"I may have a bum foot," he replied to her incredulous look, "but I can still haul you around like a sack of flour."
"Thanks for that flattering image." Jamison smiled and wrapped her arms around the older Panthera's strong shoulders. She stifled a yawn and her stomach growled, prompting her to send a significant look to her mother.
"Yes I know. You're hungry. Fortunately, I have influence at the hospital."
"You should since you're the chief surgeon," Jamison said.
Darlene ignored her. "Don't worry. I'll be there soon and make sure you both get something to eat. You'll need a lot of calories to replace what you've lost. First, I'm going to see that all evidence of this is removed and get Doctor Paul to conduct an autopsy on him. Maybe she can figure out what he used to be."
"A lion changer," Jamison answered slowly, exhaustion beginning to take its toll. "You'll need to contact the Felidae."
Darlene's face froze. "I see you haven't been telling me everything."
"My investigation, remember?"
"You are so stubborn..." Darlene clamped her jaws together and her nostrils flared as she took a deep breath. "Fine. You're right, but I'll expect you to tell me everything later, and I do mean everything."
Darlene was probably already thinking about how best to approach the pride leader, but Jamison's head was nodding. She was grateful her part of all this was concluded. The rest was up to the Council of Elders and she wasn't one of those. Yet.
Chapter Thirty-Four
LEE AWAKENED LANGUIDLY, stretching without opening her eyes. She felt like she'd slept for ages. A twinge in her right shoulder caused her breath to hitch and she finally looked around. Institution white greeted her and she groaned in automatic response to being in a hospital.
"Are you okay?"
She smiled at seeing Jamison in another bed a few feet away. The room was semi-private, leaving them a measure of solitude. But if Jamison was here too that meant.... "I guess it wasn't a dream. I really did change into a jaguar? We really fought?"
"You were magnificent."
The simple words confirmed what to Lee were incredulous events. What she had learned in the last month told her she had the potential to become a jungle cat, but she had never been an aggressive person. How could she kill so readily, wantonly take another's life regardless what he'd done? She could still feel the muscles and sinew give way under her bite, taste the blood and rank meat, hear the gasps of pain and fear.
"Lee?"
She blinked and focused on the woman beside her. Jamison was the answer. Lee would never be proud of her actions, but she had no regrets either. Jami was so much more than just her lover. Their connection went deeper than the physical, bordering on mystical. Lee would take on a hundred monsters like Bruce to protect her.
"I'm all right, really. It's just a lot to take in."
"Anything I can do?" The sadness and remorse in her green eyes tore at Lee's heart.
"You already have."
She offered a loving smile, but the moment was interrupted by a couple of quick taps on the door. It opened almost immediately and closed behind her as Darlene walked in like she owned the place. In a way, Lee supposed she did since she wore a white lab coat and a stethoscope around her neck.
"Good morning, ladies. How are you feeling?" Darlene smiled openly, glancing between the two.
"Starving," Jamison said. "Where's the feast you promised me last night?"
A dark eyebrow went up and Lee realized where Jami had picked up the gesture. "I didn't forget. Millie will be here in a few minutes with a full spread. You needed rest more than anything so I decided to wait. She's one of us and knows how important refueling is," Darlene finished, communicating the last bit to Lee by way of explanation.
"You're a doctor, too?" Lee asked, feeling a little slow catching up.
Darlene walked over to her bed and removed a clipboard from the hook on the footboard. She answered while scribbling something down. "Doctor, elder...most of the Panthera around here fill dual roles. Like Jamison; she's a park ranger by day and a super sleuth at night."
Lee chuckled, appreciating Darlene's sense of humor. She didn't really know her very well and they hadn't met under the best circumstances, but Darlene had an easy manner Lee found soothing.
"After you finish eating I'll process the paperwork so you can get out of here."
"Finally," Jamison groused.
"So soon?" Lee felt the need to clarify when two sets of eyes swiveled in her direction. "I'm just a little surprised. We were pretty torn up last night."
Darlene turned to Jamison. "You've been neglecting her education."
"I'll take care of it."
"You better," Darlene sparred good naturedly with her daughter before she answered Lee's question. "One of the many perks to being a Panthera is that we heal very quickly. Your shoulder wound was the worst and it might bother you for a day or so, but if you check you'll find it's almost healed."
