“Cara, are you okay?”
“I’m fine. Just not good with violence, even when it’s justified.”
Zach pushed himself to his feet and stood, swaying. He was naked from the waist up, his skin, pale where it never saw the sun, was as pebbled as her legs. Smooth muscles hugged his tall frame, and he shivered.
Jessie opened the kitchen entrance, and he staggered in. She reached to help support him, but he gently pushed her away.
“We’ve done enough damage for one night,” he rasped, straightening.
Jessie stiffened. “We only did what we had to do.”
Zach’s gaze drifted over her. “Yeah. Seems so.” When Cara reached for him, he waved her off, as well.
“I’m okay,” he told the older woman. “You’re not.”
Cara’s face was white as a sheet, her mouth held stiff in pain.
“It’s an energy thing.” Cara pulled up a chair and sat. “Violent death affects me. It’s why my kind were never much good during a war.”
Jessie’s mind spun. Just what the hell was Cara, anyway?
Zach suddenly stiffened and turned toward the door. Jessie caught a glimmer of the panic. Not caused by Zach, but rather focused on one of the two figures that stumbled through. It was a tight squeeze, as one was full beast, and the other transforming to human.
The beast was slimmer than most, finer boned.Kitani.Her animal face was contorted in a snarl of pain.
Supporting her was the big dark Sabre, halfway to human. “She’s in laborr,” he panted, his coppery gaze filled with terror.
“Get her into the living room,” Cara said.
Zach straightened and offered to help Cody lift her. But the Were, now completely human and naked to boot, snarled so savagely he took a step back.
“For Pete’s sake, Cody. Shelve it,” Cara ordered.
“What do you need?” Jessie swept into full emergency mode, glancing to Cara as Cody guided Kitani into the living room.
Cara followed them. “First, I need to take a look. It’s too early. When I checked her yesterday, the babies weren’t yet in position. This might be a false alarm.”
Jessie nodded. “Okay.”
They set Kitani on a cot in the living room. She sat on the edge, panting in pain, arms wrapped around her middle. Cody growled at Zach until he backed off, holding his hands in the air.
Cara focused on Kitani. “Did your water break?”
The female Sabre shook her head. “No. Just contrractions.” Her muzzle and teeth slurred the words.
Cara ran her hands over the fur covering Kitani’s swollen abdomen. “Okay, my dear. I need you to shift back to human. Nice and slow. So the babies can do it, too.”
“She shouldn’t have shifted.” Cody hovered near, unable to stand still. “The midwife said not to so close to delivery.”
Kitani’s face had started its reversion to human. “Shut up, idiot. That woman has no idea what she’s talking about.”
“She’s a midwife, Kitani.”
“Yeah, and she did nothing forr Isa. So shut up.”
“Kade said it wasn’t the midwife’s fault—”
“Well, she didn’t help, either.”
