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He was right. The hoard room’s defenses had been increased, and had Sebastian not been there to disengage them, Perry never would have riddled his way inside. How frustrated he would have been had he come all this way only to have to turn around and find Sebastian in order to get inside. Further investigations of their new security system, however, would have to wait, because at that moment a contraction so terrible tore through Perry that he was sure he was being ripped apart.
There was no holding the pain back this time.
He screamed.
“My love,” Sebastian uttered, and rushed to the bed, where he laid Perry on the sheets. “You must be brave. You must be strong. You have come so far, and there is only a short way to go. You will get through this, I swear it. I will do whatever it takes to make sure you and the babe are safe.”
The pain didn’t abate for a long time. Perry gripped Sebastian’s hand and squeezed with all his might, but it did nothing to help. Barely any time had passed at all, and he was already drenched in sweat and ready for this to be over.
It was nothing like laying a clutch.
Perry would rather lay a dozen eggs than go through an hour of this.
“I wish I had something to give you that could numb the pain,” Harrison said in a quiet, worried way when Perry’s contraction ended. “I figured Ev was coming here for a checkup, and since I’m not supposed to be in on the secret, I didn’t bring anything. If I’d have known, I would have brought supplies. I’m sorry, Perry.”
“Focus not on the if, but the now,” Sebastian boomed. “What can you do to help with what you have on hand?”
“Well…” Harrison approached the bedside and looked down upon Perry. “I have been working on something that might help. You’re going to feel a slight pressure on your abdomen, and maybe a tingling sensation. I need you to stay as still and as calm as you can, okay?”
Perry nodded, because he was sure that if he opened his mouth, he would scream.
“Okay. Here goes nothing.” Harrison pushed a noisy breath through his nose and laid a hand on Perry’s abdomen, close enough to his groin that Sebastian growled in warning. But rather than cower, Harrison, ever unflappable, smiled brilliantly at the dragon threatening his life. “You know, most herps are nonvocal, but you in particular love to growl and snarl and make all kinds of nonhuman noises. I’d love to study how dragons communicate sometime, but right now I need to concentrate. Would it be okay if you kept those noises for later? Maybe when I have a voice recorder around? If you need help distracting yourself, you can always play with Steve.”
Steve, the iguana on Harrison’s shoulder, lifted his head to look at Sebastian. He was dressed in a small striped tank top, like one might wear to the beach, and was wearing a pair of sunglasses on top of his head somewhat like a hat.
Sebastian stood still for a long moment, then reached out and collected the lizard from Harrison’s shoulder, holding him in his arms like he had the children when they’d been smaller and scalier.
It was almost enough to melt Perry’s heart.
Almost.
But then the next contraction hit, and not even Sebastian could distract him from his all-consuming pain.
“Another contraction,” Harrison said helpfully. “Okay, we’re in business. Let me see what I can do…”
It took a second, but a gentle wave of heat washed through Perry like a wave breaking on a shore, and the pain very nearly disappeared.
“How is that?” Harrison asked. “Did it work?”
The heat continued to spread. It wasn’t hot enough to burn, but when it reached Perry’s ribs, it heated up enough to become uncomfortable. Perry winced, but nodded. “I feel much better.”
“I’m so glad! Now let’s see what else I can do.”
The heat persisted, but didn’t worsen, and bit by bit the pain inside Perry eased. All the while, Harrison kept his lips pinched and his brow furrowed. It was the most quiet he’d ever been.
While he worked, Perry turned his gaze on Sebastian, who had Steve cradled in one arm and was petting his head with a single finger. Steve was not known to show emotion, but Perry got the feeling he was quite content indeed.
“Okay, I think I’m done,” Harrison said, sounding rather exhausted. “You’re having another contraction right now, so I’m not going to stop just yet, but your injuries have been healed, at least. We’ll have to have Everard check and make sure I did it okay—I’m still pretty new to magic, and it’s easy to make a mistake when you can’t see the wounds you’re stitching back together. I’ve heard that if you do it wrong, you can end up causing more harm than good.”
“You heard right,” Perry admitted with a heavy heart. “Magic is a tricky thing, and the human body is trickier yet. But you’ve done excellent work, Harrison. I feel much improved. I am in your debt.”
“You’re welcome.” Harrison smiled, then set his sights on Sebastian. “Do you need help to heal, Sebastian? You’re bleeding from your head wound. It looks pretty awful.”
“My body will regenerate on its own. ’Tis but a scratch.”
“I doubt that, but okay. If you’re sure you’re fine, I’ll focus on Perry.” Harrison sat on the bedside next to Perry. “You know,” he said after some time, “if you’re going to deliver this baby, you’ll need to disrobe at some point. Your bump is getting awfully low, and, well, I think it’s better safe than sorry. We should prepare for what’s still to come.”
Sebastian growled and took a menacing step forward, but stopped when Steve scampered up onto his shoulder and gummed his earlobe with his tiny lizard mouth. Like an evil robot foiled by a well-timed toss of a bucket of water, Sebastian twitched and shuddered, then stopped.
