Alpha Pack 3 - Black Moon (39 page)

“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,
nobody
had 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
our
apology?” 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
so
going 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