The Alpha's Niece (Barton Pack Book 1) Read online

  She followed Tabitha into the adjacent parlor. It was small and informal. It was decorated in light shades of green with darker greens used for trimming, upholstery, rugs, and curtains.

  The parlor had a glass window facing east. A rocking chair sat beside the window. Remember guessed that was the favorite chair of her mother-in-law because a table next to it held a sewing basket and pin cushion. To one side of the chair sat a sewing machine.

  Remember enjoyed quilting but she had never shown much talent at sewing clothes. She thought she might try to learn now that there was a child on the way. She wasn't in Philadelphia anymore where clothes in shops were plentiful and affordable.

  In the corner opposite of the sewing machine was a melodeon. She had been raised playing the pianoforte but she was confident that learning the melodeon wouldn't be much different.

  There was also an upholstered sofa across from two upholstered chairs in the center of the room. That would be where she would entertain guests, if she had any.

  She supposed that Sally and Abigail would call on her but they would be more comfortable in their own formal parlors.

  A pocket door separated the parlor from the rest of the house and Remember followed Cyrus and Tabitha through the door. To the left was a small room with a desk and bookshelf visible as they passed. She guessed that was her husband's home office.

  To the right was the dining room.

  The centerpiece of the room was table that sat six. The tablecloth was blue checkered. It was neat and had been recently ironed.

  The table was placed atop a blue rug with white flowered print. Against the back wall of the dining room was a cabinet with a glass front where the formal dishes were stored. Remember wondered when they had last been used. A small parlor indicated a lack of visitors.

  Past the dining room were the kitchen and pantry. A door led into the yard behind the house where a water pump stood. Remember noted a water pump on the sink as well but that likely was from a cistern and not meant to be potable.

  Tucked in the corner of the kitchen was a staircase.

  Trembling, she followed her new husband and her mother-in-law up the stairs.

  The upper level had two rooms across from each other in a narrow hallway.

  "This is our room. Your trunks are already inside," Cyrus said indicating the room on the right.

  Remember nodded but she could feel her heart beginning to race again. She tried to take a deep breath but her lungs felt heavy.

  "I think it is time I turn in. I have a busy morning ahead of me," Tabitha said. "I'll be just across the hall if I'm needed."

  "I have some work to do before I come to bed," Cyrus said. Remember nodded. She was glad he was giving her the privacy to change into her nightclothes alone. She didn't think anything in the world could make her take her clothes off in front of her new husband.

  Cyrus turned around and headed back down the stairs. She stepped into the room that would belong to her and her husband.

  The trunks were on the floor, as Cyrus had said, and she rummaged through them until she found a long cotton night gown. She exchanged her dress for the gown and looked around the room.

  There was an overstuffed chair in the corner with a table at the side along with a kerosene lamp. Two books were stacked on the table. She glanced at the titles but realized that they were books about disease and medicine.

  Past the table were two dressers, one of which looked new. Atop the older dresser sat a basin and pitcher. On one side of the pitcher was a dish with soap. On the other side was a cup which held a toothbrush and a jar of tooth powder. In front of the tooth powder was a comb.

  She would add her toothbrush and her hairbrush to the dresser top in the morning. There was room enough.

  A closet beside the dresser held a strip of wood with pegs. The first three pegs held men's attire and a pair of boots were on the floor beneath them. The rest of the closet was bare. She assumed it was meant for her things. She placed her shoes on the empty side of the closet but couldn't bring herself to unpack her trunks. There would be time enough for that in the morning.

  Across from the closet was a dressing table with a large mirror. Again, one side had been left empty, presumably for her things.

  In the center of the room was a bed big enough for two. There were tiny round tables on either side of the bed. The tables didn't match each other. She decided the newest one indicated which side of the bed Cyrus meant for her to have. She pulled back the coverlet and slid between the sheets. The mattress had been recently fluffed and it felt soft under her body.

