Laura's Legacy

by Lilli Carlisle

  “Are you strong enough, mate?” he asked, his concern easy to see.

  She gave her body a once over and actually realized she felt better then she’d ever felt. “Good to go, my love.”

  Dedric released his canines, pulled his gun from its holster and growled, “We’re going to send these two back to the hell they came from.”

  The warriors cheered for their alpha as weapons were drawn. Laura stood in the center of the group along with the white witches as the others took up defensive positions around them. Ceva’s black leather armor shone in the sunlight and her glossy black wings swept through the air as she and Lothar prepared.

  But the only person that mattered to Laura was staring back at her from across the clearing. His eyes were golden with his wolf and the tips of his canines peeked out from under his top lip. Her mate was a remarkable sight, dark eyes blazing with gold, his muscles rippling, and the blade of his sword gleaming. Her teeth ached to bite into her mating mark on his broad chest and she couldn’t help but growl.

  Ceva’s laughter filled the area. “We’re about to do battle and the two of you look like you’re ready to tear each other’s clothes off. Ah, the young.”

  Laura smiled, unapologetic for desiring her mate.

  The ground began to shake and swords were raised. Guns could slow an ogre down but to kill it you had to remove the head from the body or it would keep coming. One by one, the creatures appeared out of the tree line but they all stopped short of attacking, as if waiting for permission.

  In a flash of light Ula and Ethne appeared amongst their beasts. Both looked angry, making Laura chuckle. Unfortunately, in the quiet her laughter rang out, bringing the sisters’ attention directly to her.

  “Do you honestly think this is the time to be laughing, mutt?” Ethne squawked in anger.

  “After today, witch, you won’t be a terror to anyone else, especially those poor fairies you kill so that you can see.” Laura smiled wide, displaying her impressive fangs. Were they always this long?

  Her hands were getting warmer but she didn’t dare look away from the sisters to see what was going on.

  “You believe yourself strong enough to defeat us?” Ethne bellowed but Ula looked a bit unsure. “Attack!”

  Ogres rushed forward and the battle began. Laura called the surrounding trees and roots into the fray, grabbing ogre after ogre and dragging them beneath the earth long enough for Dedric to behead them. They were a team, in tune with each other on a level she’d never felt before.

  The white witches worked in absolute precision, taking out ogre after ogre. Ceva, Lothar and the king with his royal guard were mowing them down as quickly as they appeared. The tide was turning as ogres fell and Laura turned her attention back to the sisters.

  Ethne stood stabbing her gnarled walking stick into the ground, while Ula sat back with a strange smirk on her face. Dedric was engaged in a fierce battle with two ogres who had teamed up against him. She saw Ethne zero in on her mate with death in her eyes and Laura lost whatever restraint she had. Her hands were heated and she noticed they glowed blue, much like her legacy tattoo.

  Everything seemed to slow around her as her vision sharpened. The last of the ogres fell headless to the ground as Ethne raised her hand, a death spell on her lips. Ula looked at Laura, that grin still on her face before she vanished. Laura raised her hands and began pulling the powers out of Ethne. This was the day Ethne paid for what she’d done. The time had come for this dark witch who caused all this heartache and death.

  Laura had no idea how she knew how to pull in her power; it felt like her body was on autopilot. Ethne was caught in the same blue glow of Laura’s hands, unable to move, as if frozen to the spot. Laura could hear people around her, but it was simply background noise. Every bit of her concentration centered on Ethne.

  Ethne’s powers began to weaken as Laura stripped them away from her, until eventually she was left with none. She released Ethne who instantly slumped to the ground. Laura was quickly wrapped in her mate’s arms and her hands stopped glowing.

  “Is she dead?” the king asked.

  “No, but she is powerless and mortal,” Laura answered before snuggling in close to her mate’s chest. “She’ll never be able to hurt another soul again.”

  Ethne began screaming, “My eyes, I can’t see.”

  “Would someone please take me home? I need a nap,” Laura asked as her eyes slowly closed and sleep took her.

  Epilogue

  Dedric ran as quickly as his four legs could carry him while dodging trees and most of his frenzied pack. No matter how hard he tried, he felt like he wasn’t moving fast enough. Laura had reached out to him when he was checking the wells at the other end of town. He could feel her pain, and it was excruciating.

