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It was obvious. The Executors were coming to take my babies. I didn’t know how they knew to come tonight, but my intuition told me exactly why they were here.
And yet somehow, I believed Verla was right. I didn’t have to worry myself with that right now. My friends had three of the Oaken Wands, and they would obliterate any Executors who came our way. Outside, there would be carnage and death, but right here in this room, I would give life.
The Executors fell from my mind. All that mattered was what was happening right here.
Another half an hour passed, and the contractions became even more intense and closer together.
I felt the urge to push. I rolled onto my back and Lucas was right there to hold me. He was sitting on the bed, and he wrapped his arms around me as I leaned against him. I squeezed his hand as an intense contraction rippled through my abdomen.
“That’s it!” Onyx cried happily.
“He’s crowning!” Verla added with excitement.
The whole atmosphere of the room shifted. Their celebration seemed infectious, and though this was one of the most difficult things I ever had to do, I felt incredible joy.
“Another push, Nadine,” Onyx encouraged. “You’re doing great. Five… four… three… two… one…”
I pushed until she reached the count of one, then paused to catch my breath. Tears sprang from my eyes. I couldn’t believe I was about to meet my baby boys.
“One more push,” Onyx said.
I looked up to see tears of joy streamed down Lucas’s face. He was so in the moment, so focused. It was beautiful.
Lucas squeezed my shoulders. “You’ve got this.”
Complete peace washed over me. I couldn’t imagine anything that could bring me closer to my husband or to our babies. Another contraction squeezed my belly, and though I pushed, I was completely and utterly relaxed.
Relief swept through me as the baby emerged, the magic of the moment unmatched by any spell I’d ever cast before. I looked down to see Luana holding a very tiny, squirming little boy. I couldn’t believe how small he was. He couldn’t be more than four pounds. Lucas hugged me close, and my whole body shook as I cried tears of joy.
“Marcus,” I whispered. “He’s so little.”
Verla looked at the clock. “May sixteenth, twelve-eleven a.m. Born at the peak of the eclipse.”
“He’s not crying,” Lucas panicked. “Why isn’t he crying?”
Luana placed two fingers on Marcus’s chest, and a white glow filled his little body. Still, no sound came. I had the horrifying thought that he wasn’t going to make it, either.
Luana came around the side of the bed and placed Marcus straight on my chest. Our skin connected, and Luana draped a tiny blanket over Marcus’s back. The feeling of joy when I touched my son for the first time was unmatched. Marcus curled his tiny legs upward and snuggled close to me. I didn’t want this moment to ever end.
Luana tried her healing magic again, placing her fingers on Marcus’s back. A beautiful glow filled the room, only this time, it wasn’t just her magic. The skeleton key I wore around my neck emanated a powerful white light, as if it too was working to heal him. I hadn’t taken it off since Lucas put it around my neck the day I tossed my memento box across the room.
I was shocked. Grammy had said this key held a protection charm, but that never made sense, because it hadn’t protected us before. It was clear in that moment that this was so much more. Grammy had said the key wasn’t meant for me, and I realized now that’s because it was meant for Marcus.
The most glorious sound broke from Marcus’ lungs. It was so quiet, but that tiny little cry was everything.
“That’s it, baby boy,” Lucas said gently. “You’re so strong.”
I started to cry in relief, but gasped as another contraction hit me. Luana quickly handed Marcus off to Onyx, and Verla already had gloves on to help. Across the room, Onyx worked at the incubator, hooking Marcus up to all kinds of wires and tubes. I couldn’t be more grateful for my birthing team. Because of them, Marcus had a fighting chance at life.
Sweat dripped down my brow as I gave another big push. Suddenly, our baby Dean came into the world. It was over so quickly. I couldn’t believe how fast it all happened.
Everything seemed so quiet at that moment. My body sagged against Lucas, feeling so relieved. Small contractions continued, but nothing like it was before.
Luana must’ve known since the moment he arrived that Dean wasn’t going to survive. I was certain she had felt it with her magic, because she didn’t try to resuscitate him. She simply wrapped Dean up in a blanket and placed him on my chest. She let us cry over him as we held his little body close. Dean was even smaller than Marcus, and he was precious in every way. Lucas placed his hand on Dean’s back, and together, we let the tears flow.
People poked and prodded at me, but I barely felt it. All that mattered was this tiny little boy in my arms. He was so perfect.
Lucas ran his fingers over Dean’s tiny little arms. When I looked up at my husband, he had the most loving look in his eyes. He didn’t even look sad; he looked so, so in love.
