The stars twinkle above me as I float in the cool water of the lake we had found. My stomach bobs above the water, the gentle lulling of the current helping to calm my thoughts and relax my aching body. The cramping in my stomach has been coming spontaneously over the past week. After the first time it happened, and Taylor was able to calm down my worrying by telling me that it was normal, it has been happening all the time, and I am thoroughly exhausted.

The cool water of the lake has helped to ease the pain, and generally help release the tension the cramps cause in my body.

"Love, you've been in there for awhile," a voice says from the right of me. Lazily turning my head, I see Erik standing at the sandy shore, watching me with a soft smile on his face. "Tatum finished cooking those fish we caught earlier. Why don't you come and get some?"

Turning my gaze back up to the sky, I take in one more calming breath before nodding my head and slowly swimming back to the shore. Erik helps me up and hands me an old towel that we had found in an abandoned tent about a week ago. It is rough on my skin but absorbs all of the water off of my body. Can't be too picky nowadays.

"I'm starving," I say lightly, causing my mate to chuckle. Lately, I have been constantly hungry, which can be a problem when we barely have any food. Taylor says that my body is trying to make up for the lack of nutrients I have received over the last couple months, by making me hungrier than before.

"Well, it's a good thing we found this lake and have been able to catch lots of fish." Erik gives me a crooked smile before grabbing my hand and leading us back to our camp.

We've been in the same place for a little over two weeks now. After running into those crazy humans, we got as far away from them as we could and stumbled across this lake. When my extreme hunger hit, we decided to stay here for a while. Ethan, Erik, and Tatum have been scouting the surrounding area, trying to find a small hut or cabin we could stay in until I have the baby, but they have not been successful yet.

It does not take long for us to make it back to camp, and everyone is sitting around the fire talking by the time we finally reach them. Olive and Grace are chattering away in their own baby language, but Elliot seems to understand every word they say as he converses with them.

Tatum and Taylor are sitting close to each other, their arms touching as they and Ethan talk. The beta and the omega have grown closer as the weeks go by, and they do not seem to notice how they gravitate towards each other, but it is inherently obvious to the rest of us.

"Oh! You made it back!" Taylor says, giving me a wide smile as he stands us from his seat on a log and walks over to me with a bundle of clothes. "How was your swim?"

Smiling, I grab the bundle from him and walk over to the tent we have set up about ten feet from the fire pit. "It was nice. The cramps in my back aren't as bad now, and the contractions died down."

Quickly, I change, noticing how Taylor stopped talking to allow me some privacy. The shirt he gave me stretches across my stomach, and the sweats ride low on my hips. These are the only things that have been fitting lately, so I have been stuck with them. Throwing on one of my mates' sweatshirts, I unzip the tent and walk back over to the fire.

"Thanks," I say when Tatum hands me a plate with cooked fish and warm peas from a can.

I sit in a camping chair in between Erik and Ethan, and quickly start to eat my food. The conversations start up again, but I remain quiet, listening to everyone talk and watching as the small ones play with each other.

Meeka clambers over to my chair and flops down onto my feet. Normally, I would nudge her off, but it is a cool night and her extra body heat feels great on my cold toes.

"Do you feel better, love," Ethan whispers from beside me. I nod my head as I chew the food in my mouth. Once all the food on my plate is gone, I set the plate down and cuddle into his side.

"The contractions have gone away, but will probably come back tomorrow morning like the usually do. Now, I'm just exhausted and cannot wait to get some sleep."

"You can go to bed, love, if you want to. You don't have to stay up with us," Erik says. I give him a tired smile and lean up to press my lips against his soft ones.

"I know, but I want to sit hear and cuddle with you two. I barely get to see you, now that you spend most of the day scouting for a new place for all of us to live." I give him another quick kiss. "I miss you."

Ethan wraps his arm around my side and pulls me back against him, while Erik lifts my swollen feet onto his lap. Gently, he starts to message my feet, causing a quiet moan to slip from between my lips.

"We've missed you too," Ethan says, resting his chin on my shoulder. "It has been hard leaving you here, knowing we would be too far away to protect you if something were to happen."

Erik nods his head while slowly increasing the pressure on my feet. "We just have to find a safe place and then we won't have to leave your side."

Tiredly, I smile, feeling my eyelids droop closed. The soft chatter around me lulls me to sleep. A little while later, I am jolted awake by someone picking me up from my position on Ethan's chest.

"Shh, go back to sleep, love," Erik whispers.

Sleepily, I nod my head before burying it into his neck and breathing in his scent. My body relaxes as his scent fills me. As the pregnancy progresses, I have been needing my mates even closer to me, a constant need to be surrounded by their scent. It has been driving me crazy, seeing as my mates have been gone all throughout the day for the last couple of weeks. Now, whenever they are near, I like to be as close to them as possible.

