One Second (Seven Series Book 7)

by Dannika Dark

  “Where in the world did you get that?” I asked.

  She tied the hospital gown around my neck and draped it over me. “You’re having a baby, but you’re still entitled to a little modesty.”

  “Thank you.”

  “Relic, you can come in now,” she called out.

  Katharine stood back and smoothed her hair down on each side of her head, making the part in the middle more pronounced. While Edward bent my knees and performed a quick exam, she stood in front of the mirror and wrapped her hair into a tidy bun.

  Another torrent of pain struck me, and I grimaced, curling to my side.

  “How far apart have they been?” he asked.

  “I don’t know. Minutes? They’re getting closer together.”

  God, I felt so weak, as if I might pass out. Holding my breath gave me palpitations and made it more difficult to control the pain.

  “She’s lost a lot of blood,” I heard him saying to Katharine. “She needs to deliver now. I don’t know what kind of internal damage she has, and the longer she stays this way, the harder it will be for her to heal. She needs to shift.”

  “Her wolf isn’t going to let her shift as long as the baby’s in there,” Katharine snapped.

  “That’s why we have to get this baby out now. I can’t perform a cesarean—it’s too risky. Her blood pressure is dangerously low, and I don’t have the equipment to keep her stabilized. What she needs is a blood transfusion, or at the very least, a saline drip.”

  “Do you have an office?”

  “We wouldn’t make it in time.”

  “I’m still here,” I said. “Let’s do this. I’m ready to have this baby.”

  Tears spilled from my eyes, and Katharine smoothed my hair back.

  “How’s Naya?” I asked. “Did anyone call Ivy?”

  She blotted my tears with her sleeve. “Stop thinking about others for once, and think about yourself.”

  “I want Austin,” I whined, giving way to a torrent of sorrow. “I want Austin… I can’t do this alone. He’s supposed to be here. What if he’s hurt and he needs me?”

  A fierce bark sounded from outside the house.

  “Your souls are linked more than you know. I’ll get that,” Katharine said, moving out the door.

  Edward stripped one of the blankets off the bed and moved a lamp and table at the end.

  As soon as I heard toenails scratching against the wood floor and racing up the stairs outside the door, I pushed up on my elbows. “Austin!”

  His black wolf tore through the house and plunged into the room like a dark shadow. He weaved around Edward to the left side of the bed, looking at me with those crisp blue eyes.

  I stroked his fur with my left hand, feeling comforted as he licked my arm and nuzzled against my good shoulder.

  Meanwhile, Katharine had returned with a handful of folded towels. First, she laid something plastic across the bed and beneath me, then she draped a sheet over it. Once the bed was protected, she spread the towels underneath my back and lower legs.

  Clearly she wanted to save the mattress.

  I personally didn’t give a shit. I was half-alive, with a gunshot wound, and preparing to bring a child into the world, so planning a trip to Mattress Firm wasn’t something I was especially concerned about.

  “You’re not going to shift, are you?” I asked, stroking Austin’s ear. I could see the familiar flicker in his eyes that told me Austin was wide-awake and aware of what was happening.

  “He’s in protective mode,” Katharine said, handing Edward some medical packages.

  My brows pinched together. “Exactly what store did you go to that sells medical supplies and a gown?”

  She tapped her chin and smiled. “The hospital market something or other.” She handed Edward a few small bottles. “I wasn’t sure if you would have enough pain medicine.”

  I turned to look at Austin. “I really like your mom.”

  Katharine spoke quietly to the Relic. “Is there anything we can do to speed it along?”

  “Standing often helps, but I’d rather she conserve her energy.”

  A cold sweat covered my body. When Edward approached, Austin growled, his eyes never leaving the Relic for a moment.

  I swept my hand across his ear and gave it a light pinch. “Austin, the Relic needs to do his job. Come on the other side of me.”

  He darted around the bed and jumped onto the mattress, taking a position next to my bad shoulder. He briefly sniffed the bandage and valve, releasing a pained moan.

