mate what he desired as I pressed mine to his?

“As are you.” Slowly the crowd dispersed, and it was just me and my ever growing family. “You are truly amazing, Alexander.”

“Me? How so?”

“Look around. You brought all this love and light into my life, and I’ll forever be grateful.”

“You say that now, while they’re confined to their eggs but mark my words, you’ll be second guessing that statement once they’re mobile.”

How many times in my life would I repeat these words—Goddess, help us all.