Текст книги "Black Moon"

Автор книги: J. Tyler

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Текущая страница: 16 (всего у книги 16 страниц)

Sixteen

C ome to me, son. It’s time we end the commander and his men.

“The shields are down,” he lied. “Come and get them.”

Tome , boy. We fight together.

Kalen ignored the summons and waited. In the darkness, outside the compound, he knew Malik and his goons would start their way, and he’d gloat when he saw how very outnumbered the Pack was, even with the military black ops groups assisting them.

But he’d soon be in for a very big surprise.

The Pack filed out of the building, tense and battle-ready even though they must be exhausted. They’d already tackled the last research facility, and now they’d battle for their lives. They’d been up almost all night anticipating this, and still they showed. Ready to rumble.

His pride in them, in being a part of them even for a short time, nearly overwhelmed him. If it was the last thing he did, he’d prove to them that he’d been worthy all along. He could resist the lure of evil because of his brothers. Because of Mac and their child. He just had to hold out a little longer.

Kalen cloaked himself from their presence, though some of them sensed something off. He rode right next to Aric in the SUV on the way to the rendezvous point with Grant’s men, and the redhead never knew it. That made Kalen smile. Aric would hate that he hadn’t known.

Soon the vehicles pulled over near a clearing. The forest edged the open space, and behind that was an outcropping of rock that formed a peak. It wasn’t high enough to be called a mountain like some in the distance, but was much more than a hill. Kalen thought that would make a fine vantage point for what he had planned.

Nick and Grant gathered the soldiers and their instructions were simple. Grant took the lead.

“Remember, heart and head. Those are the only two places to kill these bastards, and if you miss, you’re dead. What you see here tonight, you didn’t see it at all. You were never here. Correct?”

“Yes, sir!” they shouted.

“Excellent. Now, let’s beat these fuckers so we can go home!”

More lightning and thunder followed his directive and heralded the beginning of the end. Rain was on the horizon, the scent of fresh earth rich in the air, when a horde of screeching Sluagh broke from the trees, came from every direction. Some men crossed themselves quickly—and then ran bravely toward the enemy.

Dropping his invisibility cloak, Kalen shifted to his panther form and ran with them into the fray. The attack had happened much more swiftly than he’d expected.

He didn’t see Malik. As the opposing forces clashed, both men and Sluagh screaming, he took out the first of the creatures and tried to scan for the Unseelie. It would be so like him to hang back and avoid the real fight.

What are you doing, boy? Over here!

Where? His inattention nearly got him decapitated. He fought on, slashing one creature after another. Lightning and thunder clapped again, and then the rain started. Cold, it stung him like needles in spite of the temperate night. He could hardly see, but he kept fighting. And searching for the one he needed to destroy.

In the flashes of light, he could see the truth. His Pack was losing. They would all die if he didn’t do something. They were being overrun, three Sluagh replacing every single one who died. This was hopeless. Victory was up to him.

Or horrible defeat.

* * *

Mac couldn’t stand it any longer. She had to know what was happening. The site was close, she knew. Just a couple of miles, and there was only one good place close to the compound for a battle to take place.

She borrowed one of the SUVs from the hangar and took off, rubber squealing. Finding the other vehicles didn’t take long. But she wasn’t expecting the fierce, bloody battle to be taking place so very close to where they’d parked.

There were hundreds. The sight and sound of the conflict was terrible, unlike anything she’d ever witnessed. One Sluagh took notice of her vehicle and she ducked down, her heart in her throat. She waited, and when it didn’t approach, she peered out the window. The fight raged on, the Sluagh oblivious to her presence, and she waited.

Please, keep him safe. Keep all of them safe.

She sent love through her bond with Kalen. And prayed.

* * *

Kalen spotted Malik beyond the fray, on the peak overlooking the fight, safely out of reach. Without a second thought, he transported himself from the middle of the battle to stand in front of the Unseelie.

“What did you think to accomplish down there?” Malik snarled. “You were supposed to lower the shields and instead you led them here!” Stepping close, he backhanded Kalen hard across the face.

“Fuck you!” Warmth filled his mouth and he spat blood over the edge of the cliff.

“You’re mine and you will obey me! You fight with me. Is that clear?”

“No, it’s not clear, asshole,” he called to be heard above the rising storm. Agony speared his brain and Kalen clutched his head, struggling to remain on his feet. Another wave hit, and another. Relentless. He yelled out in pain and anger, swaying.