Startled, Lee shoved aside the upper portion of the hospital wear and discovered that Doctor Kessler was right. All that remained were four matching grooves that looked like scar tissue that had been there for years. The lines were thin and white and there was little discomfort. She'd heard about Panthera healing abilities from Jamison at the hotel, but had almost forgotten.
"That's handy."
Jamison snorted. "You have no idea."
The door opened again and a redhead peeked around the door, Lee assumed to make sure everyone was decent and awake.
"Doctor Paul," Darlene greeted. "Come to pay your respects?"
Laura smiled and entered the room, then moved over to Jamison's side and clasped her hand. Lee felt something dangerous poking at her for the other woman's temerity. "Something like that. I wanted to make sure you were both okay. The floor nurse told me you were in here too, Caber, so I decided to kill two birds with one stone."
What's a Caber, Lee wondered. Jamison really did need to educate her on so much.
"You found something," Darlene said, more a statement than a query.
"Nothing on the surface that would explain what happened to him, so I had to have one of our labs take a look. Our killer suffered from a dormant gene that activated for whatever reason and turned him into this thing."
"That's it?" Lee demanded. "He mutated into a monster from something that was in his DNA? If that's true what would stop it from happening to any of us, all of us?"
"We all have dormant genes in our make-up," Laura answered patiently. "DNA is so complex that it took years to decipher a single strand. The Panthera genome is even more complicated and it's comprised from our entire history as a species, but no it can't happen to just anyone. This man--"
"Bruce," Lee interjected.
"Bruce then...he was born with this condition. That it didn't manifest until so late in a life just shows how strong-willed he was as an individual."
"All right, I'll buy that," Lee said, "but how do you know that it was something dormant if he was born with it?"
Jamison stepped in to back her up. "She's got a point. Panthera branched off from humans very early on in our evolution and we retained the ability to change when they didn't. Isn't that another form of mutation?"
"Evolution is about mutation," Darlene said.
"You're all starting to sound like Nash Daylong," Lee said starting to feel her temples throb. She missed the sudden interest her words caused as she closed her eyes briefly, but the silence in the room informed her that something was amiss. She looked up to see everyone watching her. "What?"
Jamison cleared her throat. "Who did you say?"
"Nash Daylong. You must know who he is; kind of crazy and lives down one of the side streets on the same block as Andy's Café ?"
"Lee, um..." Jamison hesitated and then finally said, "Mom, I don't really remember. How long ago was it?"
Darlene responded gently, but her attention was directed to Lee. "Nash passed away almost twenty years ago, dear."
&
nbsp; "That can't be right! I just spoke with him a few days ago, maybe a week."
Doctor Kessler walked over and sat on the edge of her bed. She took Lee's hand between her own. "He was a mystic here his whole life and had a way of seeing things."
"Like Aunt Chris?"
"No, Chris saw future events and allowed people to make alternate choices if needed. She guided the Panthera and she was also a natural healer. Nash could see into a person's heart, tell if they were lying or dangerous. He did work a lot with Chris and I understand they were great friends."
"How could this be?" Lee asked, more to herself than the others. "He invited me into his house and we talked. Oh what, now?" Darlene's expression told her there was more.
"Honey, his house was torn down six months ago. It was so old and falling down that the city had it removed."
Lee looked across to Jamison for support and read confirmation in her eyes. "How could I imagine some guy I've never even met? I'm not crazy."
"Of course not," Jamison said. "Lee, you're starting to come into your abilities and the truth is that no one ever understood the extent of Chris' powers. Maybe you can actually speak with people who've...moved on."
"Great. I see dead people."
Darlene patted her hand and said, "Don't worry. You'll figure it out and we'll all be here to help."
"How can you be so nice to me?" Lee asked. "We never even met before last night."
Darlene grinned. "You love my daughter and nothing says it more strongly than saving her life. How could I not accept you?"
Lee's eyes shifted to Laura who caught the intent stare and the low rumble of warning. Reluctantly, she let go of Jamison's hand. "Yes, well. Congratulations," Laura said. "I guess it's time I should be going."
The door opened once more and Lee was starting to think the space was getting a little crowded. A nurse dressed in SpongeBob SquarePants scrubs entered, pushing a laden silver cart. The smell of food hit her nostrils and Lee unexpectedly realized how hungry she was.
"About time, Millie," Jamison said and sat up ready to eat.
Millie barely looked old enough to drive and Lee wondered if she wore braces, but it wasn't important enough to pursue with all of her focus on food. Her mouth salivated at an alarming rate and she had to concentrate on not drooling while the young nurse brought her tray, and Darlene pulled her bedside table into position. Then Darlene stood up and moved toward the door.
