“Are you all right?” Lucas asks, rubbing my stomach. I don’t have the heart to tell him it’s making me feel even more sick.
“I’m a little nauseous, but that’s nothing shocking when you’re pregnant, right.”
“You have been feeling fine during the day.”
“Some lucky women have a rebound of morning sickness in the third trimester,” I remind him. “And I’m getting close to it.”
“Let’s go then,” he tells me.
“Everyone can finish their food. I’ll box my salad up and eat it in the morning.”
Lucas flags down the waitress, pays, and gets boxes for everyone in a not-so-subtle way to tell them we’re leaving—now. My familiars, who were prowling around the city while we ate, sit on my lap in the car and keep me warm as we drive back to the Taproom to drop Melinda and Easton off.
“I’m going to go deep into demon-research mode,” I tell them. “And I’ll text you if I get anything.”
“Same here.” Easton opens his door and hesitates. “Be careful.” His eyes go to my stomach and something flashes across his face. Sadness? Disappointment? I’m not sure.
“I’ll do my best, and you guys too. The closer we get to the new moon, the more desperate the demons are going to become.”
“Right. Take care.”
I say bye to Melinda and turn the heat down, too hot and feeling even more sick now. I do my best to keep a straight face, not wanting to worry Lucas, and add an extra drop of the morning sickness potion to a glass of water as soon as we’re back at Eliza’s.
“I’m sorry we didn’t get to go crib shopping,” Lucas tells me when we get into bed together. Scarlet jumps up, trying to weasel her way in between us. This bed is only a full-sized, and Lucas’s large frame takes up half the mattress.
“Take the couch tonight,” I tell her, and she moves up, careful not to step on my stomach, and noses my face. “Good girl.” The hellhound leaps off the bed and clomps all the way downstairs.
“Your heart is beating fast,” Lucas notes, clicking on his side of the electric blanket. I like to crank mine up on high when we get in bed, and then turn it down once the blankets are all nice and toasty, but I can’t overheat myself while carrying a baby.
I keep my side on one and it’s just barely warm enough to make a difference.
“There’s a lot going on,” I confess, though it’s no secret. “And I decided to officially un-invite myself to Penny’s birthday party. Abby doesn’t need to deal with that drama, and Scott obviously has some screws loose.”
“That’s putting it nicely.”
“Oh, it is. I want to be there for Penny, but Abby, Phil, and Penny are the literal only three people I’d like to see. Abby’s ritzy friend Ricci saw me getting out of the car too. She asked if you had a vampire-operation and that’s how I was able to get pregnant. I told her yes. Was that today? Ugh, it’s been such a long night.”
“A vampire-operation?” Lucas snorts. “That’s not bad, actually.”
“I’ll roll with it if anyone else asks.” I let out a deep sigh, feeling better from taking the morning sickness potion. I arrange pillows around myself and Lucas rubs my arm, helping me fall asleep. There are few things that have terrified me—truly terrified me—but this is one of them.
If the spell doesn’t work, the gates of Hell will open and demons will be free to roam the earth. It’s bad no matter what, and I almost look forward to a little one-on-one with lower-level demons. But who am I kidding? I’m almost six months pregnant. I can’t fight hordes of demons.
And if I can’t…who will?
Chapter 32
“And that is a big fat nothing as well.” Evander closes a large leather-bound book with a thud, and the sound reverberates off the two-story walls of Grim Gate Academy’s library. “I’m starting to think the demon is pulling the wool over our eyes. There is no Tozaryn and he’s sending us on a wild goose chase just to waste our time.”
“It would be fitting for a demon to do that,” Naomi agrees, looking up from another dusty tome. “And if we kill Tozaryn, don’t think other demons won't continue to follow through with what he started.”
“Most definitely,” Tabatha says. “Which is why we need to do everything we can to find out how to stop him. The protection spell on the Ley line should act as our last defense.”
“Yeah,” I say and bend my legs up.
“You all right there, sister?” Evander asks. “You’ve been rather twitchy.”
