The Lion's Surprise Baby

by Jade White

  Thomas leaned back on the recliner. He whistled at the revelation she just shared with him. “Whoa. I hope I didn’t get you in trouble with your parents. I really liked you. Melissa kind of snuck up on me.”

  It was true: he really did like her and that was the reason he’d wanted to take her out. His emotions had been so confusing lately it was hard to figure out what he was feeling. He felt bad he’d been leading her on. It was dumb to think he could focus on more than one woman at a time, even if he wasn’t romantic with both of them.

  Hilary smiled at him and shook her head. “It’s not me that is in trouble with my parents, it’s you and Melissa. As you are aware, it is against the were-bear law to impregnate a human. You are in a lot of trouble with the higher ups.”

  “What are they going to do, fine me?” Thomas was getting upset at how his life choice seemed to be getting Melissa in more trouble than he thought he was worth to her. If he had to pay some sort of restitution, then he would gladly do it.

  Hilary let out a laugh and it sounded ominous. “If it were just a fine, I would pay it for you. By impregnating a human, you could be punished by death. And as for Melissa and the baby, a witch doctor will be called in to remove the baby, and erase her mind of you. Which is probably best for Melissa.”

  “Death? What kind of backwards justice system do we have? And are you telling me there are a lot more were-bears in New York?”

  “There’s a whole community of us. Your father had some kind of falling out with the council and that’s why you’ve never heard of it. It’s a lot to explain, just trust me, you are definitely in a lot of trouble.”

  “What do they care who I impregnate? It doesn’t sound like it should be anyone’s business but my own.”

  “Humans can’t normally handle the birth of a were-baby and die during delivery. That is why it is forbidden. They are afraid that a human will grieve the loss of their daughter for having a were and out us to the rest of the world. We would be in danger if the world knew about us.”

  “Bullshit. I don't care if it is the master bear or whatever the hell he is called. Nobody is going to touch Melissa or my baby. Where have these elders been? From what I’ve been taught, we are a dying race; there shouldn’t be a council out there to tell me what to do. What if you’re making it all up?”

  “I promise it’s true, for whatever reason your father had a falling out with the council. It’s not even something he’s shared with your mother. She never knew there was a governing body and a large population of us in New York, but your father does.”

  “Why wouldn’t he tell me?” He was completely blown away that his father would keep something like that from his family. Especially if there were other were-bears out there he could have mated with.

  Thomas launched out of his seat and started pacing the floor. He had enough money to take Melissa and disappear forever if he needed to. His brother would just have to own up and start taking care of the family business.

  “I need to go get Melissa. I need to get out of here.”

  Thomas searched for his phone so he could call Melissa and tell her he was coming to get her. He cursed when he remembered it was crushed.

  “Yes, that’s probably a good idea.”

  “Can I borrow your phone? I need to call Melissa and mine got smashed when I almost got ran over after you left me at the restaurant.”

  “What? Thomas, they aren’t going to stop. We need to get you out of here. I’ll drive you and we will go pick up Melissa. There is a place in Chicago that may be able to help you two.”

  “Thank you.” Thomas wanted to talk to Melissa immediately, but he figured they would be at her apartment soon enough and he could talk to her then. He needed to have her safe by his side, and after this she was going to be his and he would protect her for eternity.

  “Why are you helping me?” he asked as Hilary got off the couch and they walked to the door.

  “I liked you, Thomas. You were always nice to me. I also like that you were true to Melissa. There were many times you could have had sex with me, but you didn’t. There aren’t very many men out there that are faithful to the ones they love. I hope to find that someday.”

  Thomas put his arm over her shoulder. “You will.”

  Thomas let go of Hilary so he could lock his door. He heard her scream, and when he turned around to see what was happening, he saw the two men that threatened him earlier that week. One of them had his arms wrapped around Hilary as she clawed at her captor.

  “What the fuck do you want?” he asked; his bear was begging to be released, and he was about to give it its wish.

  He felt his body start to shimmer as his muscles and bones stretched and popped.

  “None of that,” the other one said pulling out a Taser that he didn’t see.

  He heard Hilary scream his name before everything turned black.

  THE FINAL CHAPTER

  Pain shot through Melissa’s head. She moaned as she tried to rub the aching knot. Her arms wouldn’t move and Melissa started to freak out. She cracked her eyes open but shut them quickly the harsh light hit her hard, making her head hurt even worse.

  She rolled her head back and forth as she tried to remember where she was. Her memory slowly started to come back to her.

  She remembered Nathaniel trying to pull her into her room by her hair. But then a big man came to her rescue, or so she thought, because he pushed her into a car. She realized she was tied to a chair of some sort when she tried to move. Slowly she opened her eyes again and realized she was in some sort of cave. The lights that had been so blinding were hundreds of candles surrounding her. There was a lady who knelt at her feet, looking up at her. Her face was covered in strange makeup with bands under her eyes. Her hair was long and matted, and she wore a strange dress that appeared to be made of burlap. In one hand, she held a rattle of some sort she was shaking at her and the other held a bowl of a steaming liquid.

