“Lucian, I can’t go on,” Skye said breathlessly. She was cold and tired, and her body ached all over. They were making their way through the mountains. It seemed as if they had been walking forever. Tiberius and the other men had trekked on ahead of Lucian and Skye because she moved so slowly. She was in her eighth month now, and her belly was huge. Despite all the seasickness she’d endured, Skye yearned for the ship when compared to all the climbing and walking.
“Let me carry you,” Lucian offered. Lucian had covered her as best he could to protect her from the snow. As a werewolf, his body temperature ran hotter than normal, and the cold didn’t bother him much. But he knew it was too much for her. Lucian admired her strength. He picked her up and carried her. “Is that better?” he asked.
Skye pressed herself as close as possible. He was toasty warm. She couldn’t understand why she was freezing and he was always warm. “A bit, but I beg you we must stop and rest.”
Lucian looked up and saw his father walking back toward them. “Lucian!” he called.
“Father,” he said, greeting Tiberius. “We must stop and rest,” he explained.
“I’m such a burden,” Skye said sleepily. “Leave me. Go on without me.”
“Shhh. Don’t talk that way, child,” said Tiberius. “We must get her warmed up with a fire. She doesn’t look so good. There is a cave ahead. It will be perfect for tonight.”
Tiberius’s eyes flashed amber. Lucian understood what he meant. The full moon was coming. He would have to leave Skye somewhere safe again when he phased. The last time Lucian left her he was able to make up an excuse that they were going hunting. He didn’t know what he would tell her now. Lucian followed his father. Ten minutes later they were at the mouth of a small cave. Tiberius and the men had already cleaned it out and made a comfortable bed for Skye to lie on. They built a small fire inside, and someone started cooking a soup. Skye was asleep in his arms. He was worried about her. The men were gathering more sticks to make fire piles to guard the entrance to the cave. Tiberius stayed in the cave with Skye and Lucian.
“Lay her down and take off your clothes,” Tiberius ordered.
“Why?” Lucian asked.
“She is too far gone for that fire. She needs body heat to warm her up. I am sure she would prefer you to do it over me,” he said knowingly.
Lucian looked down at Skye. She wasn’t moving, and she was pale. He removed his clothes quickly and climbed under the blanket next to her. Lucian wrapped her in his arms and pulled her face to his chest. Tiberius added some more sticks to the fire.
After an hour or so, Skye started to stir. She nuzzled her face into his chest some more. Tiberius had left with the men as the sun began to set. They wanted to distance themselves from the cave for when they phased. They wouldn’t hurt Skye in their other form, but they left so she would not discover their secret just yet.
“Skye, wake up,” Lucian said softly.
“Lucian?” she asked.
“How do you feel?” he asked as he stroked the hair out of her face. She looked up at him and smiled.
“Like I could sleep for a year,” she replied. Skye pressed her body closer to his. Lucian chuckled when he realized what she was doing.
“And I wish I could stay with you right here for that year,” he said. “But I have to leave you again tonight for a little while.”
“No, please stay with me,” she begged. “Don’t leave me alone again.”
Lucian’s heart broke to have to leave her. “I must go,” he said. The sunlight was almost gone. He could barely hold back against the change. Lucian stood up and dressed quickly. “There is some soup for you. You need to eat and regain your strength.” He turned around, and Skye was standing.
She went and looked outside. The men had made fire piles again on the mouth of the cave. Skye saw the moon rising. It was full. The last time they all left her the moon had been full as well. She was growing suspicious, but of what she didn’t know. She just sensed something strange was going on.
“The moon is full,” Skye said accusingly. Lucian couldn’t look her in the eyes. She knew he was hiding something because of the way his body tensed. “When we landed on shore the moon was full, and you all left me on board. We walk for a month and then the moon is full, and you all leave me in a cave. Now here the moon is full again, and you are leaving me again!” Her voice had risen in her anger and frustration. “Tell me where you go, what you do, Lucian.”
