The Arrangement

It had been three weeks since Emerson had left. Three terribly long weeks without her mate. Madeline tried to keep herself distracted by doing as much as her mate’s responsibilities as she could, but distractions only went so far.

She oversaw the training, though there was little she could critique, as she knew little about the complex training. She went through countless paperwork, reading, and signing. She heard the complaints of the Pack and did her best to come up with a fair and just solution. She helped direct the reconstruction of the buildings that had been destroyed in the explosions. She worked on organizing all the food they had stored for winter, taking a count of what they had and what they needed before the first snow fell. Everyone knew the danger of not being properly ready for winter to come.

Then she also completed her tasks as a Luna. She spent time with the children in the daycare. She made sure that all the Pack members were well. She helped in the infirmary, helped the Pack, comforted the weeping women and children, who’s loved ones had left.

It was overwhelming, even with Liam, Emerson’s Gama, helping her. He did his best to help her with her with her duties and tasks. Though as overwhelming as it all was, she couldn’t keep her mate out of her head. She missed him so much, though they talked as often as they could. It worried her though when he went days without calling her. But when he finally did call her, he always told her why. Sometimes it almost caused her to have a heart attack and other times she was relieved that it was nothing too major.

Madeline flushed the toilet, having thrown up for the third time just that day. She had been sick a week after Emerson’s departure. It was just nausea at first but then she started throwing up every other day, then daily, and that.

She figured it was because her mate was gone. She had seen her mother whenever her father had to go away for a few weeks as well as Natalie when Sebastian went away, though both never had it as bad as her. That could possibly be because they had chosen to mate each other, and therefore they were more afraid to lose each other as they had lost their previous mates.

There was a knock at the door. “Madeline?” Casey. She had been glued to Madeline’s hip ever since Emerson left, trying to help her as much as she could. She had also been there when she was sick, holding her hair back for her. “Can I come in?”

“Yeah,” Madeline croaked out. She grabbed her toothbrush and started to brush her teeth.

Casey walked in and went to her side almost immediately. “You should really go to the infirmary. They might be able to get you something to help your stomach.”

She shook her head. “No, I don’t have the time. there is so much that I have to do today that would send into cardiac rest.”

Her friend sent her a glare then pulled out her phone. She dialed a number. “Hey Liam, it’s Casey. I just wanted to inform you that Madeline is taking the day off. All that work has taken a toll on her and she just needs a rest day.” She hung up the phone a moment later.

Madeline was glaring at her best friend. “I really hate you sometimes.”

“I love you too.”

She just shook her head and got up. She washed off her face with cold water and took deep breaths. She rinsed out her mouth with mouthwash.

“Change your shirt then we’re going to the infirmary. I’m not letting you suffer anymore even if you want too,” Casey said.

She helped Madeline out of the bathroom and out into the hallway. Guards trailed behind them as they walked down the stairs. Madeline walked slower, her stomach still upset. She didn’t want to throw up all over the stairwell just because she was running down the stairs.

“If you don’t feel too well, we can always drive there. Not that it would be a very long drive but it’ll be a lot faster than walking.”

“No, I’m okay. The fresh air helps. Besides, it’s not hot out. It feels nice.”

Casey nodded after a slight hesitation. “Alright, but if you start feeling sick, just tell me and we can take a small break.”

“I’m fine Casey, really. If we walk slowly, I should be fine.”

“Okay,” she said, “As long as you’re okay.”

“I’m okay, I promise.”

Casey nodded and they walked, elbows linked. They were stopped a couple times, children running up to them and wanting to play. She hated to tell them she couldn’t and see the disappointed looks on their faces. So, she promised she would play ball with them later that day. The children squealed with delight and ran off with each other.

Other Pack members stopped her to ask her questions or thank her for all she had done to help them. With so many compliments, her cheeks stained pink with a blush. She wasn’t doing any of it for the attention. She was doing it to help her Pack. She hated to see them suffer.

When they walked into the infirmary, they were almost immediately greeted by a doctor. “Luna, what can I do for you?”

Casey jumped in before she could say anything. “She’s been getting sick a lot recently. At first, she was just throwing up every couple of days but now it’s up to three times a day.”

Madeline rolled her eyes at her friend for making the whole situation sound worse than it really was.

Dr. Lacey frowned. “Follow me and we’ll talk more about.”

The two followed the doctor to one of the rooms, her guard posting themselves around the infirmary. Two at the door, two at the front entrance, and then the rest in the hallway and waiting room.