  “The witch will now determine if the human has indeed conceived a child due to her encounter with one of our kind,” a deep voice said before the woman at her feet stood and started walking around her in circles.

  Looking around she realized the room was full of people watching and Thomas was tied up across from her. He was unconscious with his head down against his chest. Melissa felt a spike of fear. What could these people possibly want with her?

  “What are you doing?” she asked the woman who was now shaking the weird rattle over her stomach.

  There was no answer as she started chanting something low in her throat Melissa couldn’t understand. After a few minutes, she walked around her one more time and nodded to the man who’d been talking. He was reading from what looked like a scroll.

  “The witch has determined the human is with child.”

  Melissa couldn’t believe it. She was pregnant! How could they already know? There was a mix of joy and terror she couldn’t tell apart.

  The man continued, “Now the witch will remove the child in question.”

  The woman moved back over her stomach and poured the liquid from the bowl on her stomach as she continued to chant. The momentary joy turned to all pure terror. Why would anyone hurt a baby?

  “No!” Melissa screamed. “Please, why would you take the baby?”

  There was nothing she could do as she fought to free her hands. The liquid was warm and she wondered if it was going to sink into her body. There was a small pain that shot through her as the witch started to shake her rattle over her again chanting louder now.

  “Why are you doing this?!” Melissa screamed and was once again met by silence. Another pain went through her abdomen and she struggled to get free.

  “Thomas wake up! They’re taking our baby!”

  She saw his hand flinch and thought maybe he would wake up. She wasn’t sure what he could do, seeing as how he was tied up as well, but she was becoming desperate.

  ***

  Thomas felt his head pounding and realized he’d fallen asle
ep in a chair of some sort. He opened his eyes to the bright lights of dozens of candles.

  “What the hell?” he asked out loud as he tried to stand and found he was unable to move as he was tied down.

  Taking in the sights around him, he started to remember what had happened. There was someone who hit him hard and Hilary had been there. She was a were-bear! She was warning him of something, what was it?

  He looked over and saw a woman crouched down in front of Melissa who was also tied to a chair. She looked terrified and the woman was shaking something over her stomach. Everything came back to him; the men who tried to warn him, her place being trashed, and Hilary’s warning about the baby. They were trying to take the baby.

  “Stop,” his voice barely came out when he tried to yell. “Don’t take the baby!”

  Melissa looked up, realizing he was finally awake and she yelled at him. “It worked. They want to take it from us.”

  She was crying so hard the words were choked out, but he understood. His chest tightened as he realized they were trying to get rid of the baby. Someone leaned down to him.

  “Don’t worry, Thomas, it doesn’t hurt them. It will be like the baby was never there, wiped from existence. It’s nothing sinister and it’s to protect her and you.”

  “That’s bullshit,” he yelled at whoever was talking to him. He was restrained too much to turn and see.

  Thomas was panicking, and something was keeping him from shifting. If he could shift, then he could break the restraints and be free.

  “You’ve drugged me,” Thomas said, still trying to free himself from the chair.

  “It was necessary, Thomas, please just calm down and let this happen.” He recognized the voice this time. It was Blair. The shock he felt hit him in the chest. His best friend and the person he’d trusted to help him figure out who was coming after him was the enemy.

  “Blair, how could you do this?” he asked.

  Melissa screamed and he yelled in frustration.

  “Listen, I didn’t know this was against the rules. Had I known, I wouldn’t have let you do it. Now that I know, you have to do this or they will kill you.” Blair was speaking quietly. Thomas couldn’t wrap his head around anything that was going on.

  “Then let them kill me!” Thomas yelled suddenly. “If they won’t take my baby, then let them kill me.”

  “Thomas, you need to rethink what you’re saying. You don’t understand, they’ll just kill you and then take the baby,” Blair said. “I’ve found out a lot about our culture this past week. I didn’t even know there were this many of us in New York, and now that I know what they’re capable of, I know you don’t want to cross them.”

  Thomas felt completely helpless as the witch chanted louder and Melissa cried. The were-bears standing all around in the candlelight were completely quiet as they watched, making him wonder what kind of strange rituals he didn’t know about. If his parents knew about these kinds of things, was it the reason his mom had tried to talk him out of it? There were so many questions he had and overall he was just filled with sadness that he’d never get to meet his child.

  He dropped his head to his chest thinking he’d never felt like less than a man. Not being able to protect his family was the worst feeling and Melissa was his family. He loved her, truly loved her, and if they somehow got out of it, he would tell her exactly how he felt.

  The light shone in from the door that blocked the entrance to the cave. At least he thought it was a cave judging by the rock they were surrounded by. There was a small party walking in, drawing the attention of everyone in the room. Thomas was facing the door, but Melissa couldn’t see people had come in. The witch hadn’t stopped yet, but she was looking that way, which alerted Thomas to the fact that they might not have expected anyone.

  “Stop this ritual immediately,” a loud voice boomed over the whole cave, echoing off the walls. Hilary stepped forward and stood in front of the rest of the crowd that had interrupted the ritual and Thomas realized his parents and brother were with them.

