The Good Wolf's Alpha Mate

Chapter 1

Liam's POV

“What the---?!”

I swallowed the last word before it left my lips. Not the time, not the place, I had to remind myself as I once again took in the scene before me. Hell, I had to force myself not to physically reel back from the sight and the stench that permeated the air. I felt like I'd just been punched in the gut, and the curse threatened to slip again. I bit it back as my heart broke in my chest. Anger surged through my veins, and my wolf wanted to howl out his frustrations.

She was just a kid!

No more than 17--- 18 at most! She looked so young and innocent, despite the pain and agony she was clearly in. She looked beaten and abused. Bruises and lesions covered her mostly naked body, and there were obvious bitemarks too.

Vampire!

She was bleeding badly! Blood covered the ground as if she'd been crawling to where she now lay in a pitiful heap of leaves. All of this had the doctor inside of me worrying about her. But it was the blood pooling out from between her legs that had me worried the most. The cause could only stem from one thing:

Her obviously pregnant belly...

But how?!

While my days of lectures about the other supernatural races had long since passed, I still vividly remembered that vampires couldn’t get pregnant!

So how the Hell was---?!

The girl let out another agonizing cry, her face contorting in pain and agony. She was pale as a ghost, her color almost ashen. And the stench of death and sickness clung to her like a second skin.

She was dying...

Still, when she saw me, her face paled even more, and fear permeated the air. Not that I blamed the poor thing. She was a vampire, and I was a werewolf. We weren't known to be overly friendly with each other. But I could never hurt another living thing—vampire or not. Perhaps it was my mellow nature or just my training as a Pack doctor.

But my instinct urged me to help her...

"I won't hurt you," I softly reassured her, lowering myself to her level. She didn't reply but rather let out another agonizing scream. I fought my urge to go to her, afraid that I'd make things worse for her. I still didn't understand what was going on. The girl was a vampire, so her wounds should be healing despite the excessive beating she'd clearly been subjected to.

But they weren't...

Instead, they seemed to be oozing even more, as if there was poison in her system. But then again, I'd never heard of a vampire that could be pregnant. Perhaps---

"H-h-help... me!"

The words were spoken so softly, that I barely picked them up. But when she reached out to me, I didn't hesitate to move to her side. Gently brushing some hair out of her face and making soothing sounds in the hopes of calming her. This close, the stench of death and decay was even more palpable. As if she was rotting from the inside, and I had to force myself to breathe through my mouth.

"I'm here," I said, trying to assess what I could do to help. Her tear-streaked eyes met mine, and for a split second, I saw some gratitude there. Her face was dirty, yet rivers of sad had washed some of the muck away, revealing that before all this, she'd been quite a beautiful girl. Full of life, laughter, and a promise of tomorrow...

She deserved to live!

But in truth, I knew I would need a miracle to save her. Even if I gave her my blood, it wouldn't work. Vampires needed human blood to survive. And besides, there was something in the werewolf blood that vampires wouldn't tolerate. Not poison directly, but more like opposing forces. Like same-polar magnets, they rejected werewolf blood...

The girl didn't reply but cried out in pain. Her stomach turned unnaturally, stretching and bending in a way I'd never seen before.

“I-I---s**t!” I gasped as another whoosh sounded and more blood oozed out from between her legs. I jumped back, bile rising to my mouth, and I felt myself sway a little. Now, I'd seen my fair share of blood, having worked in the Pack clinic for most of my life. But never in my life had I ever seen anything like this before. The blood was almost black and looked poisoned. The scent of her amniotic fluid was sweet, despite being tainted with the black blood that seemed to have poisoned her.

Shit!

She was about to give birth...

Right here!

Right now...

“He-help m-me,” she cried again, her hiccups almost making her words unintelligible. “P-please!” She cried some more, as she moved her hand to lovingly stroke her protruding belly. "My-my ba-baby! Pl-pl-please!"

Do I look like a f*****g midwife?! My wolf sardonically remarked, but he wasn’t fooling me. He was just as shocked by the whole thing as I was.

“I---!”

I was about to tell her that I had no idea what I was supposed to do. Sure, I was a doctor, but I'd never delivered a baby before. Nor had I ever in my 26 years come across a pregnant vampire! But before I could tell her that I had no f*****g idea what I was supposed to do or how even to help her, I stopped. She was alone and dying. There were no Packs or human hospitals anywhere around. There was no nest of vampires in these parts that somehow could explain all of this and no coven of witches that could save her life. She was an abnormality. She and her pregnancy. Which was probably the reason why she was dying…

And she knew it!

But when she saw me, she didn’t see a Rogue – a lawless werewolf without a Pack – or even a man, that could be a danger to her. What she saw was someone to be with her.

So she didn’t die alone…

And someone who could save her unborn child…

“OK,” I breathed and bent down next to her. I had to force myself to breathe through my mouth so I didn’t suffocate on the stench of death that was coming from her. Hell, I just barely picked up on the scent of vampire underneath all of it, her system that far gone in decay already.

