Chapter 44 - Nikos


    The second I set my eyes on the blood-soaked baby on Mia’s chest, I found myself kneeling at her


    bedside. This is my heart split into two people, my entire life in front of me and I knew at that moment


    that I would kill anyone who tried to hurt them.


    A burst of pride shot through my chest, chasing away all the bad, all the shame and doubts that I would


    be a good parent. In its ce stood steely determination and a fierce, overprotective love I have never


    felt before.


    Did my father not feel this when I was born or was it only reserved for my brother? Did my mother feel


    the same love and pride shining in Mia’s eyes? How could they not feel this way about their own


    children? How cold do you have to be to not love the little person you helped make?


    “Would you do the honor, Alpha?” Lh asks me as she holds up the umbilical cord. I don’t even have


    to think twice, forgoing the scissors and using my teeth as Knox feels immense pride for using him to


    bite through the cord.


    I wipe the blood from my mouth, turn to my Luna, and pepper kisses against her hair. “So beautiful; I


    am so proud of you,” I say, drinking in her relief and swallowing her happy tears. “You did well, vasílissa


    mou.”


    She tries to swallow down a sob and I draw my forehead to hers whileying my hand on Ares. The


    instant, fierce love I feel for this little one nearly knocks me out cold and I swallow down the emotion


    threatening to spill over my cheeks.


    “Can you help me up, please?” Mia asks me when Lh takes Ares away. “I can feel the tears have


    healed, I just need to clean up before I give Ares his first feed.”


    My heart drops. “Tears?”


    This seems to make her blush and she nods. “I tore quite a bit trying to push him out, but they’ve all


    healed now,” she says, stunning me even more. I knew what went into giving birth, but hearing how it


    hurt her just breaks my heart.


    My lips are a thin line, but I pick her up and carry her to our bedroom. I ce her in the shower and


    help her wash the blood and mucus away. I don’t use any perfumed body wash since Ares needs to get


    used to her scent, and when we’re done, I dry her off and wrap a fluffy nightgown around her waist


    while throwing on a pair of sweatpants myself.


    All through this, she wears a blissful smile and I can feel the contentment radiating through her mark.


    “What a night,” she chuckles before falling against my chest. “I am so happy, Niko.”


    I hold her against me and kiss the top of her head with nothing but love in my heart for her. “As am I,


    kardia mou. You have made me the happiest man alive,” I say and walk her into our bedroom.


    We see Lh standing at the foot of our bed and I hear a low growling from Mia when she sees


    another woman holding Ares. I can’t help but chuckle at her overprotectiveness, her wolf already


    feeling possessive of our son.


    Lh hears the growl and pales, her smile dropping slightly and I lead Mia over to the bed before taking


    Ares from her. “Thank you, Lh,” I say, dismissing the doctor before she loses her head.


    I look down at the tiny bundle in my arms and my heart fills to the brim with adoration. How any parent


    can harm their child is unknown to me; I’ll harm anyone who dares to touch him with the intent of doing


    harm.


    Kissing his forehead, I ce him in Mia’s arms and watch as her face lights up. She kisses Ares’ little


    head and whispers how much she loves him while getting ready to give him his first feed.


    I am certain the look of bliss on her face mirrors mine and my heart swells watching the two of them. To


    think I was going to buy him and then send her on her way; how could I ever have thought that it would


    be that simple?


    And what a fucking asshole I was for ever thinking I could do that to her. This woman is my life and now


    she’s given me something I could never rece. She’s changed me for the better and makes me want


    to be a better Alpha and partner.


    If anyone has the power in this pack, it’s my little rabbit.


    After Ares’ feed, she burps him and he immediately falls asleep again. She kisses his little hands and I


    get up and push the bass next to her side of the bed, watching as sheys him down.


    “He’s perfect, Niko,” she gushes when I go to lie down next to her. “He’s absolutely perfect.”


    “He is,” is all I can muster out as emotion chokes my throat again, but this time I allow it to show. That


    proud feeling starts in my chest and spreads through my entire body and a sob tears through my chest


    at that moment.


    Mia wraps her arms around my waist and I hold her close. “Thank you for giving my heart a reason to


    keep beating, Mia,” I murmur, peppering kisses all over her head. “Gods, I love you so fucking much.”


