Epilogue

Anders

An Undisclosed Number of Years Later

B uilding a strong community takes time, but Ember has managed it beautifully. That’s not to say she was never challenged after Aimes’s supporters, because she was. For close to two years, it felt like every other month, some idiot male wolf would pop up, convinced he would be the one to finally best her.

It never happened.

Not once was it even close.

It took a while, but word spread well enough that those challenges moved to every three months, then every six months, and at some point, they stopped altogether.

It’s been years now, and Ember’s goals have become a reality. We’ve built a thriving shifter community where no one lives in fear. The wolves will always be at the heart of the pack, but we’ve got refugees from nearly every shifter species.

Female shifters who’ve spent their entire lives hiding, now live out in the open here on pack lands.

It’s kind of incredible to think that Ember’s wolf is responsible for making all of this possible. Lorcan wasn’t wrong when he said her wolf would handle the alpha responsibilities that Ember, as a human, is too soft to face. I mean, the three of us don’t shy away from enforcing the rules, but having a female alpha is what draws so many to us.

And that’s not to say Ember’s wolf is always in alpha mode. Over the years, she’s grown more playful as she settled in to running the pack. She has endless patience when she’s working with the pups and a strong resolve to make every terrified shifter who asks for sanctuary feel safe.

All around, she’s grown into a confident and compassionate leader.

And as more time passed, she started to express more interest in maybe having a pup or two…which is how we ended up here.

She might have endless patience when it comes to everyone else, but with her pregnancy came an intense irritation with everything Veryn, Lorcan, or I do.

Not that she doesn’t have every right to be cranky. She’s currently growing three pups. She can growl and snarl and steal our clothing if she needs to.

It’s strange because the bond gives us insight into what she wants and needs. The main problem is, it changes approximately every thirty-three seconds. So, just as we’re addressing the last issue, something else pops up.

The hardest part is knowing how physically taxing it is on her, but not being able to do a thing to fix it. If I could swap places with her, I would.

This whole pregnancy adventure rests completely on Ember’s shoulders, but once the babies are here, we’ll be able to help, and I just keep trying to remind myself that this helpless feeling won’t last forever.

Lorcan, Veryn, and I congregate around the path that leads to the cave behind the waterfall.

“Well, one of us has to go in there,” Lorcan says, staring directly at me.

“The cave basically belongs to the two of you,” I sputter, nodding toward the entrance. “That means you should go in.”

Veryn snorts. “You two are ridiculous. It’s not like she’s going to hurt you.”

“No, but I also don't want to agitate her wolf,” I clarify, rocking on my heels. She’s been so particular about the nest in the house that we generally only enter when Ember is in human form to invite us in.

“You won’t.” Lorcan gives me a shove with magic. “And we’ll be right behind you.”

I snort.

The last time Ember’s wolf chased him out of the nest in the house, she bit him right on the backside to get him moving. He ran out the door shouting his arse was bleeding while Veryn and I laughed harder than I have in a long time.

“If neither of you walks in there in the next fifteen seconds—” Veryn laughs when I roll my shoulders back and stomp toward the small trail that leads to the mouth of the cave.

Who knew pregnant ladies could be so terrifying?

I didn’t .

I love Ember with my whole damn heart, and her wolf still intimidates me sometimes.

I slide around the edge of the mouth of the cave, noting how much cooler it is. The constant flowing water from the waterfall seems to lock in the frigid temperature.

Ember has built quite an incredible nest for herself. There are tree branches lining the sides of the small enclosure, and she picked a spot where the cave naturally juts out a bit, which makes a built-in roof.

Her head lazily rolls to look out the small entrance, but she doesn't growl, so that seems like a decent sign.

I have to crouch and eventually end up crawling in on my hands and knees. She’s got a nice bed of leaves and foliage just outside the entrance, making it easier, since the rock floor isn’t very forgiving.

“Hey, beautiful, can I crawl in here?” I ask, scratching her jaw.

She pulls her head down inside the nest, giving me the room necessary to climb through the opening. There’s a thick comforter lining the floor, but the inside is free of any other foliage. It’s so strange to see her belly protrude so far when she’s in shifted form, but truthfully, it’s just as visible when she’s in human form.

I kneel, ducking my head. It’s a seriously tight fit for the two of us.

My palm slides over her stomach and Ember’s wolf tilts her head, resting it against my arm. She’s panting a little, and I try to determine if I’m caressing the part of her abdomen carrying Veryn’s egg, because it’s hard to the touch.

Sometimes we can feel the other two pups move, but it’s complicated by the fact dragons lay eggs. It’s just the one, and even that seems to be stretching the limits of what her system can handle.

Omegas’ systems are wild in how they work. We collectively agreed to let Veryn plant his egg during her last heat, but what we weren’t counting on was her body also conceiving outside of the egg. We were trying to start with just one kid, but it’s like her omega genetics refused to let that happen.

“Nadia is at the house for your appointment,” I say soothingly as I bend down to nuzzle my face to hers.

She chuffs her displeasure.

“You really should tell us if you're going to leave. We got worried.” That might be an understatement. I straight-up panic searched the house. “We need to head back, so Nadia can check on the babies.”

Ember’s wolf growls, but it’s more of a mildly annoyed sound and nowhere close to an angry growl.

“Come on, lovely,” Lorcan calls out from somewhere in the cave. “I’ll give you ear scratches if you come out now.”

Ember’s wolf is so expressive. She rolls her eyes, like she can’t believe she’s stuck with that goober for eternity. It makes me chuckle. She’s definitely moodier than she’s ever been.

“Last chance, baby,” Veryn says, approaching the opening of the nest. “Don’t make me climb in there and carry you out.”

Ember’s wolf grunts but begins the slow process of trying to get to her feet. I honestly can’t fathom how omegas used to carry babies for five or six mates all at once.

Three—at least, when a dragonling is in the mix—seems like it’s pushing her past her breaking point.