  As soon as he rounded the corner to his home, a crowd of pack members flooded in front of him but they made way for him to pass. He could hear Laura’s moans of pain from the front porch as he shifted and threw open the front door of their new pack house and home. He ran past Samson and General Jensgar and straight to their bedroom where he found his love lying on the bed, trying to breathe through another contraction.

  The moment she saw Dedric she yelled “Stop” just as he was about to climb into bed with her. “Do not jump in here where our baby will be born with dirt and leaves on you. Take a shower.”

  “A shower?” he asked, incredulous. “But our child is coming.”

  “Neither one of us will go anywhere while you take a quick shower, I promise,” she snapped. Dedric looked at the Doc, Ceva, Gabi and Lily for some sort of sign this wasn’t pre-birth insanity, and that he might miss the birth. Nope. Nothing.

  “You best hurry,” was all Doc said.

  Knowing when he was beat, Dedric bolted for the bathroom and took one of the quickest showers he’d ever had. By the time he returned wearing track pants, he was still dripping water from his hair but he crawled in behind his mate and leaned her to rest her head against his chest. He could feel her body straining with another contraction, but with each one their baby came closer to being born.

  Laura had known the gender of their baby for months but he didn’t want to know. Dedric wanted the miracle to be a surprise after everything they’d been through. After the battle, Ethne was taken to jail to serve out the rest of her life behind bars. Ula hadn’t been caught, though his mate seemed convinced they wouldn’t be seeing her again.

  The stone Laura had swallowed had integrated into her body and was part of her now. So far, she hadn’t experienced any negative reactions, although there had been a few changes. Ceva had explained that Laura would no longer feel any pain while healing others, which released something tight he’d been carrying around in his chest. The pregnant shifters whose babies she helped deliver seemed to go through labor much more easily than before. Of course, the whole sucking away powers thing had not been tested again, but he pitied anyone who took his mate on.

  Laura screamed and began pushing even harder.

  “Here comes the baby…you’re doing great,” Lily cheered softly.

  “Almost there my love,” Dedric whispered into his mate’s ear. “I can’t wait to hold our child. Thank you for giving this to me.”

  “Love you,” was all Laura could get out before she sucked in a lungful of air and pushed with everything she had.

  In the next moment, a tiny high-pitched cry rang out in the room and the pack’s howls filled the air. Dedric sat there almost stunned as Doc placed the squirmy bundle in his mate’s arms.

  Laura looked up at him and whispered, “You have a son, my mate.”

  Dedric’s hands shook as he gently ran his fingers along his son’s soft skin. An overwhelming sense of protectiveness fell over him as he held his family in his arms. The baby’s feathery hair was dark as well as his eyes, taking right after his daddy.

  He felt tears dripping from his eyes but he couldn’t stop them and didn’t want to. For so many years, he’d been denied this joy, but no lo
nger. His beautiful mate had given him everything he’d ever dreamed of and more.

  The next few hours flew by as everyone was cleaned up and Doc declared both mother and baby healthy. They would present their son to the pack tomorrow after Laura had had time to heal and rest. For the moment, they were alone in the calm of their bedroom cuddled close with their sleeping son between them.

  “What should we name him?” Laura asked softly.

  Dedric had thought about that and believed he knew the perfect name for their son. “I would like to name him after your father, Damen.”

  His mate’s eyes filled with tears at the mention of her deceased father. “Damen Newton,” she whispered in reverence. “It’s perfect.”

  Laura sat rocking Damen in her arms. He was sound asleep after a hearty mid-morning feeding. Dedric had been in and out all day, never able to stay away for very long. They’d presented Damen to their pack early that morning and the gifts had been arriving ever since. She was confident this was the safest and most loving place she could raise their children, and any doubts she had early on were long gone.

  There was a soft knock on her bedroom door, and Laura stood to lay Damen down in his crib before answering. She opened the door to find Lily waiting patiently with tears in her eyes.

  “Come in. What’s wrong, Lily?” Laura asked.

  “I’ve come to say goodbye,” Lily answered before she entered the room, her head down.

  The time had come. Months ago, Lily had approached Laura with her decision to return to Black Ridge once the baby was born. Lily had done everything she could to convince General Jensgar to consider a relationship with her, but to no avail. The general simply wouldn’t budge, repeatedly stating that Lily deserved better.

  “I cannot stay near him when he refuses me. My wolf has already chosen him as our mate. It only hurts to see him now,” Lily explained.

  “But when he looks at you there’s clearly affection in his eyes. Jensgar watches you wherever you go. I confess, I don’t understand,” Laura stated.

