Page 27

Chapter Twenty-Six

M o hadn't left Zack's bedside in over twenty-four hours since they'd brought him home. The journey back to Hunter's Creek had been tense, with Riley monitoring Zack's vitals constantly while Asher drove like a man possessed. Daniel had to stay behind to clean up the mess. Now, sitting in the soft lamplight of their bedroom, Mo watched the steady rise and fall of Zack's chest with profound gratitude.

"Any change?" Victor asked quietly as he entered with a tray of food and fresh coffee.

Mo shook his head. "Still sleeping, but Riley says that's normal. His body is healing." He accepted the mug Victor offered, breathing in the rich aroma. "The bond feels stronger though. Don't you think?"

Victor nodded, setting the tray down before coming to stand behind Mo, his hands gently massaging Mo's tense shoulders. "Much stronger. And the baby's heartbeat is steady."

The word "baby" still sent a shock through Mo. Their child—all three of them connected in this miracle none of them had anticipated. Riley had confirmed it: Zack was indeed pregnant, the embryo developing at an accelerated rate even for a shifter due to the drugs Pearson's doctors had administered.

"Riley says the drugs they gave him to speed up the pregnancy have mostly worn off," Mo said, leaning back into Victor's touch. "The baby's development should return to a more normal pace now."

"Good," Victor murmured, bending to press a kiss to the top of Mo's head. "You should rest too. You've barely slept, but the car bringing Khloe will be here in a few minutes."

Mo knew now Victor was here he could safely spend a few minutes with his sister. "I will. Soon." Mo was torn, desperate to see Khloe, but hating to leave Zack, not when every moment of Zack's steady breathing felt like a gift they'd nearly lost. He inhaled a sob and pressed his lips together.

"Breathe," Victor murmured, his thumb stroking reassuring circles on Mo's hand. "She's safe now. They both are."

Mo nodded, unable to speak past the lump in his throat. He'd spent so many months searching, hoping, praying—and now his sister was minutes away from being back in his arms.

Five minutes later, Mo and Riley were stood on the front porch as a minivan drew to a halt. The vehicle door opened, and Daniel stepped out first, followed a moment later by a slender figure Mo hadn’t seen in way too many years.

Khloe.

She looked thinner than Mo remembered, her once-vibrant curls now cut short against her head. But her eyes—their mother's eyes—were the same, widening as they landed on him.

"Mo?" Her voice was barely audible across the distance between them.

Mo was moving before he realized it, racing down the steps and across the gravel. Khloe broke into a run at the same moment, and they collided in the middle, arms wrapping around each other with desperate strength.

"You found me," Khloe sobbed against his shoulder, her entire body trembling. "You actually found me."

"I never stopped looking," Mo choked out, tears streaming freely down his face as he held his sister tight, afraid she might disappear if he loosened his grip even slightly. "Not for one second."

They stood like that for what seemed like forever, clinging to each other as years of fear and separation poured out in shared tears. Finally, Khloe pulled back just enough to look at Mo's face, her hands coming up to frame his cheeks. "You look different," she said, studying him with a teary smile. "Stronger."

Mo laughed softly. "A lot has happened."

"Daniel told me some of it," Khloe said, her expression sobering. "About the shifters, about what Pearson was doing." She shuddered. "We didn’t understand. We thought at first it was trafficking.” Her eyes filled. “I’ve been so stupid.” Mo knew she meant with Rigor and her rebelling against their asshole father.

“Hush, it’s okay. You’re safe now.”

She sniffed. “Daniel told us about your mate.”

"Mates," Mo corrected gently. "Two of them. And yes, Zack was...hurt badly. But he's recovering."

Mo looked up as a second young woman stepped out of the car but held back shyly. Mo glanced at her then back to Khloe. Khloe extended her arm, and the young woman ran to her.

“Mo, this is Honey. She was taken by Pearson as well, and well, we’re together.”

Mo beamed and opened his arms to include Honey as well, thrilled for his sister. Asher came over and took Khloe’s bag. “Let’s get you inside and I’ll show you two to your room.”

“We’ll talk later,” Mo promised. Khloe nodded.

“Go.” She nodded to the house. “I get it, and we have lots of time.” Mo brushed a kiss on her cheek then raced back inside.

Two days later, a soft knock at the door preceded Riley's entrance. Riley walked to the bed and laid a hand on Zack’s.

"How is he?" Victor asked after a long minute where they knew Riley was checking out all Zack’s systems.

Riley smiled, the first genuine smile Mo had seen from him in a while. "Better than I expected. The drugs are exiting his system, and the mating sickness is definitely retreating now that he's back with you both. I think he'll wake up soon. Maybe today.

Mo's heart leaped. "Really?"

