Chapter Nineteen
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WYNTER WAS CRANKIER than usual when she dragged herself out of bed. She knew she’d kept her mate awake with all the tossing and turning she’d done, but she hadn’t been able to get comfortable. “Pregnancy sucks,” she muttered as she laboriously changed into a maternity dress.
Sinai had created the dresses for Zoe and Wynter, so they weren’t as hideous as some maternity clothes could be. They fit over her gigantic belly, so Wyn didn’t feel like she was being squeezed inside her clothing.
She grabbed hold of the aircon unit that was on wheels and rolled it to the dining room.
Everyone was already in their seats since she’d gotten up a bit late.
Tolas beamed at her in greeting and stood up to pull her chair out for her.
“Sit, beloved,” her mate said, then helped her onto her chair.
He pushed it in a bit for her, then positioned the aircon directly behind her.
“You look a bit ragged, Wyn,” Grace said sympathetically. “Did you get any sleep at all last night?”
“Sure,” the redhead said in a fake cheerful voice. “If I added up all the minutes I drowsed for, I must have had a full hour of sleep.”
Zoe winced, knowing exactly what her sister had gone through. “It’ll all be over soon,” their matriarch said soothingly.
Wynter looked down at her stomach ruefully. “I hope so, because I can barely reach my plate,” she said.
Vic snickered, which set off the other females. The males exchanged their usual baffled looks, still unable to understand their sense of humor.
Angel was munching on a strip of bacon Eze was holding for her while she was draped over Sin’s shoulder. Her purring sounded loud to their enhanced hearing, but at least she wasn’t yowling for food.
Qi and Koach had altered their routine completely now.
They shared breakfast with their family before heading to the hospital in New Jersey.
Dr. Forgan treated any problems before they went in search of anyone who needed medical assistance.
“Survivors are becoming scarcer around New Jersey now,” Qiana reported.
“We’ve been finding more people with black souls than gray souls. ”
“I’ve been using mind control to send the humans with gray souls to Pastor Hogan,” Kochab said. “They won’t make it without some assistance. I send the ones with black souls westward if they’re alone or in small groups.” His mind control wasn’t as powerful as his commander’s.
“How many of them were heading to Manhattan to join Oliver Giamano’s militia?” Amaros queried.
“Too many,” his brother said gravely. “Not everyone believes the Mad Prophet’s warnings, or they’re too desperate to care.”
“They’ll get a rude shock when they get processed and find themselves working as slave labor,” Xan said with a scowl. She used cameras at various farms and facilities to spy on the workers. Their conditions were terrible.
“When are you going to carve an animal on Arak’s door, Oak?” Bria asked. Oaklie had engraved owls on hers and Urzra’s bedroom door. She liked the idea that her sister thought they were wise.
Oak contemplated her answer as she chewed and swallowed. “I need to see a person’s spirit before I can decide,” she said. “Little Arak is just a baby. It could be years before I’ll know what sort of animal suits him best.”
A sharp pain deep inside Wynter made her flinch and she hunched over. “What was that, beloved?” Tol asked in alarm.
“It was just a twinge,” his mate said, then resumed eating.
Zoe caught Qi’s eye and they shared a knowing look. “I think I’ll take a day off from searching for survivors and get some intense training in,” the trauma surgeon said casually.
“Koach can spar with us,” Jac said with a grin. “It’s about time I got to beat him again.”
“You’re dreaming,” Kochab said in amusement. He’d read his mate’s mind and knew she suspected Wynter was finally going to get her wish today.
Grace was attuned to her family and saw everything. “You know, I’m feeling a bit tired today,” she said. “I didn’t get much sleep last night.”
“That’s because you stayed up all night reading, little sister,” Cam chided her. “I saw your light was still on when I got up to run a perimeter check.”
The knights took turns scouting the area around their base each night. Xanthia’s cameras would warn them of intruders, but they weren’t about to let themselves become complacent. They were careful to avoid the devices so they didn’t set off the alarm.
Zo knew what Grace was up to and gave her a grateful nod. Vic scowled at the teen. “You don’t get to skip an entire day of training just because you decided not to sleep, kiddo,” she said.
“We can still have our private training session tonight,” Grace said and slid a meaningful look at the water manipulator.
Vic’s eyes widened when she got the hint. “I guess I can let you off the hook just this once,” she agreed reluctantly.
Oblivious that everyone was becoming aware of what was going to happen to her, Wynter didn’t have much of an appetite.
She forced down some of her breakfast before pushing her plate over to Tolas.
“I’m not hungry,” she said when his dark eyebrows rose.
The warrior polished off her meal, then escorted her to the great room.
Grace followed them, pushing the aircon unit ahead of her.
Angel abandoned Sin when her human finished her breakfast and everyone began clearing the table.
