Today was the day. Men and women alike gathered in the palace meeting grounds outside, those carrying bags and weapons at their side while those they hugged carried tears, paled skin, and the hushed whispers of love and hopefulness; Ostana, I’m more than sure, cried more than anyone here. Those golden almond eyes of hers had been heavy with tears this entire week, but today they had fallen without stop, no matter how much Laker reassured her that everything would be okay and this would hopefully last not even a week, nothing was calming her down. Emrys hugged me close as I wrapped my arms around his neck, he scooped me in his arms with such warmth and such faith that I too started to cry; Cassandra whimpered in pain, wishing to see Atticus just once more -as I even wan

*Celeste’s POV*“I am… So fucking sorry,” My best friend cried as I walked back into her room, Ostana’s emotions scattered everywhere as the doctors took her sweet baby girl to another room to wash her up, weigh her, and everything else they needed to do to make sure the little princess was more than okay. I chuckled and looked down at the fresh black colored casting on my hand and wrist, the drugs Dr.Wright given me a few moments earlier already kicking in and numbing the pain I was starting to achingly feel; sitting on the bed next to my bestie and handing her ice cold water to drink, I waved her off. “Ana, it’s more than okay. I’ll just make sure to return the favor when my baby pops,” Together we chuckled and sighed, relaxing for

Lakers eyes filled with tears as he read the letter that Ostana had written to him and from the letter I just read from my beautiful mate, I already knew he just received the news; I couldn’t imagine Celeste giving birth without me there. My wolf, Atticus, even whimpered at the thought, but I think with the thought of the mate and baby being happy, healthy, and safe was enough for anyone to be okay with the brutal fact of missing the birth. “Congratulations brother,” I smiled, my arm going around his shoulders for a quick brotherly hug and Laker let out a rough chuckle, trying to hold back his tears but he could cry and cry because once Celeste has our baby, I know I’ll be a puddle of tears. “I can’t believe I’ve missed it,” I hated hearing him so sad, yet he was so happy and joyful; the Alpha within me proud of him and his new child, proud of his mate who birthed a healthy baby and even though she may have broken my poor mates hand, I was more than joyful that she was happy and hea

Ostana eyed me over her meal, sweet baby Vera asleep peacefully in the travel basnet which currently sat next to my best friend; I tried to focus on eating, glancing out the window every so few minutes to see the summer storm roll in, and I watched the birds make way to wherever they needed to be so the rain couldn’t touch them.“Celeste,” Uh oh. Full name instead of something like “Ce”, “CeCe”, or Hell, I’d even take dipshit over Celeste! There was only ever a few times she used my real name instead of a nickname and it was rarely ever good. Finishing chewing my food ever so slowly, I looked up and met her honey almond eyes that seemed to wanna blow me to pieces; not out of anger or spite but pure curiosity. We never hide anything from each other, never planned to, and I tried to never break that. Key word: tried. “Yes?” Cassandra puffed and scoffed at my try of acting innocent. Vera only knew me for a handful of days and I could even sense her questioning me. Ostana laid down her

I tried to peel open my eyes but the constant hammer pounding the insides of my brain forced them to stay shut, some type of dried liquid - not sure if it’s blood or snot or mud - caked my face and I twitched my finger every now and then to make sure I was alive.Heat and coldness somehow both took over my body, sending me into some sort of shock and I felt so goddamn helpless.Celeste, I don’t want to die after all…Celeste’s POV“Are you okay lately?” Ostana asked as she came up to my side, Vera just glancing around at the world, the blue of her baby eyes hadn't worn off just yet and her skin seemed to become more golden everyday. I pulled my blonde hair into a high pony, looking at the mirror, and grabbed some lotion before rubbing it onto my pregnancy belly. The stretch marks made their appearance but they weren’t horrible; they just made me want to itch all the time. With a sigh, I responded. “I don’t know… Not hearing from Rhys has really worried me, I’ve written him two more