Through the haze, Kalen swiped at the blood streaming from his nose, glaring at Malik with all the hatred coursing through his body. “Not long ago, you told me that you were intent on creating a breed of super-shifter soldiers. That they would help us usher in a new era where humans were basically cattle and supernatural creatures would rule. Creatures like us.”

“Yes! Can’t you see that this is our destiny? That it does you no good to resist?”

“There was once a man who believed he could take over the world by annihilating all of those who didn’t measure up to his standards,” Kalen sneered. “He believed in his sick mind that he would create a pure race, and he murdered millions while millions more bought his twisted lies. His name was Hitler, and his story didn’t end so well. Neither will yours.”

“You’re my son, and we’ll rule together! Sariel and those filthy wolves must die! And pendant or not, I’ll find a way to slaughter your woman as well, like the cow she is, and take that child for my own before I’ll allow you to defy me! You are mine!”

At that threat, the blackness within Kalen surged and he welcomed it—but this time to turn it on its creator.

His brothers were losing the fight. He gathered his power and saved it all for the threat to his mate and his family. May the gods give him strength.

“No!” he shouted back, summoning his Sorcerer’s staff. “I’ll see you in hell first, you motherfucker!”

“I’m your father. You won’t kill me.” He looked so damned smug.

“Oh, I will. I learned the meaning of ruthlessfrom you, after all.”

* * *

Nick, bloodied and damned near broken, crouched in the mud in the downpour and watched his vision come to pass. High on the pinnacle, the Sorcerer stood with his staff held high. And screamed his rage to the boiling heavens.

“God help us,” he whispered.

But there was only the Sorcerer to save them. And that was far from a sure thing.

When the lightning struck the Sorcerer’s staff, Nick witnessed a sight he’d never forget—should he live to recall it. Kalen harnessed the fury of the storm, took it into himself, and released it in an explosion that lit the sky as though it were a brilliant summer day.

All around him bodies were blown to bits. Nick scrabbled for purchase and fell.

Fell, thinking he’d never know how the story ended.

And then there was nothing.

* * *

Mac heard a powerful scream of rage and peeked out the window again. Kalen stood on the peak facing down Malik. Lightning struck his staff and he channeled the storm into a tool.

The combatants froze in awe—

And then the world was blown away.

* * *

Opening his body as a conduit for the storm, Kalen raised the staff high and screamed his rage. “Help me! Fucking help me!”

But he was alone in this. Just him and the elements. He welcomed the lightning and it didn’t disappoint him, streaking from the sky as he’d summoned and striking the end of his staff with such force he was nearly blasted from his perch.

But he held firm, harnessing the white light. Because he’d heard somewhere that only light could drive out the darkness. From Sariel? Or someone else?

He used that now, his sole weapon against Malik and the masses of Sluagh below. The Unseelie was the first to realize that his doom was near and made a lunge for Kalen. He didn’t make it.

The lightning shot from Kalen’s body to Malik’s and lit it up so that the Sorcerer could see every bone and organ inside. And then the Unseelie screeched, long and loud—the awful noise ending as he exploded into a million tiny particles to be washed away in the downpour.

A fitting end to the bastard’s terrible reign.

No time to celebrate that victory. The Sluagh were next. The Sorcerer channeled the storm at the ugly minions, his own insides burning. His guts, lungs, heart. He could literally feel them starting to boil, the raw, brutal fury of the lightning taking a toll on him as well. But he kept going, long past what any normal human would have been able to withstand. Because he wasn’t human.

He was Fae. A Sorcerer. A brother. A mate.

A father.

For the first time in his life, he embraced what and who he’d become. For all of his loved ones, he could do this. They were worth any price. He would die, and it would be okay. The Sluagh froze in confusion, perhaps barely gleaning the loss of their leader when they, too, began to sizzle like bacon. And they exploded, hundreds of them, with such force that his brothers and the remaining soldiers were hurled to the ground. Stunned, many injured, but all right.

It was over.

Kalen Black had finally done something truly good. He’d fought the evil and won, had severed the bond of darkness between himself and Malik. He’d protected his own, and that’s all he wanted. His mate and baby were safe. Now he could let go.

His heart stuttered in his chest, the agony tearing him apart. He couldn’t breathe. His knees buckled and he collapsed, falling through space, as the darkness took him.

* * *

Mac sat up, ears ringing, trying to clear her head. What had happened? The explosion!