    She holds onto me and I can feel her tears as they hit my chest. Ourbined love and adoration for


    Ares and each other makes me feel like my heart is about to burst, but I keep holding her until her


    breathing evens out.


    I gently push her back against the pillow and wipe away her tears before kissing her lips. She looks


    beautiful even as she sleeps, and as much as I don’t want to leave right now, Maxim has been calling


    me over the mind link and it sounds urgent.


    Not bothering with a t-shirt, I walk out of the bedroom and see Panzer and Armata at the door. “Do not


    let anyone in here, do you understand?” I say and they nod, understanding the importance.


    “Yes, Alpha,” they say in unison and I feel better knowing two of my trusted Gammas are watching over


    my heart.


    I find Maxim in my office pacing the floor with a ss of bourbon in his hand. He sees me and puts it


    down before walking over to me and embracing me.


    “Syncharitíria,” he congrattes me, patting my back. “I trust the prince is healthy?”


    “As a fucking horse - well, wolf,” I say, chuckling and we walk over to my sofas. “So what was so


    fucking important that I had to leave my family?”


    His jaw clenches and he shakes his head. “Josef disappeared. I’ve sent Ghost out to find him, but all


    traces of him are missing; I didn’t even see or sense him at Mikhail’s pack house when I think about it.”


    I growl. “How much do you want to fucking bet The Elders are behind this?”


    “That was my first thought, but one of my eyes inside the Incest Mansion says Josef hasn’t been there


    at all. It’s starting to fucking worry me, Niko; there’s no way he’s an insignificant yer in all of this.”


    Anger pierces my heart when I think about how much I trusted Josef and how much I wanted to help


    him. I put him next to the most important person in my life and he nearly took them both from me.


    “I need Descry to go out with Ghost to do another sweep of the perimeter; there’s no fucking way he’s


    just disappeared without a trace. Either he’s outside my territory, or somewhere inside it,” I growl as


    uneasiness sets in my heart. “You know what they fucking say about loose strings.”


    “They can unravel even the greatest masterpiece,” he says with disgust, clenching his jaw. “How the


    fuck did he slip under our radar, Niko? We trusted that fucking rat and he betrayed us!”


    “Nothing hurts you more than family,” I say, leaning back and biting the pad of my thumb. “Speaking of


    which, we need to decide when to get the selection of wives down.”


    Maxim visibly shudders. “I can’t believe you want me to fucking marry someone I don’t know,” he says,


    shaking his head. “But whatever is good for the pack and whatever will strengthen our alliances.”


    I nod. “It’s our way of life, brother; we marry for nothing but love until we find love.”


    I hate doing this to Maxim, but I have to do it for the good of the pack. There have been too many


    exiled in thest few weeks, I cannot afford to fuck this up now that I own the secondrgest territory.


    “That reminds me-” My words are cut short when a terrible sense of fear grips my heart and I leap to


    my feet, knocking my chair over. My hand goes to Mia’s mark on my neck and it’s burning hot…that’s


    when I hear it.


    Mia’s heart-wrenching scream.


    Maxim pales and we both run out of the office, my heart clenching when I see Panzer and Armata


    looking at me with fear in their eyes. I burst through the bedroom door and see Mia screaming and


    pulling at her hair while staring at the bass.


    She turns her head to me, tears shining in her eyes as she leaps from the bed. “He’s gone, Niko! Ares


    is gone!” she cries out, punching my chest and I grab her wrist to gently hold her sobbing frame against


    me.


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    There’s a different scent in here, something I cannot ce but something I know so well.


    “Who the fuck came in here?!”


    I hear Maxim ask the two Gammas behind me as I walk towards the now empty bass… but it’s not


    exactly empty…something isying where my son should be, and it feels as if someone has stuck a hot


    poker through my heart.


    “The doctor came, Beta Maxim! She said she needed to check up on Luna and she has been in before,


    so we assumed it was fine!”


    Lh, that’s the scent I’m smelling. But why…why would she take my son and why would she put this in


    his ce?


    Maxim walks towards me and freezes when he sees the thingying in ce of my son; the anxiety


    “Niko…is that-”


    “Yes,” I simply answer, my hands trembling as I pick up the spiked leather cor my mother used to


    make me wear.