Chapter 57 THE WEIGHT OF AN HEIR
Raphael's POV
Things have been going well lately.
Almost a little too well.
The attitude of the Elders that had grown haughty and softly disrespectful over the years was now gradually molding itself back to respect, after 5 years I have proven myself to be a man again capable of siring a pup, one could carry on the Alpha Title.
"Daddy can I play outside today?" Jaxon asked, his voice shrouded in so much hope it gave me a pinch of guilt to tell him no once more.
I had come to see him in his room, a place I wasn't fond of visiting because the world was stuck with the smell of antiseptic and drugs, the entire place looked sterile. The furniture and everything else that should have occupied a little boy's room such as toys and perhaps little story books were kept to the very bare minimum. This was to make cleaning easier and to give space for the doctors to store their drugs and work freely.
"Jaxonwhat did I tell you? Just still need to stay indoors for a little longer, make sure you take all your medications and eat all your meals. Once your doctors give me the clear, you can go out and play."
The older Jaxon got the more I kept him indoors, it was one of the hardest decisions I had to make as a father but a necessary one as the Alpha.
If my son being this frail became less and less of a confirmed secret I would not be able to show my face outside again either.
"Daddy..." He pulled on the sleeve of my shirt sitting up on his bed, his little eyes filled with pleading. I swallowed the lump in my throat.
"Jackson, you just have to be patient for a little longer. Hmmm, buddy?"
Now that Medea was pregnant I was no longer working on thin ice with the Elders but there was still the issue of that woman and her so-called fiancé to be handled.
I couldn't let her see my son, never. When I went to her filthy backwater camp I had offered her a chance to be in Jackson's life again but she proudly dismissed it now this was her punishment for it I was going to make sure that she never saw him again.
Every few minutes I would check my watch to make sure that I was not using optimal time here. Eventually, it was 2 hours and I had to return to my meat and check on how she was doing.
As I stood up Jaxon reached out and grabbed the sleeve of my shirt tugging on it.
"Are you leaving daddy?"
It hurts me so much to do this, my boy was an alpha blood he shouldn't be this week. I shouldn't have to hide him away like this but sometimes life was just bitter and cruel.
He had a sibling coming along and I can't say I'll treat him the same way especially if the pup turns out to be a boy as well. I'll still make sure he gets the medication he needs for the rest of his life but it will have to remain within these four walls away from everyone else in the pack.
"Yes, buddy I have to go now but don't worry I'll be back to see you soon and..."
He started to sniffle, "You always say that Daddy... But...but .."
"Jackson," I said my voice sharper than I intended but I didn't apologize and just continued talking to him like that because I didn't have the time to waste here anymore, "mommy is pregnant right now and needs daddy by her side, that's why I can't be here with usual do you understand?"
He tilted his head and gave me a quizzical look.
"B-but Mommy's gone..."
Now it was my turn to look confused.
"What do you mean mommy's gone? She's perfectly fine."
He started to wrap and unwrap his fingers together.
"But the mean lady said my mommy is gone and she's never going to come back."
'mean lady' the only person he referred to like that was Medea, I had endlessly scolded him for growing up and who would have thought that he still called her that. This was all news to me, Medea was an open-hearted woman unlike the vicious witch that was his actual biological mother.
Before Jaxon was born I had suggested that we take him to some distant relatives but Medea was vehemently against this. She said she would raise him as her own, I can't imagine her saying that to him.
"Jaxonit's not good to tell lies about mommy okay?"
"But I'm not-"
"That's enough from you Jackson, be a good boy or else you won't play outside again."
There was that pinch of guilt once more telling him something I knew he'd never get.
Jackson's room was split into two, one side being his medical room and the connecting side being what his normal room would have looked like if he were normal himself.
There was the doctor on duty sitting by the door I had sent her out when I wanted to speak to Jaxon alone.
She starts up straight the moment I close the door behind me.
"Greetings Alpha..." She said to me and I murmured something in response.
It was pack doctor Dr Samara Lake.
The same woman who had handled Jackson's delivery years ago, also took care of Celestia's prenatal treatment. Personally, I didn't like her, never really been crazy about people whose loyalty could be bought with money, but she was skilled in her field and for now, she seemed to be loyal to us.
She was already holding a bottle of pills. I noticed that it looked different from my son's use of raw medication but I remembered that my wife needed me right now so I decided to just push that to the back of my mind and go and attend to her instead.
I'm sure it's nothing.