She gazed out the SUV’s window and spied the Pack guys and some soldiers struggling to sit up. Malik and the Sluagh were dead. She started to smile.

Then she saw Kalen’s knees fold. Dropping the Sorcerer’s staff, he collapsed, his duster fluttering around him as he tumbled from the summit.

Flinging open the door, she practically fell from it and ran. “Kalen!”

Slipping in the mud, she ran on, screaming his name again and again. She hit a slick spot and couldn’t catch herself, went sprawling. Before she could get up, Nick and Sariel were there, helping her to sit up. She tried to pull away, but they held her fast.

“Wait!” Sariel ordered. “I need to check and see if you are all right.”

“No! Kalen needs me!”

“The baby needs you too. Hold still.”

That got her to cooperate long enough for Sariel to pronounce her and the baby safe. “Okay, help me find him! I saw him fall over there somewhere.”

“We’ll look together,” Nick said. He shared a grim look with the prince.

Mac’s pulse jumped, and her lungs seized. She had to find him. They picked their way through the debris-strewn field, the men holding her on each side. Others were up on their feet now, ignoring their own injuries to help in the search. Calling for Kalen.

She spotted him and cried out, jerking from their grasp, and ran. Her mate was lying on his back, unmoving. The rain had trailed off to a soft patter, and steam was rising from his battered and scorched leather duster, from his limbs and black hair. His eyes were closed, his face still and white.

Terrified, she dropped to her knees by his side and searched for a pulse. The beat was erratic, thready. Getting weaker by the second. “Kalen? It’s me. Please, hang on,” she begged. “It’s over and we’re all here. We’re going to get you back to the compound and it’s going to be all right.”

But under her palm, his heartbeat slowed. And stopped.

Her world shattered. “No! Kalen!”

Sobbing, she started CPR while Nick tilted his head back, gave him breaths. One minute. Two. Agonizing minutes ticked by with no response. His lips were turning blue. She was losing him. She couldn’t lose him!

“Mac, move over.”

She found herself shoved aside by Zan. She barely registered that his ears were bleeding and his voice sounded odd. Her entire focus was on her mate lying there not breathing. “Help him, please.”

She wasn’t sure whether the Healer heard. He didn’t answer, but seemed to talk to himself as he placed both palms on Kalen’s chest.

“Burned himself out,” Zan slurred, his voice odd and garbled. “Don’t know if this will be enough.”

A green glow began around Zan’s palms and spread to encompass Kalen’s whole body. For too long, the Healer’s efforts didn’t seem to be working. When at last her mate sucked in a breath, there was a collective cheer from the men. But their relief was short-lived.

“Lots of damage,” Zan managed, swaying. “Maybe too much.”

Then he slumped to the side, unconscious. The Pack jumped into action. Jax and Ryon grabbed Zander while Aric and Nick took Kalen. It wasn’t until they started for one of the SUVs with her mate that she remembered her dad. She looked around frantically, calling for him, and he squeezed her hand.

“I’m right here, baby girl. Come on. Let’s see to that man of yours.”

She rode in the back of one of the SUVs with Kalen, and they had to pry her loose when Melina and Noah rushed out to take over. She tried to follow them into the ER, but Nick blocked her path.

“Let Melina and Noah do their jobs. You need to see to Zan.”

“But—”

“That man just saved Kalen’s life and now he needs your attention.” His voice softened. “Go. Seeing to him will take your mind off your mate for a while.”

He was right. All through Zan’s examination, she worried for the Healer as well as her mate. By the time she concluded her tests and got him settled in a room, her heart was heavy with the knowledge of the personal mountain Zan now had to climb.

He was going to be all right—but it was going to take a long, long time to get him there.

Once Kalen was settled into a room, no one could pry her from his side. He looked dead, so still and pale, his chest barely rising and falling. He’d given everything to save them all, and there was a possibility he’d never open his eyes.

Taking one of his hands in hers, she stroked his skin as the tears fell. “Listen to me, please. You can’t leave us,” she whispered. “The baby and I need you. Please stay.”

Laying her head next to him, she wept. And began the long wait.

* * *

Kalen was at the bottom of a deep, dark ocean.

No matter how he tried, he couldn’t swim to the surface. Couldn’t breathe. So he let go and floated, rested a while and tried again.

