The Alphas' Brother

Chapter 15

"Hades, no we don't bite dada's hand. A-Apollo! Stop pulling on your sister's tail!" Jumping up from my seated position I rush over to the two pups and pull Apollo off of his sister. Apollo whines loudly once I had his jaws off of her tail but I shushed the pup with a light pat on the tummy.

" That's not nice Apollo, Wynter needs her tail." I coo while rubbing my nose against his soft fur, "Okay, is everyone here? One, two, thr-... Where did Hades and Nathan run off too?"

A loud screech erupts from the bedroom just as the two missing puppies came scampering from that direction with their Father running after them. I chuckle lowly when Hades turns around and barks at Blaze while backing up. Blaze glares playfully at the brave puppy before bending over and picking the little pup up. Blaze rubs his nose against Hades' little snout after making his way over to my side. Wrapping his arm around my waist he pulls me against him tightly before kissing my cheek.

"Hi, Saggie! How are you?" I pat Blaze's firm chest with a smile then reach out and grab my brave little man from his hold.

"I'm alright, the babies are even better! Aren't you? Yes you are." I coo playfully at Hades who barks in response after covering my face with licks. "How's Lake doing? Is he feeling any better?" I ask the air shifting into a more serious atmosphere causing Hades to shrink back at the change of mood. Blaze purses his lips and looks away from me. Taking that as a need to talk I walk Hades over to the little play pin that we set up for the puppies. I set him inside before chasing after his siblings and placing them in their along with him.

"We'll be right back, my loves." With a chorus of upbeat barks in answer I walk over to Blaze who has taken up a spot on the couch, his head in his heads.

Slowly I walk over and take a seat next to him laying my head on his thigh reassuringly, "What did Jack say yesterday?"

The day of the kids birth was a good one. Jack came out a few hours later to make sure the puppies and Rhiver were in good health. Everything and everyone checked out good, it was the following day that was a bit scary. Rhiver had woken up sick as all hell. It came out of know where, he was coughing, had a fever of a hundred and fifteen. It all just boiled up to a point where he ended up throwing up blood. That was five days ago. We kept him away from the children which was a hard blow to him since usually the birth giver of the pups goes through a period where they stay with their offspring for at least a month with out space but we couldn't risk the babies' health.

"Jack has know idea. He did an ass load of tests for different sicknesses and they all came back negative. On top of that Rhiver hasn't eaten in three days. He says that everything he eats makes him throw up, and every time he vomits its double the blood. We don't even know where the blood is coming from! Sullivan checked him out for any stomach ulcers and nothing. I-I don't know what to do... Saggie I'm scared." Blaze cries, tugging violently at his hair.

I grab hold of his hand bringing it up to my face and placing it against my cheek. A way to comfort myself and him. This is suppose to be a great part of our lives. We started our family, we're running the pack together. It's suppose to be perfect. I've tried myself to see what was wrong with Rhiver. The gift that I had since I was young has grown stronger the older I got. Now its gotten to a point where I have minor healing abilities. I can heal non-life threatening illness and small wounds but every time I get around Rhiver the whispers that I chalked up to the Goddess' helping hands freak out. They just start buzzing and screaming in the back of my head to the point where I can't even be around him for more than five minutes. I'm starting to feel the side effects of being away from my mate and it makes me depressed.

"So we're still left at nothing." I state. Staring down at the carpeted floor of the living room, I can't help but let a tear slide down my cheek. Even the kids can sense the differences in us. When we bring up their pa's name they get whimper-y and cranky with Blaze and I and try to go into our room where Rhiver sleeps.

Danger!

<What are you talking about now?> I complain to the voices

Seal! The Seal! The fallen have returned!

Not that again. For three weeks now the light voices have been chanting about this seal and the fallen. There's no elaboration or anything of usefulness. It's just an annoying banquet of voices screaming in shrill voices about danger. I tried to ask our elders about this seal but even they were clueless, they stated that they would look into it deeper.

"I'm sure he will get better. He's tough." Blaze states in an attempt to comfort me. I chuckle lightly at that, it's funny how much has changed these past years. Instead of me having to comfort Blaze and protect him he stepped up and he started becoming the comforter for both Rhiver and myself. Turning to face him a smile tugs at the ends of my lips.

"Yea, I'm sure he'll be back on his feet and on our backs soon enough."

Blaze pats my back firmly before jumping up from the couch with a newly found energy, "Come on! Let us feed the children, Rhiver wants them to start going on formula just in case the sickness can be transferred through the milk." With that Blaze rushes over to the play pin full of yipping puppies and opens the little door. Instantly the herd of pups run out and make their way over to me.

Bending down I lift Shiloh up from the group and kiss his little face making him whine. All of the children, besides Hades and Wynter who are both pitch black, are a gray-ish color. Apollo the first born is a deep gray, just a shade lighter than black. Then it's Hades, the second born. After him is Nathan who's chewing on his father's shoe, Nathan's fur color is more of a sliver color practically shining. I love the color it has a very glossy tone to it. Then the final boy, Shiloh. He is basically the color white. His actual fur color is grey but you can only see the tint when he is outside with the sun shining on him. Shiloh is a very shy boy, while the rest of the babies including our little girl are very rambunctious. He spends most of his times hiding in corners or under the couch and watching his siblings.

The next few hours are spent trying to chase down every pup and feed them. It was a bit difficult since they only ever ate from Rhiver but after a few tries and a few frustrated pups later they reluctantly started eating then immediately they went down for a nap.

"I guess having a full belly, regardless of the meal, can put them to bed." Blaze whispers with a small smile. It was amazing seeing that. When we were younger I never thought that we would make it here, I never thought I would see such a relaxed smile on his face. Yet here we are and I'm so happy to see it.

Leaving the pups to sleep on the couch, Blaze and I make our way to the bedroom quietly. Once we entered the room I left the wooden door opened just a cracked so we could hear if one of the kids woke up. Turning around I come face to face with my pale mate laying on the bed, panting lightly for breath. I walk quietly over to the bed and take a seat being sure to not jerk him to much. I can already feel the buzz of the voices starting up but I prepare for the shouts because I missed him. Even though its been only a day since I last saw him it seemed as if he got worse. His naturally creamy skin looked lost of color, almost white. His forehead sheen with sweat from his fever has his bleach blonde hair sticking to his skin basically drenched. I reach out a grab hold of his hand my chest hurting at the sight of him, he looks so vulnerable and small. Blaze crawls onto the bed and scoots in close to Rhiver, nuzzling his head against Rhiver's shoulder drawing out a sigh from him.

I press my lips against his clammy skin feeling the intense tingles spread onto my lips makes me smile big, "Get better, Lake. Our babies need you. We need you."

Rhiver moans softly in sleep the rolls onto his side giving Blaze more space to scoot in so Blaze could spoon him properly. Even in his sleep he wants to be cuddled. I place his hand down quickly and rush over to the door pulling it all the way open so the pups can wander in if they wake up. Rushing back over to the bed I slip under the thick blankets and move in closer to Rhiver which pulls a deep purr from his chest subconsciously knowing that his mates are with him. Placing a soft kiss against his forehead I lay my head down on the pillow and wrap my arm around his waist before falling asleep to the sound of my mates' heartbeats and a voice I could only describe as heavenly, womanly asking me to keep her child safe.