Chapter 16
The night had quieted around us, a rare kind of calm that came after chaos. The mansion slept, the brothers finally scattered to their rooms, and even the flickering candles seemed tired.
Volken and I sat together on the edge of our bed, the silence between us soft but full.
He’d just come from a debrief with his brothers, his hands still faintly smudged with oil and ash, the faint metallic scent of blood still clinging to him.
He was tense, I could always tell, even if his face didn’t show it.
His fingers traced lazy circles along my back, grounding me, soothing in a way I didn’t deserve.
But the thing sitting in my chest refused to be soothed.
I swallowed, my hands gripping the hem of his shirt like a lifeline. My heart was beating too fast, my throat too tight. “Volken…”
He stilled immediately, head tilting just enough to catch my expression. Those pale, glacial eyes softened, just a little, though the wariness there never really went away. “What is it, little one?”
The nickname should have made me smile. Tonight, it just made my pulse spike harder.
I drew in a breath, tried to find words, but my mouth had gone dry. “I…uh…I need to tell you something.”
He turned fully toward me now, one arm looping around my waist, protective without even thinking about it. His brow furrowed. “You’re shaking.”
“I’m fine,” I lied, my voice breaking just enough to make it obvious that I wasn’t.
“Runa,” he murmured, tone firm, that one word a command and a comfort both. His relaxed muscles now tense as his expression sharpens with concern.
I took a breath, then another. My heart thudded painfully in my chest. There wasn’t going to be a perfect way to say it. “I think I’m pregnant.”
The world went very still. His hand froze mid-motion. For the first time since I’d known him, I saw something like disbelief flash through his eyes, it was sharp, raw, and unguarded. His lips parted, but no words came. He blinked once, as though trying to process what he’d just heard.
Then his voice dropped to a whisper, the words slow, disbelieving. “You’re… what?”
“Pregnant,” I said again, the word barely audible. My hands twisted in the fabric of his shirt. “I…I’m late, Volken. More than late. And the last few days, I’ve been nauseous, dizzy… it just, it fits. I didn’t want to believe it at first, but…”
He surged to his feet, pacing a few steps away before turning back, every inch of him coiled tension. His hands raked through his hair. “Gods, Runa…” He laughed once, a short burst, breathless, disoriented. “You’re sure?”
“Not… officially,” I said, my voice small. “But I know my body. And after what the doctor said about Lucien and Sorcha, I…”
He cut in, his voice low and fierce. “We’re calling the doctor.”
“Volken, it’s nearly sunrise.”
“I don’t care.”
I stood, catching his arm before he could stalk toward the door. “You need to rest. You’ve been fighting for three nights straight. He can come tomorrow.”
His eyes snapped to mine, glowing faintly in the half-light, the predator in him fighting the man. “Tomorrow might be too late.”
“For what?” I asked gently. “For me to still be pregnant? For you to still breathe? I’m not sick, Volken. I’m just…” My throat tightened. “Scared.”
That was what broke him. His shoulders slumped, his breath leaving him in a rush. He stepped closer, cupping my face in both hands. “I’m here for you little one,” he murmured, voice hoarse. “Don’t ever think you have to face fear alone.”
My eyes burned. “I’m not sure I’m ready for this,” I admitted quietly. “I don’t even know what being with you really means yet, and now…”
He pressed his forehead to mine, his voice a low, rough vow. “It means you’re not alone. It means I’ll protect both of you. You and…” He hesitated, his lips twitching in something that wasn’t quite a smile. “Our child.”
Something inside me broke and healed all at once.
“I’m dangerous, Runa,” he said after a moment, almost to himself. “This world, my bloodline, it’s built on war and monsters. And now there’s going to be… something innocent in the middle of it.”
I reached up, resting my hand against his chest, feeling the steady thrum of his heartbeat beneath my palm. “Then we make sure it never touches the darkness,” I said softly. “We make sure they know love before they ever know fear.”
His eyes softened then, truly softened, and the hand on my waist tightened. “You’re stronger than I ever was,” he murmured. “Maybe that’s why fate gave you to me. To remind me what light looks like.”
