31. Dreams Come True

Dreams Come True

Larken

O ur new family was discharged from the clinic after only a few hours of observation. Though early, the quads were in perfect health. It was a miracle I could only thank The Luna for. Thanks to her, Dalton had the ability to protect our children and have them be in much better health than they would have been without it.

The healers had been somewhat prepared for an earlier birth with the incubators, medical equipment and special milk to feed the babies on hand. A blessing even if it wasn't required. We weren't the only ones with babies due, though, so it may come in handy later. Especially since more and more of the betas had turned and they were starting their own families.

Still, It had eased the terror in my heart, knowing that even if something had happened during the birth, or Dalton's healing hadn't done it's thing, the pack had done their best to ensure the safety of our babies and my mate.

Proving we had made the best choice in picking him, Ingal came rushing into the clinic, ready to help us carry our babies home. He'd been thoughtful and gone to the house to get the baby carriers and some clothing for all of us, though no one was expecting the babies to stay in their human forms for long.

Their first shift had been wonderful. The alphas both took after Dalton with golden skin and hazel eyes. They had my slightly too big nose and fuller mouth. The omegas were more like me, same skin tone and colored eyes, with Dalton's chin and high cheekbones. They were such a wonderful mix of us both, I couldn't help but feel like I wouldn't ever love anyone more than I loved my family.

Chase, who had stuck by us the entire time, carried Bima home. Dalton had Reid, Ingal held Raiden close to his chest, and I had Brayan, though my squirming raccoon baby did not want to go in the carrier. I told him to shift, and the little baby obeyed. The order almost stuck in my throat. It felt wrong to tell them to do anything, especially backing it with a little alpha power, but it was for his safety, and I would always put that first.

Giving the order made me think of my father and the times he had to use his power over me. It made me feel closer to him and so very far away. I wondered if he and my mom were with The Luna watching over us. Would they have loved Dalton like another son? Would they have dropped everything in their lives to be with us on this next adventure? I guess, without losing them and then Karina, I wouldn't have ended up in Sweetwater. I wouldn't have had all this without that loss.

For the first couple of days and nights, I could hardly tell up from down. All I knew was endless feedings and diaper changes. Passing out, utterly exhausted, with my mate for a couple of hours before it all started up again.

What I did remember from that chaos was a feeling of family, pack. Ingal was an integral part of us. Without him we would have floundered before we left the clinic. He settled into our family like he was always meant to be there.

Then there was Chase and Roan. Both of our friends were an almost constant presence. With Roan in particular, it went a long way to repairing our relationship after the damage caused when I moved out.

By the end of the first week, we were more into a routine. We were also growing increasingly nervous about registering the babies. Our time was running out .

I kept having dreams, good and bad, about going into Northarbor. Ones where we were attacked, others where we got home and had a party to welcome the babies to the pack.

As we came closer to the end of the second week, our deadline, the plan was in place, the appointment set. Grady, Trey and Mateo had done the test run with their daughters, Alice and Ariana, born two days after our babies. It went well, though they suggested a few things, such as ensuring the babies were settled before we left. All we had to do was tire the babies out so they would sleep while we filled out the necessary paperwork. The whole thing was a bunch of bullshit, but we were on guard. We had backups to our backup plans.

While the babies were still pretty young in human terms, in their animal forms they were pretty mobile. They appeared to have inherited some of Dalton's faster healing and were growing like weeds. We decided to get them some fresh air and vitamin D.

We'd seen a video of a ferret playing in a sandpit and ordered one for the new house. Spice was utterly obsessed with the omega babies. He seemed to think the little raccoon kits were his to look after, it was kind of adorable. He slept with them, even had a bath with them, even though he wasn't particularly fond of being washed. Ingal had that job since the pair had bonded well.

Spice wasn't as sure of our ora babies as they were already bigger than he was, but Priscilla guarded them fiercely. Those were her babies. It was so sweet how our pets had folded the new additions into our family. They still got all the love and attention they needed and took themselves off for peace and quiet if they needed to. It was perfect.

The sun was still low in the sky, it was pretty early in the morning, we just didn't want to wait for it to warm up more. Spice was diving around the sandpit, showing the babies how to dig and spray sand everywhere. I think we all ended up with sand where sand wasn't supposed to go as we made little sandcastles for the babies and Spice to knock over.

Priscilla presided over the event from her window bed. She had access to the yard, but a previous bad experience with a wolf shifter left her wary of anything farther than that. She was happy to be the queen of the castle watching over us.

Once the babies, and Spice, were tired out, we got them cleaned up and fed. Both the babies and the ferret decided it was nap time, which was perfect.

