Chapter 0165.


    **Axel''s POV**


    Josle jumps up from the couch, stomping out of the room.


    "I''ve got it," I say, dropping from the mind link and following closely behind her, ready to catch her if she slips because her feet are still covered in lotion. When she gets to the bathroom she ms the door in my face. I hear the lock click into ce and shake my head. It''s cute that she thinks that tiny lock could keep any of us out but if it makes her feel better then I won''t prove a point and break. I lower myself to the floor and sit leaning against the bathroom door. I''ll wait here until she is ready to talk, however long that takes.


    "Go away," she shouts from the other side of the door. I don''t respond, making it clear I''m not here to bother her but that I am here if she needs me. I hear the water turn on but I know she isn''t in the shower because the stream of water flows uninterrupted. I suspect she is crying and doesn''t want me to hear her. I resist the urge to break the door down and go in there to hold her. My bond is angry and upset and I can''t do anything to help. I know she will understand why I have made the choice to be the guinea pig and if she gives me more time to exin then I know she will eventually ept that this is the best idea. The only other option is that we stay here until the portals are repaired. Which we know is going to take years, if it''s even possible. We can''t hide the little bean from Theo and Mason for much longer. If they don''t sense it soon they''ll definitely sense it when it''s time for her to give birth. There''s no way we can hide such a huge event from them. The baby changes everything. It makes reuniting our bond group more urgent and also means we have to be more cautious. Not only with Josie''s role in our return but with our actions too. Any distress we cause her is a risk to the baby.


    An hour passes before she finally cries herself to sleep, I can sense through the bond the moment she drifts off.


    "Can you port in there and unlock the door? She should sleep in a bed and I don''t want to wake her by breaking the door," I ask Deacon through the mind link. My legs are stiff as I push myself up off of the hard floor. Secondster I hear the lock click and Deacon opens the door to let me in Steam swirls around the small room and D turns off the water. Josie is curled up on the cold floor, a towel under her head as a makeshift pillow. I crouch down and brush some hair from her tear- stained face. I hate that I caused this. I work an arm under her legs and another around her shoulders and then lift her from the floor.


    "Axe," she hums softly, rubbing her cheek against my chest, clearly forgetting she is angry at me in a sleep-induced haze.


    "Shhh, sleep a while. I''ll stay with you," I whisper.


    Luke is already in the bedroom and he pulls back the bed covers for me toy her down. I climb in next to her and cover us both. She turns onto her side, resting her head on me and I wrap an arm around her. I''m not sure how much time passes whilst she sleeps and I get lost in thought. She eventually startles awake with a gasp and I hold her a little tighter against me.


    "I can''t lose you, Axe," she says with a soft whisper.


    "I can''t lose you either, I think I''ve already proven that," Isigh. Remembering the awful weeks I''d spent trapped as my wolf.


    "If you go back into the void you could be lost, and then you''ll die slowly. I can''t bear it," she says with a sob.


    "What''s the alternative? We stay here and leave Mason and Theo trapped there? How long are we going to be safe here? There''s a reason that the rogues cut the realms off from each other and when they find out we are here they''re going to hunt us. We are strong Josie, but not that strong. There are only three of us here to protect you and the bean, and try to stop whatever is happening in this realm," I try to make her see reason.


    "I don''t need protection. I did just fine on my own," she huffs. "I can go into the void, I''ve ported between realms on my own before, and I can fix the portals for everyone to follow me,"


    "I know you did, you are amazing, but it is still our job to protect you and our children. You just need to focus on growing a healthy baby and let us take care of the rest,” I tell her and instantly regret my words. Josie sits up in the bed, pushing away from me.


    "Don''t you dare sideline me because I''m pregnant. I am still capable of everything I was before. I''m not just here as a broodmare for the five of you!" she snaps and I flinch.


    "I''m sorry, that sounded much better in my head than it did out loud. I''m not sidelining you because you are pregnant. This was the n before I knew about the little ban. The facts are, that if you go into the void and die, we all die. If I go in and die then only I die, but I won''t because I have too much to live for,"


    "I have just as much to live for," she says stubbornly.


    "Sorry to interrupt but you two need toe and see this," Deacon says from the open bedroom doorway. Josie gets up quickly and follows D out of the room. I sigh at myself for how much I just messed that up. Words really aren''t my strong point. I''ve always seemed to say the wrong thing to people, that''s one of the reasons I don''t talk very much. I get up and join the others in the living room. The three of them are focused on the TV. A banner runs across the bottom of the screen that reads ''Breaking news. Prime Minister to address the nation in an unscheduled. announcement.''


    Author