13. Chapter 13

I awoke to the sound of my mate running through our home. At first, I did not understand what was happening. Then I realized, as he burst out the front door, letting in a blast of the cold morning air. I followed after him and came to his side just as he released the contents of his stomach into the yard.

"Walker, are you all right?" I rubbed his back, offering him my comfort. Of course he wasn't all right, but out those words came. He shuddered beneath my hand. "Do I need to call for the doctor?"

"No," he said between gasps. "I'm pretty sure it's just the baby. Morning sickness. It's normal. Some people say it's a good sign that the pregnancy is healthy."

I wasn't sure how violently expelling food from your body was ever "good."

"Are you certain? I do not like to see you this way." My own stomach twisted in agony. Perhaps it was a combination of feeling what he felt throughout bond and seeing him sick. Or maybe it was just that I did not like to see him in pain. I wanted to fix it as quickly as I could and find a way to prevent it from ever happening again. If only there was a way for me to take it all from him.

"I'm fine. The nausea has passed." He pushed himself up to a standing position. "Really. I promise you. Once it came out, things instantly started to feel better."

I wouldn't have believed it was possible if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, but his skin turned even more pale, and he folded over again, emptying his stomach. His relief was over as quickly as it came.

There couldn't be much left in there. The night before we had enjoyed a dinner of stew and fresh bread, but he had not eaten much of it. He had barely kept his eyes open at the dinner table. This pregnancy was taking a toll on my mate's body.

"Oh, my love. I do not like to see you this way. Is there something I can do?" There had to be.

"Water," he said weakly. "Maybe some tea."

I rushed inside and filled him a glass of water and brought it back to him. He was sitting on the picnic table now, breathing slowly. I had grabbed a blanket on my way out, and I wrapped it around his shoulders.

"Can you take me back inside? My legs are shaking."

There was no way this was how it should be. My brothers would have mentioned it if it were. Something was wrong, but also, I didn't want to alarm my mate.

"Of course," I said, and I lifted him into my arms. "This doesn't feel normal, mate. I worry."

I felt more than saw his smile. He had his face resting against my shoulder and he clung to me tightly.

"It is, I promise it is. I'm very tired. But we can ask Franklin later when we go see him."

"I will bring him here," I said. "You are not traveling anywhere."

It was far easier for me to decide to bring the healer here than it had been to bring my brothers. There was nothing I would not do for my mate. And if that meant I had to put street signs up directing people to our home, I would gladly do it.

I settled him onto the couch and helped him to get pillows and blankets settled around him. I knelt on the floor, searching his face for any indication that he might need something else.

"Thank you. I can't argue with that plan," he said, and he closed his eyes. I sat with him for quite a while, listening to his heartbeat, letting the heart song between us hum its natural melody. Nothing between our bond indicated that there was anything wrong. His wolf was quiet, content and happy as always. Perhaps the vomiting and fatigue was normal after all. That didn't mean I had to like it.

With reluctance, I left my mate's side. I couldn't go all the way to get Franklin. Standing up and walking across the room had been hard enough. I went in search of my phone and found it in the kitchen of all places. I dialed my brother. He answered on the second ring.

"I need you to escort this Franklin to my home. Walker is not feeling up to travel," I said. "Did your mate have such difficulties early in their pregnancy? Walker cannot keep food down and he is very tired."

"Well, good morning to you too, Apollo. I can absolutely bring Franklin there. I take it Walker woke up feeling sick?" Terran's jovial voice did not have near the urgency to it that this situation called for. Why was he not fetching this Franklin immediately?

"Yes. And he is back asleep now. I do not like seeing him suffer so."

"Of course not. He is your mate. I can call Franklin to see if he can arrive a little earlier. And we will bring him straight to you. Morning sickness is pretty normal for a pregnancy, Apollo. Maddox was nauseous a bit but not terribly so. I am not sure about Marcus."

"So I am to just sit and watch him suffer this way? That is insanity, and I will not allow it."

My brother had the audacity to chuckle. "It is the way of things, Apollo. It is not fair that we, as alphas, don't have to suffer as they do during the pregnancy, but we can't change nature. Just be there for him and support him in whatever way he needs. Draw him a bath in that large tub of yours. Read to him. Hold him. All of that will help to ease his suffering."

"Thank you, Brother. I will call you." I didn't wait for a formal goodbye. I hung up and dialed Luan, asking him similar questions. He was not of much help either, though he did have some herbs that could be soothing for an upset stomach.

I searched the internet, hoping that humans may have found some remedy to this age-old problem. Of course, it didn't have any information about centaur pregnancies or centaur/wolf pregnancies, but this morning sickness thing, this nausea, that was normal. Most places recommended calm things for the stomach: crackers, tea. No resource had a cure. It was cruel.

Deciding I had all the information needed, I set to work on gathering the items that would help, and while my mate was sleeping, I took snacks to the table near the couch. He could reach for them if he needed them. I brewed the tea and left it there for him as well. With a bit of my magic, it would remain at the perfect temperature until my mate was ready for it.

Several hours later, Franklin arrived, and my mate finally roused from his rest. He nibbled on the crackers. "I'm just so tired," he said. I held him in my arms.

"That is normal," Franklin said. "I was quite tired with the triplets."

Walker's eyes widened. "Could it be triplets? It can't be triplets, right? There's no way. It can't be triplets."

"Easy there," Franklin said. "I am not suggesting that it is triplets. I'm simply saying that pregnancies are tough. I can give you a recipe for a tea that can help, though the one that your mate prepared seems to be doing its job. You have all the things that you need here to make any variation of tea you can imagine."

"That would be most wonderful," I said. "Thank you."

"The twins from Steelwick, you know them, they have some cookies they swear by," Franklin said. "I never got a chance to try it for my own pregnancy, but others have."

"I will get those for my mate," I said. I had no way to travel there, nor did I know exactly where it was, but I could make it happen.

Walker patted my arm. "Sweetheart, I don't need everything. I promise I'll be fine." He smiled at me, and it was almost like there was laughter in his eyes.

"How about we take a look at your child, shall we?" Franklin said.

"Of course. How does this work?" Walker asked.

"Stay exactly where you are," Franklin said, pulling out a bottle. "I will need Walker to drink this. It allows me to have a connection with you, to see, and then I will simply draw."

"That's amazing. You're really a witch," I said.

"I am," Franklin said with a wink. Walker drank down the concoction that Franklin had given him, and then Franklin began his work. His eyes closed, his free hand hovering over my mate's stomach, while his other hand drew furiously. How he could draw without looking at the paper, I did not know.

Within a few minutes, he opened his eyes. "Yes. Baby is growing right on track and looking fantastic." He turned around the image, and there on the page, looking like he was sleeping, all nestled and safe inside my mate's womb, was our child.

It was the most perfect image.