Page 47 of Reformed Wolf

My father gave me a too-gentle hug, probably worried he would hurt me in my “delicate” state, then he greeted the others, Metro last. Father seemed wary of having law enforcement on his property, considering the incredibly not-entirely-legal things that went on here.

“Metro Curran,” the trooper said, holding out a hand to shake. “Don’t worry, I’m just here to drop these two off. Clan disputes tend to fall outside of human jurisdiction, so I’ll gladly look the other way as you deal with them however you see fit, but… if my opinion matters at all, I’d go easy on them. They’re young, just following their Alpha’s orders, and now that he’s gone, they have no one left to follow.” He glanced back over his shoulder at the two hunched figures in the back of his car, before lowering his voice to a whisper, his dark eyes tender. “One of them cried the whole way here. I think if you wanted, you might find them to be… adoptable.”

I almost laughed at the description. It was actually kind of perfect. I’d been surprised when I first laid eyes on the two gangly teenagers. I couldn’t imagine what kind of monster would decide they were ready to do battle. I fully approved if my father decided to take them in, give them jobs, maybe find them a new home. He could give them a real chance at a better future. My father met my eyes, and I nodded, smiling—

Right before I gasped and doubled over. A band of fire wrapped around my middle, squeezing hard.

“Dylan!” Tristan was at my side in an instant. “What is it? Is it the baby? Is he coming?”

I managed to keep myself upright, but I leaned heavily into my mate. Before I could say a word in answer, he’d swept me off my feet and was jogging back to the truck. “Does the hospital here treat shifters?” he yelled back over his shoulder at my dad who had gone strangely pale.

He nodded before finding his words. “Y-yes, whoever’s at the desk will make sure he gets directed to the right doctor.”

“No, no doctor,” I mumbled against Tristan’s shoulder. He wasn’t listening, though.

“Please,” my father said thickly. “Take care of my son.” He kissed me quickly on the forehead then stepped back. I knew what that must have cost him, relinquishing my core to someone else.

Jude had the back door open, and Tristan lay me down across the back seat. When I tried to sit up, he nudged me right back down. He threw the keys at Jude. “You’re driving.”

Jude gave a fist pump that probably should’ve made me nervous, but all I could think about was getting Tristan to listen. He got into the back with me, closing the door, just in time for Jude to gun the engine and peel down the driveway. My stomach lurched, and this time it hadn’t nothing to do with the baby and everything to do with Jude’s lack of driving skills.

“Do you need to lie down?” my mate asked. “Do you need to push? I can deliver a baby if I have to. I can—”

“Tristan!” I shouted, my voice half panther, and I knew my eyes were shining green and gold. His jaw shut with a clack of his teeth, and that was when I saw the true terror that was threatening to take him over. His eyes were wild, his lip trembling. “I’m okay, it was just a contraction. I’m fine, the baby’s fine.” I hope. “And I don’t want to go to the hospital.”

He sputtered and choked on his indignation, building up steam to argue with me. Jude was watching me in the rearview mirror, waiting for instructions. “Home,” I told Jude, then repeated it for Tristan’s sake. “Home. Brody told me the baby should be born on pack land. He literally wiped soil on the bottom of Wynn’s feet. He said it was really important to help form a bond with the pack.”

Through all this, Tristan was shaking his head. “No, we don’t have time for that. Your health, our baby’s health, comes first. Always.”

“I know that, but it’s just labor. Omegas have been giving birth for millennia, long before hospitals existed. Brody gave birth to Mal all by himself in the middle of the forest!”

I was glad to see that Jude had already turned off toward the highway, long before I convinced Tristan that the baby wasn’t going to simply fall out of me. Labor took hours upon hours. Our son likely wouldn’t even be born today.

As we drove home, though, the increasing cramping made me nervous. It felt pretty intense compared to what Brody had described at the beginning of labor. Was it supposed to hurt this much? Were the contractions supposed to be so close together? Were my pants supposed to be wet?

I managed to keep in most of the moans, for Tristan’s sake, even as the pain snaked around to my back in a band of fire. I knew if we were closer to Fairhome than we were to camp that he would make Jude turn around, and while my mate didn’t often use his status as Beta to get his way, he totally would if he thought he was in the right. I caught Jude’s eye in the mirror again, and he must’ve seen something in my face, because the truck’s speed began to increase.

By the time we turned onto the last narrow track, there was no way I could hide the pain I was in. “Fuck, fuck, fuck,” I chanted, clinging to Tristan’s hand as we hit every single pothole. Sweat was pouring down my face and neck and chest. I’d peeled off my shirt 20 minutes ago, and the pants shortly after. “Next time my dad wants to buy us a gift, let’s have him level out this road.” Though I couldn’t imagine ever being in this position again.

“You’re never driving again, Jude!” Tristan growled, but there was nothing to be done about it. He could no sooner avoid the ruts than I could run a straight line through the woods without hitting a tree.

As the truck pulled into the clearing, I blew out a short-lived breath of relief—but the air was forced from my lungs with a particularly strong contraction. “I need to puuuuuush,” I groaned, my voice guttural as the muscles seemed to take over without my consent.

“Out, out, out,” Tris ordered. Jude opened the rear door and took my legs, while Tristan hooked me beneath the armpits. I could hear a lot of activity, but to be honest, I was way past caring. This baby was coming, now!

They set me down on the grass right there, cool and damp, and I ripped it up by the handful.

“Shh, I’ve got you,” a familiar raspy voice said.

I forced my eyes open and saw our shaman kneeling down beside me. “Vesta? How did you know to come? The baby’s early.”

She tutted me, smoothing a soft hand over my forehead. “How do you know the sun is shining?” she asked mysteriously.

“Because… I see it?” I answered, blinking away tears.

“Yes,” she said, nodding as if proud of my answer. “Just as I saw your son. He is ready. Are you?”

I nodded vigorously, eager to get this over with. Vesta gestured for Tristan to get into position behind me, propping me up against his chest, then she placed a hand on my stomach and closed her eyes, whispering words in a language I didn’t recognize.

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