64


    35 vouchers


    Emery sat at the small breakfast table near the kitchen’s picture window. She nursed a mug of fragrant tea while Logan ced a second te beside her: scrambled eggs, sausage links, and buttered toast. His knuckles were swollen and pink from the night’s training, but he moved withoutint.


    She took a cautious bite. Her jaw still stung from one mistimed hook at four a.m. To be honest, she was surprised, her body still felt fine after all that workout. Logan thought this might be because of their child.


    Logan poured himself coffee, then sat opposite her. Neither spoke as the quiet feltfortable enough. Outside, the treetops caught the first light of morning.


    The door swung open. Lucille strode in, tablet under one arm, boots echoing on the tile. She opened her mouth to speak, then stopped when she saw Emery. Her stare flicked from Emery’s bruised knuckles to Logan’s split lip, then back again.


    Logan lifted a brow. “Report?”


    Lucille closed the door and approached the table. “I have news from the southern perimeter.” She hesitated, eyes narrowing at Emery’s calm posture. “But first–are we safe to speak?”


    Emery set down her fork. “If it concerns me, you can say it.”


    Lucille studied her face. “I expected more panic after your… introduction to our world.”


    Emery wiped her fingers with a napkin. “Panic is inefficient.”


    Lucille’s gaze slid to Logan. “Did you threaten her?”


    Logan leaned back, mug in hand. “No.”


    “Are you sure?”


    Emery answered as well. “He did not. Unless you count insisting on dawn lessons.”


    Lucille exhaled through her nose, her expression hovering between relief and annoyance–impossible to tell which.


    She turned the tablet toward Logan, tapping the screen. “Two scouts at Station Seven picked up unfamiliar scent trails. Wolf, not local pack. The direction suggests a test run against the outer rms.”


    Logan set his coffee down, expression tightening. “How fresh?”


    “Hours. They vanished near the river bend. No breach, but they watched us.”


    Emery frowned. “Gabriel?”


    Lucille met her eyes, surprised she used the name. “Could be. Could also be anyone who wants leverage.”


    Logan spoke without looking up. “Strengthen the rovers. Double the drone pattern after dusk.”


    Lucille nodded, then angled her head at Emery. “You slept?”


    “Barely,” Emery said. “Training hurts.”


    A hint of respect touched Lucille’s features. “Most humans pass out after three rounds with hirn.”


    Logan reached for a slice of toast. “She managed five.”


    35 vouchers


    “He was ying around,” Emeryined. How could she not know that he was not taking her seriously?


    Lucille blinked, then addressed Emery directly. “You want my advice?”


    “Depends on the quality,” Emery replied.


    “Stay out of the line of fire. Let us handle wolves.”


    “I prefer to handle myself,” Emery said. She lifted her mug. Her shoulders ached, but she held Lucille’s stare.


    Logan’s lips quirked. He pushed a bowl of berries toward Emery. “Eat more.”


    Lucille watched the exchange, then folded her arms. “Fine. Stubborn seems to run in this house.” She pointed at Logan. “Your council meeting is at nine. Dress the part.”


    Logan nodded once.


    Lucille turned to leave, paused at the door, and faced Emery onest time. “If you ever feel… overwhelmed, find me. I will get you out.”


    Emery considered the offer. “Appreciated. But if I leave, I n to walk out on my own terms.”


    Lucille offered a tight grin. “We will see.” She exited, boots fading down the hall.


    The room fell quiet again. Logan peeled an orange and ced two segments on Emery’s te. “You handled Lucille.”


    “Did I?” she asked.


    “You passed.” He brushed his thumb over a faint bruise on her wrist. “Training resumes tomorrow.”


    “Tonight,” she corrected. “After your meeting.”


    Logan’s eyes darkened in approval. “Tonight, then. If you’re not tired.”


    Emery popped a berry into her mouth and chewed, eyes on his. Dawn light climbed the walls, but neither hurried. Outside, the estate stirred to new threats, yet inside the kitchen, the world had narrowed to a table, two mugs, and a silent understanding that neither of them would back down.


    Then a soft knock cut through the quiet. Logan said, “Come.”


    The kitchen door opened, and anky man in charcoal scrubs stepped in, rolling a metal cart stocked with vials and a portable monitor. Pale hair was tied at the nape of his neck, and a stethoscope hung from his


    <b>12:52 </b>Fri<b>, </b>Sep 12 B


    cor.