It was time to go to Northarbor.

All my previous visits to the city, which lay to the west of Sweetwater, had left me with a less than favorable impression of the place. Either I was being attacked, or I was rescuing someone who had been attacked. All it held was bad memories for me. I feared I was about to have another one.

As we had agreed with the registrar, we had the appointment booked with a window where their wards would be down. We arrived comfortably within that window and waited for the appointment to be called.

A prickle of unease went over me as I realized we were the only ones in the building aside from some office staff. They kept glancing over at us, though we must have been a sight to behold, it was a little rude and made me more nervous. Deke was with us, as was Ingal, Melody, Hakeem, and an elf I didn't know the name of. She was the one who had made the portal.

Dalton was twitchy. His worry made him show it outwardly. Usually he was calm and in control, he wasn't demonstrating that at all. He was dressed impeccably in office ready attire which had miraculously stayed clean around our babies.

I was dressed ready to move fast: cargo pants and a t-shirt. We had to be ready for anything.

Taking my mate's hand, I sent him soothing feelings over the bond. He settled some, but I could sense he was tense.

"The Sweetwater party can come through," a woman, maybe around fifty years old dressed in a well pressed suit, called for us.

She took us through the forms, looked at each of the babies in turn, taking their little footprints without waking them. I liked her quiet voice, yet she still had me on edge.

There was something off about how she was staring at us. A bead of sweat formed on her forehead.

Alarmed, I looked at Deke. He was already looking at Melody, who was whispering to Hakeem and the portal elf. She shook her head.

Get ready. They've blocked the portal. Time for plan B.

Seeing our eyes move around the group, the registrar figured out they'd been busted. I wasn't sure what we were going to do with her until she spoke. "There." She finished the last footprint. "The forms are done. Please," she begged, "go now, you can slip out the side door. We didn't tell them about it." Her face was so open and imploring I had no choice but to believe her. It wasn't her fault. She was a victim in this as much as we were.

"How long have we got?" Deke asked in an undertone. I knew our Head Enforcer, he already had exits planned. I was grateful he'd insisted on coming instead of Chase.

"Five minutes. I told them the wrong time but I think they checked the system. I took you early and had pre-signed the forms."

The registrar confirmed my opinion of her. Innocent. We had to get out of the building without any of the people coming to harm.

"Thank you," Dalton whispered as he cradled Reid's head.

Deke asked Melody to take Bima for a second. If we'd been in less serious circumstances, I might have laughed at her expression while holding my son. Deke then unstrapped Bima's carrier and passed it to the portal elf. "I'm going to need my hands. Farryn, can you take the baby?"

Farryn, the portal elf, looked at me for permission. I gave her a nod. She used sure movement to strap the carrier on. The registrar took the baby from Melody and helped her settle a still sleeping Bima into the carrier.

I was sure I heard her whisper, "I'm sorry, please be safe. "

We followed in a line through the office. One of the staff was talking loudly to someone.

"I'm sorry sir, due to privacy laws, I cannot give that information out." A pause as the person said something I didn't catch. "No, the last appointment is running late. I'm sure you understand babies don't work to our schedules." She gave a very fake and scared sounding laugh.

She was trying to buy us some time to get away. I was suddenly very sure of that fact. Goddess protect them, they didn't deserve to be caught up in this.

Out of the eyeline of the person at the front desk, we got to the side door.

"Please forgive us," the registrar pleaded.

"There's nothing to forgive," Dalton said honestly. "We knew it was a trap but we had no choice. Thank you for doing all you could."

The woman nodded, tears on her face.

There was a squeak as the door opened.

Run! Deke yelled through the link. Cover the babies, get as clear as you can. As soon as the portal is up, you get through. Babies first.

We fled the building, trying to keep out of sight of the other exits.

Only a block later, I caught movement.

There's a tail on us! Hakeem said.

Take to the skies! Deke ordered .

With the fastest strip and shift I'd ever seen, Hakeem was in his eagle owl form and circling us from above.

Three.

"We're too close to portal out. There's something blocking us here," Farryn yelled.

Running as fast as we could, we moved away from the more populated areas. There was more chance of creating a portal outside of the business district and fewer bystanders who could be caught up in a fight.

Dalton was gasping for breath, his fear heavy as we got further away from the offices.

"Not much further," I said, taking his hand and pulling him along. "Nearly there. It's going to be fine."

I wasn't sure who I was trying to kid. Dalton was rightly terrified. My knees were like jelly and all my training felt like a distant memory. This was my family under threat and I was useless.