  “Well, I’m done trying to figure that out,” Lily declared, her sadness turning to anger. “It will be best to not see him every day, knowing there could be nothing between us. Will you see me off?”

  “Of course. I’ll be right by your side.” Laura took Lily’s hand and led her out onto the porch where Ceva was waiting.

  Dedric came over to Laura’s side feeling her sadness at losing her friend. Samson, Gabi, Jennifer, Drune and General Jensgar waited.

  Laura gave Ceva a big hug. “Say hello to that wonderful mate of yours for us.”

  “I will. If you need me just call,” Ceva smiled before turning to stand a few feet away. “Are you ready, Lily?”

  That got the general’s attention. His eyes were pinned on Lily. Instead of looking his way, Lily turned and gave Laura one last hug before joining Ceva. The heartbreak and sadness were nothing compared to the longing in her eyes as she turned and stared at Jensgar before taking Ceva’s hand. Then nothing. Poof, they were gone as if they were never there.

  Laura turned into her mate’s strong arms for comfort and he quickly lifted her to carry her back into the house, to their room, and to their sleeping baby. Words her mother used to say came back to her: “You cannot have great joy without loss.”

  Dedric laid Laura on the bed and then joined her. She was quick to cuddle into his arms and she rested her head on his muscled chest. Laura knew logically this was a good move for Lily; she needed to go on with her life and forget about what could have been.

  “Are you all right, sweetheart?” her mate asked while pulling her closer.

  “Yes, this is for the best.”

  “It is. You can’t make someone love you no matter how hard you try,” Dedric consoled.

  “I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t returned my feelings.”

  “There was never a chance of that happening. I wanted to get nearer to you from the moment I met you. No way could I stay away.” Dedric confessed, lifting Laura up so that they were looking eye to eye. “You are the other half of my heart and soul. I’m no longer me without you.”

  Laura stared down at her mate and soaked in this poignant moment right up until a tiny cry let loose. Laura couldn’t help but laugh. “Looks like your son wants in on some family snuggles.”

  Dedric smiled and laid Laura back onto the bed before going to pick up Damen. She watched her large mate talk softly to their baby while gently changing his diaper. It warmed her heart to see such a strong man delicately dressing their newborn son.

  “Here you go, my mate. I think Damen is hungry,” Dedric said before handing her the baby.

  “Well, he’s behaving more and more like his father by the minute. Neither one of you can go long without eating something.”

  Dedric crawled back into bed beside her as Damen began his third mid-morning feeding. “We’re big, strong men. We need to eat a lot to grow even stronger.”

  “I think you stopped growing a long time ago, mate,” Laura teased.

  Dedric laughed and rubbed the side of his son’s head before becoming serious. “I’ll never be as strong as you are, my love. Not even close. Everything you’ve done and continue to do for all shifters, as well as suffering terrible pain to bring our son into this world. I could never think to compare to you.”

  Laura turned her head up for a kiss and was happy when Dedric dove in. When they separated she announced, “Good, so you can carry the next one.”

  Dedric’s face turned white and Laura couldn’t help but smile. “You can’t make that happen…can you?”

  “I’ve gained a lot of new powers recently. I’m sure there’s something like that among them.” Laura tried to keep a straight face, as Dedric looked a little queasy. Maybe she’d tell him later that she was only joking. There was no spell or power able to make that happen, but really how much would it hurt for him to think so?

  “Seriously, Laura…?” Dedric asked as she cuddled in with her mate and son.

  She wished her family were alive to meet Dedric and Damen. The thought had barely left her mind when she felt their love surrounding her and she knew they were with her. Looking up at her mate, Laura knew it was time to concentrate on their future and her legacy of helping ensure there was a future for shifters. Many had already paid the ultimate price for that curse and it was up to her to make sure no one else ever did.

  With Dedric at her side, Laura could see it through. They were a team.

  “Love you, mate,” Laura whispered, stopping Dedric’s questions.

  Dedric’s expression softened as he cupped her cheek. “I love you too, Laura.”

  All was right with the world…at least for now.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Lilli Carlisle lives outside Toronto, Canada. She’s a member of the Romance Writers of America and its chapter, Toronto Romance Writers. Lilli is a mother of two wonderful girls, wife to an amazing man and servant to the pets in her life. She writes both contemporary and paranormal romance and believes love should be celebrated and shared. After all, everybody needs a little romance, excitement, intrigue and passion in their lives.

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