  She closed her eyes. She hated feeling so tired. All she wanted to do these days was sleep, but the sleep which came gave her little rest.

  ***

  Cyrus kept himself busy as long as he could manage but finally his eyes began to flutter and he knew he needed to get to bed. He would be a poor doctor if called out tonight and morning would bring an exhaustive day of patients needing his attention. He made his steps as light as he could while ascending the stairs. He hoped that exhaustion had claimed his bride but her head turned as he opened the door.

  He could smell the fear on her and he wondered if he'd woken her from some nightmare.

  "It is only me," he whispered though he wasn't sure whether or not that would be a comfort to her.

  He made his way to the chair and sat down. He really wished that Remember had been asleep. He didn't want her to see him take off his leg. Not yet. He assumed someday it would be inevitable and she would see it, but he'd hoped it wouldn't be tonight.

  He pulled off his shirt and replaced it with one that hung to his knees. He could hear her breathing quicken. The fear smell grew more intense. He wasn't sure what to say to ease her fears.

  He undid his trousers and tossed them to the floor. Now, he was exposed. If Remember turned to face him she would see his prosthetic leg.

  Cyrus undid the leather straps that held on the prosthetic. He yanked it free and placed it against his dresser. He used his cane to push himself up and to steady him as he hopped towards the bed which was a distance of less than a yard. He'd never thought about how ungraceful he looked until that moment. He tried to push back the feelings of shame. He lowered himself down and slid beneath the covers careful not to touch Remember who had slid as far as she could to the opposite side of the bed.

  "You are safe here. With me," Cyrus whispered.

  "My uncle would not have married me to a man who would harm me," Remember said.

  "I meant that I understand that this marriage won't be consummated," Cyrus said. He made sure to keep his voice calm. He could only guess that his joining her in bed was the source of the fear scent and he wanted to nip that in the bud. He didn't want her afraid to fall asleep for fear she would wake to him ravishing her.

  "It is a burden for a man to take on such a marriage," Remember whispered.

  "And yet I said I would," Cyrus said.

  "I know my uncle did not make it a condition of this marriage. Packs need healthy pups," Remember said.

  "And I will do everything I can to make sure the pup you are carrying is born safe and healthy," Cyrus said.

  "I do appreciate what you have done for me," Remember whispered.

  "It needed doing," he said with a shrug. Cyrus leaned back against his pillow and closed his eyes.

  "Does it pain you much? Your leg I mean," Remember said. He'd made sure she wasn't watching when he took off his prosthetic but she surely had heard his difficulties in coming to bed.

  "Some," he said.

  "Uncle said it was from the war," Remember said.

  "Yes."

  "How did it happen? I mean, why didn't your body heal itself?" Remember asked. He wished she would just go to sleep. He hadn't expected her to have so many questions for him. Questions he didn't want to answer. He sighed.

  "A cannon blast took my leg completely off. There was nothing left to heal," he said. A bullet wound would have healed in time. A crush injury too. So ma
ny of the injuries that his fellow soldiers had died from would have been injuries his body could have healed. Most of his fellow werewolves had come through the war with no permanent injuries. Their werewolf nature had healed them. His injuries were different.

  "Were you injured anywhere else?" Remember asked.

  It took him a moment to understand what she was asking. He was tempted to tell her a lie. If he did, she might be more comfortable sleeping next to him at night.

  "No," he said. He couldn't bring himself to pretend that he'd lost his manhood along with his leg. It was hard enough to live with what had been lost.

  He hadn't gotten permission to join the war efforts. He'd been young and terribly naive. There'd been an excitement in the air that made his youthful heart impulsively sign the enlistment papers. He'd joined the war without a word to his alpha or his parents. There was only a note left in the early hours of dawn to tell them where he had gone.

