To Love a Stray Ch. 04

"Hmmm," I murmur as I inhale his scent on the pillow. His hand rests on the point of my shoulder for a few moments before it moves to stroke down my side to the curve of my hip. I tense as I hear more movement and watch as Dwayne, Alex, Steven and Pete find seats for themselves close by. I am surrounded in their strong musky scents as they settle down to watch tv and I close my eyes as I take a deep breath and exhale slowly as I sort through their individual scents. A few minutes later I hear the sound of damp feet on floorboards and the clean scent of pine based soap.

"Rosy okay?" Mitchell demands from behind the lounge.

"Mitchell," I say as I open my eyes and turn my head towards his voice. I catch sight of Micah watching me and spare him a wary glance before grinning shyly at Mitchell.

"Shower's mine!" Dwayne yells as he jumps to his feet, "Oops, sorry." He says as he looks at me. I smile and turn my head to hide my face in the pillow. I start as I feel my feet being lifted up and jerk my head up abruptly to see who has dared to touch me. Mitchell smiles at me as he settles himself on the lounge and positions my legs across his lap. I struggle to sit up but am unable to and I whimper in distress when I find I am unable to use my good arm and that my injured wrist is in danger of being bumped.

"Do you want to sit up?" Micah asks at my whimper.

"Yes," I almost whine as I freeze at the sound of his voice.

"Hold still a moment," Micah orders softly. I instinctively obey and the next moment Micah is sitting me up careful to avoid bumping my wrist, I send him a startled look before scooting around to cuddle into Mitchell's side. Mitchell drapes his arm around my shoulders and I watch TV for several minutes before sneaking another glance Micah's way but he is watching the TV and doesn't notice my nervous curiosity.

Feeling incredibly safe and secure I relax against Mitchell's side and when my eyes become heavy I close them content to go to sleep where I am. Several times the noises on the tv woke me a start and I'd jerk my head up in alarm but Mitchell would talk softly to me and I would relax and go back to sleep.

"Rosy, Rosy, hey Rosy, you hungry? Want to have something to eat?" Mitchell's voice disturbs my sleep and I push away from his side as I sit up groggily.

"What?" I mumbled.

"I got that burger you ordered," Edwin said. I rub my eyes and turn my head to look at him still half asleep.

"I asked for a burger?" I enquire as I turn my attention to the plate he holds out towards me.

"Yeah, a burger with everything." Edwin encourages me with a smile. I study the burger for a moment and shake my head as I see cheese and pineapple on it as well as the tomato and lettuce.

"I didn't ask for that," I say with certainty and glance at him suspiciously. "You trying to get on my good side?"

Edwin meets my eyes for a few seconds before exhaling with a bit of a huff, "I'm just trying to be nice to you," he says and I can hear the honesty in his voice.

"Hmmm," I say still suspicious and look at the burger again. I catch sight of the disappointment building in his eyes and I glance at Mitchell uncertainly.

"Edwin's trying to show you he's sorry about before," Mitchell tells me softly.

"I don't need you trying to patch up my mistakes," Edwin growls at Mitchell. I frown as I turn my attention back to the burger on the plate he is still holding although now his hand is slowly lowering towards the floor and he is glaring angrily at Mitchell instead of looking at me.

"You put pineapple on it," I state.

"Yeah I did," Edwin agrees.

"I don't like pineapple on my burgers," I tell him and see the disappointment flicker deep in his eyes for an instant before he controls his expression "But I'll eat it cause I like it when you try to be nice and say sorry," I bite my bottom lip as his eyes darken with a sudden flare and then he smiles and lifts the plate up towards me once again. I forget about my wrist and try to reach for it with both hands but the movement makes me gasp as pain shoots from my wrist to my elbow and I jerk my arm back causing more pain.

"Shhh, steady on." Mitchell murmurs as he supports me for a few moments. "Just sit it on her lap," He tells Edwin.

"Damn! I forgot she can only use one hand, how can she eat it?" Edwin asks of no one as he places the plate on my lap.

"I can manage," I tell him as I lift the lid off the burger with my good hand and put it to one side of the plate before beginning to eat the salad off the burger, I wrinkle my nose as I sniff the pineapple ring before biting into it. I work my way steadily through the burger until all that is left is part of the crust of the bun and a small piece of lettuce.

"I'm full," Dwayne announces with a satisfied sigh and I glance around the toms noting that they all seem to be satisfied with their meal.