Lucian was looking at the ground. He couldn’t lie to her again, so he decided just to leave her without an explanation, no matter how angry she would be with him.
“Lucian! Don’t you dare walk away from me, you coward!” she yelled.
Lucian turned around and grabbed her. He kissed her fiercely. “Trust me, Skye,” he said, gazing deeply into her eyes. There was a loud howling coming from outside, followed by several others. Lucian looked at the entryway, his body stirring with impatience. “Please. I’ll be back.” Lucian kissed her again quickly, and then he leaned over and kissed her belly. Skye watched with tears in her eyes as he walked out of the cave and lit the piles with a torch. Then he was gone.
Skye hit the wall of the cave in anger and frustration. The pain in her hand made her regret doing it instantly. She went to sit down on her makeshift bed, which was no more than a pile of blankets. Skye grabbed her bowl and spoon, served herself some of the soup, and started to eat. It was watery and bland. The men couldn’t cook to save their lives, she thought. But she was hungry and finished the bowl plus another.
When Skye was done eating she lay down and curled up under the blankets. Her belly began moving. She put her hands on her tummy and smiled. This is either one large baby, or I am having more than one, she thought. She was terrified. Skye couldn’t recall how long she had been pregnant, and she had no idea when it would be time to deliver. She didn’t want to give birth alone in the cave, squatting over a pile of leaves. Skye wondered if it would hurt and how much. She felt lonely and desperate without Lucian and began to cry.
She must have cried herself to sleep because Lucian woke her up in the morning when he climbed under the blanket and huddled up next to her. Her back was nestled in his chest, and he placed his arm over her side. Skye was instantly warmer. She smiled happily and shut her eyes again. She felt an enormous sense of relief that he was back, so much that she couldn’t be angry with him for leaving her. He kissed her gently.
“I’m sorry, my love,” said Lucian. Skye’s eyes popped open in surprise, though he could not see. Lucian had never said he loved her. He wasn’t technically telling her now either, but she smiled at the thought that he loved her enough to call her that.
“I forgive you,” she said quietly. Skye shut her eyes and tried to enjoy his warmth. Just as she was dozing off, the baby started to move again. Her stomach was being pushed out by little elbows and knees from the inside.
“Whoa,” said Lucian as her stomach moved his arm up and down. Skye giggled. “Is that the baby?” he asked. “That is incredible.”
“Yes,” she replied.
“Someone is ready to enter the world,” he said, laughing.
“Not just yet, I hope,” she said. Lucian could hear the fear in her voice.
“I will get you to my mother’s clan in Britannia soon. I swear it. They have midwives that will deliver your baby. You will be all right, Skye,” he promised.
“I’m counting on you, Lucian,” she said with all seriousness. He held her tighter, and she dozed off.
Chapter Twelve
BRITANNIA, 79 AD
Tiberius, Lucian, Skye, and the rest of the pack made their way through the mountains and to the shore, where they hired a ship to sail them across the sea to northern Britannia. Skye was in her last month. Her belly was incredibly large and heavy. She tired easily, and her ankles and feet were swollen. Lucian had her lie down the entire time on the ship. He brought her food and massaged her feet and back. They had not been intimate since the last few days on
the first ship, and now it seemed out of the question. Lucian prayed to the gods to get them to his mother’s people before she gave birth.
When they made shore they found a small Roman village where they purchased some horses. Skye almost wept with relief that she didn’t have to walk anymore. But riding a horse only made her sorer. Tiberius sent the pack ahead to the village of his first wife to announce his arrival. He decided to hang back with Lucian and Skye at a pace comfortable for her. Tiberius rode ahead of them, looking worried the entire time. He kept glancing at the sky.
“Is it a full moon tonight?” she asked Lucian.
Lucian looked at her in surprise. “Why do you ask?” he asked, trying to sound nonchalant.
“You know why I ask, Lucian,” she said accusingly. “You and your father are obsessed with the moon, and you both get anxious when it is full.”