Sometimes he heard quiet conversation. He wasn’t sure why or where he was. It scared him a little, not knowing. The longer he floated, the more aware he became that he needed to get to the surface soon, or he never would. Something dear to him waited for him up there, and he had to fight.

So he did, and the voice began to solidify into one that he recognized. Mackenzie. His mate, his love. She told him stories all the time, begged him to wake up, and he wanted so badly to respond. To tell her that he loved her and wasn’t giving up.

Then one day he broke the surface. He heard a machine beeping nearby. The rustle of someone in a chair, flipping pages, reading something. Stuff made sense and he knew he was back. But how? It didn’t matter. He just had to get his lids to cooperate.

Finally he blinked them open to find that everything was fuzzy. But he could make out his mate’s figure sitting close to him, bent over something. A magazine? Yeah. She was reading, and he liked waking up to find her there.

“Baby?” he croaked.

The magazine plopped to the floor and her blue eyes widened. “Oh my God! You’re awake!”

Happy kisses peppered his face and he smiled, or thought he did. “I think so. Unless I’m dead and you’re an angel.”

Sitting back, she stroked his face, touching him everywhere she could reach. When his eyes focused more, he saw that there were tears glistening in hers. He wanted to brush them away but didn’t have the strength to raise his arm.

“Hey, none of that. I’m okay, right?”

“You are now.” She sniffled.

“You and the baby?” he asked in sudden alarm.

“Relax before you strain something,” she said softly. “The baby is fine and so am I. Do you remember what happened?”

He stared at her, thinking. Which was hard since it seemed he was dosed on good drugs. “I forgot.”

“The battle. You killed Malik and all his Sluagh,” she said gently. “You saved everyone in the Pack.”

The storm. The fight. His friends had been losing badly.

Then he’d used the lightning against the enemy.

“I used the light to drive out the darkness.” He smiled at his mate. “Sariel told me to.”

She smiled back, though it was tired at the edges. “That you did. Do you feel any different? I mean, is there any darkness left?”

Though he was exhausted, he searched deep inside himself. Looked for that awful black thread that Malik had fostered and had wanted to grow into something horrid. “It’s gone,” he breathed. “For good, I think.” He hoped and prayed.

“That’s the best news I’ve had all day. Other than the man I love waking up, that is.” Leaning over, she kissed him on the lips.

Something still worried him, though. “I didn’t leave here on the best of terms. Last time I saw Nick, he was trying to kill me.”

“Well, that changed when you almost killed yourself in the process of saving the world,” she told him, love shining in her blue eyes. “The whole Pack has been in and out of here for over two weeks, willing you to get better. Your brother, too. They think you’re pretty awesome, and so does my dad. And I happen to think you’re fantastic, too.”

Damn. His eyes burned.

“You’re lucky to have a dad like him.”

“He’s yours now, too. You’ll give him a chance to prove it, won’t you?”

That choked him up, and he worked not to show it. “You bet, baby. Say, how are his soldiers?”

She looked sad. “They lost a few, but not as many as they should have, considering how outnumbered they were. There’s something else, though.” She hesitated.

“What is it?”

“Zan was hurt. Remember how I said he couldn’t take another trauma to his head without risk?” Kalen nodded in dread. “He suffered another blow to the skull during the battle, and he was bleeding badly from his ears when we brought him in. When everything was over, he was deaf.”

Kalen stared at her. “He can’t hear? Is it permanent?”

“We don’t know for sure. He’s not human, so there’s a chance that he’ll hear again one day. But for now, nothing.”

“Tell me it wasn’t my fault,” he pleaded. If he’d caused Zan to go deaf with the explosion, he’d never forgive himself.

“I’m not going to lie—we don’t know how much the blow to his head factored in, versus the explosion. He’s not saying much about it.”

“Will he see me?”

“Soon. He needs time to heal and rest, same as you.”

There was no arguing that, so his visit with Zan would have to wait. He needed to get well. He had a mate to care for and a baby to buy lots of cute baby things for, too.

“The baby,” he rasped. “He’s really okay?”

“I wouldn’t lie to you, especially about that.” She smiled at his use of “he” for their child. Taking his free hand, she scooted forward and let his palm rest on her tummy. “The baby’s fine. See?”

Reaching out with a tendril of magic, he searched. And found the tiny life warm and safe in his nest. Tears pricked his eyes. “I don’t know how to be a father. It’s not like I’ve had a great example to follow.”

