“Relax.” Ethern rubbed his hands together to warm them up and then placed them on her stomach. He shut his eyes, and his skin turned green with the same strange markings that she got when she shifted to a witch. Brayden took her hand in his and squeezed it. She looked over to him and smiled. Despite being so scared she was glad that she’d finally find out what was happening.
After a few minutes Ethern’s skin turned back to normal, and he opened his eyes.
“You are pregnant, Selene. From the looks of the baby almost four months.” Ethern smiled.
“I’m pregnant.” She looked to Brayden.
He had the biggest grin on his face, but it suddenly fell.
“Is the baby alright? Why can’t I smell it?” he asked Ethern.
“That I don’t know. I’m going to explore a bit more in a minute, but I didn’t want to leave you wondering for too long as to whether you were pregnant or not.”
“Is it a girl?” she blurted out. “Maybe it was because Brayden had been a boy that his father was able to smell him so quickly. Maybe I’m carrying a girl and that’s why Brayden can’t smell the baby.”
Ethern opened his mouth but stalled as he tried to find the words to say. He didn’t need to though. She knew exactly what he was going to say.
“It’s a boy, isn’t it?” she questioned.
“Yes.” Ethern replied.
“I’m going to have a son.” Brayden squeezed her hand a little tighter.
“You are.” Ethern rubbed his hands together again. “As far as I can tell, with only magical powers, the baby’s perfectly healthy as well.”
“That’s good,” she replied. Her head was swimming with emotions. She’d only been alive, as far as she could remember, for a year. She was four months pregnant with a boy. The world was suddenly moving too quickly. She wasn’t a big fan of roller coaster rides and wanted to get off this one. She jumped from the table before Ethern could put his hands on her again and smoothed down her t-shirt.
“I’m pregnant. That’s all we need to know for now. I’ll get a doctor to do all the other tests tomorrow.”
“Selene.” Ethern spoke first, and then Brayden added.
“Back on the table.”
“Why? We came here to find out if I was pregnant, and I am. We can tell Kas and then get a doctor.”
“Back on the bed.” Brayden spoke with a bit more force this time.
“I’m scared.” She had been heading towards the entrance of the cave but stilled. Ethern turned away, but Brayden came over to her.
“So am I, but we need to know what’s going on so we can protect our son.” Brayden pulled her into his arms and kissed the top of her head. “I won’t leave you the entire time. Trust me. We have to know.”
She nodded and went back to the table.
“Before you get back on can you turn into a snow leopard for me, please?” Ethern’s words stopped her. She looked up at Brayden.
“Change. I’m here.”
She removed her clothes and shifted. Black and white spots covered her body.
“On the table for me. Lay on your side.”
She used the strong hind legs of her form to jump up onto the table and settled down. Ethern placed his hands over her stomach. She meowed contentedly. A natural reaction in cat form when her belly was touched
“A snow leopard,” he responded. “Will you change to a bear for me now.”
She huffed but did as she was asked. After she’d learnt to control her powers she’d stolen into a zoo with Brayden. She’d touched nearly all the animals in there, so she had the ability to shift into any of them. She’d refused to touch the spiders, though, despite his insistence they could come in handy. She chose at this moment to become a panda. Ethern placed his hands on her stomach. His face went white.
“Ethern?” Brayden asked.
“Panda.” The word was spoken in shock by the male multi-shifter.
“What does that mean?” Brayden slammed his fist into the table, and she shifted back into a human in shock.
“One more,” Ethern asked.
“No.” She shook her head.
“Please. I need to be certain,” he pleaded.
Selene looked to Brayden. He had a frown of worry etched on his face. She was his woman, carrying his child, but at this very moment he was helpless. She watched him lock his emotion away though and take her hand.
“A witch?” she asked.
“Yes,” Ethern replied.
Selene looked in between them. Her heart felt like it would fracture from her chest any minute. She shut her eyes and transformed. Her green skin matching Ethern’s. The shifter druid placed his hands on her stomach and the entire cave exploded. Flashes of light flew from her and sent not just Ethern but also Brayden flying into the sides of their shelter like rag dolls. The roof splintered and rock started to fall around her. The explosion sounded like a sonic boom. She shifted back into her human form, and scrambled as quickly as she could to check on her mate.
“Brayden.” She shook him. “Talk to me please.”
He groaned long and loud.
“What happened?” He stirred, and she pulled him into her arms.
“I don’t know.”
“Why did you do that?” he moaned.
“I didn’t.”
“The baby did.” They both looked over to Ethern who was sitting there rubbing a swelling that was appearing on his head.
“The baby.” Selene and Brayden said in unison.
“Yes. I’d advise you to try and refrain from turning into a witch again anytime soon. Especially if you are being attacked. It could lead to the end of the world.”
“Why did our baby do that?” Selene helped Brayden to his feet. Her mate was still wobbly and disorientated.
“He thought he was protecting his mother.”
She looked down at her stomach.
“What the hell is inside me?”
“The product of yours and Brayden’s love.” Ethern used the cave wall behind him to get to his feet.
“That just tried to kill its own father and blow up the Nevada desert.”
