Tallulah Rising (The Field of Blood Book 3)

by ZL Morris

  “It has been a time, Alpha Theo. How are your fathers and mother?”

  “They’re good. Busy with visiting other packs but enjoying their time without pack responsibilities.”

  Cassius chuckles and steps back to allow us inside. “The Sires are in the lounge room, I’ll escort you through. Would you like anything to drink?”

  Awed, my eyes bounce around the room, unsure what one thing to settle on first. The gothic style of the outside carries through to the inside, but it’s not overpowering. Huge stairs dominate the entrance, and many doors branch off to other parts of the house. The clattering of pans can be heard behind one door that I assume to be the kitchen. Which I find strange considering the vampire’s don’t eat food.

  “Food doesn’t smell too far away. It won’t hurt to wait,” Kenji responds, grabbing my attention.

  Cassius inclines his head. “Very well, follow me.”

  Following his direction, he leads us into a room that opens up to lots of seating areas. While the windows have the curtains pulled tightly shut, it’s not dark or unwelcoming.

  I step in next to Theo and Kenji, then take in the vampires. My eyes immediately settle on a red-haired lady who appears slightly older than me, her clothes fitting perfectly to her body.

  As she looks at the three of us, her eyes scanning my guys, jealousy doesn’t rear its head because she only takes them in like one would when they meet someone new. Not an ounce of attraction comes from her. While she’s occupied, I take a moment to take her in. She’s gorgeous and looks like she fits right in at home between the three vampires.

  When her green eyes turn to me, nervous energy rolls off her so I offer her a smile in hopes of settling her nerves. With hearing how Blood Moon held her hostage, the last thing I want to do is scare her and have her think all wolves are like them.

  Excited to finally meet a human female, I step forward to greet her properly.

  Her back stiffens, and she glares up at Zadimus.

  Not deterred by whatever has her annoyed with him, I move forward until directly in front of her. “You must be Willow.”

  I smile, hoping to pull her attention from Zadimus and saving his ass from whatever might have him in trouble. What I don’t expect is for her to suddenly yelp. Guilt settles heavily into the pit of my stomach, and I could kick myself for scaring her.

  “I-I-I am.” She stumbles over her words, making me feel worse for catching her off guard.

  Ignoring the stumble of her words, I thrust a hand out and offer what I hope is a friendly smile. “I’m Tallulah. It’s nice to finally meet the girl who’s caught their attention.”

  For a moment, I worry she’s not going to take my hand, but she surprises me when her fingers wrap around my palm. She offers me a strong handshake. “It’s nice to meet you, too.”

  Something crosses her face during the handshake, but I’m not able to make out what it could mean. Before I can ask if everything’s okay, Lazarus grabs my attention by congratulating me on my Luna title.

  Taking a seat with my guys, conversation flows smoothly between us all, but it doesn’t go unnoticed that Willow pays extra attention to my interactions with the guys. At one point, her focus on me feels like someone observing a lab rat. It makes Theo uncomfortable, but a hand to his thigh stops him from confronting her and scaring her half to death. There’s no maliciousness in the way she watches us, more of a burning curiosity on how we work as a dynamic.

  The smell of food becomes stronger the longer we converse on the sofas, and more than once, I smother the sound of my stomach grumbling.

  Thankfully, Lilith—who I learn to be Cassius’s wife—comes into the room to escort us to the dining room.

  It’s not until I sit at the table with a plate loaded down with food that I remember Theo, Kenji, and Quimby weren’t introduced properly to Willow.

  “Oh, bugger, I’m sorry. Theo was supposed to introduce you properly.” Dropping my fork, my fingers poke at Theo’s shoulder as I introduce him, then turn my attention to Quimby then Kenji while explaining where they rank within our pack.

  “Nice to meet you.” Willow dips her head at both, and again something crosses her face that I’m unsure of what it means.