    Emery sighed. “Bloodwork again?”


    35 vouchere


    “Good morning,” the man said, offering a calm smile. “I am Dr. Aldric Morrow. Obstetrics andparative physiology.”


    She eyed the cart. “Comparative physiology sounds suspiciously like poking me with more needles.”


    “Only three today.” He positioned the cart beside her chair. “We need serum markers, CBC, and a metabolic panel.”


    Emery held out her arm, palm up. “Let’s get it over with.”


    Logan moved her coffee mug aside and stayed close, shoulders rigid.


    Dr. Morrow swabbed the crook of her elbow. “You slept?”


    “Not well,” Emery answered.


    “Any dizziness, nausea, blurred vision?”


    “No.” She watched him slide in the needle. The vial filled fast.


    He switched to the second vial. “Excellent. Your vitalsst night were better than most second–trimester baselines.”


    “Meaning?”


    “You are holding steady,” he said. “We look for drops in hemoglobin, irregr glucose, or rising inmmatory proteins. All can signal maternal rejection of supernatural fetal tissue.”


    Logan’s grip tightened on the back of Emery’s chair. “None of those showed.”


    “Correct.” Dr. Morrow filled the final vial and withdrew the needle. He pressed a gauze pad to the puncture. “Hold this.”


    Emery pressed, then nced at Logan. “He is a werewolf too?”


    Dr. Morrow nodded. “Born into the Talon Ridge pack. Medical licensure in both worlds.”


    “Convenient,” she muttered.


    “Useful,” Logan corrected.


    The doctor set the vials in a chilled rack. “Next is blood pressure, pulse, and a quick Doppler.”


    Emery allowed the cuff on her arm. “You test me every day. Are you waiting for me to fall apart?”


    “We are waiting for any sign of strain,” Dr. Morrow said, noting the numbers. “One–twelve over seventy. Pulse eighty–four. Normal.”


    12:52 Fri, <b>Sep </b>12 B


    464


    35 vouchers


    He lifted a handheld Doppler, pressed gel on her lower abdomen, and angled the probe. Static crackled, then a rapid, steady heartbeat filled the room. Emery stilled, listening.


    “Fetal heart rate one–fifty,” he said. “Strong.”


    Logan’s hand settled on her shoulder. His thumb stroked once, then stopped.


    Dr. Morrow wiped the gel away. “You will feel more tired as gestation advances. That is typical. What is atypical is how stable yourbs remain.”


    Emery lowered her shirt. “So I am not weakening.”


    “Not yet.” He packed the equipment. “If values shift, we intervene early.”


    “Intervene how?” she asked.


    “IV iron, sma expanders, antivirals–whatever you require.” He paused. “Cesarean at thirty–six weeks is standard in mixed pregnancies.”


    Logan’s jaw tightened. “We will cross that bridgeter.”


    Emery lifted her bandaged arm. “Same time tomorrow?”


    “Yes.” Dr. Morrow unlocked the cart wheels. “I will send today’s results by noon.”


    She nodded. “Thanks, Doctor… wolf.”


    He smiled at the title, unoffended. “Rest when possible, train when you must. Bnce is key.” He inclined his head to Logan, then exited.


    When the door closed, Emery exhaled. “Needles before sunrise. Perfect start.”


    “You don’t seem worried about the results,” hemented.


    “Because I’m not.” Emery flexed her fingers and rolled her shoulder. “I can feel it,” she said. “My body is stronger. The baby is strong. He isn’t trying to kill me.”


    Logan studied her, silence stretching until she felt the weight of his scrutiny more than the bruise on her jaw.


    A door banged against the frame. An omega sprinted in, breathing hard. “Alpha, emergency.”


    Logan’s attention snapped to him. “What happened?”


    “A rogue was found dead on the east road. Humans noticed the body.”


    Logan clenched his jaw. “Contain the scene. No one talks.”


    “Yes, Alpha.” The omega waited, eyes wide.


    Logan turned to Emery. “Stay here. Wait for me.”


    64


    35 vouchers


    She opened her mouth to argue, but he stepped close, pressed a swift kiss to her forehead, and was gone before she could react. She sat frozen, hand lifting to the spot where his lips had touched, heartbeat suddenly louder than any training punch.