I fell myself being set down and zipped up into my sleeping bag. It takes me a little while to remember that Olive and Grace do not share one with me anymore, seeing as my belly was making it a tight squeeze for all of us. Now, they share the one next to me, still close enough for comfort.

Drifting in and out of sleep, I hear the rustling of everyone getting ready for bed and the little ones being fussy about having to go to sleep. After about a half an hour, everyone has calmed down and is asleep. I am just about to follow them into sleep land when a small kick comes from inside me.

"Go to sleep, baby," I whisper with a scratchy voice while rubbing the spot where the foot is pressed. The kick is just the beginning, though. Small flutters and movement come from the baby, who is most likely just waking up. Sighing, I open my tired eyes and stretch, knowing it will be a while before the little one drifts off to sleep again.

As quietly as I can, I work my way out of my sleeping back and step out of the tent, putting on my flip flops that are sitting just outside the entrance.

"What are you doing up?" a voice asks as I shuffle over towards the low burning fire.

"Baby woke up," I respond tiredly, sitting in the chair next to Tatum. He nods in understanding. Everyone knows how little sleep I have been getting due to the baby's tendency to wake up as soon as I go to bed.

We sit there in silence, observing the fire and listening to the crackle of the wood as it burns. The smell of the smoke coming from the flames is almost calming. It reminds me of when cold nights spent huddled in a house with blankets surrounding me as I watched the colorful flames.

Those were some of the best nights of my life, back before my parents found out that I was an omega and started treating me like shit. My father did not beat me, my mom actually paid attention to me and my sisters. Back when we used to be a family.

Wanting to get my mind off of my past, I break the silence. "What are you thinking about?"

"Hm?" Tatum hums, blinking his eyes as if realizing that he had drifted off into his own world. He turns to look at me with a curious look on his face. "Oh, nothing really."

"Tell me? Please?" I say, desperate to get my mind back on track. I rub my stomach, pressing wherever I feel a tiny foot or hand. The baby seems to like it, always pressing back into my touch.

Tatum lets out a heavy sigh before leaning back in the chair he is sitting in and crossing his legs. "I was just thinking about the history of my old pack and werewolves in general."

"Oh?" I question, grimacing at a particularly hard kick.

"Don't you think it's weird how we are called werewolves, even though we don't shift on the full moon. Why aren't we just called shifters; that would make more sense."

Looking over at the beta, I see that he is deep in thought again, his brow furrowed as he stares at the crackling fire.

"That wouldn't make sense either since we can't shift into our wolf," I say, glancing over at him. He looks over at me with a confused expression on his face.

"What are you talking about? We can shift into our wolf," he says, an eyebrow raised at what I had said. His expression looks exactly like the one Taylor wears whenever someone says something stupid. I think they have been spending too much time together.

"No..." My face twisted in confusion. Our wolves are more spiritual than physical. We have a pack mentality and drive, but it is impossible to shift into a full wolf.

"It's rare, but it can happen. I've seen it," he says, turning back to look at the fire, "and you have too."

I stay silent, trying to think of what he is talking about, but nothing comes to mind. The silence must alert him to my confusion because without breaking his gaze from the fire, he continues talking.

"It can only happen when we are in great distress. Our wolf takes over and most of the time we do not remember when it happens. Haven't you seen any of those infected wolves?" I nod my head in confirmation. "They were werewolves that were bitten by an infected. The distress the bite caused on their body forced them to change."

Now that he mentions it, it makes sense. Those wolves were huge, and months ago, Alpha James had mentioned how he had thought they were infected werewolves.

"What other things can force our wolves out?" I question, curious about the wolf spirit inside me.

"Like, if a family member dies, or if a mate is threatened." His blue eyes meet my own. "Both of those can drive a werewolf insane, so our wolf will come out to prevent it whenever possible."

"What about the Warriors?" I say in a soft voice, fear coursing through my body just from thinking about them.

"What about them?"

"They are able to shift into their wolves."

"What are you talking about?" The confusion Tatum is feeling is clear on his face.

"When they attacked our camp, they were completely shifted into their wolves."

"Hm, how strange," Tatum mumbles, turning his gaze once again to the fire. "It is probably because they are insane. Their brains have completely been taken over by their wolf spirits. The ones as wolves are probably unable to shift back to their human form."

"I didn't know it was possible, but they seem even more frightening that before." Tatum nods his head in agreement.

We both fall silent and listen to the croaking of the frogs and the hoots from the owls high in the trees. This topic of conversation does not have me feeling any better, and I rub my squirming baby as I try not to think of what could bring my own wolf out.