by Sy Walker
“It will be okay, Charlie. The baby’s blood will empower your body to get through this. You won’t even be able to see a scar afterwards. The healing powers of a baby like this will be temporarily embedded in your blood so that your wound disappears almost immediately. His power will heal your body to its natural state.”
“I need to think about it. It’s a lot to ask, Tommy.”
“Okay, but you don’t have long. You have a decision to make rather quickly.”
“I know.”
They both fell into silence as Tommy turned onto an old dirt road that seemed to lead to nowhere. They drove quite a way down it before entering what appeared to be a bit of a gyspy camp filled with tents and RVs that were situated along some cliffs and a river on one side. A tall, broad looking man not much older than themselves walked toward the car, flanked by several other men.
“Come on Charlie,” Tommy said as he climbed out of the car. Charlie climbed out of the opposite side and made his way around to the front to wait. Tommy took his hand and walked toward the larger man.
“What are you doing here, Tommy? I thought we had agreed you’d stay away from the pack while the council decided your fate.”
“My fate? I think my fate is cemented now, Harrison. It seems that I was right all along when I said you weren’t fit to be leader. As it turns out, I’m the rightful leader just as I’ve said all along. You could have spared me that fight with you if you’d just admit you were a liar.”
“Come on, Tommy. Why are we going through this again?”
“I’ll tell you why. You lied. You claimed to be the descendant of Austin Ambrosio, but you aren’t.”
“And how do you figure that?”
“Because I now know that I am the only descendant. The legend holds that there will always only be one male child that extends down the line of the Ambrosio clan and I am that male child in this generation.”
“Your claim is quite spirited, but I’m afraid that you have no proof.”
“Ah, but that is where you are wrong. Have you met my friend, Charlie here? We met a couple of nights ago and spent a beautiful evening together.”
“And this means what to me?”
“It means that you are a phony, because if you will look a bit closer, you will see that Charlie is pregnant. The baby he is carrying is mine.”
Tommy reached for Charlie’s shirt and pulled it upward to expose his now very rounded belly. Charlie looked embarrassed and pulled his shirt back down, standing quietly as the events continued to unfold before him.
“It’s a hoax! What did you do, fill his belly full of air? Find someone with a tumor?”
“It’s not a tumor!” Charlie suddenly shouted. “Don’t you dare call our son a tumor!”
Tommy looked at him, caught off guard by the outburst. Then he smiled proudly and turned back toward Harrison.
“See? Not a tumor. It’s a were bear and it will be here in no time at all to secure our place as the head of this were bear clan.
“I am the leader of this clan. I am the leader of this motorcycle club. I don’t care about this little prank you’ve conned your friend into playing along with. You’ ll never be the leader.”
“Now wait just a minute, Harrison.”
The men all turned to look at an older man who had stepped up from among the crowd that had gathered. He looked like he was eighty years old, very fragile, with long white hair and a scraggly beard.
“If what Tommy says is true, you cannot keep him from his rightful place as leader. Once this baby is born, he will automatically take his place as your replacement. It is stated in our bylaws that only when there is not heir to the Ambrosio legacy can alternate leadership be installed. If he is, in fact, that heir, it is his place to lead us, not yours.”
“Shut up, old man. He is full of tricks. There will be no baby.”
“You need to show respect to your elders. Time will tell,” the man replied. “Tommy, take your friend and go for now. When the baby is ready to be born, call the shaman to bring it into the world. The council will not hesitate to bring you to the head of the table where you belong.”
“Thank you, Sir. We will go for now, but we’ll return soon.”
Harrison scowled and looked at them menacingly. Tommy and Charlie climbed back into the car and left the encampment.
“I’m not sure. Did that go well?” Charlie asked.
“Yes. That went well for everyone but Harrison. He won’t give up leadership so easily. That puts you in danger, Charlie. He’ll do anything to keep our child being born, so I’m going to need for you to stay with me until it is. I will escort you to any classes you need to attend in the interim.”
“So you expect me to go to class with a tattooed biker sitting by me as my bodyguard then?”
“I don’t have to sit beside you, but I will be just outside the classroom and walking with you to each of them.”
“I feel safer already,” Charlie said sarcastically.
“You should. I’m going to take you home with me now. We will go get my bike tomorrow.”
“Okay,” Charlie replied. He felt exhausted, both emotionally and physically.
Back at Tommy’s house, they got ready for bed. Tommy kissed him softly as he climbed into bed beside him and curled around him, but didn’t attempt anything further. It was just as well, as Charlie wasn’t sure he was capable of doing anything more than sleeping anyway. He dozed contently until the wee hours of the morning when loud voices from the other room woke him up.
“Let’s take this outside, Harrison. You’ve no right to come into my home like this.”
“Where is your little boyfriend, Tommy? Tell me where he lives. I will go rip him open right now and prove he has nothing in there but whatever he is dying from.”
“You’ll do no such thing, Harrison. Now, get out of my house.”
“Is he here? Is that why you are so anxious to get me out of here? Awh, did I disturb your little snuggle bed time?”