"I think I ate too much goat earlier," Alex groans as he tosses his paper plate into a bin at the end of the lounge.

"I hate to disturb you all but Wade and Marissa are coming over in about ten minutes," Doc announces. The others groan and get to their feet reluctantly and I sit up and look around to see what is going on.

"A bit more warning would have been good," Sam complains as he begins gathering used paper plates and dropping them into strategically placed rubbish bins.

Doc walks over to me and urges me to my feet with a hand under my elbow, "Sit over here in this chair. You'll be more comfortable and out of the way," Doc tells me with a smile before warning me in a whisper, "It might get a bit loud and scary for a few minutes but try to remember you will be safe no matter what," I watch him move away over to the doorway and take several deep breaths before clearing his throat.

"Can I have everyone's attention for a minute?" Doc asks and the others stop what they are doing and look his way.

"Now we've all heard Rosy's nightmares and we are all aware that she is having a lot of trouble adjusting to her new life ..." Doc announces. I glance around self-consciously and notice most of the toms glance my way as they nod their agreement.

"I've been worried about her depression and suicidal remarks and after a lot of thought and soul searching I told her ..." his voice trailed off for a moment and he swallowed visibly before continuing, "I told her that if she needs me to I'll do an abortion so she ..."

"What!"

"Hell no!"

"You bastard!"

"You're not touching her!" I couldn't tell who was yelling what and I am becoming more and more aware of the level of testosterone rocketing higher in the room with every fraction of a second.

"If you do it what the hell is the reason for our existence!" Mitchell demands angrily, "You know this is the closest most of us will ever get to having our own kids! Toms only exist to ensure the safety of our she-kitts, queens and kittens!" he throws aside the rubbish bag he is holding and heads for Doc with clenched fists.

"Stop it right now!" Micah yells angrily and all the others instantly freeze "If it takes what Doc offered Rosy to keep her alive then I say let him do it! I'd rather bury the unborn kittens then end up having Rosy kill herself!"

"You do it and I will kill you myself!" Mitchell snarls as he eyes Doc and Micah, "And if I have to go through Micah to do it I'll find a way!"

"Stop it! Stop it!" I begin sobbing as I cover my ears with my hands, "No fighting! No fighting!"

"Rosy, remember you need to remain calm," Doc tells me from across the room. "And the rest of you can calm down as well, Rosy turned my offer down." There is near total silence in the room other than my crying and I look around wildly fearing Doc is in danger. I am stunned to see most of the toms are breaking into smiles and several of them are hastily wiping tears from their cheeks. The outside door slams against the wall and rattles furiously as someone rushes into the building.

"What is going on here?" Wade demands angrily as he rushes into the room. Anger is rolling off him in waves and I whimper as I slip from the chair and edge towards the window.

"Rosy you are safe, no one is going to hurt you," I hear the voice but it makes no sense to me as I tremble as wave after wave of fire races up my spine, I moan as fire burns in my wrist and I begin pulling at the restricting bandage.

"Rosy, Rosy, Rosy," a familiar voice chants in a low soothing tone and I turn towards it desperately. Mitchell is walking towards me slowly and I keep my full attention on him as he comes towards me. I slide down the wall as my legs buckle and I stop pulling at the bandage on my arm as the fire in my wrist begins to recede.

"That's it Rosy, you can control it, you're safe Rosy, you're safe," Mitchell croons softly to me. I am still trembling when he slips his arms around me and lifts me up to carry me to the lounge where he sits down and cradles me in his lap. I bury my face against his chest and close my eyes as he strokes my hair and back crooning to me all the time. I am aware of time passing and the quiet murmur of voices in the background but I pay them no heed until a gentle hand rests on my uninjured arm and pats gently.

"You ready for the last bit Rosy? Or do you want to wait?" Doc asks gently. I turn my face towards him and frown in confusion as my brain refuses to tell what he means.

"We work out a date?" Doc prompts.

"What are you talking about?" Mitchell growls protectively. I look up at his face and raise my good hand to touch his cheek, he looks down at me in surprise and I realise this is the first time I have reached out physically for the attention I have wanted.

"It's okay, Doc doesn't want to hurt me." I tell him.

"As if he could with Wade and all of us here," Mitchell growls.

"You'll like this," I tell him shyly and ease off his lap, he grabs at my good hand and gets to his feet clearly intending to stay by my side.

