Page 62

Story: Hunter's Sky

“But—” Zack swallowed and looked guilty. Mo took his hand. “Sweetheart. Don’t think for one moment that I’m disappointed. I’m going to be a dad. Victor’s going to be the growly protective one. I’m going…” He stopped, knowing exactly what he wanted, then smiled. “When our baby is safely delivered and growing like a weed, I’m going to visit Luke.”

“What?” Victor gaped, echoing Zack’s apparent surprise as well. Mo grinned. “I want a wolf. I’ve no intention of letting you two guys shift and have fun without me. And then,” he leaned down pressing a kiss to Zack’s lips, “maybe I’ll have our next baby.”

“I can’t believe we’re all here, and I can’t believe I’m pregnant,” Zack said. "They kept calling me a latent omega. They said it was unprecedented."

Mo squeezed Zack's hand. "Riley thinks that's why Pearson wanted you specifically. Not just any shifter, but a male omega bear."

“But how did he know?”

“Noah,” Victor said. “He feels dreadful about what he told Pearson.”

Zack's expression darkened. "Pearson. Did you—"

"He's dead," Victor stated flatly. "Raschid made sure of it." Riley appeared a moment later, sensing Zack was awake, and they spent the next hour filling Zack in on everything. Mo insisted on hand-feeding Zack the protein-rich meal Riley had brought with him.

Zack managed to stay awake for about an hour before exhaustion claimed him again. As his eyes drifted closed, Victor and Mo exchanged worried glances.

"Is this normal?" Mo whispered, his hand still entwined with Zack's.

"Riley said he'd sleep a lot," Victor reminded him, though concern shadowed his features. "His body is healing from both the mating sickness and whatever drugs they pumped into him."

Mo nodded, his thumb tracing gentle circles on Zack's palm. "I just keep thinking about how close we came to losing him. To losing both of them."

Victor reached across Zack to cup Mo's cheek. "But we didn't. He's here. Our child is here. And nothing is going to separate us again."

An hour later, a soft knock at the door drew their attention. Alex stood in the doorway, his expression uncertain.

"Sorry to interrupt," he said quietly. "Noah wanted to know if he could see Zack. Just for a minute. He's..." Alex hesitated. "He's having a hard time."

Victor and Mo exchanged a look. Noah had been devastated upon learning how his father had used information he'd unwittingly shared to target Zack.

"Of course," Mo said. "But just for a moment. Zack’s asleep and he needs his rest."

Alex nodded gratefully and disappeared, returning moments later with Noah trailing behind him. The boy looked pale and drawn, his eyes red-rimmed from crying.

"Hey," Mo said gently, waving him in. "Come sit with us for a bit."

Noah approached the bed hesitantly, his gaze fixed on Zack's sleeping form. "Is he going to be okay?" he whispered.

"Yes," Victor said firmly. "He's already much stronger than when we found him."

Noah swallowed hard, tears welling in his eyes. "I'm so sorry. This is all my fault. If I hadn't told my father—"

"Stop," Mo interrupted, his voice gentle but firm. "Noah, none of this is your fault. Your father manipulated you. He would have found another way even if you hadn't said anything."

"But—"

"No buts," Victor said, surprising them all with the gentleness in his tone. "Zack doesn't blame you. Neither do we."

Noah wiped at his eyes with the back of his hand. "How can you not hate me?"

"Because you're family," Mo said simply. "And family sticks together."

Noah's composure crumbled at those words. Alex was immediately at his side, wrapping a protective arm around his mate's shoulders.

"Why don't you come back when he's awake?" Victor suggested. "He'd want to tell you himself."

“He wants to tell him now,” Zack said smiling as he opened his eyes.