  Edward bent down and listened to my heart again. “You’re fully dilated. On your next contraction, I want you to push. If you start to feel dizzy, like you might pass out, then stop and let me know. Do you understand?”

  Something about his British accent instilled more confidence in me than it should have—maybe because of all those old shows I used to watch where the prestigious doctors were always from England.

  I nodded. “Do I get any pain medicine?”

  “I’m afraid it’s too late for that now, but not to worry. Women do this all the time without the need for pain blockers. I want you alert, so we’ll save some of that for later.” He brushed his hand over my forehead, his voice softening. “If your heart feels funny and flutters, let me know immediately. You’ve lost a lot of blood and…”

  I touched his hand, comprehending the risk. “I know.”

  He winked. “Push hard, and make it count.”

  Austin whined, sensing my coming contraction. He seemed attuned to the changes in my body chemistry.

  A muscle tightened around my belly, squeezing like a metal cord. The urge to push came, and Katharine hurried to my left side and propped pillows behind my back so I wasn’t lying flat.

  I gripped her hand and tucked my chin against my chest.

  “Push!” she coached. “You can do this.”

  I screamed when I realized the pain of childbirth was far worse than the contractions. “I can’t do this!” I shouted back at her.

  “Yes, you can. If I could give birth to six boys, you can do this. And let me tell you, Ben and Wheeler were no joke. Those two were fighting to race each other out of my womb.”

  I couldn’t see anything since my knees were bent and Edward had draped a sheet over them. Honestly? I didn’t want to look. I would have been completely content with someone knocking me unconscious for the duration of labor, with a baby magically appearing in my arms when I woke up.

  My body trembled as I kept pushing, the pain immense and the pressure unfathomable.

  A knock sounded at the door, and I heard Wheeler. “Everything all right—”

  “Not now!” I shrieked.

  I collapsed onto the pillows when the contraction ended, my heart beating erratically and a wave of chills coming over me.

  “Great job, Lexi,” Edward said.

  I smiled weakly. “Do I get a gold star?”

  Austin nuzzled my head, licking my temple and making deep sounds that told me he was not okay with any of this. I reached over with my left hand and grabbed a tuft of fur.

  “I’m fine. Don’t worry about me.”

  It might have seemed unorthodox to have my mate comforting me in wolf form, but his protective instinct forced his wolf out, and I loved them both. How could I not? They were one and the same.

  When Edward rounded the bed to my right and reached out to check the valve on my chest, Austin’s wolf turned around and snapped at him.

  “No!” I shouted, realizing he’d broken the skin.

  Edward retracted his hand. “Bloody hell,” he murmured, quickly leaving the room.

  “He’s doing what comes natural,” Katharine said.

  “Nothing about this is natural. I’ve been shot, I have a chest tube, a wolf is coaching me through delivery, and I’m having a baby without drugs. Austin mauling the only person who can get this baby out is just icing on the abnormal cake that is my life.”

  Edward returned with a bandaged hand. “I’m afr
aid I’m going to need him to leave the room.”

  Austin showed Edward his teeth.

  The Relic stood beside Katharine and didn’t waver in his request. “Unless he shifts back, I can’t allow a volatile animal in here. I know he’s an alpha with some sense of control, but it’s too great a risk. The smell of blood is in the air, his woman is screaming, and if he attacks me, then I’ll be of no use. After you deliver this baby, I can’t waste any time in removing the bullet from your back so you can shift. I’m sorry, but there’s no other way.”

  Katharine reached out and stroked Austin’s muzzle. “Son, I’ll stay by her side. The biggest battle is yet to come, and this is not one you can fight.”

  He nuzzled against my neck, and I kissed his head. “I love you so much,” I whispered against his fur. “I’ll be fine. I promise.”

  The black wolf rose to his feet, and he was a magnificent creature to behold. Austin lowered his head and tapped his nose against my chin.

  Yeah. He loved me back.

  Edward cautiously approached the door and held it open for Austin to leave. Before he even closed the door, another contraction was fast approaching.

  “Don’t push yet,” he said, noticing the tension on my face.

