Entangled

Chapter 14

"Seth left your shirt on the bed."

Mina's voice sounds like it's underwater, and it takes Becky a moment to focus on it. Now that Seth and Sasha and their constant, comforting warmth are gone, she's shivering, but she's sure some of the reason she's shaking is pure nerves. Mina may not be a specialist, but she seems smart enough and, as if Becky needs any more proof, a gentle kick reinforces the witch's diagnosis—and the fact that Becky really has to pee again.

Mina steps forward and squeezes her hand gently. "I'll go get you some tea. I'll put it in a travel mug for you. Take your time." She gestures to the en suite door. "I'll find Eleyna's business card too, before I forget about it." Then the witch gives her a reassuring smile before stepping out into the hallway.

Pregnant. As Becky grabs her shirt from the bed and heads to the bathroom, she wonders how her mother felt when she learned she was pregnant with her first child. Everything's spinning—her thoughts, her vision, her stomach—and Becky braces herself against the vanity for a moment before using the toilet. For a moment, she has the wild impulse to run—to just put on her shirt and ignore whatever else Mina has to tell her so she and Seth and Sasha can go back to their lives, but she knows it's not that simple anymore.

After she washes her hands, she cleans off the rest of the witch's balm, drying her belly with a deceptively plush towel. The knock on the door comes as she's pulling her shirt over her head. "Come in!" she calls out. She doesn't dare look at her reflection in the mirror; if she sees panic in her eyes, she'll start to feel it too.

When she steps back into the bedroom, Becky sees Mina setting down a travel mug and she vaguely recognizes the logo on the side as belonging to a mechanic they passed on the way to the farm. Following her gaze, Mina laughs. "Yeah, I get a lot of free branded stuff from the locals. Most of them don't know I'm a witch, in so many words, but I help when I can and in turn I get...." She gestures again to the cup; the steam rising from it starts to fog the mirror. "A lot of cups and magnets and tote bags. The cups and totes can be helpful for the runaways, at least." Then she sets a small coin purse—also branded, though it looks like it's for a lawyer—beside the mug. "I put Eleyna's card in there for you. I'm going to call her this afternoon just to let her know I've already seen you, but I won't tell her any details. There's also a protection amulet that should help with the baby. It's generic," Mina warns, "but Eleyna or another specialist will be able to make you a better one. It's on a shift-safe bracelet, so you can wear it during the full moon."

"Thank you." There are a hundred questions she should be asking, but one's been nagging Becky ever since Seth and Sasha left the room, and she blurts it out before she can stop herself. "Colours. What other colours could there have been?"

Mina blinks in surprise before nodding knowingly. "Ah. The balm? Purple." She touches the tips of her index fingers together. "Red for pregnant plus blue for... not pregnant equals—" She frowns. "I suppose miscarriage would be the simplest term, but it's not always accurate. It can also indicate a baby that's so malformed it wouldn't be able to survive among... other things. A sad reality, but not one I like to bring up unless I have to. Luckily, not a worry in your case. Any other questions?" She sits on the loveseat and gestures for Becky to sit as well. "Like I said, I'm not an expert, but I'll answer what I can and I promise I'll be honest."

"If I'm already halfway," Becky asks haltingly, looking down at her stomach, "shouldn't I be bigger?" Her stomach has always been a bit soft, much to her annoyance, but she hasn't noticed any significant difference lately. "And since Seth and I are both werewolves, am I going to have... a litter?" She felt bad enough for Roman's wife when she had twins; natural wolves can have six pups in a litter, and Becky's barely prepared for one baby, let alone multiple.