“Zander, we got you here because we have no idea what to do. She can’t go to the hospital when she goes into labour. Can she even go in labour? We have no idea exactly how far she is, sure she can guess from what she sees and senses, but that won’t help us.” Cayson looks at him waiting; worried now about how others will react. Zander walks in and sits down, shaking his head shaking.
“Do you have a tape measure? I don’t know why I am asking when I can tell your stomach is bigger than a typical full term pregnancy, but if it is twins that’ll be why. Measuring is one way to give a rough estimate.” Zander looks at them while Cayson walks into the kitchen to get the tape. “Right then, lie down.” He looks at Aileen, who nods and lies back on the sofa. Cayson walks through and hands Zander the tape measure. Moving he measures her stomach, his head shaking.
“It’s useless, if this is right you should be due now.”
“Is there another way to find out? She can sense them; see them to some extent, can you do that too?” Cayson looks at him.
Zander laughs slightly. “I’m not an ultrasound machine, Cayson, I can’t just see through her into the babies.” His head shakes slightly as he considers it. His eyes glance to her stomach as he considers other ways he could possibly tell when she is due, even if it’s just a guess.
“What? Whatever your idea is, Zander, try it.” Cayson looks at him, Aileen laughing.
“Can you not say try it without first finding out what it is? He could be thinking about cutting me open for all you know.” Her head shakes as she laughs more.
“Not a bad idea.” Aileen turns and looks at Zander, shocked. “I’m joking! It isn’t a bad idea, I mean you’d heal quickly and I’d be able to see how big they are. Sure, Cayson would need to do it as only his nails and teeth can cut into you, but the risks are too high, it could push you into labour and if you’re not ready it wouldn’t end well.” Aileen feels her body relaxing at Zander’s words; after all, she’d rather not be cut open.
“Okay, be quiet; let me concentrate. If I can pick up some things then maybe I can sense how quick they are growing, guess a date, even. Total silence, and it means you unlock everything as well, Aileen, no blocks at all. If I can, I can possibly see when you got pregnant, and then see how your stomach changed. Sure you hid it, but it still happened so I might be able to go back and see everything unrestricted.” Aileen nods, her eyes closing as she tries to relax and let everything unlock. Cayson sits quietly, watching Zander’s hands on her stomach, the room quiet. It’s ten long minutes before Cayson starts to get impatient, fidgeting in his chair as he waits for Zander to say something, anything.
Zander, however, stays quiet, his mind concentrating on Aileen. He tries to work out how long it has been since she became pregnant, an image flashing into his mind as his body jumps back.
“What?” Cayson jumps up, looking at Zander as he leans against the table.
“Nothing bad, I just wasn’t ready for it, that’s all. One of the babies somehow showed me what they were seeing. It was like I was in her damn stomach facing the other baby.” His body trembles slightly with nerves, he didn’t even think about whether the babies had any powers. Some vampires do, after all.
“What was it?” Aileen looks at him as she sits up.
“Exactly what I said, Aileen, it was just the shock. It was like the baby pulled my mind into it slightly. What I can say, though, is that you’re about eight or nine months, so any day now it’s possible.” How did she get through the pregnancy so quickly? It has been maybe a month in real time, that’s all. They knew it would be fast, but this fast… Aileen had no idea.
“Any idea on gender? If she’s as far along as you think she is then we should probably start getting stuff sorted for when they’re born.”
“Let me have another look, I’ll try not to freak out if it happens again.” Zander moves, placing his hands on her stomach again, a few minutes passing by as he feels himself getting pulled in once more, his body shaking as he jumps back slightly.
“Again?” Cayson laughs slightly.
“You try, it’s weird!” Zander looks at him, Aileen shaking her head.
“Won’t work, I can sense them. It’s because you’re a witch. He had his hand on my stomach earlier and it didn’t happen. The baby can connect to your witch powers and do it.” Aileen smiles slightly.