I smiled faintly, tears finally slipping free. “Or maybe to make sure you never forget how to be human.”
He huffed a quiet laugh, bending to kiss me with slow, reverent, almost trembling lips. “You’re impossible.”
“And you love me for it,” I whispered against his lips.
His answering growl was low, affectionate. “Every impossible part.”
When the kiss broke, he sighed, brushing his thumb along my cheekbone. “Fine. The doctor can wait until tomorrow night. But you’re resting. No arguments.”
I smiled, tired but lighter than I had felt in days. “You’re bossy when you’re scared.”
“I’m bossy because I care,” he countered dryly, already tugging me toward the bed.
We lay down together, his arm curving protectively around me, hand splayed across my abdomen like a silent promise. The weight of his touch was grounding, even as the night outside lightened toward dawn.
“Sleep, little one,” he whispered, pressing a kiss to my hair. “When I wake, we’ll call the doctor. But for now…” He exhaled slowly, the tension easing from his body. “For now, it’s just us.”
I leaned into him, listening to the steady rhythm of his heartbeat under my cheek.
And as the first faint rays of sunlight brushed the windows, I let myself drift into warmth, into peace, into the impossible reality that inside me, part of him was growing.
I was petrified, with everything going on I didn’t know if bringing a baby into this world would be the right thing to do, but with this little piece of me and him inside me, the future didn’t seem so dark.
***
The next evening came slowly, as though the sun itself refused to set fast enough.
Volken didn’t leave my side once. Even as dusk crept into the edges of the sky and the vampires stirred from their daylight sleep, he stayed, one arm slung protectively around me while we lay tangled in the sheets.
Every so often, I’d catch him glancing toward the door or the window, like he expected the world to shatter in on us before the doctor could arrive.
When the knock finally came, three sharp raps, he was on his feet before I could blink.
“Stay here,” he said, voice all command again.
“Volken,” I murmured, sitting up. “I’m pregnant, not dying.”
That earned me a look, one of those icy, cutting ones that would’ve terrified anyone else. But I’d learned that behind that stare was nothing, but fear wrapped in armour. He sighed, shaking his head once, before muttering, “You drive me insane,” and gesturing for me to stay seated anyway.
The doctor entered quietly, escorted by Colt and Ivan.
A familiar man, he was tall, greying at the temples, calm in the way only someone used to dealing with immortal tempers could be.
He’d served the Dragic family for decades, unflappable even in the face of vampires who could crush steel in their bare hands.
“Volken,” he greeted smoothly, nodding toward me. “And this must be the reason for your call.”
“She’s been nauseous, dizzy,” Volken said, hovering near me like I might dissolve. “And she thinks…”
“I can talk for myself,” I cut in, frowning at Volken. “I think I’m pregnant.”
The doctor gave me an amused smile, setting down his case. “Well, let’s find out, shall we?”
Volken didn’t move far, just enough to give the doctor space while still close enough that his presence felt like a protective wall.
The examination was gentle but thorough; the doctor asked quiet questions, checked my vitals, then ran a small handheld scanner over my lower stomach, a modern piece of tech the brothers had adapted to monitor hybrid physiology.
When the faint rhythmic sound filled the room, a fluttering heartbeat, Volken’s eyes snapped to mine and everything stopped.
For a heartbeat of my own, I didn’t breathe, and then I looked at the screen, saw the small, grainy outline that the doctor turned toward us. It didn’t look like much. Just a blur. But my heart knew before my brain did.
“There,” the doctor said softly. “That’s your child.”
My breath caught. I pressed a hand to my mouth, my eyes burning instantly.
Volken just stood there, unmoving, his jaw tight. I could feel the bond humming between us, disbelief, awe, and underneath it all… fear.
The doctor turned to him, his tone even. “She’s healthy. The baby’s strong, though small, just a few weeks along, I’d say. But with her being human, and you…”
Volken’s eyes snapped to his. “Say it.”