  He'd written to his parents when he could. He'd written to Isaac too but he hadn't received a letter back from his alpha. The only letter Isaac answered was the one Cyrus had written him from the hospital to tell of his injuries. Cyrus begged for permission to return to his parent's home while he recovered. He hadn't dreamed of asking to be allowed to return to his position in the pack.

  Isaac visited him when he returned to Barton. His alpha was stern in his reprimand, but ultimately he was lenient.

  Even after Isaac had shown him mercy and let him return to the pack, Cyrus had been afraid to come back. He was afraid that he would be considered weak and a detriment to the pack. The first full moon was hard. He'd struggled to keep up. He still did. It wasn't easy being a three-legged wolf.

  Isaac would have been within his rights to exile him. He had no reason to allow a deserter and a three legged wolf back into the pack. Yet, Isaac understood. He'd forgiven Cyrus for running off to join the war. He'd forgiven him for coming back injured and less use to the pack than a whole wolf.

  "It was fortunate that you lived," she whispered. The smell of her fear was lessening.

  "I certainly thought so," Cyrus said.

  "Is that why you decided to become a doctor?" Remember asked.

  "No. My father was a doctor. I always knew that was what I would be," Cyrus said. He'd spent his youth apprenticing with his father.

  He'd hoped to use his medical training to benefit the Union army. Deep in his heart, he'd also wanted to learn from the surgeons and doctors treating soldiers. His father had said, more than once, that a battlefield was the best training ground for a young doctor. The war taught him and changed him but not as he expected. Losing his leg in the war gave him a passion for medicine unlike anything he'd felt before. He had been full of ego when he left Barton. Not of compassion. The horrors of the war changed how he saw the role of a doctor. He didn't just want to follow in his father's footsteps. He wanted to ease the suffering of the people around him.

  "If my child is a boy, will he become a doctor?" she asked.

  "If he wants to," Cyrus said. Most sons did take on the vocation of their father though not all chose to. It was different to inherit a vocation than it was to inherit something like pack position. As the daughter of an alpha he wondered how much Remember could understand of all that. He had no idea what her Philadelphia pack was like.

  "It is a good vocation," Remember said.

  "It is a busy vocation. I need to be up early and you need your rest. We should try and sleep now," Cyrus said.

  The smell of her fear had almost completely left the room. He wondered if she was simply too tired now to be afraid or if she realized that he was no threat to her. After hearing all the effort it had taken him to get into his bed surely she could have no fear that he could force himself on her.

  ***

  Remember closed her eyes and realized she might be able to sleep. For the first time in a long while she was somewhere Jordan couldn't find her. For tonight at least, she and her baby were safe. The law gave her husband claim to her pup but she didn't know if the law would be enough to keep Jordan away. If he came, her pack would fight to protect her. Unlike her father, her uncle was a match for Jordan's family in wealth and power.

  She kept her mind focused on that as she gave in to slumber.

  Chapter 4

  Cyrus awoke with a start. It took his brain a moment to recall why there was the scent of a pregnant female next to him in bed. He looked over at her and was relieved that she was still sleeping soundly. He tried to be as quiet as he could while he got dressed and put on his prosthetic leg. He was pleased to see that Remember slept through it all.

  He made his way downstairs to the kitchen where his mother already had a pot of coffee boiling for him.

  "It was good there were no calls during the night," she said.

  "We will need to be careful not to wake her. She seems exhausted," Cyrus said.

  "Of course she is. She is growing a werewolf pup. That takes energy that a man can never understand. I remember what it was like when you were inside of me. Wore me out. Then you were born and I have been exhausted ever since," his mother said. She was kneading dough for bread.

  "She slept better than I expected," Cyrus said.

  "And I won't ask if you acted as a proper gentleman," his mother said.

  "I'm sure you would have known if I hadn't," he said.

  A knock on the door caught both of their attention. His mother rushed forward to answer it.

  Aaron and Martha were standing on the other side of the door.

  They followed Cyrus's mother into the kitchen and Aaron placed the tea he'd mixed for Remember on the counter.