“You will learn in time,” he replied mysteriously. Lucian had thoughts of turning Skye. He wanted to wait until after she gave birth, when she was strong enough to handle the change. Then when the babies were older she could change them. Lucian was conflicted about asking her permission, though. He didn’t want to bite her and have her hate him, but he couldn’t stand the thought of her hating what he was and refusing. He loved her and wanted to be with her forever. If Skye remained human she would eventually age and die. And then there was the question of whether she loved him in return.
“What are you thinking about?” she asked. Lucian hadn’t realized she was watching him.
“Nothing,” he replied gruffly.
“You’re lying,” she said in a know-it-all tone of voice.
Lucian looked at her. In these short months together she had come to know him better than he knew himself…except for one thing. He looked over and gave her a half smile, but she was no longer looking at him. Skye was rubbing her belly with a pained look on her face.
“Are you all right?” he asked, concerned.
“I have been having pains all morning,” she admitted.
“Should we stop?” he asked, even more worried.
“No. We have to make it to your people. I will be all right,” she insisted.
This is not good, Lucian thought. He had to leave her alone again tonight, but he suspected the baby was coming soon. “We won’t make it to the village tonight. And I must—” he started to say.
“Leave me again,” she said, finishing his thought. Another look of discomfort flashed on her lovely face.
Tiberius stopped and turned around. He trotted his horse back to them. He looked at Skye, worried. Tiberius could sense it, and so could Lucian. “We will stop ahead in those woods for the night,” he said. Lucian looked at him as if he were crazy.
“Is that a good idea?” Lucian asked his father. Skye suspected that those woods might not be the best place.
“It is the fastest route to your mother’s village,” he said. Tiberius looked knowingly at Skye, who was looking down with her face scrunched up in pain. She had been holding her breath, and when the pain stopped she let it out loudly. “Hurry,” he said.
The trio rode off toward the woods. Daylight would be leaving soon. Tiberius and Lucian scrambled to make a camp area. Lucian grabbed as many sticks as possible and made a large circle of fire piles around Skye. Tiberius propped up a blanket on some large branches he secured into the earth. He lined the bottom with the remaining blankets. Skye went and lay down. Tiberius began making a small fire in the center for warmth and began boiling some water from a nearby stream.
Lucian watched, concerned, as Skye whimpered off and on in pain. He looked at his father. “Is this it then?” he asked.
“I don’t know, son. Some women have the pains for several hours, even days,” he stated. “We will phase and hope she makes it until morning.”
“Isn’t there anything else we can do?” Lucian asked.
“No. We are too far away now. She must do it on her own. We will help,” he said.
Lucian was afraid for her. He had no idea what to do.
“She will be all right. It is perfectly natural. I helped your mother deliver you,” said Tiberius. Lucian looked at him with surprise. Then he went over to be with Skye for as long as he could.
“Is it bad?” Lucian asked her.
Skye smiled weakly at him. “Not so much,” she lied.
“What can I do?”
“Nothing,” she told him. She laced her fingers through his and squeezed when the next pains began.
Now Lucian was a tough werewolf, but her grip almost broke his hand. He knew she was in terrible pain. He was starting to panic. Skye rolled onto her side away from him. Lucian rubbed the small of her back to help her pain. He cared for her as long as possible, giving her water and rubbing her back. But the moon was rising.
“Be strong, my love. I will return,” he said. Lucian stood up and threw off his clothes. Tiberius was doing the same. They stepped outside the circle and lit the piles. Then they ran off into the dark woods.
Skye heard the howling of wolves not long after. Oh, wonderful. If I don’t die giving birth, the wolves will finish me off, she thought, looking at the protective fires surrounding her small camp. After a few hours her pains were occurring more frequently and increasing in strength. She cried and screamed in pain with the next big contraction. Her body started to shake, and she began to sweat, though she felt cold. Then Skye felt something wet between her legs and a popping sensation. Skye got on her hands and knees and moved her dry blankets closer to the fire. She cried out again as another contraction came. She cried hopelessly for Lucian, screaming his name into the dark night.