  He circled the bed and released the valve, a small hiss of air escaping. “Not as much that time,” he said. “How do you feel?”

  “Like a million bucks,” I said, tears hovering at my lashes.

  I gritted my teeth and leaned forward, bearing down and pushing as hard as I could without passing out. Katharine held my hand, and I probably squeezed it too tightly, but she didn’t pull away or complain.

  I felt tearing and burning, and if that wasn’t frightening enough, blood was staining my gown across my chest.

  Katharine leaned away from me. “Relic, her wound is bleeding.”

  “We don’t have time. Lexi, push!”

  My extremities were numb, as were my lips. How much blood have I lost? Oh God, what if I die?

  I shoved away my thoughts and gathered all the strength I could.

  Push.

  Push.

  A riptide of pain became an unbearable obstacle that I had to overcome. I imagined labor as a steep hill, and in order to live, I had to climb to the top, where Austin was waiting with our baby in his arms. The suffering would end if I just kept going until I reached the top.

  “I can’t,” I whispered, falling back. “I’m dizzy.”

  “Stop, stop,” he said, rising to his feet. “Lexi, what’s wrong?”

  “Dizzy,” I whispered, looking to Katharine. “I’m going to fall.”

  “Her skin is like ice,” she said, her warm hand on my forehead.

  Edward circled around the bed and lifted my gown. He released the nozzle on my tube and a hiss sounded, bringing me temporary relief. “It’s almost over, Lexi. I can see the head. One last push and it’s all over. Can you do that for me?”

  “What if I pass out? I won’t be able to shift,” I said weakly, out of breath.

  His mouth was moving, but I could no longer hear what he was saying. The pain consumed me—from the wound ripping open my shoulder to the bowling ball trying to force its way into the world.

  “You’re so impatient,” I whispered, my words for the baby. “Just like your mother. I just hope you’re strong like your father.”

  “What’s she saying?” Katharine asked.

  They drifted to the end of the bed, and she yelled for me to push. This time I didn’t hold back.

  Another pressing ache wrapped around me like a vise, so I pulled my knees up and pushed with every ounce of strength I had left. After this, I wouldn’t be able to go on any longer. It was my last chance to save my baby.

  I wailed, the shout turning into a feral growl. I couldn’t see anything, but I felt my baby fighting to come into this world. The moment it happened, I felt relief and emptiness all at once. The struggle was over.

  “What’s happening?” I whispered, trying to see.

  Katharine joined my side, wiping the sweat from my face with a cloth. “It’s over. Just lie still and shift.”

  “But my baby… Where’s my baby? Why isn’t he crying?”

  Edward appeared, listening to my heart with a stethoscope. He tossed it aside and quickly removed the catheter from my chest. “Lexi, I want you to shift.”

  I shook my head, sobbing—choking on my salty tears. “I can’t—”

  “You must, or you’ll die. Every second counts.”

  “But the bullet…”

  Edward shook his head. “We don’t have time for that.”

  “Please… I have to see my baby. Just for one second. That’s all I want.”

  “One second could kill you.”

  It didn’t matter. He didn’t understand. I needed to look at my baby.

  Edward exchanged glances with Katharine and moved out of sight. He returned with a small bundle swaddled in a blanket and placed it on my chest while Katharine held it in place.

  I reached up and peeled the blanket back. “A boy. Austin was right,” I said, my voice weak.

  His mouth was open, and it wasn’t until then that I heard him crying. Not loudly—just a few small whimpers.

  “He’s fine,” Edward assured me. “Strong alphas rarely cry at birth. That’s how a Relic can often tell the alphas apart.”

  I blinked away my tears and noticed how calm he seemed nestled against my chest, listening to the sound of my heart, which now beat for him.

  So beautiful.

  So precious.

  I kissed his warm head, covered in black hair. “Hi, handsome.”

  He was a few weeks early but didn’t look premature at all. Just as stout and healthy as any mother could hope for in a newborn. And then there were all those tiny little pink fingers—ones that splayed and tightened, uncertain of what to grab hold of, so I let him wrap his tiny hands around my finger.