"I need you to breathe for me," I said calmly, trying to find a way to sanitize my hands. I grabbed my water bottle and did a quick rinse of my hands. "I have to check how far along you are and---"

I didn't get to finish that sentence. The girl let out another agonizing scream, which was accompanied by another whoosh of blood and fluid from between her legs. Her belly stretched once again as if the baby itself was fighting for its life.

"Please!" She cried out, reaching out to me. "Please! Make it stop!"

I let her take my hand--- and was surprised by the strength of her grip. Hell, I had to grit my teeth not to show pain and had the situation been anything else, this would be funny as f**k!

But this was a matter of life and death, and I quickly composed myself.

"It will be over soon," I reassured her, hoping that I was telling her the truth. I moved between her legs, trying to ignore how they shook from pain. But to my second shock of the day, I realized that she was already crowning...

I don't think I'm ready to be a daddy just yet! My wolf interjected, not even trying to hide his nervousness or uneasiness with the entire situation. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at him. For a fierce predator, he could act like a damn i***t sometimes...

"You're almost there, sweety," I gently urged her, looking at her over her belly. "When you feel the need to push, I need you to push. Just one big push and then this is all over. OK? Can you do that for me, sweety?"

With tears streaming down her face she nodded determinedly. Brave little thing, I noted, feeling pride swell in my chest. I didn't know this girl, yet somehow I felt connected to her. We hadn't even exchanged names, and still, it felt as if we'd been destined to meet...

"You can do this," I urged her again, and as her eyes met mine, I knew she felt the same way I did. Despite the pain, gratitude and determination shone through. She gave me one final nod, clenched her teeth, and pushed with all her might.

"That's it, Sweety," I encouraged her, watching as she gave birth. Without thinking, I pulled off my T-shirt and held it at the ready, as a pink and bloody baby came into the world. The girl gave out one final battle cry and then---

“It’s-it’s a girl,” I breathed in astonishment, and for some reason, tears were streaming down my face. “It’s a girl.”

I couldn't describe the feelings that were coursing through my body right at that moment. The small bundle looked squished and disgruntled and somehow still, she was the most beautiful thing I'd ever sat my eyes upon. Her jet-black hair was already long and curly, contrasting her pale white skin. Her eyes looked dark as night, with hints of blue and gray around the iris.

She was f*****g perfect!

My heart was racing and jumping for joy at the same time. My wolf was yipping like a puppy, barely able to contain his excitement.

The small woman didn’t reply. She just let out a sob of relief, as happiness and pride showed on her features. In that instant, she looked more alive and happy than I’d ever seen anyone before.

“My--- my baby girl,” she sobbed through her happy tears. I nodded and held up the small creature for her to see. She let out a mixed cry of laughter and relief. Without a word, she reached out her arms, but I understood the silent command. Scooting closer, I gently put the newborn into her arms and more tears streamed down her face. But this time, they were tears of joy...

"My baby," she sobbed quietly, looking up at me with gratitude and love. "Thank you!"

I didn't have words to give her. All I did was smile back and put my arm around her. She'd been so brave throughout the whole thing. She'd honestly been the one to put in all the work, I'd just happened to be there to hold her hand.

"You did good, sweety," I replied, feeling as if I was talking to my baby sister. I gently stroked her cheek and smiled down at her. She was so small and tiny, that my tall frame and broad figure dwarfed her. And perhaps that was why I felt so protective of her. She was so young and innocent, and---

Suddenly her expression froze. Just froze in that unimaginable happy smile, that even had my wolf’s lips twitching into a grin. And then---

She began to decay…

Shocked I watched as her skin shriveled until she was nothing more than a husk. All traces that she’d once been human were gone. At the last moment, I grabbed the baby, as her mother dissolved. Flakes like ashes scattered in the wind, removing any trace that she’d even been there…

She was gone…

And without ever having known her, a longing pang ricocheted off my heart. I didn’t know her, but in the few minutes we’d shared, felt like we’d created a bond that was severed even before it began.

I gasped for air, unable to really comprehend what had just happened. A stupid part of me was convinced that it all had to have been a dream; a mirage of the loneliness I felt, being a werewolf without a Pack.

But I knew better...

I hadn't imagined the blood on my hands. Or the pained look on her face when we first met. The sheer happiness she'd exuded when she held her baby girl for the first time. Or the scent she'd left behind...

I hadn't imagined that…

Sorrow gripped my chest and I wanted to howl in frustration and pain. But a piercing sound echoing throughout the entire forest kept me from doing any of that. The crying bundle in my arms was wailing her little lungs out, for all she was worth.

Panicked, my mind blacked out for a second as I just stared at the little baby. I didn’t know what to do! Hell, she was so little, she was barely the length of my forearm. She didn’t weigh s**t and her pink skin was still streaked with blood and something white that I didn’t even dare to identify. Her black hair was sticking to her big head and her toothless mouth was open with a never-ending shrill scream that had my wolf flinching in my mind. But looking around there was no one there to help me. Nobody knew where I was, or even cared...

We were alone!

And that was when I realized something important...

I was in deep s**t!