My nightmares were coming true and I felt powerless to stop them. The babies were awake and crying, confined as they were in the carriers, they couldn't shift, leaving them more vulnerable. I needed to get them home and calm them down. Our enemies were gaining on us fast!

Lark! Get it together. Babies first. You are a dad today. Keep Raiden safe! Deke's order brought me back to myself just in time for a tiger to come crashing through the streets, hot on our tail .

Farryn let out a shout and formed a portal in a blink. In a move I'd never thought was possible, she shoved the portal over Dalton and Ingal, then me. Immediately, we were in Sweetwater, surrounded by our pack.

"An attack!" I called out. It felt like the entire pack was there waiting to send help.

Kade ran forward to take Raiden from me. He unclipped the carrier so quickly and cradled my screaming child to his chest. Raiden calmed.

The portal dropped over Farryn and closed, leaving Deke, Melody and Hakeem behind.

"We need to go back!" I yelled, running for Farryn. She was handing off a wailing Bima to Dakota.

"And we will, with reinforcements. They're greatly outnumbered. Let's follow Deke's orders and go. You'll need to shift."

My eyes caught Dalton's, asking for permission to get Deke, Hakeem, and Melody home. He was going around to our friends, desperately trying to check and soothe the babies.

"Please be careful and bring them back." I felt his determination through our bond.

They'd risked their lives for us. The registration was a bunch of bullshit. If any of my friends were hurt, the mayor would pay .

Farryn gathered enforcers, fae and shifters, in a circle. "Shift if you can. Form a ring around our friends. No one will be left behind."

She was powerful. I bet she had an important role in their military.

We returned to chaos.

Deke was being circled by a tiger, a bird high above him. He and the tiger were darting closer to snap at each other, with the tiger gaining more injuries each time Deke got a swipe at him. Deke was clearly tiring though. Hakeem was battling in the air with some of the aviary shifters. He was fast and deadly. I was glad he was on our side.

When he saw the portal open, he took the chance and returned to Sweetwater. I didn't blame him. He had a son and a baby daughter to think of. Candace, his mate, was likely frantic.

Overpowering the other shifters sent to attack us took less than a minute. They hadn't expected us to return so quickly and to be ready to fight. We'd made sure to have people ready just in case.

Melody was trying to get closer to Deke to have his back as he faced off with the tiger. He was so similar to Hiroshi, this had to be Jared, the only unmated adult alpha Japanese tiger we knew of. Mel hadn't shifted, as her raccoon form wasn't the best to fight in. She was better for stealth in that form. She was a formidable fighter as a human.

All she managed to do was get a kick in before the tiger snapped his massive jaws at her. It was all the distraction Deke needed. He leaped onto the tiger, biting his throat.

It all happened in seconds, barely giving me time to get closer as I subdued the last of the shifters for the human police to deal with. Sirens drew closer.

We needed the fight between Jared and Deke to end. Jared wasn't giving up. I hated him, he was the same one who had hurt Hiroshi. I wanted to be the one to fight him but Deke seemed to have this in hand.

Jared tried to dislodge Deke from his back. He clearly wasn't a fighter. Instead of any skilled moves, he tripped over his massive paws and rolled several times, using his immense bulk to crush Deke under him.

Deke yelped and let go. He lay still. Too still.

Jared took advantage and snapped at Deke's leg, mouth coming away bloody. Fucking coward, biting a helpless shifter.

I broke, seeing my friend lying so damaged. Running at full speed, I butted Jared away from Deke and tore into his vulnerable underbelly with sharp teeth and claws .

Komodo Dragons are venomous and mine acted quickly, along with the gouges in his soft flesh.

Before my eyes, Jared regained his feet unsteadily, then crashed to the ground only to stop moving, not even breathing, a moment later.

Deke!

Melody rushed to his side as the elves and other enforcers formed a barrier around us.

"He's breathing! He needs a healer, or four." She let out a sob. "It's bad!"

Farryn dropped another portal over us, taking us back to Sweetwater in a blink. The portal closed straight away, and I let out a breath. We were safe.

I looked at my friend and boss, my heart sinking. He had to make it. I couldn't cope with the guilt if he didn't.

It felt like the pack all held their breath as the healers all worked on Deke.

He lay on the grass in front of the clinic with his best possible chance of getting through this.

Dalton came to my side and hugged me. "It's not your fault," he whispered.

"He has to make it."

"The Luna will protect him." Dalton sounded so sure. His faith was what got me through those agonizing few minutes.

"Deke's stable!" Hiroshi shouted .

Around us, cheers went up.