“Right well I would say two girls, although I can’t say for sure, so I guess you should just buy some neutral stuff. Look, I’ll sort stuff with the witches so I can move in here, and then at least I’m here when you go into labour. I know a midwife, not a witch one, but off the books I could possibly try get some equipment. It might not even work on you but it’s something. I’ll be back in the morning.” Zander gets up and leaves the apartment, Cayson walking to the door and locking it behind him before sitting down with Aileen. His eyes glance to her now flat stomach.
“You need to stop hiding it.”
Aileen laughs slightly. “It’s easier to lift the spell then it is to put it back on, Cayson. The last thing I want is someone showing up while I don’t have it covered, you opening the door and all panic breaking loose. For now we’ll just pretend I’m not pregnant.” She doesn’t want the risk.
“Okay, well, bed? Tomorrow we’ll sort out a list of everything we need, plus we have a room to decorate. Zander will hopefully be okay with the job. I think sleep is needed though.” Cayson stands up, Aileen laughing at his suggestion. “Sorry, I forgot.”
“It’s fine, I can still sleep, Cayson, I don’t need to but I can. I should, even, as my mind is worn out from today, so I guess even if it’s just an hour it’s better than nothing.” Smiling she moves to lie down, Cayson looking at her confused.
“I meant together, Aileen, upstairs. No more hiding, or running in my case.” His hand reaches out, to take Aileen’s as he pulls her up. “You’re heavier than you look, you know,” he winks.
“Shut up, you have wolf strength anyway,” she huffs, rolling her eyes. They walk upstairs, staying quiet as they lie down together on the bed, Cayson’s arm wrapped around her stomach as they fall asleep in comfortable silence.
Aileen finds herself waking up, early, almost too early – or it would be, if she actually needed to sleep. She slips out of bed, careful not to disturb Cayson, and walks downstairs, grabbing the laptop to start looking through websites. She would love to go out and shop properly, but she’s still in hiding from the people who think she’s dead, so if they see her alive – and as a vampire, no less – will cause a war. Plus, if Zander is right, any physical activity like shopping is likely to push her into labour, and she’d rather prolong that for as long as she can. She finds herself shopping online for hours, lost in a magical wonderland full of cots and pushchairs and playpens, and before she knows it six o’clock hits and Cayson walks down looking at her confused. He’s still in the worn jogging bottoms he’d slept in, and his hair has been artfully mussed by the pillows.
“Guessing you didn’t sleep?” He walks to the kitchen making a drink, as Aileen nods.
“I did, from eleven till two; most I’ve slept since I became a vampire. I thought I’d get started on shopping.” She sighs, shuffling along the sofa to make space for Cayson and his drink, his eyes glancing to the laptop as he sits.
“So you know what we need?”
“No, I just searched it. I’ve never been around babies, Cayson; so shopping for two is proving quite hard. I’m getting there though, I’ve ordered some clothes, two cots are in the basket to be ordered, and there’s a pushchair coming sometime next week. The rest, like bottles and bath stuff and everything, is in the basket too. I think I’ve done all of the main things, but I bet there’ll be more though.” She places down the laptop and takes the cup from him, sipping at the steaming coffee. Moving her hand places it on the table and Cayson looking at her wondering what to do now. His mind considers everything; he has been around babies and he knows a lot but still not enough.
“What about my s
ister?” Cayson turns and looks at Aileen, confused. “Can I never see her again? She’ll never get to see the babies, will she?” She hadn’t thought of it before but there’s no way Mel will be able to see her like this and not suspect there’s something weird going on.
“You can see her, yeah, I mean, sure you look different but to her it isn’t like us. She doesn’t know about vampires and everything. If you wear contacts, it will help. As for the babies, that’s probably not a great idea. If they grow like werewolves do, they’ll be twenty-one quickly. If they continue to grow like they have so far it’ll be even quicker.” Cayson’s head shakes. Werewolves age quicker anyway, but the babies are growing at another level of speed. He feels his head shaking, everything is unknown right now.
“Right, well, Zander said he’d be here around ten, so I think we need a plan. We need to talk to Azalea as well, work out how that will work with her splitting her time between here and there.”