  Once everyone settles down, the vampires sit in their places at the table, empty plates in front of them while the rest of us dig in. During the meal, I side-eye Willow more than once and wonder what’s going through her mind when she looks at us. Does she see the things Blood Moon did to her and tarnishes us with the same brush? Or is she seeing a whole different and better side to shifters?

  After dinner, something is mentioned about a party, but I don’t pay it no mind because my stomach holds my full attention. I indulged in way too much food, and either the baby or the food baby isn’t happy. I just want to lie down and sleep.

  Thankfully, once the guys finish their meals, they voice my thoughts and let the vampires know we’ll be retiring for the night. I glance at Willow to say night to her, but a blush covers her face as she stares down at the table. I missed something, but unsure what, I don’t grab her attention in case it makes whatever it was worse.

  Back out in the main entrance of the building, Cassius opens the front door and escorts us down to a set of cottages that we’ll be staying in for the next few nights. Bone tired, my feet drag across the driveway, into the grass, until we come to a small pebbled pathway leading up to the front door.

  “Ate too much, love?” Theo asks as he pulls me into his arms once Kenji and Quimby disappear inside.

  “I think so. All the training has caught up with me. I’ll be glad for a couple of days rest.”

  Pressing a kiss to my shoulder, he pulls back to brush wayward strands of hair from my face. “Strategising in the morning, but we should be done by the afternoon, so we can all relax.”

  Offering him a quick kiss, I step inside with him behind me. “Sounds good.”

  I kick my shoes off by the door and pull my clothes off as I make my way clumsily into the bedroom. Too tired to do more than locate the bed, I don’t pay any mind to the rest of the cottage.

  Face first into the soft sheets, a yawn escapes as a blanket is pulled up and around my shoulders.

  I barely register a kiss to my forehead as sleep takes me.

  Chapter Six

  Birds chirping rouse me from sleep along with the sun shining through the bedroom window.

  “Did someone forget to close the curtains?” I grumble while trying to bury my face under someone’s arm to block out the light.

  The body next to me shifts and wraps an arm around me. The familiar tingles from our bond caress my body, making me hyper-aware of the nakedness of the torso now under my fingers.

  “Blame Quimby. He was last in,” Kenji growls sleepily into my shoulder as his arm crosses my abdomen and fingers splay across my stomach.

  Wide awake, I hold my breath as his hand settles under my belly button. Panic over him possibly knowing about the baby makes me tense.

  He places a kiss on my bare shoulder as his fingers gently trace across my stomach. “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing. I need the toilet.” The lie slips easily from my lips, and guilt eats at me. I need to tell them at some point, but fear of them sending me home forces me to keep quiet.

  Climbing from the bed, I grab my bag and shut myself inside the bathroom. Taking care of my morning needs, I make sure the door is locked before grabbing the perfume and tablets from my bag and setting them on the counter. With the perfume long since worn off, I’m surprised one of the guys hasn’t noticed a change in my scent. I hope that, this early in the pregnancy, the hormone changing my scent isn’t so strong that they notice it without having the change pointed out.

  Freshly showered, tablets taken, and a good amount of the perfume on, I exit the bathroom and place my bag at the foot of the large bed just as a knock echoes from the front door.

  “Morning,” Cassius greets us in another of his impeccable suits. “I hope you sle
pt well. Breakfast is ready at the main house if you’d like to join us.”

  “We’re just waiting on Tallulah. We should be with you shortly.” Quimby’s voice sounds tired.

  “I’m ready.” Slipping my feet into my shoes, I brush my hands down my thighs. “Morning, Cassius.”

  With a tilt of his head, Cassius smiles. “Morning, Luna Tallulah.”

  Following Cassius down the pebbled path and away from the cottage, I take in the circled driveway leading up to the massive house. Gargoyle statues sit atop the house, keeping watch over the people below. The grassed area wraps around the sides of the house, and from what I can tell, they lead into the back area without any perimeter fences blocking the way. The sun is already starting to warm the morning chill in the air; it looks to be a lovely day.

  Hopefully, once we’re done with this strategy meeting, we can sit outside and enjoy the sun.

