190: Secrets (Lucky's POV)

190: Secrets (Lucky's POV)
(Trigger Warning: Death, Child Loss)

Vincar had run to notify Wyatt and me of Shasta being in labor because she was asking for me. When we arrived, however, Shasta was unconscious. She had an entire team working on her, with Vincar leading the charge. Sweat dripped from his pale brow as he pleaded with her to hold on. Wyatt and I stood in the corner of her room, helpless.

The flatline on the heart monitor didn’t move of its own volition. It only spiked with each push Vincar did on her chest, returning to static before the shock rang through Shasta’s body. Vincar pushed meds through an IV line, barking out orders to the team he had in the room.

Wyatt draped his arm over my shoulder. I looked up at my mate to find him completely pale, eyes locked on Shasta. Normally, I would have reached up to him and told him not to worry— that with wolves, complications from birth rarely resulted in death of the mother or the pup. But this wasn’t a normal circumstance. Kelley had broken their mate bond, which meant Shasta was weak. It was too early in her pregnancy for her to be in labor, and that didn’t bode well for the pup either.

After what felt like hours, Vincar stood up straight and looked at a clock on the wall. “Everyone, stop. Time of death is 14:27.”

My vision went hazy along the edges as I felt Shasta’s bond with the pack officially severed. I staggered back, clutching a hand to my chest. Vincar shot me a sympathetic look as he approached, ripping up the pair of surgical gloves he had on.

“What the hell happened?” Wyatt questioned, dropping his arm from my shoulders.

“Her body couldn’t handle the stress of the mate bond being broken,” the healer explained, “Shasta went into pre-term labor, and at first, things appeared to be fine with her. The baby’s heartbeat couldn’t be found with an ultrasound. That’s why I ran to get you. She was in pain, but her vitals were normal, and she was normal. She was asking for Lucky,” Vincar nodded at me, pale hair swaying in the AC. “When I returned, her heart had stopped. I’ll need to conduct an autopsy to be able to tell you exactly what happened to her.”

Silent tears were spilling from my cheeks. Attendants were working behind Vincar, turning off the beeping machines and disconnecting whatever lines and machines Shasta was connected to. Her eyes were closed, and from this distance, it looked like she was just sleeping peacefully.

Wyatt cleared his throat, and I looked up to see his eyes still locked on Shasta. “Do you know what you need to determine what happened?” he turned to look at me, and despite his flat expression, I could see the pain swimming in his eyes. “I hate to ask you to do this, but do you think that you could tell Cillian and Nadine? I don’t think I—” Wyatt squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head, flexing his hands at his side, “I think it needs to be done in person, and I can’t leave.”

“You want me to travel to North Carolina and Alabama right now?” I arched an eyebrow, and Vincar shot me a glance before slowly backing away, “Are you sure that’s what’s best?”

My mate ushered me into the hallway and away from the attendants still in Shasta’s room, “We need them to fight, Wrenlee. Losing both Kelley and Shasta is too much.”

I gave a curt nod, “And you think I’m more likely to be able to convince them?”

Wyatt nodded slowly, “That, and I don’t think I can be the one to tell Cillian.”

“He’s found his mate, Wyatt,” I lowered my voice as someone walked past us with a little wave, “Surely that will make it a little bit less devastating for him.”

He shook his head, running his fingers along my jawline, “When a man loves the way Cillian does, nothing in the world will make it less devastating.”

I turned my cheek into his open palm, “I’ll do it if you think it’s necessary.”

“I do,” Wyatt placed a small kiss on my forehead, “You’ll need to leave immediately.”

My eyes narrowed as he pulled away. I studied his face. He was schooling his expression, working carefully to remain guarded with me. Reika growled in my mind, Our mate is hiding something from us. A response wasn’t necessary because she was right. As heartbreaking as the news would be, given our current circumstances, Cillian and Nadine should be notified of this progression via mindlink. And if he really needed them to fight, Wyatt could give them a direct order. He’s the only one who could.

Which meant he wanted me gone for some reason.

As much as that hurt, I would do what was necessary for him and for our Dominion. Eventually, he would tell me what was going on. Maybe with Kelley leaving and Shasta’s death following so closely, it was all too raw. Knowing Wyatt, he needed a chance to process everything and get angry before he could talk about it.

I stood on my tiptoes and placed a chaste kiss on his lips, “I’ll take Eros and Aksel.”

He shook his head, placing a rough kiss on my lips in response, “Take Aksel and Scarlet. I need Eros here.”

“They have training—”

“I will figure out how to cover them for a week while the three of you are gone,” he insisted, pulling away, “Speaking of which, I need to go cover Kelley’s afternoon patrol,” Vincar stepped into the hallway and Wyatt turned to address him, “No one outside of that room can know about Shasta until Lucky has a chance to go tell my brother and sister.”

“I’ll ensure it is kept secret,” Vincar bowed his head before looking up at me, “Safe travels, my Queen.”

He left Wyatt and me standing in the hall, staring at each other. Every part of me wanted to beg him to let me stay and to tell me what was actually going on, but I fought against it. Instead, I reached out to Aksel and Scarlet and let them know I needed them to be prepared to leave within five minutes.

Wyatt and I kissed once more before he began sprinting down the hall, remaining silent as he disappeared from view.

Something wasn’t right. Something beyond the loss of Kelley, Shasta, and their pup. Something beyond being at war. I knew I needed to know what was going on, but I needed to balance it with my duties as a new Luna Queen. If convincing Wyatt’s siblings to fight was where I was needed, it was where I’d be.

Even if I hated the very thought of whatever secret was being kept from me by my mate.