Cayson nods, it’s probably best that they sort the room out first. Aileen moves to stand up, Cayson’s hand grasping hers as he pulls her back down.
“I’m sorry for how I acted, Aileen. For thinking you and the babies were monsters, for leaving you alone that night on the field and running, and for hiding from you every night not trusting you.” His head shakes slightly, even Gwenael trusted her when he didn’t and that was wrong.
“It’s fine, Cayson, honestly,” she says quietly, of course it had hurt her but she can’t exactly hate him or blame him for it. She would no doubt have acted the same had their roles been reversed, anyone would have.
“It isn’t. I messed up last time; I should have found a way to keep her alive and the witches and werewolves safe until the baby was born. I shouldn’t have thought anything bad about you and the babies without proof first.” His head shakes as he considers it.
“What’s wrong, Cayson? There’s something, I can tell.” Aileen glances to him worried.
“Just the thought of what if- what if I hadn’t refused this time, Aileen? What if I did just do it like last time? You wouldn’t be here; I would have killed you and two innocent babies for nothing. What then?”
“You didn’t though, Cayson, and you wouldn’t have. You could see I was different, you just didn’t accept it. If you had agreed to kill me when I came back a vampire, you would have still noticed and likely refused anyway. That’s all over now, Cayson; can we just move forward and forget it all please?” She doesn’t want to keep reliving the past and she certainly doesn’t want to think about how things would have been if she hadn’t changed in this way; if she had come back like Yasmine on a revenge hunt killing everyone.
“Yes, sorry.” Cayson moves to kiss her, his arms wrapping around her body as she moans slightly. He skims his hands lightly along her body, slowly pulling her top up over her head and throwing it onto the floor. He pulls her closer, smiling against her mouth as she begins to unfasten his trousers, his own hands sliding up her legs and lifting her skirt up around her waist. Cayson kisses her neck as he hears her moans become louder, her hands pushing his trousers down before she tips him backwards onto the sofa, her body straddling his as she leans down, her lips pressing against his as she lowers herself onto his shaft.
Aileen’s hips move slowly as Cayson’s arms wrap once more around her body, their moans growing in unison as their lips continue to find refuge in each other. Cayson’s hands stroke down her body as she moans, her body shaking from pleasure. He grasps her hair as he rolls his hips more quickly, pulling her down to kiss him. Suddenly he feels everything go black as his hand grips Aileen’s; the darkness churning as everything becomes bright; voices and words in Latin he can’t understand fully. His body freezes as he watches everything. Aileen looks down at him confused, his body still.
“Cayson? Cayson, what is it?” Her hands shake him slightly, watching him as his body slowly relaxes. “Cayson please, what is it?” She looks down at him still worried.
“It…” His head shakes as he tries working out what he saw and how to say it. “This was the plan, Aileen, you were never the only one to bring the three worlds together and stop the Monventla. You had to be pregnant, Aileen, and by a werewolf; you had to become a vampire. This was the plan, you can change things, Aileen, this was all Serliciaus’s plan, but there’s something about the babies that I ’can’t see clearly.” He looks at her, confused. “Did you not see any of that, Aileen? You stood before the vampires, you, in a way, overtaking everyone?”
“No, I saw nothing, Cayson,” she looks at him perplexed, “what do you mean, overtaking everyone?”
“I mean, when we go to see the Ceprimora you’ll somehow become the leader, Aileen, not just of them but of the witches as well…” He looks at her, confused. “And the werewolves.”
Aileen laughs, looking at him like he is crazy, his hands pushing her off him as he gets dressed. “Cayson, how can I overtake the werewolves? You’re the leader; you’re the oldest werewolf Cayson.” Nothing can overtake him, not until he decides to stop shifting and age.
“Because you’re a werewolf, Aileen, have you given yourself time to relax and actually feel everything? That wasn’t you as you, I saw you shift, Aileen, somehow when you got pregnant and they tried turning you the werewolf curse seeped out of the babies into you.” He looks at her as he sits down, her head shaking.
“Funny, Cayson. There’s no way I’m a werewolf.”
