Carpathian 17 - Dark Celebration

Baby Jennifer spitting up on Santa's pristine, white beard. For a moment the coal-black eyes glinted silver, like a wolf, and rested on Mikhail. Just as quickly Santa recovered his jolly state and handed the baby back to Corinne.
    Shea smiled up at Jacques. I wouldn't have missed this for the world .
    If I were Mikhail, I'd be expecting lightning to strike . "Let's get you to the birthing chamber," Jacques said aloud, wrapping his arm behind her back to support her. He could feel the pain rippling through her body, growing stronger with each contraction. Stronger—
    and of longer duration.
    Shea brushed her fingertips over his strong face. "Don't look so anxious. Millions of women have done this."
    "But not you, little red hair," he whispered, leaning down to brush kisses on the top of her silky head. "Not us. You're my world, Shea."
    "We'll be fine. Look." She indicated the back of the room with her chin.
    "Oh, they've done this little show for the children right. Trust Savannah to know how to work a crowd with her magic. Before Gregori claimed her she was a mistress of illusion, working magic shows all over the world, and she certainly hasn't lost any of her skill. She has the crowd in the palm of her hand. Now the children will never believe, for a single moment, that that is Gregori in that sleigh."
    Even as "Santa" finished handing out presents, Gregori appeared at the back of the room, frowning at his lifemate. "Savannah! Why in the world are you dressed like that? What do you think you're doing?"
    Children giggled when Savannah turned around with a mock guilty look on her face. She held a finger to her lips and made a little face. "I've got to go, and I'll have to bring down the curtain on St. Nick before I do. We wouldn't want to reveal his secrets to the entire world."
    Santa Claus gathered up his sack and hurried over to the fireplace. Although the flames burned hot, he simply disappeared up the chimney. Another gasp of awe spread through the room.
    "Savannah makes magic wherever she goes," Jacques agreed. "Those children will never forget this night."
    Savannah waved her wand just as the footsteps overhead indicated St. Nick was climbing back into the sleigh. He swung his black boots expertly over the edging and picked up a long whip, cracking it over the head of the reindeer. They took to the air. The sleigh and bag of toys, now considerably less filled, lifted into the air and glided away to the sound of Santa's laughter.
    Another ripple of pain slid maliciously through Shea's body. Her fingers clamped down hard around Jacques, even as she breathed slowly in an effort to control it. This time the pain was hard enough and lasted long enough to make the other Carpathians in the room fully aware that she was in active labor. Heads turned. Warriors, lifemates and even some of the children turned their attention to her.
    Shea tried a small smile and nodded. "It is time. Where is Slavica? I must thank her for such a wonderful evening. It was filled with delightful surprises."
    Francesca and Mikhail with several others closed rank around Shea.
    "We need to get you to the birthing chamber now," Francesca declared. "We can do this, don't be afraid."
    "I'm anxious, but not afraid. Jacques won't let anything happen to us, will you?" Shea asked, holding her lifemate's gaze.
    "Not a single thing. This is going to be a beautiful, unforgettable birth," he assured her.
    Shea took a few more steps toward the door and stopped, one hand pushing at her hair to get it off her brow as the swelling pain tightened across her stomach and down through her back. "Do you realize the latest report on babies is that they are sitting in a terrible chemical brew, just the way the animal and bird young have been doing, which is what is putting so many species on the endangered list?"
    "Shea," Jacques cautioned. "Now isn't the time to think about that."
    "No, Jacques. We all have to think about it." She gasped as the pain rushed over her, stealing her breath. She grit her teeth and recited statistics. "Cord blood reflects what the mother passes to the baby through the placenta. Of the two hundred and eighty-seven chemicals detected in umbilical cord blood, one hundred and eighty of them are known to cause cancer in humans or animals, two hundred and seventeen are toxic to the brain and nervous system, and two hundred and eight cause birth defects or abnormal development in animal tests. And I'm quoting a report done by an environmental