"We're going to take him inside. It'll take him some time to recover, but I swear he'll be fine." Aldrin looked as relieved as I felt, telling me it truly was touch and go.

"Only family for now, please." James was checking on the rest of the fighters.

There was something I had to do.

Finding Hiroshi, I went to his side. "Could I speak to you for a minute before you go back to Deke?" They were loading him onto a stretcher using magic. There was spellwork to hold him completely still while healing continued.

"Sure. Wow, that was a close one. He was crushed! What did it?"

How was I going to tell him? How would he react?

"It was a tiger."

To be fair to him, Hiroshi caught on quickly. "Jared. Damn him! He just has to keep hurting people! When will he stop?"

"Now. I killed him." It was said bluntly, I felt no remorse over it. In fact, I wish I'd drawn it out. Taken my time with him for what he'd done to Hiroshi, what he'd done to Roan, Tate, Asher. For Deke. So many lives had been affected by that trash. If it hadn't been for Deke lying broken, needing medical attention, I would have .

"Oh thank fuck!" Hiroshi let out a giggle, one tinged with hysteria. "He can't get me anymore. It's done." He was hugging himself. "I need to tell Jason."

Jason was Jared's father and the pack Alpha for the Northarbor pride, and our ally. Him I felt bad for.

"Let someone else tell him. Alpha Blake will. I'll tell him what I did—"

"Thank you." Hiroshi threw himself into my arms and squeezed me hard. "Thanks for doing that for me, for protecting Deke. I'm so grateful my nightmare is over."

I hugged him back. "You're welcome."

Over the next hour, Dalton took the babies home with Chase, Ingal and Roan. My friend had thanked me for what I'd done, and despite the terrible act, I knew it had been the right thing to do. Jared would never have stopped, and I'd taken one of the aviary's most powerful allies from them.

I stood witness as Alpha Blake made the call to Jason, who had complicated feelings over the death of his second son. I pitied the man. He had lost valued members of the pride thanks to the actions of Jared, but Jared was still his child, and Jason would grieve his loss.

My Alpha gave me the opportunity to speak to Jason so I could clear my conscience. While shifter lives were precious, none reveled in taking one. This was no different. If he had attacked then left, I wouldn't have needed to put him down.

Gratefully, Jason understood the action I'd taken, and even sent well wishes to Deke. I knew our pact would remain in place with the pride.

"Deke's asking for you," Hiroshi came to tell me. "Aldrin said you could have a short visit. Deke's out of the woods now. It's going to take a couple of weeks of bedrest before he's fully mobile again."

"He's going to hate that."

"Yeah," Hiroshi laughed. "Go see him. You'll feel better."

My boss was lying in a large bed with stark white sheets all covered in runes. Magic to keep him from moving too much, I guessed. I took a chair next to his bed, all the adrenaline flowing out of me.

"Gotta keep me still so my bones reform right," Deke explained. "Jared really did a number on me."

"The asshole is dead."

"Thank fuck. What the hell was that fighting style? Just roll your hulking form over your opponent?" Deke tried to laugh.

"I think he did it on accident." Looking at Deke was painful. His body was covered in cuts and bruises from the asphalt. His leg was bandaged hip to toes where he'd been bitten.

"Right?" Deke studied me. "Anyone else hurt? "

"Just scratches. A couple broken bones. Nothing major," I listed them.

No one had been hurt as badly as Deke. Hakeem felt awful about leaving when he did and wanted to apologize. There was little he could have done and he had his family to think of.

The aviary had gone too far, and with them, the mayor. His reputation was already taking a hit thanks to social media posts from the registrar office and bystanders. We were clearly the victims, the aviary couldn't spin it any other way.

Wanting to lighten the mood, I went for humor. "You know, if you wanted attention, you just had to ask."

His chuckle was weak. "Fuck, that hurts." He took a deep breath, wincing a little. "The babies?"

"Perfect, thanks to you. I can't thank you enough."

If Deke hadn't kept a clear head, I didn't think we could have gotten out of there. I was ready to fall to pieces and I had the training! He was the reason we were all safe.

"Just doing my job."

"No. You kept us cool under pressure. You are the reason no one is dead." It needed to be said because it was so true.

"Apart from that idiot tiger," he joked.

"And maybe some birds." I didn't care about them. They'd taken the risk when they'd tried to attack us for the crime of being different to them.

I wanted to touch him, to assure myself he was there and would be whole soon. I wasn't sure my standoffish friend would welcome the touch, with how sore he was.

Deke closed the gap between our fingers and wrapped his pinky around mine. "This makes me godfather, right?"