Her Pact

Part 1

Chapter 1

He tossed her in the air, jerking his head to the side when drool dripped down her chin. Instead of feeling disgust as he thought he would, he smiled at her. Catching her gently, he cradled her in his arms. The large smile she sent him made warmth burst in his chest. Maybe he fell in love with her so soon because of the fact she looked just like Ally. How could he not feel affection towards the one person who had always understood him, who had felt like family since the first time he met her?

She gurgled up at him, and he couldn't resist tickling her under her chubby chin. Out of all the children, she was in the middle. The second to be born, the second in size, but she was the first who had reached out to him.

"Who's my girl?" he questioned as she smiled up at him.

Footsteps padded behind him, making him glance over his shoulder. A large smile crossed his face as Ally came into view with a disheveled appearance. Her hair stood up in every direction, black circles were under her eyes, and the sweats she was wearing were stained.

Once he saw who was in her arms though, he couldn't help but step towards her. "My turn?"

Her eyes narrowed. "You have Jesse, Zeke. If you keep trying to kidnap my children, I'm kicking you out."

"Let me see him," Zeke coaxed as he rolled his eyes at her. Okay, he may have loved the fact that he could spoil her children to death, but with the three children around, it kept his mind from other things.

"Seb," she whispered through her mind, "Zeke just said he wanted to babysit while we take a break."

"I can hear you, Ally-Cat."

She gave him that large smile that she sent him so often. "I know."

A low growl echoed in his throat, but what surprised him was when one was sent back to him from across the room. Taking a step closer, he looked at Noah in interest. "Since when does he growl?"

A flush stole over her cheeks as she shifted uncomfortably. "Just when he feels a little threatened."

"Threatened?"

"Fine," she growled, letting out a huff of breath. "He reminds me of you, dammit. Always growling when he thinks someone is being threatening towards me."

"You're serious?" he asked, rocking Jesse in his arms.

"Yes and Zoë can send me little images in my mind. They aren't always something that I can make out, but they're there. She always smiles and giggles, and the little girl has never cried. That's not normal right?"

He wanted to smile as she worried her bottom lip, but kept his expression neutral. "Jesse seems normal."

Ally gave him a look. "Are you kidding me? She has you wrapped around her little finger. You're not like that with anyone."

Seb stepped from the hall, a bright smile on his face, but Zeke could see the tiredness in his eyes. He threw an arm over Ally's shoulder while holding Zoë in his other arm. "He's like that with you," Seb grumbled, his smile still firmly on his face.

She pulled away from Seb and walked towards Zeke.As she got closer, she smiled at him. Placing Noah in the playpen next to his feet, she looked up at him. "I really wanted to thank you for doing this for me."

He opened his mouth to protest, but before he knew it, Seb was placing Zoëdown next to her brother. "Seriously, Zeke, you don't know how much this means to us."

Zeke's mouth shut closed; he could tell by their thoughts that they really did need a small break. Ally wouldn't be gone for more than two hours, the mothering trait she had in her wouldn't let her stay gone for longer. Seb, he wasn't sure Seb would last thirty minutes. The man was worse than Ally when it came to the safety of his children. Zeke was surprised that Seb even allowed him to take one of the children into a different room, let alone let him watch them.

Zeke nodded at them as Ally snatched Seb's hand and pulled him out of the room. He rolled his eyes at the two of them. They were very much in love, but it didn't keep them from screwing up every now in then. He expected fights, and he had only gotten one for the past two months after her children's birth. The fight ended just as fast as it had started. Zeke had never seen a couple of people who hated to be mad at one another more than Ally and Seb. It was irregular, odd, weird, and everything that Ally and Seb were as a whole.

Jesse gurgled again, while wiggling in his arms.Knowing what she wanted, he set her down next to her siblings. She let out a tiny sigh as she lay next to her sister. Zeke felt fierce protectiveness course through him as he looked at the children. He couldn't help it. When Ally had said that Jesse had him wrapped around her finger, she was wrong. Each one of these children could make him do their bidding. He was attached, and he could do nothing about it.

Zoë's brown eyes bore into his. Images flashed through his mind, images of Ally and Seb. He smiled down at her while smoothing her gold hair. "Your parents are busy, sweetheart."

She smiled at him as if she liked her new nickname, but Zeke knew that was impossible. She didn't know what he was saying; she was too young.

Zeke glanced towards Noah and chuckled a little. "I should call you charming, huh? You're mother says your just like me, kid, but I hope you're not. Take after your dad; be just like him. He'll be a great King, and he'll teach you well."

Noah's green eyes blinked at him, and if babies could smirk, Zeke swore Noah did so. Zeke glanced at Jesse. The little girl smiled at him. "Little Jesse," Zeke started with a sigh. "I hope you're normal, as normal as a shifter princess can be. Your brother will be King, your sister will have an outstanding power, that can be a blessing or a curse, but you, you'll be the glue. You may not know it yet, but without you, this will fall apart. Being normal will be a blessing, never look at your siblings with envy, because with your envy comes their downfall."

His mouth shut as pain slammed into his head. Dropping to the ground, he cradled his head into his hands. Behind his eyes throbbed as he mouthed a curse. This was what always happened; it was part of his curse. As soon as he learned something, he had to give a sacrifice, and so far, the only sacrifice he has had to give was the blinding headaches he experienced.

"Zeke."

He let out a sigh, feeling the pain ease. "Yeah, Ally?"

"I'm going to have a guest. See to them, please? I'll be there in a minute, but I found out they'll be here early."

He kept silent, knowing that they both knew he would do as she said, if only to give her a small break before she had to deal with the outside world. A knock sounded on the door, letting him know that her guest had arrived.

Zeke stood to his feet and looked down at the children lying beneath them. Their eyes were closed as they dozed, but he didn't want to leave them to themselves.

A throat cleared. Glancing up, he noticed Andrew standing there. Zeke's hackles rose. How much had the man seen? Had he noticed the pain Zeke felt seconds earlier?

Andrew glanced at the children then motioned towards himself, making Zeke groan in frustration. There were no women around, who Zeke knew of, but the man still insisted on not uttering a word. He brushed past Andrew, leaving him to watch after the children. If Ally had told Andrew to look after them, it must be an important guest. As he got closer to the door, he felt a thought flicker through his mind that made his eyes narrow.

Ally was up to something.What it was, he had no clue, but once he got his hands on her, he was going to strangle her. He opened his mind, trying to read the person on the other side of the door, but was hit with a mental wall. Great, the person on the other side was a snow leopard; there was no other explanation. What the hell was Ally doing bringing another person into the mix when they had enough already? Opening the door, he glared at the person standing there. His expression faltered for a moment before he schooled it once more. This person was definitely not what he expected. The hair wasn't white, the eyes weren't blue, definitely not a snow leopard.

"I'm Charlie," the person said with a small wave.

"Zeke," he said in a clear voice. He had a distinct feeling that his life had just gotten more complicated.

***Thanks to thelovelywar for the book cover, and Platypus1987 for the banner! They're both amazing :)***