"Mitchell let go of Rosy and sit down!" Wade uses all of his authority in his voice and I glanced nervously his way. For a moment I fear Mitchell is going to defy him but finally he lets go of my hand and sits back on the lounge.

"Come on Rosy," Doc urges me quietly and I back away from Mitchell still keeping eye contact with him. I sit in the chair Doc guides me to and I lean back trying to relax despite Doc unfastening the waist of my jeans and pushing aside the fabric.

"Yes!" Edwin hisses as Doc reaches for the small machine beside the chair.

"Is that...?" Sam asks.

Mitchell begins snarling low and deep as Doc squirts cold gel onto my stomach making me jump in surprise.

"Either you control yourself or get out now!" Micah orders as he moves around to stand in front of Mitchell.

"You'll want to stay for this!" Sam says with growing excitement.

"What?" Micah asks with a growl as he glances at Sam.

"This is a portable ultrasound machine; I've hooked it up to the TV so the image shows there. I am going to try to work out when to expect the babies," Doc explains.

"You saying there are two?" Marissa asks excitedly.

"Yes and we know so much more medically now. Well at least for humans and I am sure we can try some of that if necessary," Doc says.

"What do you mean?" I ask suddenly nervous.

"There was a Dam who had twins, one pregnancy after the other. The first time she miscarried at six months, the second time she made it to full term but the first baby was positioned wrong ... neither baby survived the birth. The third time she had one boy not twins, four years later she carried twins for eight months. The boy survived but the girl died the next day. Her mate just about went mad with grief," Marissa said gently.

"What happened to the mother?" I ask scared and fearing the answer.

"Mum left one night about six months later when Dad was away on business. Dad and his warriors searched for her for months. There was no trace of her. Dad believes she died, he said that he woke in the middle of the night one night with the deepest sense her being gone, totally. He stopped looking after that," Sam said quietly. I turn my face away from the others as tears prick behind my eyes.

"As much as all children are deeply valued by us our daughters are our future," Doc tells me quietly. "Someone turn the TV onto the AV channel and turn the screen this way a bit so I can see what I'm doing,"

I am aware of the probe as he runs it through the gel on my stomach spreading it around. I hear the slight sounds as someone does as he wants and then the excited hisses and gasps from the audience gathered around.

"What's that thing moving?" A girlish voice asks excitedly and I turn my head to see a girl who looks to be just entering her teens sitting on Wade's knee. I glance at the screen and see the rhythmic movement of a beating heart.

"That is a heart, the movement is it beating," I say softly as warmth flows through me at the sight of my unborn child.

"That's right you've used one of these machines when you worked for Doc Caruthers didn't you!" Pete exclaims without taking his eyes off the screen.

"Yeah quite a bit but I think dogs and cats might differ a bit to me," I say as I turn back to the screen.

"How much veterinary knowledge do you have?" Wade asks softly.

"I've done the comprehensive course for assistant and learnt a heap of practical stuff watching and helping my boss," I answer with a nervous glance his way.

"What ... define practical," Wade invites.

"Set broken bones. Treat abscesses and wounds, dental work on dogs, cats and livestock. Assist in surgeries, vaccinate, diagnose, and take blood samples." I let my voice trail off.

"Look there's two hearts now!" Marissa exclaims excited as the probe is moved and the second heartbeat shows on the screen. I turn my full attention onto the screen as Doc slowly sets about working out how to take the measurements needed for the machine to calculate gestation.

"Can you tell what sex they are yet?" Micah asks with interest.

"Too soon," Doc answers as he moves the probe to get a clearer look at one of the small forms.

"It doesn't want you to look at it!" Donovan or Justin laughs as a tiny hand comes up between it and the probe.

"And its twin was no better! Obviously they take after their mother," Dwayne says flashing me a brilliant smile when I look his way with a frown.

"Oh no," Pete moans, "I remember the time you climbed the old fig tree at Barton's just before your eleventh birthday. You done fine until Young Frankie decided to make you come down by shaking the branch,"

"I didn't fall out of that tree! The branch broke!" I protest annoyed.

"You liked climbing trees even when you were human?" Donovan asks with interest.

"My Dad used to go tracking animals a lot but he used to take pictures not shoot them and he used to take me along most of the time. He took a lot of pictures from various stands in trees so he taught me how to track and climb trees," I tell him with a grin, "and camp and fish and trap rabbits and cook over a campfire,"

"Your Dad sounds like a neat person," Justin pipes up.