  "Ellis Unger is having more issues with digestion. Nothing I've given her seems to help. Could you look at her?" Aaron asked. Ellis lived in Goldfinch Grove which was one town over.

  There were no were-creatures, witches, or anyone out of the ordinary in Goldfinch Grove, except perhaps for the Chang family. They were out of the ordinary only because Mr. Chang was a Chinese man married to an Irish girl. They were farmers like most of Cyrus's neighbors and aside from keeping to themselves, they were otherwise normal.

  There was no doctor or druggist in Goldfinch Grove. So, Cyrus, Aaron, and Martha did what they could for the health of the people in the smaller town.

  "I've got to visit Agnes Hardy out that way anyways," Cyrus said. Agnes was a child who had been weakened with scarlet fever the year before. She had remained weak and her parents worried over her. Cyrus wished he could have offered them a cure for their daughter but there was none to be had. The chances of their daughter living a full life were slim.

  "I'll prepare another tonic. I was looking at one of my books and came across something we haven't tried yet. I'm not sure how promising it is," Aaron said.

  Cyrus nodded. If something they tried improved the life of a patient, even for a while, he was all for it.

  "I'll meet you at four and we can drive over," Cyrus said. Aaron owned a wagon along with a team of horses that didn't mind the smell of were-creatures. Cyrus often caught a ride with Aaron when they had to go outside of town for a house call. He could have afforded a wagon and horses but he would have needed to hire someone to care for them. Perhaps, if Remember had a son...

  Cyrus pushed the thought away. His father had managed without a wagon. It was an unnecessary burden and expense when Aaron was happy to share.

  "Better make it a quarter after," Aaron said.

  ***

  Remember's nose filled with the smell of coffee. She opened her eyes and wasn't sure whether or not she should be relieved that the bed beside her was empty.

  She took her time getting dressed though she was glad that, for the moment at least, the nausea which normally plagued her was absent.

  "Good morning," Tabitha said as Remember descended the stairs. There was no sign of Cyrus but Martha was seated at the table with a cup of coffee in her hands.

  "Good morning," Remember replied giving them each a smile.

 
"Did you sleep well?" Tabitha asked.

  "I did," Remember said. She was almost surprised it was the truth.

  "Biscuits and jam are on the table. I've got work to do in the garden," Tabitha said.

  Remember considered offering to help but the rumbling of her stomach stopped her. Instead, she sat down at the table and broke a biscuit in two. Her mouth watered as the smell of it hit her nose.

  She eagerly spread some of the raspberry jam on the biscuit and took the first sweet bite. She was surprised how good it tasted if only because so many foods had lost their luster.

  "Have you had any issues with the pregnancy?" Martha asked.

  "Only that I have been sick," Remember said.

  "That is quite normal," Martha assured her.

  "That's what the doctor said."

  "Would you mind if I checked the baby's heartbeat once you are through eating?" Martha asked.

  "Are you worried something is wrong?" Remember placed her hand protectively on her belly.

  "Nothing like that. I can learn about the health of your baby by taking a listen," Martha said.

  Remember took another bite of the biscuit then stood. She could finish it in a few moments. Now, she was curious and just a bit concerned about the health of her child. Could the lack of queasiness in her stomach mean something happened to him?

  "This is called a fetoscope," Martha said opening her bag and pulling out something that looked like a horn made of wood. She placed the wide end on Remember's belly.

  "Is he okay?" Remember asked.

  "He has a good strong heartbeat," Martha said. Remember sighed in relief. Martha ran her hands over Remember's abdomen. She tried not to flinch.

  "The doctor said he would come near the beginning of next year," Remember said.

  "It can be hard to predict with werewolf pups but that seems about right. It gives you some time to prepare," Martha said.

  "The doctor said to carry on as usual. Is that right? Can I help Tabitha with the chores? I don't want to be a burden to her or Cyrus," Remember said.