“I said get out, Harrison. It’s the last time I’m going to ask you.”
“Or what? You still think you can take me after the way I kicked your ass last time?”
“That was a long time ago, Harrison. I’ve grown a lot since then, both as a human and as a were bear. I wouldn’t do anything foolish if I were you.”
“I’ll do as I damned well please. No sniveling little butt licker like you is going to unseat me from the head of the clan or the club.”
Charlie heard footsteps approaching the bedroom door and then a terrifying half human half growl as Tommy screamed at Harrison.
“Get outttttt!”
The sound of something breaking filled the house and the sounds grew more muffled. Charlie wanted to go out and see what was going on but he knew that he was no match for a were bear and putting himself in the way would only bring more danger to Tommy who would no doubt have to protect him in addition to himself. Instead, he snuck quietly out of the bed and went to the bathroom, climbing into the long linen closet and hiding behind the rack of towels that descended down one side.
Even with the walls between him and the outside, he could hear the sounds of the two men, who from the sounds of it were now in full bear form, fighting viciously in the back yard. It seemed to go on forever as their large bodies could be heard slamming against one another and hitting various things in the yard. A loud howl resounded through the house as one of them was no doubt injured, but Charlie couldn’t tell which was which just from their sounds.
A loud crash came closer to the house as what sounded like a window or perhaps the French doors that led out back shattered. More howls of pain filled the air as the growling and thrashing continued. Finally, there was a clawing at the bedroom door as Charlie shrank back further into the closet. The splintering sound of the door filled the room as the were bear, no doubt Harrison, managed to get through the door and roared loudly. It was terrifying.
Once again, the sounds of splintered furniture and metal co
uld be heard as the bears continued to fight. There was a loud crack and one of them whimpered pitifully in pain. Charlie heart sank at the thought that it might be Tommy. He kept as quiet as possible so that he wasn’t detected. The room around him grew quiet as his heart thudded heavily in his chest. Should he go out and look or stay where he was? Unsure of what to do, he waited to see if there was any further noise.
Finally, there was complete silence. Unable to wait any longer to see if Tommy was okay, Charlie crept out of the pantry and made his way to the bedroom. It was completely destroyed. The furniture was all broken and the bed was flattened against the floor. One were bear lay across it and the other was sprawled out nearby on the floor. He was unable to tell which was which or if either was alive. For a moment, he stood frozen in place looking at both of them.
Much to his surprise, they finally began returning to human form. Both were bloody with bruises and cuts all over them. Making his way quickly to Tommy, he put his fingers on his neck and found a pulse. He was alive, but whether he would recover remained to be seen. Harrison was still not moving and Charlie could see an extremely large, deep gash now across his chest. He could only assume it was fatal, but couldn’t bring himself to get close enough to find out.
He started to call 911 to get help for Tommy, not knowing what else to do. Much to his surprise, he heard Tommy speaking in a very low voice.
“No. Just give me a moment. Stay away from him.”
Charlie watched in amazement as the cuts and marks on Tommy’s skin began to clear up before his eyes. After a few moments, he wasn’t even able to tell that he had been injured other than the tattered clothing that was left on his mostly naked body. Tommy slowly sat up and looked toward Harrison. He looked forlorn as he crawled toward him and checked his pulse.
“He’s gone. I didn’t want to do this. He left me no choice.”
“What do we do? How do we explain this to the police?”
“We don’t. This is a matter for the club to handle. Tommy climbed up from the floor and walked toward the kitchen to retrieve his cell phone.
“Hey, Joshua. I need some of the guys over at my place to clean up a mess. Harrison showed up intent on making sure Charlie didn’t give birth to our child. I had to put him down. He needs to be taken out to the burial grounds and given proper rights.”
Charlie was busy listening to the conversation from the open bedroom door when he felt a hand on his ankle, pulling him backwards. He lost his balance and fell, crying out as he hit the floor.
“I’m not leaving this world with you in in it,” Harrison hissed at him through broken teeth. There was a terrible sound that let Charlie know he was bound to have a punctured lung as well. He kicked at him with his feet as he dragged him closer to him.
Suddenly his ears were ringing as the sound of a shot was fired and blood began pouring from Harrison’s forehead. Charlie was dimly aware that Tommy had shot him and was standing over him with a cell phone in one hand and the glock in the other. He rushed toward Charlie and helped him up.
“Are you okay, Charlie? Are you hurt? Is the baby hurt?”
“I don’t know. I think so. I think we’re both okay.”
Tommy picked up the phone again and spoke to Joshua.
“Bring the doctor with you to check on Charlie. Seems Harrison had a bit of life left in him yet. He pulled Charlie down and I want to make sure both he and the baby are fine.”
Moments later he was off the phone and holding Charlie to him. Charlie felt completely bewildered by everything that had happened in the last few days. What had he gotten myself into? Not so long ago he had looked forward to coming to school to have fun away from his parents, doing his own thing, sewing some wild oats while getting his degree. Now, here he was, pregnant with the baby of a bear shifter. It didn’t get more bizarre than that.