“Oh, honey.” She stroked his hair. “You’re going be a great daddy, because you’ll want to give him all the love and support you never had from your folks. If anything, I’ll have to worry about you going overboard, doting too much and spoiling him rotten!” Now she’d said “he,” too. Kalen’s enthusiasm was rubbing off.

Grinning tiredly, he nodded. “I’m gonna buy him all kinds of boy stuff. Footballs, toy trucks, trains—”

“What if it’s a girl?” she teased.

“Hmm. Then she’ll be a tomboy. All us guys around here will make sure of that.”

She laughed. “No doubt.”

“I love you, Mac.” He yawned.

“That’s the second time you’ve called me that. Or is it the third?”

“Don’t know, but it’s growing on me. Doesn’t make me think of a trucker anymore.”

She laughed. “Well, that’s flattering. Sleep, Sorcerer.”

He drifted off, thinking he was a lucky man. A guy who’d never had a real family except his grandma, whom he’d lost way too soon, now had a compound full of brothers.

And several real brothers, including his and Sariel’s half siblings, whom he couldn’t wait to get to know better. Though it still wasn’t fair that he had to wait a few thousand years to get his wings.

He guessed you couldn’t have it all. But you could damned sure try.

* * *

Three days after Kalen woke up in the infirmary, the Pack threw him a party in the rec room. Everyone was there, including Sariel and Jarrod Grant. That really got to him. Because in all his life, nobodyhad ever done that. Just celebrated him being alive and loved. It was every missed, lonely birthday rolled into one.

All of them had trooped through his hospital room constantly, jabbering about this and that. But they’d all avoided any conversation that might be deemed mushy in any way. So now, in true guy form, they let him know how sorry they were and how much they cared.

Nick was the first one to speak to him, beer bottle in hand, loud enough that the whole group could hear him. Well, except for Zander. “These damned visions of mine don’t always show the whole picture. Wish they did, but they don’t. So I’m sorry I gave you such a hard time. And, oh yeah—sorry I shot you.”

Kalen smiled. “Forgiven. Though A.J.’s rifle packs a helluva punch. Just sayin’, so you’ll feel worse.”

“Thanks a bunch.”

Aric took a turn next. “And I’m sorry I was such an asshole to you in the beginning. Mostly.” A few of the guys snickered, and the redhead frowned. “What?”

“So where’s ourapology?” Jax goaded. “You’re always an asshole to us.”

“Hey, that’s my mate, fur face,” Rowan said, punching Jax in the arm.

“Ow.”

That pretty much set the tone for the party, light-hearted and everyone poking fun at one another. Pointing out their own faults for Kalen’s benefit, laughing at themselves. They needn’t have bothered, but it was nice. He felt included, and that was a great feeling.

He endured careful hugs, but he didn’t mind much. Especially the gesture from Sariel. His brother. He could hardly believe it as they stood regarding each other, the warmth filling his chest. Kalen cleared his throat. “I’m not used to having family that’s worth a damn, and it’s going to take some getting used to. But I’m glad you’re my brother.”

“So am I, Kalen.” The prince’s golden eyes were suspiciously moist. “One day I’ll get to introduce you to the rest of our brothers, and you’ll love them too.”

The idea made him a little nervous, but he smiled anyway. “I’ll look forward to it.” They shared an embrace that healed one last hole in Kalen’s battered heart. He had a feeling they were going to be close, and he welcomed that joy.

Zan moved from his corner at the fringes of the party and joined Kalen as Sariel released him. They stood awkwardly studying each other until Zan spoke with some difficulty.

“Not your fault,” he said with an odd drawl, gesturing to his ears. “Sluagh knocked the shit out of me.”

When Kalen replied, he made sure to speak slowly and clearly as Mackenzie had instructed him. “Still, I’m sorry. I wish there was something I could do.”

Zan shook his head and tried to smile. “Thank you, but I’m okay.” Waving to Aric, he changed the subject. “Presents for you.”

“Oh yeah?” He looked to the smirking redhead with interest. “I love presents!”

“Well, you’ll love mine, then. We got you something together, but first, this is something just from me.” Winking, Aric waved a pink gift sack at him.

More snickers, and a few of them sounded like they knew what was inside. Kalen looked at Mac, who blinked at him innocently.

“Don’t ask me. I have no clue what he got you.”

Taking the sack, Kalen set it on a table at the front of the room, started pulling out items—and cracked up. He couldn’t help it. “Shit! I’m sogoing to get you back for this!”