"Really," Riley confirmed. "Just keep doing what you're doing—stay close, maintain physical contact. The bond is doing most of the healing work now."

"And the baby?" Victor asked, his voice carefully controlled.

Riley's expression softened. "Strong. Resilient, like its parents. He glanced at the curve on Zack’s belly. The baby’s now the equivalent of three months along.”

"Is that dangerous?" Victor asked, his protective instincts flaring.

"It's not ideal," Riley admitted, "but now that we've stopped the acceleration, things should stabilize. Male shifters typically have shorter pregnancies than even female shifters because they don’t have a uterus—about five months rather than nine. Zack had already lost weight before this started, so it will be up to you two to monitor him.”

Mo smiled with determination. Zack was going to be spoiled rotten.

“The baby appears healthy, just developing faster than normal." Riley grinned. “When Jax and the family arrive back tomorrow, Jax’ll be able to check and see what sex and designation you’re having if you like.”

After Riley left, Mo crawled carefully onto the bed beside Zack, curling against his side. Victor joined them on Zack's other side, their hands meeting across Zack's chest so they were all touching. “I’m going to spoil you so hard,” Mo vowed. “And I don’t care whether it’s a cub, a pup, or just a baby. They’ll be loved whatever they are.”

“That a promise?” Zack mumbled followed by a weak groan. His eyes opened slowly, unfocused at first, then sharpening as they found Victor and Mo.

"You’re here," he rasped, his voice barely audible.

"We’re not going anywhere," Victor promised, bending to press his forehead against Zack's. "Here to stay."

Mo leaned in from the other side, his fingers gently stroking Zack's cheek. "How do you feel?"

"Like I've been hit by a truck," Zack managed, attempting a weak smile. "But better now that you're here."

Mo choked back a sob, relief washing over him in waves as he pressed a gentle kiss to Zack's lips. "We were so scared," he whispered. "We almost lost you."

Zack's eyes suddenly widened with alarm. "The baby—"

"Is fine," Victor assured him quickly, his hand moving to rest protectively over the small swell of Zack's abdomen. "Riley's been monitoring both of you. The baby is strong."

Zack relaxed slightly, his eyes drifting to the slight curve beneath Victor's palm. "It's real," he murmured. "I thought I might have hallucinated it."

"Very real," Mo confirmed with a watery smile. "And apparently developing faster than normal because of the drugs they gave you. Riley says you're essentially three months along already."

"Three months?" Zack looked stunned. "But we only mated a few weeks ago."

Victor's jaw tightened. "Pearson's doctors were accelerating the pregnancy. Riley says now that you're off those drugs, things should stabilize."

Zack absorbed this information silently, his hand moving to join Victor's over his abdomen. "I can feel it," he said softly. "Not just physically, but... here." He tapped his temple. "My bear knows. Has known from the beginning, I think."

“What about you?” Zack looked at Mo.

"Actually," Mo said carefully, "I'm not pregnant, Zack. It's just you."

Confusion clouded Zack's features. "But the heat. You’re an omega."

“I went into heat because I’m mated to two shifters, but I don’t have the biology to get pregnant,” Mo teased. He’d spent a while talking to Riley as they’d both watched Zack sleep while Victor organized the long-term protection of the house. Victor had no intention of ever letting something like Zack’s kidnapping ever happen again.

“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.

Noah choked out an apology, but Zack simply held out his arms and Noah scrambled onto the bed and practically threw himself at him. “It’s okay,” Zack soothed. “You had no choice. If it had been Riley or one of my mates I’d have done exactly the same thing.” Noah sniffed. “I get you need us to leave. I’m gonna get a job—”

The low growl from Alex was audible and Mo did his best not to smile. Noah turned to stare at him in shock. Alex tried to cough to cover it up.

Zack smiled. “Okay, this is what’s going to happen. You are officially part of our family, and we have a very big family.”

“And growing,” Alex remarked, raising a cheeky eyebrow at Zack.

Zack shook his head, but didn’t hide his smile. “You and Jacob are staying right here for as long as you need to, and you won’t have time for a job between school and chores—which you’ll get an allowance for—because we will expect you to take it in turn to look after the younger kids. That’s how it works around here. We’re a big family.”

Noah nodded eagerly then let Zack go as Mo said he needed rest, but at the door he turned back and grinned. “I can’t wait.”

Zack lay back and groaned. Mo was on the bed in an instant. “Baby, what is it? Are you okay? Should I fetch Riley?” Victor snorted because he saw right through him.

“No,” Zack gasped, “There’s only one thing that will cure me.”

Mo caught on right away. “A sponge bath?”

“Mmm,” Zack murmured approvingly. “How about we start with a cuddle and go from there?”