“Hush, he was just worried.” Ethern stepped towards them. He reached out to touch her stomach again. Brayden ducked, and she jumped backwards.
“No.”
“It’s ok. I won’t use my magic this time. I just want to talk to the little guy.”
“A whole world of, no, not happening.” She folded her arms over her stomach.
“Ethern, will you just tell us what’s happening?” Brayden had come out of his cowering position.
“Selene, you’re carrying the first ever multi-shifter and snow-leopard baby.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Teagan was sure there wasn’t a part of her body not frozen at the moment. She’d only been out in the park for a couple of hours, but her nose felt like it would fall off anytime soon. It would be so much easier if she could do her job as a wild dog, and a lot warmer with a fur coat. But trying to explain that to the steady stream of visitors was something that she couldn’t really do. She shivered and pulled her thick coat further up around her chin.
She’d checked the signs in the northern quarter of the park to ensure that they weren’t covered by the fresh snow, that had fallen over night. A few were unreadable, so she’d cleaned them off. There’d been a report of a couple seen hiking off the main path, so she’d sorted them out and returned them to the correct route with a telling off. Now, she was heading to the Southern quarter, the furthest away from the mansion, to a report of animal tracks in the snow. It wasn’t an area that they tended to run in as it was more densely populated with tourists and inhabitants of the park, so she knew it wouldn’t be any of theirs which worried her. She wished that Tyler was around to help her. She assumed he was out on a task for Kas because he’d disappeared in the middle of the night. She hadn’t seen him since.
She trudged through the snow. It wasn’t much fun with her boots weighed down. Skipping wasn’t rea
lly possible and probably a direct path to breaking one’s neck on the slippy ground. She started to hum a marching song in her head, and soon she had her arms swinging by her sides and was much happier.
Her thoughts turned to Tyler again. He’d been acting really strangely for the last week. He’d come and go at all times of the day, and he always seemed really tired. They’d gone from having lots of sex to managing once over the last week. She wondered if he was working on something really important for Kas, but then he’d never been that secretive before about these sort of things. It was totally out of character for him. He’d been different ever since the incident with the bed and the ceiling. Maybe he was regretting their relationship and realizing that she really was an inferior breed and clumsy as hell. She placed her hand over her heart as she felt it crack. It was in that moment that she realized she was completely and utterly in love with Tyler Quinn. She wanted him as her mate. How would she cope if he didn’t want her? She wouldn’t. She’d have to leave all the friends she’d made here, because she couldn’t be around him everyday. Tears flooded into her eyes. and she felt them crystallize in the frozen air. She couldn’t breathe. No, she needed to reassure herself and to calm down. Tyler would just be busy for Kas. He was busy, that was all it was. The fight with Nuka was taking up his time. Kas needed to know what his brother was up to, and Tyler was the best bet at helping with that because of his mad computer skills. She settled a little but couldn’t shake the sickness that was pooling in the pit of her stomach. She stuttered out a sobbing breath. It was interrupted when she heard movement behind her. She sniffed, and Tyler’s scent swam up her nostrils. It was mixed with another smell, something she didn’t recognize. It was natural, some kind of vegetation. He must be herb hunting again.
The bushes rustled and snow fell from the branches to reveal a very naked Tyler. He ground to a halt in front of her, his face turning pale.
“Teagan?” he asked with a look of horror in his eyes.
“Yes,” she replied and stepped forward. He jumped back. She noticed that his feet and hands were covered in mud and looked like they had been bleeding.
“Tyler what happened?” she rushed towards him this time and grabbed his hand.
“Happened?” He seemed really confused. “You’re real. I can touch you.”
“Of course you can. You can do a lot more than just touch me as well.” She tried to lighten the situation, maybe reminding him of the fun things they did would help his obvious bewilderment.
“It’s morning,” he spoke again and looked up at the sky.
“Yes, well nearly lunchtime.”
“Lunchtime,” he repeated
“How long have you been out here?” she questioned.
“Most of the night.” He looked around again. “I have to go.”
“No.” She stomped her foot. “You’re not going anywhere. Not until you tell me how you got the cuts on your feet. Have you been running all night? The footprints in the southern quadrant, was that you?”
He stopped looking around and stared straight at her. It was as though something clicked behind his eyes. She saw it, him coming back to himself.
“I went for a run and smelled something. I followed it. My hands and feet are sore from running most of the night.”
“Did you find it?” she gasped.
“No.” He shook his head.
“We need to tell Kas.”
“No,” he barked out. “Leave it with me.” He started to shake.
“You’re cold. We need to get you back to the mansion. I have a jeep not too far away. Let’s go.” She turned and started to head down the path that she’d just marched up.
“I’ll be quicker and warmer as a wolf.”
“There are humans in the area.” She watched Tyler physically shudder again.
“I’ll be careful.”
“Tyler...” Before she had a chance to respond, he shifted and belted off towards the mansion. She wanted to change as well and go after him. He was obviously injured and completely disoriented when she’d found him. He was not telling her something.