“I can’t get comfortable,” I tell him. “These chairs are not made for pregnant ladies.”
“Or anyone sitting here for more than five minutes,” Nicole grumbles. “Aren’t these the same wooden chairs that were here when we went to the Academy?”
“They are the same wooden chairs that were here when I went to the Academy.” Tabatha gets up and motions for me to stand. It’s been three days since we questioned the demon in Chicago, and I swear Elena doubled in size since then. Okay, not really, but when I felt huge last week, I wasn’t prepared for this.
Tabatha pushes her fingers into a pressure point on my lower back. “Does that help?”
“It does.” I let out a sigh. “I’ve never had back pain before. This being mostly human thing…you guys are fragile,” I joke.
“I tried going up the stairs once and my back hurt for a week,” Nicole deadpans. “Pinched my sciatic nerve and could hardly move for a day.”
“You’re old,” I tease and rest my hands on the back of my chair while Tabatha keeps applying pressure to my back.
“We’ve been sitting for hours,” she starts. “We should all stretch our legs and get something to eat.”
I nod, wanting some of my favorite cottage pie that was served for dinner. “Good idea.” I go back to the table and close the book I’d been looking through. One of the edges slices my finger.
“Ouch.” I look at the paper cut, waiting for the blood to pool on my fingertip. “Does anyone have any healing balm? Cuts on fingertips are the worst.”
“There is some in the infirmary,” Evander says. “As always. We tend to use it a lot with this bunch of rowdy students.”
“They’re giving me a run for my money then?”
Tabatha laughs. “No one was a bigger troublemaker than you.” She looks at the twins. “And you two.”
“We just knew how to have fun,” Naomi laughs.
Suddenly, the library doors fly open and Lucas comes running through, jumping up the stairs five at a time. He came to the Academy to finally let the students have an educational Q&A session with a vampire, and from what I was told, nearly every single female student—and staff member—was in attendance.
“You’re bleeding.” He takes my finger and looks at the cut for a second before putting it in his mouth.
“It’s a paper cut. I’m fine.”
“You could smell her blood from the gathering hall?” Nicole asks, blue eyes widening.
“The farther along she becomes, the stronger the scent of her blood is to me.” Lucas looks at my finger again and I yank my hand away. I won’t lie and say I’ve been on my A-game the last few days. My head is spinning and I’m constantly checking the news for more murders and any developments on the asinine laws Scott and William want to pass.
We ordered a white crib online since we weren’t sure when we’d get to the store again, and a dark mahogany one showed up today instead. Not a big deal, I know, but my hormonal butt couldn’t handle it and I burst into tears when Lucas pulled it out of the box.
“Are you done?” I ask Lucas.
“I can be.”
“Go back and tell everyone goodnight. I’ll walk with you. I need to move around a bit.” I rub my forehead, feeling another headache coming on. I’m a little stuffy too, which is another first for me.
“Does your head still hurt?” Lucas turns to me, concerned, and goes to guide me to a chair.
“I’ll be fine.”
“You said that yesterday,” he says
with a frown.
Now it’s Tabatha’s turn to look concerned. “You’ve had a headache for two days?”
“Three,” Lucas tells her.
“Guys, I’m fine,” I insist.
Tabatha looks from me to Lucas and back again. “I’ll fetch the midwife. Go to the infirmary, my darling.”
“I’m fine,” I press again.
“Then you’ll have no issue being checked out.” Tabatha raises her eyebrows and takes off, scarlet robe swirling behind her.
Lucas takes my hand, holding onto me ridiculously tight as we walk down the stairs. The infirmary is past the gathering hall, and I hang back, leaning against the door frame as Lucas closes out the Q&A.
Tabatha is in the infirmary, and the Academy nurse, Sister Celeste, greets me with a smile.
“Not feeling well, honey?” She motions to the bed. “The midwife is on her way and will be here shortly to do a more thorough exam. In the meantime, I’m going to take your vitals.”
I get on the bed, and it feels good to lie back like this. Sister Celeste wraps a blood pressure cuff around my arm and holds her stethoscope to it. I’m feeling a little sick again, but I’m sure it’s from not eating in some time.