“Then explain how you heard our thoughts! That’s the thing Aileen, no witch or vampire has ever been able to hear our thoughts in wolf form. As a person, sure, but shifting shields us, it stops anyone from getting into our minds! And yet you did, you could hear our thoughts without even trying. You can shift, Aileen, it might just take time for you to figure it out. The fact you can hear our thoughts without shifting means you outrank me; you can’t be killed, Aileen, you outrank us all. For Christ’s sake!”
Aileen stares at him shocked as he shouts the last three words, her body trembling slightly.
“Cayson,” she says, her eyes trained on him, worried.
“Sorry, but what the hell does this mean for the babies, Aileen? If they’re like you, then what? Being in charge of the packs is damn hard, just as hard as being in charge of the witches is, or the vampires. How the hell will it work when you are in charge of them all at the same time?”
He’s interrupted by a knock at the door, both of them looking towards it and then each other. It’s Cayson who walks over, glancing out the window and seeing Zander. He lets him in.
“Sorry, I finished quicker than I expected. Maybe put a spell the house so the neighbours don’t hear like I just did. What’s happened now, what’s with the shouting?” Zander places his bag down, looking between them as they sit down. Neither of them answers; Aileen looks at Cayson, shaking her head.
“He saw something; apparently I can turn into a wolf. Funny, right?” Aileen laughs slightly, she can’t believe it. Cayson looks at her annoyed.
“Believe me or don’t, I know what I damn saw. Serliciaus had the power to see the future; you remember that, right? I saw what I saw, you believe what you want, Aileen. As I said, you outrank everyone, or you will once you open your eyes and notice what’s happening.” Cayson walks to the kitchen to make a drink, Zander shaking his head.
“If he saw it, Aileen, it isn’t fake or a lie. For now let’s just forget that though, okay? How are you feeling? No pains anywhere? No signs of labour or anything?” Zander opens the bag, taking out some things.
Aileen laughs. “I thought none of that would work?”
“We assumed it wouldn’t but you’re not any of the vampires Aileen, so honestly who knows. It’s a portable one the woman uses when she does house calls. Maybe with a spell we can make it work; there’s no harm in trying.” Aileen nods. She can try, she isn’t sure how but she can at least try. She lies down, Cayson walking through with a drink before sitting in the armchair opposite, watching as Zander tries to do the scan.
“It’s real
ly dark. I can only just about see.” Cayson walks over, his eyes glancing to the screen trying to see more.
“Is that-” He stops, his words quiet.
“It is, congrats. You’re having two girls.” Zander smiles at him before looking back to the screen.
“They’re helping, it’s as if they can hear and understand us. I can feel the magic from them trying to help you see them.” Aileen looks at Zander.
“I know, I can sense it,” he smiles. “So, I would say you’re about 39 weeks gone. When you blocked everything, did you feel movements?”
“No, why? I can feel them move now, but once I put that spell on, I don’t see, feel or sense anything. I block them entirely.” She looks at him worriedly.
“Okay, well stop. You need to know if there’s a change in movement for so many reasons, Aileen. I get that you don’t want people to notice and see but we can’t track how things are if you’re hiding it. Have you considered everything?” Zander looks at her.
“What do you mean, considered everything? I’m pregnant with twins, due any moment now apparently. We know we need to get everything sorted and we’ve already done the room and what happens if something goes wrong and stuff, we’re figuring it out.” Aileen shakes her head. They didn’t exactly have much time to consider everything.
“I mean that you hiding things like that might block everything, Aileen, even signs of labour like contractions. You can’t know it won’t, so you could end up going into labour and not even realise.”
“I didn’t think, I just knew if anyone came and saw me like this it could cause trouble… I won’t do it anymore.”
“Right, well Azalea knows, and I spoke to the witches here and explained. They all know it will be happening any day now. You should be on bed rest Aileen, I know you’re not sick, and you haven’t had any issues but you’re pregnant with twins. Most are born before forty weeks. So just relax and try and sleep, which I know you can even if it is just an hour.” Zander looks at her as she nods.
Night Shadows Page 26