Tommy waited for the members of his clan to get there to clean up the mess and then they left to go to Charlie’s place. He wasn’t sure what he would think about it compared to his own. His was less glamourous, but decidedly more cozy than Charlie’s modern style place. Still, there was no way they could stay in the mess that the fight with Harrison had left behind.
“This is very nice, Charlie.”
“Not quite as warm as yours, but I haven’t really had a chance to add any personal touches between one night stands and supernatural pregnancies.”
“I know this must all seem so crazy to you, Charlie. You have to be wondering what you did to deserve getting dragged into such an unbelievable situation. Just know that I will never leave you. We are mated for life. I can’t make you stay with me if you choose not to, but know that I will never betray you if you stay with me. I’m yours forever. It is how things are in my clan.”
They spent the following week getting to know one another like a real couple would and Charlie quickly found that, despite their different backgrounds, they had quite a lot in common. His belly continued to grow until he could no longer hide it and was forced to call out from his classes and hide at home. With the pending delivery date looming near, he found that he was terrified of what would happen when the time came. And then it was there. He awoke one morning to find himself in incredible pain that wouldn’t let up.
“It’s time. I’m going to call in the doctor. He’ll need to make preparations.”
“Here? Will he deliver the baby here?”
“Yes. Don’t be scared. I know you are, but I promise you that this will not be as bad as you think it will. He will take care of everything.”
“I can’t believe we are about to be parents. I can’t believe I’m about to give birth to a child. How many men get to say that?”
“As far as I know, this generation, only you.”
A few hours later, Charlie lay stretched out on a hospital bed brought in by the doctor and some of the clan members.
“Charlie, do you want full anesthesia or a local?”
“What do you mean? I assumed you would knock me out for surgery.”
“I will after the baby is born so that I can make the repairs your body will need from this unexpected birth, but I can give you a local while I do the initial delivery so that you can be alert to see the baby before you are put under.”
“Really? And it won’t hurt?”
“There will be some pain, some discomfort, but nothing you can’t handle.”
Charlie looked at Tommy as if to ask what he thought, but Tommy shrugged and shook his head.
“It’s your body, Charlie. You haven’t had a lot of say in this whole thing. You should at least be able to choose how you want to play out the birth.”
“Let’s do the local, Doc. I want to see my baby before you put me under.”
“Good enough. There are going to be some pinches.”
Charlie nodded and gritted his teeth as the doctor began a series of shots along his abdomen where the incision would be made. All of the helpers that had brought in the medical equipment were sent away except for one that acted as the doctor’s assistant. She stood by handing him whatever he requested to assist with the process.
“Okay, Charlie. It’s time. Are you ready?”
“Ready as I will ever be, Doc.”
Tommy held Charlie’s hand and smoothed his hair as the doctor began making a long incision along his belly. He looked at Tommy rather than at what the doctor was doing, not wanting to see what he was doing to his body. It seemed like it took him only moments to open him up and pull forward what he needed to achieve his goal. Charlie was aware of some discomfort that felt like a horrible pressure as he pushed into the opening and made another incision. Before Charlie knew it, he was seeing the biggest miracle of his young life. A baby boy was rising into the air from his midriff, cradled in the capable arms of the doctor. He watched in disbelief as the baby was turned and then began to cry loudly.
“We have a healthy baby boy!” the doctor said happily. It was the last thing Charlie remembered before a needle slipped into his arm and rendered
him unconscious. When he awoke several hours later, he found Tommy sitting nearby cradling their son in his arms. He expected to be in pain, but there was none. When he looked down at his body, there were no visible signs of the surgery or stretching from carrying the baby. Other than the child in Tommy’s arms, there was no evidence that any of it had happened.
“Can I hold him?”
“You’re awake! Of course you can hold him.”
Tommy handled Charlie the baby and smiled as he held it close to him.
“He’s gorgeous, isn’t he?”
“Yes, he is, Charlie.”
“Thomas Harper Browning. It’s almost a poetic name, isn’t it?”
“Yes, I think it is.”
The couple cuddled together with their baby as the clan members removed the medical equipment and others showed up to pay their new leader and his child a visit. Charlie could already tell they were a tight knit group and found himself feeling a bit envious of the reception being received. He was quite sure that he was not going to get the same from his parents, who he knew he would never even be able to tell the entire truth about the origins of his son. When the time came a few months later, he tried to prepare Tommy for the worst.
“I hope they aren’t too rough on you Tommy. I can only apologize in advance if they treat you poorly. I need to at least try to have a relationship with them and their grandson, but if they don’t want to then it is ultimately their loss.”
“I’m sure it will be fine, Charlie. We’ll just take it as it comes.”
Arriving at his parents’ house a few days later, it was obvious how nervous Charlie was. There was a lot he hadn’t yet told his parents, thinking it best to do so in person. He paused at the front door and looked at Tommy, who only smiled and nodded for him to go ahead inside. He reached out and touched his hand, soothing him in the way that he always did.
“Charlie, you’re home!”
“Mom, Dad. It’s good to see you.”
“And you brought a guest,” his father observed, looking uncertainly at Tommy, holding baby Harper in his arms.