“Hmm,” she says and inflates the cuff again.
“What’s wrong?” Lucas is already a helicopter parent and the baby isn’t even born yet.
“Her blood pressure is a little high. Have you been stressed lately?”
I let out a snort of laughter. “Just a little.”
“How have you been sleeping?”
“A little better now that I have a pregnancy pillow.”
Sister Celeste nods and finishes taking my vitals, writing them down for the midwife. As I’m lying there, trying not to worry, I get a strange sensation over my abdomen, like something is squeezing it really hard. I wince, unable to keep the pain off my face. Both Tabatha and Lucas notice, and the nurse has me elevate my feet, drink some water, and not move until the midwife gets there nearly fifteen minutes later. Lucas is sitting on the little cot with me, gently rubbing my back.
I get another pain, and it dawns on me that this is exactly what I read a contraction feels like.
Chapter 33
“Drink plenty of water, rest, and relax,” Maryellen, the midwife, tells me. She takes off her rubber gloves and Lucas helps me sit up. “Stress can take a toll on your body, and even more so when you’re pregnant. I’ve cared for many witches during their pregnancies, but you’re the first half-witch I, or anyone, has taken care of.”
She’s trying to make me feel better, but her words are confirming what has been my worst fear all along: that my body isn’t human enough to grow a baby.
“Braxton Hicks contractions are common,” she goes on. “But they should subside and shouldn’t be painful. Uncomfortable, yes, but painful, no. If you feel them again, I want you to immediately stop what you’re doing, sit down and put your feet up, and have someone bring you something to drink.”
“She shouldn’t be doing much of anything, right?” Lucas asks, sliding his arm around me. If his heart could beat, it would be racing right now. I know mine still is. My blood pressure is higher than it should be, Maryellen said I’m a little dehydrated, but I’m showing no signs of early labor.
“Right. I want you to take the rest of the week completely off.”
“Do I have to stay in bed?” I ask.
“I don’t think you’re at the point where you need complete bedrest, but for the next twenty-four hours, I’m going to recommend you stay in one place, either the bed or a couch. Keep your feet up and have—” She cuts off, looking at Lucas. “—have someone bring you breakfast and lunch. Stay off your feet and relax,” she stresses.
Easy for you to say.
“I’ll take care of her,” Lucas assures Maryellen.
She smiles. “A week or two off will do wonders. And if you feel any worse, call me.”
“Am I going to go into preterm labor?” I blurt, unable to help myself.
“I can’t say yes or no, as anything can happen, but right now I feel confident saying your daughter is staying put for at least a little while longer.”
“Thank you,” Lucas tells her and helps me to my feet. I felt kinda icky and rundown before, but now I’m feeling lightheaded and dizzy. It was a worry all along and one of the first things I thought when I saw those two pink lines on that test: I’m not human and can’t carry a human baby.
My mother was able to carry me to term, but her body was fully human. And that’s not to mention she died in childbirth.
“I’ll come by the house in a week for our scheduled appointment. Take it easy, honey.” Maryellen offers a kind smile.
“I’ll do my best.”
She goes to gather up her supplies and Lucas and I leave the infirmary. Tabatha and Evander are waiting outside the doors and jump up when they see me.
“What’s the verdict?” Tabatha asks, taking my hand in hers. “And don’t you dare tell me you’re fine. Actually, Lucas, what is the verdict?”
“Her blood pressure is high and she needs to take the next few weeks off to rest and de-stress,” he answers. “Which is exactly what we’re going to do.”
“That doesn’t sound too bad now, does it, sister?” Evander says just to make me feel better. “A few weeks to binge watch Netflix, or in your case, read.”
“I don’t have a few weeks to take off, though,” I protest. “The new moon will be here before we know it, and I have a feeling there is going to be increased demonic activity the week leading up to it. We have to be ready so we can cast the spell and keep the demons from releasing Hell on earth.”
“Yes, we do,” Tabatha presses. “And you have to rest so you can keep growing my granddaughter. That baby is your priority and that is all I want you to worry about.”