  My heart slowed to an unsteady beat, and I pressed a petal-soft kiss against his head and whispered, “Please, God. Just one more second.”

  Chapter 32

  Austin wrung his hands repeatedly until they turned a blistering red. After his wolf had left the room, he paced the hall, too anxious to shift and unable to calm down. The rest of the pack hurried in and kept vigil in the hall, spreading blankets across the floor to sit on as they talked to one another and waited for news from the Relic.

  Lexi’s screams were chilling.

  When he heard the first whimpering cries of a baby, Austin immediately shifted to human form. His father brought him a pair of pants, and they patiently waited for the door to open. Reno returned the medallion that he’d left at the campsite, and Austin placed the necklace around his neck, gripping the round pendant and praying for strength.

  But the minutes kept ticking by. Izzy assured him there was no need to worry—that women needed to take care of a few things after childbirth, and it was completely normal. But the silence sickened him because this was no ordinary delivery. He took a seat on the wood floor, his back to the wall, knees drawn up, and a small stuffed wolf in his hands. The custom-made toy wound up with a key and played “Landslide” by Fleetwood Mac. It was supposed to be a surprise for Lexi, but he had never found the right time to give it to her since she’d been hiding all the baby gifts downstairs.

  He traced his finger around the small key.

  When his mother emerged from the room, her face was ashen, eyes red, and her mouth turned down. His heart almost shattered when she knelt before him and rested her hands on his knees, unable to look him in the eye. Strands of hair had pulled free from her bun, and her blue eyes looked sunken in beneath wet lashes.

  “Austin, she’s gravely injured. The Relic had to revive her twice. Do you understand what I’m telling you?”

  Maizy rushed for the door, and Katharine quickly got up to block her from entering. “I have to see my sister!”

  Denver appeared and gripped Maizy’s shoulders from behind, letting her fall agains
t him, grief overtaking her.

  Katharine swept a gentle caress across Maizy’s cheek. “She knows how much you love her, but right now she needs her mate.”

  Maizy broke down, her body limp and tears streaming. Denver turned her around and cradled her in his arms.

  Austin couldn’t look. He pressed the furry black toy against his forehead and squeezed his eyes shut, as if he could make all this go away and travel back in time to when they first fell in love. Why did he have to push kids on her? Why didn’t he give it more time? Why did that goddamn bullet have to rip right through his chest and into hers?

  He should have been strong enough to stop that bullet—strong enough to protect her.

  Austin rose to his feet as if pulled by invisible strings.

  Katharine brushed her hand across the medallion. “Lynn’s on her way, and I’ll bring her up to speed as soon as she gets here.” His mother clenched her fist and held it in front of her face, fighting back tears. “She might not even make it that long.”

  Austin weaved around her and opened the door, uncertain of what he might discover.

  Edward was hunched over, stuffing bloody towels into a trash bag. When he caught sight of Austin, he crossed the room and blocked his view.

  “I’m not going to dress up the situation. Her condition is grave, and I’ve done all I can do. When I lost her the second time, I didn’t think I’d be able to bring her back. I got a pulse, and she shifted, but I can’t get her to shift back. She’s unconscious and unresponsive. If you can somehow pull her out of whatever darkness she’s hiding in, then it might be enough to get her to shift once more. I can’t assess her internal injuries without medical tests, and the longer we wait, the slower they’ll heal—if at all.”

  Austin’s gaze dragged to the right side of the dark room. “And the baby?”

  Edward gave him a doleful smile. “She gave you a son. A strong alpha, like his mother.”

  Austin’s heart splintered, and a tear rolled down the bridge of his nose. Edward stepped aside, lowering his eyes and allowing Austin to soak in the scene, which was more of an aftermath.

  Lexi’s silver wolf was lying on the bed, unmoving. She’d never looked so small and vulnerable. A dim lamp lit up the left side of the room, stopping at the bed as if it could go no farther. Austin crawled across the mattress and eased beside her, resting his head so he could look her in the eyes. He placed his hand on her shoulder, feeling her labored breaths, which were infrequent.