"Yeah he was. He was the best Dad I could have had." I say turning back to the screen as I blink back tears.

"We can share our Dad with you!" Jasmine offers with the generosity of a child.

"It doesn't quite work that way Jazzy," Marissa tells her daughter softly.

There is an awkward silence for several seconds before Doc speaks, "Ok. All finished," I hold still while he wipes the gel from my stomach and refastens my jeans, I look past him at the sound of someone approaching and tense as Wade comes around the end of the lounge slowly.

"Hi Rosy would you mind if I said hallo to the babies?" Wade asks in a gentle voice that reminds me of Micah. I gasp in alarm and push myself into a fully upright position, Doc catches hold of me as I attempt to jump up off the chair and I hiss in sudden fear.

"Let her go Doc. I am not asking nor am I telling her to submit, I am merely asking Rosy if I may say hallo to her babies," Wade's voice takes on a firm tone as he glances at Doc. As soon as Doc releases me I scramble to my feet and back up against the wall, my injured wrist cradled across my chest. Wade approaches slowly, giving me plenty of time to protest his approach. As he gets nearer I look away from his face and hunch one shoulder slightly as I lean slightly away from his approach. Finally he is standing in front of me and slightly to one side, I jerk and gasp when his hand comes to rest against my stomach ever so lightly. I glance up at him nervously and look away as he directs a smile my way, he removes his hand and moves backwards as slowly as he had advanced.

"Thank you Rosy," He tells me softly. Mitchell is suddenly at my side and I turn to him burying my face against his chest and hugging him tightly as he rubs my back soothingly.

"He didn't hurt me," I tell him stunned, "He's an Alpha and he didn't attack me,"

"You silly thing, what do we keep trying to tell you? None of us will hurt you," Mitchell scolds me as he cuddles me close.

"Can I say hallo to the babies too?"

"And me?"

"Me too?" I turn my head to look at Justin, Jasmine and Donovan who are crowding around me. I turn around so Mitchell is still holding me but from behind and nod at the three youngsters. Immediately hands are pressed against my stomach, one hand even burrows beneath my jeans but I know I have nothing to fear from these young toms.

"Gently now Rosy won't appreciate it if you squash her poor tummy," Marissa scolds her children gently.

"Yeah be gentle with Rosy," Edwin reinforces as he approaches. His two youngest brothers move away and he places his hand on my stomach but when he goes to slip his fingers beneath the top of my jeans I jerk away from his touch.

"That's enough leave Rosy alone - everyone," Mitchell growls in warning.

"Micah, Steven, I want Mitchell over at the house now!" Wade snaps. I look over my shoulder at Mitchell worriedly and grab at his arm when he takes his arms from around me.

"I got to go," he tells me gently as I clutch at his arm anxiously.

"Come on, lets play a game on the x-box," Sam urges as he takes hold of my upper arm. I cast a glance at Mitchell scared for him, I don't know what is going on but I sense it is not good. I watch Wade, Marissa, Donovan and Jasmine leave and I glance towards Mitchell to find Steven and Micah flanking him.

"Mitchell!" I call in panic.

Micah turns around to face me, his face a hard mask. "This is clan business. Do not think you can interfere," he warns. I watch the three toms walk out the door and my stomach turns over queasily.

"Is Mitchell in trouble?" I ask fearfully as I look at Sam.

"Mitchell disobeyed Wade and gave orders to his more dominant clan members," Sam tells me and I catch the note of worry he is trying to hide.

"But he was trying to help me! He knows how scared I get!" I protest.

"He was acting like he is your mate. He hasn't tried anything when you sleep in his bed has he?" Sam suddenly demands.

"I would have ripped his arm or hand or whatever off and bashed him with it if he had tried!" I snarl at Sam, "I like him because he doesn't look at me like that! Like Edwin and Steven and Alex and Micah do!"

"They can't help it. You're a she-kitt and unrelated to them," Sam says levelly. I can feel my rage building, I didn't like the answers I was getting and the thought that Mitchell might be in trouble because of me didn't sit well.

"You forgot the fact I am a stray!" I snarl and turn my back on him as I head for the bedroom I'd been put into.

"Like that's anything to be proud of," I hear Edwin mutter and I feel my fury rush through me like a firestorm. I barely feel the agony of my body for the pain in my front leg as I struggle to stand without putting weight on it. I nose it with a whine and take a step with my other front leg, my injured paw held in the air.