Lucian could hear her screams. He had phased but was not far off. He looked over at his father’s massive grey and white wolf form with pleading eyes. No, Lucian! His father’s mind communicated to his. Lucian whined like a dog in pain. He let out a loud howl and ran off back to Skye. Tiberius followed after his son.
Skye felt a pair of eyes on her and turned to look around in the dark night. She caught a flash of amber in the firelight. There was a large, solid white wolf pacing the perimeter of her camp circle. Oh gods, protect me, she prayed silently. The wolf howled and began to change before her eyes. It transformed into Lucian, who was yelling in pain. He stood before her naked. She was even more frightened but couldn’t move to run away. Another wolf appeared by the fires. Suddenly it transformed into Tiberius. “No, son, you mustn’t resist the transformation!” he yelled. Lucian ignored him and leapt across the flames.
Skye cried in pain as yet another contraction hit. Lucian ran to her side. “No! Get away from me,” she screamed. She was terrified. It was exactly the reaction Lucian had been expecting. Tiberius leapt across the flame and ran over to her. He knelt by her knees. Skye was perched on her elbows off her back with her knees bent up. She was panting and moaning in pain.
“Skye, it’s just me,” Lucian said trying to calm her down. “I would never hurt you. I love you.” Tiberius threw his head up in shock. He looked back and forth between Lucian and Skye. He hadn’t realized things were this way between them. Then he looked down between Skye’s legs. Blood was pooling on the blanket before him.
“Go away,” she cried out.
“Child, listen to me,” said Tiberius. “We will explain everything, but for now you must trust us. We won’t hurt you.”
Skye looked back and forth between father and son and nodded her approval. Then she threw her head back in pain and screamed.
“Skye, you must slow down your breathing. Take long, deep breaths,” Tiberius instructed. “Focus. Focus on something.”
Skye tried to do as he said and took some long, deep breaths. Lucian removed the necklace he always wore and put it in Skye’s hands.
“Skye look at this,” he said. She looked down at the small, gold, round pendant hanging on a delicate golden chain. It had a small ruby in the center. It was simple and lovely. It helped her focus, and her breathing slowed down. “This belonged to my mother and her mother before
that. My grandparents led the village people. Sort of like a king and a queen. Did I ever tell you that?” he said, trying to distract her. Skye shook her head no. “I want you to have it,” he said.
Tiberius looked at the two lovers with a bit of disapproval. He actually had come to love Skye—or Araceli. He loved her for his son. However, he knew that before she lost her memory to Amara’s curse she had loved another very strongly. These babies were his. And Tiberius was afraid for his son. He was afraid if Skye were to get her memory back she would leave him and search for Androcles. Tiberius turned his attention back to Skye. “I have to check something,” he said, placing his hand on her knee. “Trust me,” he said like a statement and a question. Skye nodded. Tiberius placed his hand on her opening and stuck two fingers inside.
“Ow,” she moaned.
“Relax,” said Lucian and he kissed her head. He looked at his father. “What are you doing?” he asked. He had never witnessed a birth before.
“I can feel the head,” said Tiberius. “You must begin to push when you feel the urge, Skye. Do not fight it,” he ordered. She nodded that she understood.
After several minutes of contractions and screams, Skye started to squirm. “I feel it, Tiberius,” she said.
“Good. Now take a deep breath and push hard. Lucian, help her sit up,” he said. Lucian supported her back so she could sit up a little more. Skye took a breath and pushed. She did it a few times. Tiberius would check her progress with his fingers from time to time. Skye was growing weaker and weaker. There was more blood. Skye’s eyes started to droop, and then she passed out.
“We cannot push for her,” said Tiberius. “I will have to cut the babies out.”
“No!” said Lucian. “You will kill her.”
“I might or might not. She will most certainly die if I do not. At least the babies will live,” said Tiberius. “Bring me a wine flask.”
Tiberius poured wine over his hands, his sharp blade, and Skye’s belly. Then he passed the blade through the flames for a few seconds. “Hold her down in case she regains consciousness,” he instructed.
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