  With breakfast and a solid plan in place regarding the war with Blood Moon, we exit through the front door and move around to the back of the property.

  My earlier assumption of there being no fences is proven right. Willow catches my attention when she moves away from the group to sit underneath a blossom tree, but I decide against going over to her straight away.

  Lost in thought, I hear a weird noise and glance around. The noise starts up again, and I realise it’s coming from Willow. Taking a moment to watch her, I quickly notice she’s looking down at whatever’s in her lap. Curious as to what occupies her, I leave the men to talk more about the war and go over to sit with her.

  Her head whips up, and she stares at me through wide eyes.

  “Hey, I’m sorry. Didn’t mean to make you jump.” Worried I upset her, I shuffle as I decide whether to leave her alone and return to the guys.

  “It’s fine. I was too caught up in this to pay attention.” She holds a camera up to show me what distracted her.

  Excitement goes through me, and wanting to see what she’s captured, I hold my hand out expectantly. It takes Willow a moment to realise what I’m asking for, and almost hesitantly, she hands the camera over.

  Immediately, I become absorbed in her photos. She’s taken some of the surrounding areas. A few more slides across, and she’s captured some of me with the guys. None of us knew she was taking photos of us, but I can’t mind much with the way she’s captured us together. The love the guys have for me jumps out of the picture, and the happy, glowing smile on my face shines brightly.

  “You’re pregnant, aren’t you?”

  My blood runs cold when I register her whispered words.

  How did she know? Do the guys know? Will she spill my secret to them?

  My hand drops from my stomach where it unconsciously came to rest as I stare at Willow in rising panic. “How did you know?”

  She hesitates, her voice soft as if worried she’ll offend me. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to overstep. It’s just… you don’t seem to be the type of person to be overly emotional because of a picture.” Her head tilts towards my still-flat stomach. “Hand on the stomach gave it away, though.”

  Sighing, I scratch my nose. “I’ve not told them yet. I only found out yesterday morning. I knew if I told them the news before we left, then they’d not let me come. I need to be here.”

  Worry fills her eyes. “But what if the baby gets hurt?”

  I straighten my shoulders, chin up. “It sounds stupid, but I’ll pick my targets. They’re drugged up, and I’ve learnt to fight my whole life. I can hold my own.”

  She nods towards where the guys sit around a table. “So why not tell them that?”

  A laugh escapes and I smother it when my guys glance in our direction. I give them a smile to let them know I’m fine, and wait until their attention returns to the vampires before I explain. “They’d tie my ass up and put me on lockdown somewhere. And it wouldn’t just be for this war. They’d have me on lockdown for the whole pregnancy. They need to know this baby won’t stop me from fulfilling my duties. I’m Luna. I can’t afford to put my feet up and relax. The pack relies on me, on them.”

  After a long moment while she considers my words, she nods. “I won’t tell them. I won’t tell anyone, but I can’t promise the vampires won’t see it in my thoughts. I can block the odd thought, but they’re still able to pick up on most of them.”

  I smile gratefully at her. “Thanks, and these pictures are great, by the way. I’ve only got photos of our mating bond and when we were little. Would I be able to have a copy?”

  Willow’s face turns red with embarrassment as she nods. “You can. Once all this is over, I’ll send them to you.”

  Passing the camera back, my attention shifts back to my guys. I hope my words prove true and we defeat the Blood Moon pack without any injuries on our side.

  Chapter Seven

  Two days have passed since my talk with Willow in the garden, getting to know her more. Members from different packs have been steadily arriving and preparing for the war, so I’ve been too busy helping Theo, Kenji, and Quimby get things in order to tell them about the baby.

  A tired, sweaty mess, I plonk my backside in the chair in the dining room in the main house while I wait for food to come out. Zadimus talks to the guys, while Willow, Idris, and Lazarus are off doing other things.

  A noisy sniff catches my attention, and I realise Theo and Zadimus have stopped talking.

  Confused, I glance up and look around the room. “I’m sorry, did you say something?”