“With you being vampire, we’ll need to monitor her closely.
These pregnancies are rare but not unheard of, especially in the Dragic bloodline.
She’ll need rest. Regular feeding. Hydration.
And absolutely no stress.” His gaze flicked knowingly toward Volken, who looked seconds away from snarling. “That part’s on you.”
Volken nodded slowly, his throat working as he swallowed. “I understand.”
The doctor smiled faintly, packed up his things, and left with a gentle nod to me. “Congratulations, both of you. You’re going to be parents.”
The words echoed in my head long after he left. Parents.
I looked up at Volken, expecting him to still look shocked, but what I saw instead stopped me cold.
He was staring at the door where the doctor had gone, his expression unreadable, hands flexing at his sides. When he finally turned back to me, the fear was gone. What replaced it was something raw and deep, his expression was filled with reverence, maybe. possession and love.
“You’re really carrying my child,” he murmured, as if saying it out loud would make it more real.
“I guess so,” I whispered, still dazed.
He crossed to me in two strides and dropped to his knees, his hands trembling slightly as they slid over my stomach. “I can hear it, now that I know what to look out for.” he said, voice low, reverent. “The heartbeat. Faint, but steady.”
My throat tightened. “You can hear it?”
He smiled a small, awed curve of his lips. “I can feel it. Our bond… it’s different now. There’s another heartbeat tied to it.”
I reached out, fingers threading through his dark hair, and for the first time since I’d met him, Volken looked vulnerable. His eyes glowed faintly, not with hunger or rage this time, but with something pure and bright.
He pressed his forehead against my stomach, his voice breaking on a whisper. “I swear, Runa… I’ll protect you both. Whatever it takes.”
“I know you will, I know.”
We told the others later that night.
Layla was the first to react, her hand flying to her mouth, tears spilling instantly. “Oh, Runa!” she cried, pulling me into her arms before I could even speak.
Sorcha’s grin was wide and knowing, one hand instinctively brushing her own daughter’s hair. “Welcome to the madness,” she said with a wink. “You’ll never sleep again, but it’s worth it.”
Volken stood a little off to the side, arms crossed but eyes soft, clearly overwhelmed as Layla and Sorcha surrounded me like protective sisters.
Then the brothers found out.
Lucien was first to smile faintly, the way he did when something truly touched him. “Be ready brother, life is about to become even more complicated for you.” he said dryly.
Viking laughed outright, clapping Volken hard on the back. “Didn’t think you had it in you, brother!”
Volken shot him a lethal look. “Keep talking, and you’ll find out exactly what I have in me.” Viking just laughed at his comment.
Draugr only grunted, the corner of his mouth twitching. “Another Dragic. Gods help the world.”
Even Roman, ever the stoic leader, allowed a small, genuine smile. “Congratulations, brother. You’ve done well.”
Volken inclined his head, his arm coming around me as if he needed the touch to remind himself, I was real. “She has made this possible,” he said quietly, and the warmth in his voice made my chest ache.
Layla wiped her tears and gave me a radiant smile. “We’ll help you with everything. You’re family now, Runa.”
Family.
It struck me again how foreign that word had felt once. And now… now it felt like home. A twinge tightened my heart when I thought about my father, would he ever see his grandchild?
Volken bent close, his breath warm against my ear. “You’re glowing,” he murmured, his hand sliding protectively over my belly. “And you’re mine.”
I smiled faintly. “Both of us, apparently.”
He chuckled low, the sound rumbling through me. “Especially both of you.”
As laughter filled the room, Sorcha’s teasing, Layla’s joy, even Viking’s shameless jokes, I realized something quietly beautiful.
For all the blood, the chaos, the war that had shaped our lives… this was what they’d fought for. This warmth, this love, this future.
And as Volken’s hand tightened gently on mine, his lips brushing my temple, I knew that no matter how dark the nights ahead might become this child, our child, would be born into a world worth fighting for.
Yes, it’s a world filled with blood fights, pain, but it’s also a world filled with love, with pride and with close family that stand together through the good and the bad.