Madeline sat on the examination bed while Casey sat in one of the chairs, Lacey taking the rolling chair. She pulled out a clipboard and pen.

“When did this first start?” Dr. Lacey asked.

Madeline beat Casey to it this time. “About a week after Emerson left I started getting nauseous. Then I started throwing up every few days and it’s just increased from then. I’m sure it’s just because of Emerson and I’s separation. The same thing has happened to my mother and my brother’s mate whenever they went away for a long period of time.”

“Many mated couples feel sick after being separated for so long but it isn’t as bad as your case. Symptoms normally include depression, anxiety, and occasional nausea. Their vomit isn’t daily as yours has become,” Dr. Lacey spoke, looking up from her clipboard, “There may be something else that’s wrong. With your permission, Luna, I would like to run some tests to figure out what exactly is causing this.”

Madeline nodded. “Yes, of course.”

She was more worried than when she had first walked in the door. She hadn’t thought that anything was wrong with her, but having a doctor say there could be something wrong, it scared her a little.

She was quiet and still as Dr. Lacey checked her. It was almost a regular checkup until she drew some of her blood and took some of her urine to test.

“I should have your results in an hour or two. You can either stay in the room or go back to the waiting room. I, personally, would go to the waiting room because there’s a tv.”

Both Madeline and Casey giggled. “To the waiting room we’ll go then.”

The girls got up and headed to the waiting room. They asked one of the receptionists to put on the Lion King and all the guard groaned. They knew what it meant. Them singing along terribly off tune and attempting to dance as they do in the animated movie. It wasn’t their fault that the movie was so damn good. Their singing caught the attention of the other patients in the room and they even got some of them to sing along, mostly the children, but it still happened.

It was a good distraction from everything that had been happening for a little while. But then it had her remembering the times that Emerson had walked in on the two of them being “strangely weird” as he would put it.

Casey was just the first person who made her feel truly alive, like her true self. Casey treated her like a normal wolf. Not an Alpha’s sister or an Alpha’s mate. She just treated Madeline as Madeline. And she would be forever grateful.

They were about halfway through their second movie when her name was called. They stood up, Casey not really having a choice with how hard Madeline was gripping her arm. They followed the nurse back to her original room. She sat on the bed, unconsciously swinging her legs.

Dr. Lacey cleared her throat. “So, there’s nothing actually wrong with you. We didn’t find any disease that could be causing your vomiting. The reason is quite simple, you’re pregnant.”

Madeline stared at her in shock. That couldn’t be. While Emerson and she didn’t do everything to prevent it, they were careful not to do it when she was ovulating. “What?”

“You’re pregnant. Almost four weeks. I’ve already written you a prescription for the vitamins and pills to help with the vomiting that you need. You’ll be able to pick them up at the front desk. Make sure you’re eating enough. I want to schedule an appointment three weeks from now. You’ll be able to have a sonogram by then.”

All Madeline could do was nod. She vaguely heard Casey thank the doctor and helped her up. Her friend guided her out and to the front desk, where Casey got her prescriptions and made an appointment for her.

Madeline was silent all the way home. She was pregnant. She had a baby inside her. but she had already lost a baby, what is she lost this one too? She didn’t want to lose her baby. But what if there was nothing she could do to stop it? What if Emerson didn’t make it home for her to go into labor? What if he didn’t come home at all and she lost her baby. What if- what if-

She hadn’t realized she had stopped walking until Casey yanked at her arm, trying to get her to move. “Come on. We’ll talk about when we get to your room okay?”

She nodded and started to walk again. It wasn’t a long walk to her Alpha Wing. But neither said a word until Madeline was in bed, on Emerson’s side, clutching his pillow, and Casey was sitting next to her.

“Are you going to tell Emerson?”

Madeline shook her head. “No. It will only distract him and he needs to stay focused so he can come back to me, us now, I suppose.”

“You should totally name your baby after their amazing aunt.”

“Natalie? That would make a good girls name.”

“No, me!”

Madeline giggled. “I don’t know, Casey is so…”

“I hate you!”

“I love you too.”

Both girls erupted into laughs and giggles. They laughed so much that tears began to form in their eyes. It took a good few minutes for them to contain their laughter and calm down. They both wiped at their eyes and took some deep breaths.

Casey’s expression turned more serious. “So what are you going to do?”

“I have no idea.”