Chapter 197 Iggy is Coming
A choked sob tore itself from Jax’s throat. He was a warrior, a killer without a second thought, when he needed to be, but looking at his human wife lying helpless in an oven, he was just a terrified husband. Tears finally spilled over his lashes, mixing with the sweat on his cheeks.
"Yes," Jax cried, his voice breaking completely. He pressed his forehead against the hot glass. "Yes, do it. But what about Leela? Is Zephyr ok? What about my mother?"
Veda glanced over her shoulder at the Luna and her pale face. "Leela will hold. The elemental stone inside her must be keeping the baby safe. When the sleep and the frost hit, the stone couldn't fight off everything, so it retreated to what it felt was the most important. It’s wrapped an elemental shield around the child. The baby is dormant, but completely protected."
She then looked over at Elana, who lay under her own pile of blankets, her chest rising and falling with a much steadier rhythm now. "As for your mother, Jax, I’m not sure how, but she seems to be doing fine with the heat. The old wolf in her is soaking it up like a sunbath. She's strong. But Ginny..." Veda looked back down at the flushed, sweating human woman. "Ginny is human, Jax. She can't shield the baby the way Leela can. I have to get this child out before the root freezes its heart."
Veda turned her back to the window and reached for a sterilized surgical tray that had been left on a side table. She picked up a scalpel, the metal glinting under the harsh vault lights.
Jax spun around, his tear-streaked face twisting into a mask of desperate command. "Miller! Get the medical team down here right fucking now! Bring the incubators, the oxygen, everything!
"I need towels, now!" Veda ordered, her eyes never leaving Ginny. "And I need a basin of cool water waiting right outside this door for Iggy the second I get him out! The heat in here will shock his system once he's free of the root, and we need to stabilize him fast."
She pointed her scalpel toward the ceiling vents. "And get the exhaust working on full blast! The Winter’s Breath is evaporating, turning into vapor. I want it sucked out of here immediately. We are not keeping this poison in here for them to rebreathe!"
Miller scrambled to the console, his hands flying over the controls. The heavy, metallic hum of the vault’s exhaust fans kicked in, beginning to pull the oily, violet mist up and away from the cots.
Inside, Veda turned her attention back to Ginny. She sterilized the skin and steadied her hand, preparing to make the incision. But the moment the cold steel of the scalpel pressed against Ginny’s flushed abdomen, the heart monitor beside the cot began to shriek.
Ginny’s blood pressure skyrocketed, the numbers flashing a dangerous, angry red on Miller's screens outside.
Veda pulled the blade back, cursing softly in the old tongue. "She’s under, but her nervous system is still firing," Veda yelled toward the glass. "She's feeling the pain! I need to sedate her to make the cut, but I don't know how chemical anesthesia is going to react to the Winter’s Breath residue in her blood. If I guess wrong, it could stop her heart completely."
Jax slammed his fist against the door frame, feeling utterly helpless.
But before Veda could weigh the impossible risk, Ginny’s entire body suddenly bowed upward off the cot. A massive, violent convulsion ripped through her, her spine arching as her muscles locked tight.
Veda dropped the scalpel onto the tray and quickly pressed her hands against Ginny’s stomach. A grim, triumphant smile touched the old woman’s lips.
"Well," Veda called out, looking directly at Jax through the observation window. "Looks like your pup has decided he’s coming on his own! Her body is forcing him out to save them both." She gestured sharply toward the heavy vault door. "Jax, get in here! I’m going to need you. Strip down to your skivvies if need be, just get in here!"
Jax didn't hesitate. He grabbed the hem of his soaked tactical shirt and ripped it over his head, tossing it onto the corridor floor. He hit the manual override, the heavy door hissing open just enough for him to slip inside before sealing shut behind him.
The heat hit him like a physical wall—a blistering, suffocating wave that immediately drew a fresh sheet of sweat across his bare chest and shoulders. The air was a staggering 120 degrees, making his wolf pace frantically beneath his skin, but Jax ignored the primal urge to flee. He rushed to the head of the cot, dropping to his knees beside his wife.
"Hold her head," Veda instructed, her hands already moving to guide the delivery as Ginny’s body seized with another massive contraction. "Just use your voice, Beta. Let her know you are here. Ground her."
Jax slid his hands into Ginny’s damp hair, cradling her face. Her skin was burning up, her brow knit in unconscious agony. He leaned his face close to hers, his chest heaving.
"I'm here, Ginny. I'm right here, baby," Jax whispered, his voice cracking with raw emotion. He brought his thumb across her cheek, wiping away a drop of moisture. He gave a choked, trembling laugh, no longer able to tell where his own tears ended and the sweat began. "You're doing so good. Iggy is coming. Just hold on for me."
Jax's muscles locked tight with fear every single time another contraction hit Ginny. His heart broke a little more with each agonizing wave that arched her back. She should be awake for this, he thought, the grief and helplessness choking him. She should be the one to see Iggy first. The tears were a steady flow now, mixing indistinguishably with the heavy sweat dripping from his chin as another brutal contraction took her body.