Epilogue #3
“Then push,” he said. “Mother and I will help all we can.” He gave his mother a look he knew she would understand.
Isla sidled her large girth around, angling closer to the side of the bed. “We are here, my daughter. You are not alone.”
“Dr. Brimleyton said there was something different about the heartbeat on my last visit. An odd echo.” Hannah moaned out a hiccuping sob, her erratic breathing showing she teetered on the edge of hysteria.
“The ultrasound equipment at the local clinic was broken so, he couldn’t check.
What if something is wrong with our baby? ”
“Our bairn will be braw and heathy,” Taggart said while massaging her shoulders.
They had planned a visit to the hospital today, but the onset of her labor and the storm had made risking such a trip unwise.
“And if anything is wrong, not only my healing powers are at the ready, but those of the Goddess Isla herself.”
“That is right, my daughter,” his mother said. “This child will be fine.”
Hannah fought to sit higher, grabbing her knees again. Her face turned a fierce red, tears and sweat streaming down. “Help me stand,” she groaned. “Now!”
Isla caught hold of her arm and helped her off the bed. “I will hold her,” she said, while motioning toward the floor with her snout. “Get down there and catch my grandchild.”
“Hurry!” Hannah leaned forward while Isla stood behind her and held onto her.
Taggart crouched in front of her. “Push, m’love. Hand the wee one over to me.”
With her feet spread apart, Hannah bent her knees and screamed as she bore down. A head full of dark hair appeared first.
Filled with awe, Taggart touched the warm, wet head, supporting the baby. “Again, m’love. Push again.”
Hannah groaned with another long, low growl.
A little red face, pudgy yet wrinkled showed, then in a sudden rush, the precious miracle slipped into his hands, arms and legs squirming. And then she cried, for it was a daughter, howling and strong.
“We have a daughter,” he said, cradling the infant close while holding her higher for Hannah to see.
Hannah laughed while still crying. “And she looks healthy.”
“Very healthy,” Isla said with a grandmotherly chuckle. “Listen to her.”
“Oh, no.” All joy left Hannah’s face as she clutched her stomach. She grimaced and staggered forward to grab hold of the bedpost. “I think there is another. I feel movement.”
“Another?” Taggart stared down at the squalling baby in his arms, then looked to his mother. “Another?” he repeated louder.
Isla held out both arms. “Give me my granddaughter. I shall care for her whilst you help with the next one. I have called for Esme, too. She can help me properly clean them and see to their needs.”
He clamped off and cut the umbilical then eased the wiggly infant into his mother’s care. “It appears those birthing classes were of use, after all.”
“It would seem so,” Isla said while peering down at the baby with a loving gaze. Soft white swaddling magically appeared around the child. His mother would use whatever magic necessary to ensure the wee one had everything they needed.
“Taggart! Hurry!” Hannah’s knuckles whitened as she gripped the bed post tighter. She squatted lower, straining and breathing hard.
He crouched down behind her and pushed her cotton nightgown up out of the way. With a hand rubbing the small of her back, he waited. “Push, m’love. Ye gave me a fine daughter. Now introduce me to our next bairn.”
“Soon,” she said with her head buried between her outstretched arms. A groan escaped her. “In fact, now!”
His son tumbled into his arms just as Esme burst into the room.
“We have a son!” Taggart laughed while rising to show the babe to Hannah. “Look, my dearest one. We have a healthy son, too.”
“That explains the echo. With the heartbeat.” Still breathing hard, she touched a finger to the crying infant’s chubby red cheek.
“I don’t believe you’re quite as loud as your sister.
” She wrinkled her nose as a mess plopped into the floor between her feet.
“I think that was the placenta. It appears I can lie down now.”
“Dr. Brimleyton is here,” Septamus announced from the bedroom door on the other side of the screen. “And do I hear two cries?”
“Aye.” Taggart held his son in one arm and helped his beloved wife return to the bed. “A daughter and a son, Septamus. Ye best be brushing up on your tutoring. In a few years, these two shall need schooling.”
“Merlin’s beard,” the ancient Draecna grumbled, but gladness and pride echoed in his tone.
“And tell the doctor to wait,” Taggart said. He sat on the edge of the bed beside Hannah. “I wish a word with my wife first.”
“Then we shall give this new family their privacy,” Isla said. She handed Hannah the fussy little girl. “I believe she is already hungry.” With a nod at Esme, she turned to go. “Come Esme. I wish to have a word with the doctor before I allow him anywhere near my grandchildren.”
Esme gazed wistfully at both infants, then nodded. “Yes. I wish a word with him too. We must ensure he is suitable.”
Taggart chuckled as the two Draecna females left the room. “Heaven help that poor man.” He leaned forward and kissed Hannah’s damp forehead, then smiled down into her eyes. “Two babies?”
“I promise I thought it was only one big one.” She put her daughter to her breast then held out a hand for her son. “I am sure he is hungry, too. Help place him?”
“Gladly, m’love.” More happiness and pride than he ever thought possible made his chest swell. “Look at them both. Apparently, coming into this world gives ye quite the appetite.”
“Our babies.” Relief colored her tone as she looked up and gave him a weary smile. “And they seem fine.”
“That is because they are, my dear one.” He cupped her cheek, almost choking on the emotions storming through him. “Words fall short of all I wish to tell ye right now,” he whispered. “The words I love ye seem too simple for all I feel.”
“I know.” She closed her eyes and leaned into his hand. “I feel the same.” The eternal mark that named her his mate for all time flared dark along her throat and down her chest. “I love you even more.”