But he kept laughing, and so did everyone else when they saw what Aric had purchased for him: three colors of sparkly, pastel nail polish and a pack of six different colors of eyeliner. Plus a tube of hot pink lipstick.

“Black is so last week, Goth-boy.” Aric winked. “Now you can look all pretty for your next battle.”

“You fuckhead!” But it was so damned funny. And typical Aric. He set the sack aside and grabbed the wolf into a big hug. “Thanks, man.”

He’d never felt happier or more accepted into a family than he did at that moment. It was just perfect. Couldn’t get any better. Or so he thought, until he saw the big box Nick was holding. He let go of Aric and studied it curiously.

“What’s that?”

“Well, open it and find out.”

He set it on the table next to the makeup and ripped at the paper to reveal a box with the label of a local leather shop in Cody. Glancing at the gang, he saw their excitement and anticipation. He had no clue what it could be.

Lifting the lid, he peered inside. “Is that . . .” Grabbing the leather garment, he lifted it from the box. His heart swelled to clog his throat. “Jesus, guys. You shouldn’t have.”

More lint in his eyes again, dammit.

The long coat was black, supple, expensive, and gorgeous. He put it on to find that it was fitted, unlike his old one, which had been made for someone else.

Nick cleared his throat. “Your old one got sort of charbroiled. So we got your measurements from Mac when you were on the mend and had it made just for you. If you don’t like it, we can’t exchange it, so tough shit.”

This time his laugh came out a bit choked. “I love it. And I promise I won’t wear this one out to fight monsters.” He looked around the room. At his mate, Jarrod, Sariel, the Pack. A child on the way. His family. And he counted his blessings.

“Thank you, all of you. I’m a damned lucky man.” He looked at Nick. “Just one more thing would make it perfect.”

“What’s that?” the commander asked.

“A vacation with my mate,” he said, hugging her close to his side. “I’ve never had a real vacation in my life, and I think we’ve earned it.”

Nick’s lips curved upward. “I believe that can be arranged. Put your request on my desk and I’ll approve it. In fact,” he told the group, “anyone who wants time off, put your name in and I’ll stagger weeks so we’re not all gone at the same time. We’ve all earned it.”

That idea was met with a ton of approval. Kalen couldn’t wait to be completely alone with his baby.

Make that times two.

* * *

Kalen lounged on his towel, feet planted off the end so he could dig his toes into the gorgeous sand. “This is the life, huh? God, I never dreamed Fiji would be this beautiful.”

His mate eyed his rum concoction with the little umbrella in it, with no little envy. “Some of us get to enjoy more than just the sights.”

“Hey, I offered to go virgin! I’m a gentleman that way.”

“You are a gentleman, but it’s a little late to go virgin, I think.”

Turning his head, he stared at her for a couple of seconds before he got it and laughed. “Oh, you’re so bad. Nope, no virgins around here!”

“You would know.”

“That I would.” Sucking down the rest of the delicious drink, he removed the tiny umbrella and rolled toward Mackenzie. When she saw him reaching for her stomach, she tried to wiggle away.

“What are you doing?”

“Be still. I need to concentrate.” Frowning as though he were creating important art, he placed the tip of the toothpick to rest in her belly button. “Almost . . .” He had it standing upright, but she started giggling and it fell over onto her stomach, where it jerked up and down.

“Kalen, what on earth?”

“I was making a shade for the baby.”

“You’re an idiot!” But she was still laughing. “We’re already in the shade. I think you’ve had too many of those rum thingies.”

He pouted. “Have not.” Turning her attention back to her stomach, he studied the smooth skin, then ran his palm over it in fascination. “Do you think he can hear me?”

“I don’t know.” She buried her fingers in his hair and combed them through the strands, the way he loved. “I’ve heard that babies in the womb respond well to music and having books read to them. It sure can’t hurt.”

“Hello, baby,” he murmured. “I’m your daddy. I promise I’m going to do my best to be the greatest daddy in the world, because that’s what you deserve. I love you, sweetheart, and I can’t wait to meet you.”

His throat closed up and he couldn’t go on. But he’d made the most important promise of all to his child, one that had never been made to him. And he’d follow through.

“Oh, honey. I love you.”

“My God, I love you, too.”

His mate rolled into his arms, and as they kissed, he vowed he’d never forget what a lucky man he was to have all his dreams come true.

He’d made it out of the darkness and into the light. And that was where he planned to stay. Forever.