Later that same morning, we arrive at the hospital and Doctor Humphrey, the OBGYN, greets us in the waiting room.
“Miss Lena, it’s wonderful to meet you,” he says with a smile, his eyes warm. “I’m glad you’ve come in today, as you are quite far along in the pregnancy.”
“It’s nice to see you, Doctor,” I reply, smiling, excited at the prospect of having my first ultrasound and seeing my baby. “I’m sorry I haven’t been in sooner. Things have been a bit crazy.”
Doctor Humphrey glances at Damon, who stands close to me with one arm wrapped possessively around my waist.
“And this is the…father, I presume?” he asks hesitantly, unsure whether his assumption is correct.
I swallow a laugh at the expression on Damon’s face. He looks sheepish as if embarrassed by his previous reaction the last time someone referred to him that way.
“That’s me,” he says gruffly, shaking the doctor’s hand.
“Follow me, and we’ll set you up for an ultrasound.”
I’m giddily excited as we follow him into the sonar room, and I get comfortable on the bed. Damon sits in the chair next to me, grabbing my hand and giving it a small squeeze of comfort. The doctor pulls my shirt up and pushes my leggings down a little, giving him enough space to rub some warm jelly on my stomach.
He grabs the wand and switches the machine on.
“Right,” he says, angling the screen toward us. “Let’s see how this baby’s doing.”
The wand is cold against my flesh initially, causing my skin to prickle, and I can feel the flutter of nerves in my stomach. When the screen lights up and the first image forms, I lean closer, my heart pounding like a drum.
Suddenly, Doctor Humphrey’s eyes widen in disbelief, and my breath catches in my throat.
“This can’t be right,” he mutters.
“What is it?” I ask, my heart racing with worry.
“Hmm, one sec,” he says, pressing the wand harder against my belly to get a clearer view of what’s happening.
“Tell us, Doctor,” Damon barks, losing patience, but I can hear the panic in his voice.
“It looks like you’re expecting… four babies!” he exclaims, and the words hang heavily in the air.
I stare at the screen in disbelief, not quite believing what he’s saying, but there, right in front of my eyes, are four little movements on the ultrasound monitor.
I turn to Damon in shock. He looks stunned, but his eyes sparkle with excitement.
Four babies.
“Wait, are you sure?” I ask, turning back to the doctor. This can’t be real, but I’ve heard of omegas producing many pups at the same time, so it’s entirely possible.
“Pretty sure,” the doctor says with finality in his tone. “You’re going to have one big family. Is this your first pregnancy?”
“It is,” I reply, my heart racing as Damon squeezes my hand. Images of juggling four crying babies fill my mind. “What are we going to do?!”
“We’ll love them. And we’ll raise them to be respectful members of our pack,” Damon growls, leaning over me.
“Pack?” the human doctor asks.
“He means family,” I say quickly, smiling as Damon kisses me deeply, and I know he’s one happy pack leader.
We return home a couple of hours later with pictures of the ultrasound. I can’t wait to share the news with Max and Gunnar—I know they’ll be over the moon when they hear about our tiny quadruplets.
A pang of sadness shoots through me when I think of my family.
My sisters would be beside themselves, already planning a baby shower and putting together the nursery of my dreams. Despite her coldness toward me growing up, my mother should probably know that she will be a grandmother one day.
My heart aches. I miss my sisters so much, and I wonder how I can get the news to them all the way on Howl’s Edge Island.
“We only have one crib.”
Damon’s voice interrupts my train of thought, and I turn to him, not understanding what he’s saying.
“What?” I ask in confusion.
“I bought a crib a while ago when we found out you were expecting,” he says, “but now I’ll have to buy three more. Four babies,” he chuckles, shaking his head in disbelief.
“Maybe we should set this one up and see if it’s a good brand,” I suggest, standing on my tiptoes to kiss him. He pushes his tongue into my mouth with a low growl. I pull away breathlessly. “Don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere. Go ahead and set it up. Afterwards…”
“Ooh, I like the sound of where that’s going,” he grunts, watching me with dark eyes as he quickly springs into action.
Minutes later, Damon is sitting in the living room, trying to set up our only crib.
I sit cross-legged on the floor, watching him struggle with the crib parts scattered around him. His brows are furrowed deeply, frustration clear in every tense movement. He sighs and glances around, clearly irritated. I want to laugh—it’s quite something to see my big, bad alpha get defeated by a piece of furniture.
“I’m sure I had a screwdriver here somewhere,” he mutters, moving crib pieces around in his search.
“I can get a spare one,” I offer, pushing up from the floor.
He waves me off, shaking his head. “Don’t worry about it, darling. I can manage.”
“I don’t mind,” I insist, determined to help because watching him struggle with putting the crib parts together is turning me on, but I’m not about to let him know that I’m wet for him right now. “I’m up now anyway.”
He pauses, still gripping one side of the crib, then reluctantly nods. He sniffs the air. “The toolbox is in the basement. But I can smell that you’re ready…”
“No, I’m not!” I squeal, running toward the basement. I hear him chuckling, but I escape so he can be productive today.
The door creaks when I open it, and a damp smell reaches my nostrils. It’s a little dark and dingy down the stairs, so I reach for the light switch on the wall. There isn’t one, so I assume there must be a switch at the bottom of the stairs.
Grabbing the wooden handrail, I make my way down slowly, careful not to trip on my feet or any debris on the steps. When I reach the bottom, I fumble around for the light switch. The darkness is oppressive, and my eyes take time to adjust to the gloom. I finally find the pull cord, and light floods the space when I sense something behind me.
A familiar scent pulls at my senses- lemongrass.
Zorin.
My eyes widen, realization rushing through me, but before I can react, Zorin’s arm is around my throat, and his other hand covers my mouth. I claw at his hand, desperate to get away, but he only tightens his grip, cutting off my air supply.
“Make one sound, you stupid bitch, and I’ll fucking kill you,” he growls menacingly in my ear. “No one gets away from me.”
I’m terrified.
All the blood in my veins has turned to ice. I want to beg him to stop, to leave me alone, but his grip against my windpipe is crushing.
Even if I wanted to, I can’t make a sound to call for help.
“You think you’re so smart, don’t you?” he hisses, spittle flying onto my cheek. “You think your little plan saved you from me? Well, you’re wrong.” I whimper at the malice in his voice. “I’ve caught you now, bad omega, and I’m going to mark you before your new pack even gets the chance. That way, you’ll be forced to be mine.”
I scream against the hand covering my mouth in vain. Not one sound escapes as he chuckles darkly behind me.