“I know.” My hand lands on my stomach and guilt ripples through me. Am I a bad mom already? Having a healthy pregnancy is of course important to me, but so is keeping the world from going to Hell in a handbasket. I don’t want Elena to grow up in a world filled with darkness and demons. “It’s just a little hard to relax when there’s an impending apocalypse on our hands, and I could stop it if I were able to fight it.”
“Callie, my darling.” Tabatha gives my hand a squeeze. “You have saved the entire coven not once, not twice, but multiple times. Let us do the heavy lifting this time.”
“Are you comfortable?” Lucas grabs another pillow from the bench and brings it to the bed, lifting my feet and putting it under.
“Yeah, I am, thanks.” We just got home a few minutes ago, and Lucas took me upstairs and helped me immediately change into pajamas after I brushed my teeth and washed my face. I’m fighting my emotions, torn between wanting to go to the vineyard in California for a two-week staycation and taking Lucas’s office chair into the kitchen and having him wheel me around so I can make more potions and put together charms.
And I know Tabatha is right. My coven’s council is more than qualified to cast a protection spell. And I also know the demons are going to do everything they can to make sure the final seal is broken. They need to open three in a row, and I have a sinking feeling it’s not going to be that easy to stop them.
“Would you like anything?”
“Maybe some water.”
“I’ll get it for you.”
I smile and lean back, letting out a sigh. “I hope you guys like spending time with me,” I tell my familiars. Freya has been waiting patiently to lie on my pillow with me, and Binx and Pandora are waiting for someone to light a fire so they can stretch out in front of it.
Lucas comes back with a glass of ice water, starts a fire, and gets in bed next to me, grabbing the TV remote. “Do you want to watch a movie or are you tired?”
“It’s not even midnight,” I tell him. “It’s early.”
“What do you want to watch?”
“You pick,” I say, already getting annoyed at being babied. “We have plenty of time to j
ust sit here and watch shows, so you pick the first one.” I let out a sigh.
“What’s wrong, my love?”
“I’m sick of bedrest already.”
“You love sitting in bed watching TV or reading.”
“I like it when I’m not forced into it, and yes, I feel like a shitty mom already for not wanting to lie in bed and let my baby grow. I do want her to grow, and I do like resting and doing nothing, especially now, but thinking of being basically bedridden for two weeks…no, thank you.”
“I can’t imagine anyone wants to be bedridden for two weeks. You’re a very active, very badass witch. It’s a change for you, and change can be hard, even good change. It’s temporary, and we can use this time to finish ordering stuff for Elena’s nursery as well as finalize the plans for the garden around the pool, which will start being dug out soon.”
That makes me smile. “I am really looking forward to lounging around the pool with a drink in my hand.”
“And I am looking forward to swimming naked with you in the moonlight.”
“With a drink in my hand,” I repeat.
“I’d prefer something else in your hand.”
“Or my mouth?” I wiggle my eyebrows.
“Fuck, I love you.” He kisses my neck and picks out a movie. I yawn, physically worn out but mind still racing, unable to stop mentally calculating how much time we have left until the next new moon. If pregnancy weren't wearing me completely out, there’s no way I would have fallen asleep tonight.
Four hours later, I wake up needing to pee. Thanks, baby. Lucas is dead asleep next to me, unmoving on the bed. I pull the electric blanket over his bare chest and tiptoe into the bathroom, not wanting to wake him. He hasn’t been drinking the usual amount of blood from me, and I’m sure he’s not going to want to drink any now that I had a tiny health issue. He’ll have to get some bagged blood from Eliza, or just go out and drink from a willing human.
We prefer to keep the live-feeding exclusive between the two of us, but I trust Lucas completely and know he has to eat if he wants to keep up his strength, which he needs to now more than ever. After I use the bathroom, I go to the bedroom window and look out at the yard. Something moves through the woods, and my heart immediately starts to race as my nerves prickle and fear and adrenaline surge through me.
Reign of Night (The Thorne Hill Series Book 7) Page 26