  “Your scent has changed.” Zadimus drives the point home by sniffing noisily again.

  “Your senses playing tricks on you?” Kenji chuckles as he reaches across the table for the pot of coffee.

  Willow, Idris, and Lazarus take that moment to enter the dining room and settle into their seats at the table.

  Zadimus sniffs again before shaking his head. “No, Tallulah’s scent was different when she arrived, but this morning it’s different again.”

  It dawns on me that, in my haste to get things moving this morning, I didn’t use the perfume Rosalina gave me.

  “Explain,” Theo growls, hard eyes boring into me.

  Zadimus stands and claps his hands to grab everyone’s attention. “Everybody out. Allow them some privacy.”

  Thankfully, no one argues, and everyone leaves the room.

  As soon as the door shuts behind the last person, Theo, Kenji, and Quimby stand in a line and glare at me while they wait for some sort of explanation.

  Hand resting against my stomach, I try to calm the sick feeling. “I can explain.”

  “Then start explaining,” Theo snaps.

  “I… I…” Swallowing thickly, my hand rubs at my stomach. “I’m pregnant.”

  Theo’s shoulders tense at the news as an array of emotions flutter across his face before he blanks his expression once more. “And you’ve decided to stand on the front line of a war while carrying our pup?”

  With no way to soften the blow no matter how I answer, I go for direct. “Yes.”

  “Absolutely fuckin’ not!” Kenji crosses his arms, biceps bulging, and aims a look that could have men pissing in their boots directly at me.

  Theo kicks out at the table, and I’m surprised it doesn’t break from the force.

  I take several breaths to try and stay calm. I don’t want this to escalate into a screaming match. It’ll never solve anything, and we have more pressing things to do, like go to war. “I’m Luna. Pregnant or not, it’s my duty to be here.”

  “Actually, it isn’t,” Kenji remarks, full of sarcasm.

  My anger sparks at his snarky attitude. I resist the urge to stamp my foot, but I do snap back at him as my free hand slams down on the table. “It is now! I won’t have you going to a war that started because of me in the first place without me. I won’t allow you three to shut me out of it when it’s my fault that everyone is involved and fighting it. They all might as well go home if you won’t allow the one person this does involve from being there.”

&nb
sp; Quimby places his hand over mine where it still rests against my stomach. “You’ll put our pup in danger.”

  Emotion clogs his voice, causing my eyes to fill with tears.

  Throat clogged with emotion, I whisper, “And you’re all risking our baby growing up without any fathers by doing this. I’d rather die with you than live a whole life without you.”

  Theo’s shoulders slump. “I can’t let you.”

  “I’m not asking you to let me, Theo. I’m telling you that even if you don’t approve, I’m still going to be standing next to you. Call me selfish, stupid, or an idiot, but I’m not letting you three take all the hero praise when we have Belcoot’s head at the end of this.”

  “Our parents and your dad can help you raise the pup,” Theo tries again, determined to talk me out of it.

  Wiping the steadily falling tears on my sleeve, I push the words out, “Your parents and my dad aren’t any of you.”

  Theo’s pacing quickens. He’s running out of options, but unwilling to give up on this. “Our parents will help you take care of the pack if something happens.”

  Starting to get annoyed, I fire back at him, “Your parents won’t take the pack back from me because you’re no longer here.”

  “They won’t have a choice,” Theo snaps, coming to a stop.

  “Theo, think rationally. Your dad handed the reigns to you. If this baby is a boy, he’ll be the next Alpha. I’d have to keep control of the whole pack until the child came of age. Your dad isn’t the type of person to kill his only grandchild to take back his position. Everything will go to shit if I’m left in control. And that’s not even considering the fact the baby might be a girl.”

  Theo picks up his march again from one end of the table and back, hands balled into fists at his side, and mutters a constant stream of curses under his breath.

  “You’re crazy,” Kenji murmurs as he pulls the strands of his hair and settles into the chair heavily like his legs can no longer support him.