The kitten trotted down the hall and entered the great room.
She leaped up onto the couch Wyn was sitting on and tucked herself against the cambion’s side.
The aircon was too cold for the feline and she used Wynter’s bulk to keep herself warm.
“What do you want to watch?” Grace asked as she crossed to the cabinets that contained their extensive collection of movies and TV shows.
“You choose,” the redhead said, then winced when she felt another stab of pain. “I think I’ve got indigestion,” she complained.
Grace nodded in agreement while hiding a grin. She put a romantic comedy on and sat down next to her sister. Petting Angel, the teen doubted they would make it to the end of the movie before Wyn’s contractions started.
An hour later, Wynter doubled over as much as she could when pain speared through her again. This one lasted longer and she gasped for air when it was over.
“Qi!” Grace called out. “It’s starting!”
Dr. Forgan rushed into the great room a second later. “We should get you to the infirmary,” she said, reaching for Wyn’s hands.
“What’s happening?” Wynter asked in alarm.
“You’re about to have our baby, beloved,” Tolas said as he appeared beside her.
Panic seized hold of his mate. “What?” Wyn exclaimed as Qiana tugged her to her feet. “I’m not ready!”
Angel scrambled up onto the back of the couch in bewilderment as her heat source was taken from the room.
“Your body is ready, mama,” Grace said when her sister’s water broke in the hallway.
“Shiz,” Wynter said, looking down at her drenched feet. Calmness flowed into the room and her death grip on the doc’s hands eased. “Thanks, Bri,” she said in relief.
“No problem, Wyn,” Bria replied from the females’ training room. “I think we could all do with a bit of calm until after you give birth.”
“No kidding,” Cam whispered in the males’ training room. All of the knights were tense. They sensed Tol’s anxiety through their bond with their commander.
Tori quickly cleaned up the hallway before anyone could slip over and crack their head open, while Vic joined Grace to assist with the delivery again.
Zoe retrieved Arakiel from his crib to feed him, listening to the drama going on in the infirmary.
“You’ll have someone to grow up with and be your best friend soon, little man,” she told her son.
Obsidian eyes gazed up at her solemnly as he drank her milk.
It took four hours before the newest member of their family arrived. Wynter was exhausted, but she knew it could have been a lot worse. Just like Zo, she was already healing from her ordeal.
“Congratulations, Wynter and Tolas,” Qi said as she examined the baby. “You have a perfect little girl.”
Wyn burst into happy tears as Vic and Grace helped her off the table. “Let me hold her,” she demanded as a towel was wrapped around her. Qiana had cut her dress off since it had been ruined anyway.
Tol hugged his mate and peered over her shoulder at their baby. “She’s just as beautiful as you, beloved,” he said in awe while Qi healed Wyn.
“She has your red hair,” Grace said, wiping away her tears of joy.
Vic was sniffing back her tears, determined not to cry. “I bet her eyes will turn gray when she gets a bit older, too,” she predicted. They were blue at the moment.
“Our daughter’s skin is darker than yours, but lighter than mine,” Tolas said, glad at least some of his features had been passed on to their offspring. The cambions usually took after their fathers physically, but their younglings were a different breed.
“What are you going to call her?” the doc asked.
“Nova,” Wyn said, gazing at her baby lovingly. “She already shines like a star.”
“Aww,” Grace said, tearing up again at the devotion she saw in Nova’s folks. “That’s an awesome name.”
“It means ‘new’ in Latin,” Xan informed them. “Good choice, mama.”
“Queeg’s coming to visit us,” Tol said, picking up on the human’s presence. “He must have seen a vision of Nova’s birth.”
“I need to get cleaned up,” Wynter said and handed her daughter back to the doc. “I’m starving!” she added, already feeling much better now that her ordeal was finally over.
Qiana showed Tolas how to bathe his daughter while Grace and Vic escorted Wynter to her bedroom.
The Mad Prophet ambled inside and headed to the great room, hanging his hat on the hook on his way down the hallway.
“When do we get to see little Nova?” he asked, plonking down on the armchair he’d claimed.
“Fate shows you everything, doesn’t she?
” Zoe asked in exasperation. She was sitting on the couch next to Amaros.
Her mate was cradling their son in his arms. They’d given up on training and were ready to celebrate as soon as the new parents joined them.
The knights would let Tol choose whatever games he wanted to play with them later and celebrate his fatherhood in their own way.
“She shows me enough,” Queegly said with a shrug.
“I just wish I could give you a clue when the next knight and his cambion will be turning up.” He’d had a vision yesterday of the knight doubting his skills after someone told him he was supposed to locate a female.
They all knew the warrior was somewhere in the country, but neither of the mystics had been given an insight into his location yet.