  “The old way of our people is dying. This woman has found a way that a human body can sustain and deliver a were-bear. She has created advanced technology that may help us save our race. As I’m sure my brothers and sisters know, the were-bears are starting to become extinct. Our small gathering here is the last of our kind in the northern states and the rest of the country and world are dwindling in numbers.”

  “What does that have to do with our tradition, Allen, our values?” One of the men separated from the rest of the ground and walked toward him.

  “They are outdated and we have to start looking toward the future, looking toward preserving our race. This is not the way we should act in the face of a new discovery. This is not how we should act. We should embrace these changes as medical miracles and see it as a way to make our race stronger.”

  “This is your doing, Hilary?” the man asked, looking up at her. “You’ve run to your father because you’ve got a thing for the were-bear who impregnated a human?”

  “My half-brother is part human. He is proof that it is possible to successfully bring a were-baby into the world, and now that Miss Rancic has found a way to make it safer, there is no reason it shouldn’t be allowed.”

  A loud gasp went through the crowd as everyone started mumbling to each other.

  “As the acting leader of the New York were-bear community, I declare this ritual to be barbaric and forbidden.”

  Thomas realized Hilary’s father had a lot of pull in the were-bear community and that by revealing their family secret, they had exposed themselves to ridicule. They’d done it all to save him and his child, and he couldn’t be more grateful. Blair cut his ropes and let him up.

  “We’re going to talk about this later, Blair,” he said and ran to Melissa. “Babe, are you okay? Look at me.”

  Melissa looked up her eyes swollen from crying and smiled at him. “I am now.”

  “I’m so sorry to put you through this.”

  “This isn’t your fault.”

  He helped her stand up as his parents rushed over to both of them.

  “I’m sorry, Son,” his father said. “I knew the society existed, but I didn’t know they still went by the old book. I certainly didn’t know they kept tabs on my family. There’s a lot we have to talk about. I should have been more honest with you. I should have let you in on my past. Your mother, too. She didn’t know everything until today.” He looked at his feet.

  Hilary’s father walked up and put his hand on his father’s shoulder. “Abraham and I go far back, but we had a falling out when we were younger. Your father didn’t want to take a leadership role in the society and struck out on his own. The elders who are never present for the ceremonies still keep tabs on all were-bears in the area and they were not keen on your situation, Thomas.”

  “And you somehow convinced them otherwise?”

  “No, Hilary came to me and told me what was going on and I contacted your father so we could attempt to stop it. I will have to deal with the elders in a separate conference. I hope they will see that Melissa’s research is as valuable as I see it.”

  “Dad, this is a lot for me to take in,” Thomas said, having not let Melissa go since he’d helped her stand up.

  “For now, you just need to get her out of here so she can get some rest,” AJ said. He’d been quiet through the whole ordeal and Thomas wondered if he knew about the society and his father’s falling out with them. “We’ll all have to talk about all of this as a family, but for now, you two need to get out of here and celebrate.”

  He grinned really big and Thomas realized he was right. Getting Melissa the help she needed at the moment was all that was important.

  “What did you do?” He grabbed the witch who’d hovered nearby. “What do we need to do to make sure she’s okay?”

  The woman pushed him away from her easily and glared. “Listen to me bear, I was called here to do a job. It isn’t my fault that job happened to be
erasing a fetus. The were-bitch will be fine. The baby hadn’t been erased yet and the liquid on her stomach was only the beginning of a very long ritual I still had better be paid for.” The last part was yelled as she looked around her. She sat down in the chair Melissa had been in and crossed her arms.

  The crowd of were-bears appeared to not know how to act, some had left, others milled about in smaller groups whispering to one another. Thomas decided he had no desire to know the people in the society or be a part of it. Once they made their way outside of the cave, his mom pulled them both into a tight hug and squeezed.

  “I’m so glad you’re okay. Melissa, you’re going to be a great addition to our family. When can we plan the wedding?”

  Thomas could tell that Melissa didn’t know how to answer, and he hadn’t had a chance to tell her how he truly felt, but he hoped she felt the same way.

  “Immediately,” he said as he pulled Melissa to him. “I love you and there’s no reason we shouldn’t be together.”

  Not caring his family was around, he bent down and pressed his lips to hers, giving her the first real kiss they’d shared, delighting in the gasp that came from her as she wrapped her arms around his neck. The two melted into one another and when they parted, his parents and brother were trying to look anywhere but at the two of them.

  “I love you, too, Thomas.” She smiled and grabbed his hand. “Now please take me home.”

  ***

  Nine months later, Thomas stood outside the glass looking down at a small little boy wrapped up in a blue blanket. His tiny features were scrunched up as he slept, having had a big day. He was perfect. His father stood beside him holding the very expensive cigar he’d bought for the occasion. Abraham was more excited than Thomas at the fact that he had a grandson. He’d bought cigars for everyone and called everyone they knew to let them know that Joseph Rancic McMillian had arrived and he finally had a little boy to spoil.

  “Not that I don’t love my girls,” he was reassuring AJ who had come up to look at is nephew.

  “I know you do, Pop.”