Chapter 164

KAELOS Nothing could have prepared me for this moment. I stared at the tiny baby in Dr. Helena's arms—the small, red, and slimy body, the tiny fisted hands, the wrinkled face crying so hard—and something inside me broke and mended at the same time. It was my child. My son. Alaric. “Kaelos,” Seraphina's weak voice broke my thoughts. “I want to see him.” Dr. Helena quickly cleaned Alaric and placed him on Seraphina's chest—skin-to-skin contact that we had learned was so important. Alaric's crying immediately subsided as he felt his mother's warmth. I looked at them both—Seraphina, exhausted but glowing, and Alaric, so tiny, so perfect—and the tears flowed uncontrollably. “He's perfect,” I whispered, touching Alaric's head with trembling fingers. His hair was dark, like mine. “He's so perfect, Seraphina.” But Dr. Helena didn't give us time to linger. “Luna, we still have one more. I need you to focus. The contractions will come again soon.” Seraphina nodded, though her eyes never left Ala