She took off back down the path being careful not to fall on the ice. Her hand was in her pocket reaching for the keys, and she clicked them and opened the doors before she reached the car. She started the engine and put her foot down hard. She wasn’t thinking straight and the car spun on the ice. She managed to control the skid and avoid the patch of pine trees that loomed large in front of her. The last thing she needed was to crash now. She pulled on the hand brake and took a deep breath.
“Everything’s alright Tea,” she told herself. “You’re reading too much into everything. Poor Tyler has been out all night, and his hands and feet are sore from all the running he’s done in the cold. If you crash and go off at him he’ll get more stressed. Calm down. Deep breaths.” She inhaled slowly, in through her nose, and held her breath for a count of four before exhaling for the same amount of time. She repeated this five times. She loved doing yoga. It was a wild dog thing. She felt much better. She let the handbrake go and drove at a much more sensible and less tree crashing speed, back to the mansion.
Jessica was in the entrance way looking up at the sky, when she arrived back. She was wearing a long black tunic dress and swaying on the spot.
“More snow’s coming. It’ll be a bad winter,” the witch told her.
Teagan looked up at the bright blue sky.
“It doesn’t look like snow at the moment,” she responded and tucked the car keys in her pocket because she had such a bad habit of losing them. Kas tended to get stressed when she did that.
“My bones are cold. Something is going to happen.” Jessica rubbed her hands down her arms to warm herself up.
“Well, I hope it isn’t too much more. The snow is already bad in places. We might have to close areas of the park.” Especially if there is a strange animal roaming in it and humans going off route. “Did Tyler go to his room?” she asked Jessica.
“Tyler?” The witch tilted her head, like an owl, to look at her.
“I found him in the park. He shifted to get home quicker. He’d been out all night and was cold.” She partly lied and that sickening feeling in her stomach surfaced again.
“He isn’t here.” Jessica’s eyes went white and then returned to normal. “He’s in the park still. Nowhere near the house. Why are his hands and feet bloodied?”
“Seriously, that’s totally freaky that you can do that.” Teagan shuddered as she allowed Jessica’s words to settle into her head. Tyler hadn’t come home. He was still out there. He was disorientated and bleeding.
“Teagan, what’s going on?”
She slumped in her standing position. “He said that he went for a run and heard something and followed it. That’s how he hurt his hands and feet but…” She hesitated.
“You know; I can just read your thoughts if you don’t tell me.” Jessica raised an eyebrow. “It’ll be in the contract that you signed with Kas. We aren’t human so don’t have human rights about violating personal space. Not in Kas’ world anyway.”
“Alright bossy,” Teagan huffed. “He hasn’t been right since we fell through the floor. He was so disoriented in the park. Almost like he’d been hit on the head. He wondered if I was real. It may have been an act to get rid of me though. Maybe he just doesn’t want me anymore,” she sniffed
“Tyler Quinn wants you more than anything in the world. Despite the fact you’re both too scared to say it, You’re both in love with each other. Your auras are joined.”
“Joined auras?” she questioned. It sounded good, but she didn’t have a clue what it meant.
“The atmospheric glow around you both. Yours is red because you’re enthusiastic and energetic. Tyler’s is yellow because of his hard-working nature and intelligence with computers. Whenever you’re in the same room together they become orange. They mix to signify the love you have together.”
“Oh. You can tell that by just looking at us?” Teagan held her hand up
to see if she could see the red or orange glow surrounding her.
“Witches can. I don’t see the world the way you do, even when not practicing magic. I’m not sure if it’s a curse or gift.” Jessica weighed up the pros and cons with her hands.
“If it makes the world a more colorful place, then I think gift.”
“I’ll teach you more another day, but now we need to focus on Tyler.”
“Yes. Should I tell Kas my suspicions that something’s wrong?”
Jessica’s eyes went white again, and she let her head fall backwards. Teagan just watched her in awe. Eventually, she returned to her body and started to shake again.
“My bones hurt.”
“Is it to do with Tyler? I thought you said it was to do with the snow?” She was getting a bit confused because Jessica wasn’t making a lot of sense.
“Go to your room and wait there. I’ll come for you when I have answers.” Jessica placed her hand over Teagan’s and squeezed it.
“Is he ok?” her question was barely audible.
A lone tear dripped from Jessica’s eye. Teagan’s breath caught. She wanted to run and find Tyler herself. Something bad was happening. She sensed it. She turned but the world spun, and she found herself magically placed in her room. What the hell was going on?
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
“Where are you?” Tyler shouted out. He’d shifted back into human form and found some dry clothes in one of the mountain caves. “I know you’re there? Show your face.” He had his hands clenched. He was shaking so hard, but it wasn’t from cold. It was from the desperate need for another packet of the catnip. He’d used the ten packets that the ghost had given him already. The last week had flown by in a blissful haze of no pain or suffering. The girl didn’t come to him. She didn’t accuse him of murdering her. He had peace, but now he needed her. He was calling for her, and she wasn’t fucking coming. “I killed you!” he called out, and the air crackled. The glorious scent of his drug filled the air. He breathed it in. No, he shoveled it into his face in desperate need to get more. It wasn’t working though. He was still feeling. He didn’t want to feel. He didn’t want to be reminded of what he was. He wanted to run and to be free.
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