"Enjoy your breakfast. I know you will, Jami."
She received a grunt in response, but Jamison winked at Lee before tucking into her meal. They were alone again and Lee lifted the lid to find a T-bone steak, mashed potatoes with gravy and a small salad.
"This isn't like any hospital food I've ever had."
Jamison grinned at her around a mouthful of steak. "Now you have the answer to your question."
"What question?"
"Why there are so many steakhouses in Harmon."
Lee smiled back and began to eat. She could never have imagined she would find her soul mate and be granted strange and unusual powers when she moved here, but she couldn't have been happier. Life certainly took some unexpected turns.
Epilogue
"SO WHAT DO you think?" Lee asked, leaning back on the sofa in the circle of Jamison's arms.
A fire roared in the hearth and Cleo lay on the rug directly in front. Benny had even been in once or twice, but she didn't know where the furry little beast had gone. Lee looked up and kissed Jamison on the jaw. Jamison smiled down at her and hugged her more closely.
"I think a solstice party is a great idea. You'll be keeping up your aunt's tradition and it'll give you a chance to meet the other Panthera in town."
Lee smiled. "I think it would be the perfect opportunity for Dinah and Andy to announce their engagement, too."
Jamison kissed her forehead. "You're so thoughtful. I'll mention it to them and see what they say."
"You could invite Brenda," she said. "I haven't met her yet."
"Are you sure? She's a human and I'm not sure what the shifters would think of having her around even if she is a park ranger."
"She's got to meet them sometime. You just promoted her but the real question is, are you ever going to tell her about us?"
"I'm not sure." Jamison grinned. "She'd be pretty freaked to find out that we can turn into big bad felines, but I think she would handle it pretty well. In any case, it's not anything we need to rush into. There are enough people who know our secret. Maybe I'll invite her to next year's party. Mom called, by the way."
"Really?"
Jamison nodded. "I couldn't shut her up about you. She thinks you're perfect. I almost asked her if she wanted to adopt you."
Lee swatted her on the leg and Jami jumped a bit.
"They found the money Dalton took from Xander and returned it to the Pride. Frank Chiesel was here arranging for his son's body to be transferred back to Newton Falls and she said he was relieved they found it. It seems Xander has a lot to answer for since he took the cash from their community fund without asking."
"Ouch. I hope he doesn't get into too much trouble. He really was just trying to help his brother and he didn't know Bruce was the killer or what Dalton had planned for us."
"That's true. Now do you mind if we stop talking about them? In fact, how about we don't talk at all?"
"What did you have in mind?" Lee asked teasingly, looking up into Jamison's eyes.
"I'll think of something."
Jamison pushed her back onto the sofa and Lee forgot all about talking for a very long time.
"THIS IS IT, Thelma," the pride's physician said, standing between the lion changer's thighs.
Her lower body was covered with a sheet that was covered in blood. Thelma's blonde hair was so wet from perspiration that it looked brown and her face was deeply flushed. This hadn't been an easy birth and he worried that she might not survive. Her family had suffered so much with the death of her husband that he vowed to do everything in his power to keep the mother and child alive.
"One last time, push!"
Thelma clenched her teeth and bore down, grasping the hands of the attending nurse and her father-in-law. At the end of the contraction she screamed and the baby entered the world in a great gush of blood. Doctor Nolen gently grasped the babe and extracted him, snipped the umbilical cord and slapped the tiny bottom. A lusty cry issued from healthy lungs and he handed the child off to the nurse who stood by with a blanket.
"You have a son, congratulations."
Another nurse finished wiping the sweat from Thelma's brow with a cool, damp rag and the mother asked to see her baby. In minutes the child was returned to her. His body had been wiped clean and she happily received him into her arms. Then she frowned and Bruce's father gasped before he looked up to meet the doctor's eyes.
"What? What's wrong?" The child had seemed healthy enough and he couldn't imagine what the problem might be.
Nolen stepped over to the bed, intending to perform a quick examination of the infant when he froze in his tracks and stared down in astonishment. The newborn was too young to be able to see, but the eyes were a uniform plane of silver, lacking pupil or iris and appeared to give off their own inner glow.
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Table of Contents
Under the Midnight Cloak
Copyright © 2012 by S.Y Thompson
Acknowledgments
Dedication
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Epilogue
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