Stranded With The Snow Leopard

by Jade White

  The bush rustled as the large bird attempted to free itself from the twigs and leaves that confined it. Pitiful croaks of alarm erupted from the bush as Kim approached it. The poor bird didn’t know if she was a predator or not, so it was calling out to any other ravens that were near to come help it.

  Kim peered into the bush and saw the black beady eye of the raven stare back at her. It turned its head and opened its beak in a threatening manner, to warn her off, else it would bite her. She noticed that the inside of the raven’s great maw was still a bright pink. The bird was just a fledgling. Kim removed her sweater and made a makeshift net of it and slowly lowered it into the hole in the bush so as not to panic it any further.

  She reached into the bush with the black sweater stretched between her arms. She whispered soothing noises at the panicked bird as she reached in to scoop it out from its woody prison. She gingerly reached in and wrapped her sweater around the large bird.

  She felt it struggle a little as she lifted it out of the bush. She cradled it close to her chest for a minute, crooning softly to it to calm it down. Kim moved the sweater from the bird’s head to allow it to see its surroundings, and her.

  The raven looked at her with one black, beady eye. It tilted its head to get a better view of her as she held it to her chest. The raven rested its iridescent feathered head against Kim’s chest and relaxed. It felt safe. Kim knew the nature of these birds. She knew they had a very long memory and could recognize humans that harmed or helped them, eventually passing the knowledge to their offspring.

  Kim walked over to one of the benches and sat down. She unwrapped her sweater from the placid bird and tried to check it for injuries. She noticed its wings were folded against its black body, so they weren’t broken at least, and its legs were able to hold its weight without issue. The fledgling predator was probably just dazed.

  The raven sat perched on her lap for a few minutes, staring at her, waiting for her to make a move to eat it or something. She sat ramrod still, not wanting to traumatize the poor bird any further. The raven tilted its head one way, then the other and then hopped off her lap. It hopped a few paces away and stared at her some more and then proceeded to fly off. The kindness she showed this raven would be remembered for the rest of its life.

  Kim resumed her trip to Betty’s house. She soaked in the bright sunshine as she strolled down the road. She pulled her phone out and sent Keith a quick text, just so as not to worry him. She looked up the main street and saw the burnt out husk of the general store. The chemical smell of the recent blaze still lingered.

  She felt a welling in her throat as she saw what remained of the town’s life line to the outside world cordoned off by yellow police tape. Her grief was quickly replaced by a white hot rage welling up from inside her. She wanted Smiley dead, jailed wouldn’t do; she wanted that fucker gone forever, since with jail, there was a really good chance he would return to haunt her someday.

  She stopped at the bottom of Betty’s driveway. The front lawn was neatly landscaped. A few spiral herb gardens graced either side of the front yard and the green grass had flower beds elegantly distributed in it. Kim noticed that Betty was already outside puttering about in her garden in the mid-morning sun. Betty was busy weeding a bed full of azaleas as Kim strolled up the path, and didn’t notice she had a visitor.

  Kim knelt down in the grass next to Betty and grabbed a near-by dandelion and pulled it out. Betty startled and looked over and saw the beautiful dark haired woman shake the dirt off the plant and put it in the gathering basket. Betty had a huge basket full of dandelions, and one more wouldn’t hurt.

  “So, what do you plan on using these dandelions for?” Kim asked the older woman.

  “Oh probably dry out the root for tea, good for the kidneys. Might make a salad out of the leaves, who knows. Might save the flowers and some extra roots for dandelion wine. You can do quite a bit with this humble little plant. Grows everywhere, too. Hearty as all get out. It takes root wherever the wind blows it, and it’s a dickens to get to leave. Kind of like a young woman I know.” Betty smiled warmly at Kim.

  Kim grinned and nodded as she helped the older woman take the dandelions out of her flower bed. “I was wondering if that ceremony was tonight?” she asked.

  “Oh, the one for the girls? Yeah, if you want, we’ve been waiting on you. Just didn’t want to rush it so soon after your injury and all,” Betty replied, as she looked at Kim from the corner of her eye.

  Something seemed different about the young woman. Rusty told her that he suspected something, but couldn’t put his finger on it. Betty now had the same suspicion.

  “Nice,” Kim said as she clawed out another weed. “I can’t wait to sit in on it; I really want to learn more about this band and the shifter lifestyle.”

  “Oh you will. Don’t you worry. You keep pulling, I’m going to hop in the house and give the girls’ mothers a call.” Betty got up and jogged into the house while brushing the dirt off of her hands onto her gardening apron.

  Kim found another dandelion and reefed it up. She wondered what the ceremony would be like. There wouldn’t be shifting, that’s for sure. That’s reserved for the entire village to witness, so the youngsters could stay safe during such a vulnerable transition. It might just be a girl’s night in with chocolates and other girly stuff. The only thing she remembered when she became a woman was her mom tossing a box of sanitary pads at her head and telling her to never flush them, along with a curt warning to keep her legs closed or else she’d regret it.

  Boy, did she regret it now. She was woefully unprepared for this pregnancy. She didn’t want to tell Betty or Rusty about it just yet, but eventually they’d find out. She wanted to tell Tony about it first.

  A large shadow blocked the sun from her back. Kim shivered and was afraid to look up in case it was Smiley ready to take her life. Suddenly the shadow moved and she looked next to her and found Junior kneeling next to her in the grass with a big grin on his face. Kim sighed with relief knowing it was Junior and not her psycho ex wanting to kill her.

  Junior waved at her in greeting. Being deaf and mute meant that he couldn’t communicate in a conventional way. He also had no opportunity to learn traditional sign language, so he had to come up with his own modified signs to communicate with others in the small village of Predator Springs.

  Kim smiled back as the giant man knelt beside her to help her with weeding his mother’s garden. In between pulling out dandelions and other unwanted plants from the azalea bed, she and Junior chatted up.

  “I’m glad you’re feeling okay,” Junior said shyly. “I’m really sorry for hurting you.” It was clear the giant felt bad for what he had done to Kim on the day of the fire.

  “Don’t worry about it. You saved my life,” Kim signed back. “From what Keith told me, the window exploded out just before you tackled me and the shrapnel would have killed me.”

  “Exactly,” Junior signed back. “I’m sad we couldn’t catch him, though.”

  Betty came out of the house and gave Junior a stern look. “Now you git out of here. Leave her alone. Go back to your room. You’ll get to do some work once we rebuild.”

  Junior looked sad as he waved to Kim. Poor guy. His parents had no idea how intelligent he was.

  Betty knelt down and got back to work in her garden. “Meeting is tonight at eight. The parents didn’t mind the last minute arrangements since they want to get this meeting over and done with. The shifting ceremony can’t proceed without this meeting. So please be there.”

  “Not a problem.” Kim replied as she rose to her feet. “I might as well get back home. Keith might be worried about me. I also need to get in touch with Tony. I’ll see you tonight.”

  *

  Kim returned to her house after her visit with Betty. She saw Keith still on the couch sipping on a soda while playing video games. She sat down beside him and put her hand on his thigh to get his attention.

  “Hey.” He greeted her without taking hi
s eyes from the screen. “Did you have a good visit with Betty?” he asked.

  “Yeah, pretty good. Gotta go back there tonight for the meeting with the girls,” she replied. “Figure with the new development I need to go through it sooner rather than later.”

  Keith grunted in acknowledgment as he moved through a challenging part of his game. He really didn’t want to speak right then, since he was trying to avoid the thought of Kim’s pregnancy. He really didn’t want to deal with it, especially if the child might be Tony’s. A sharp searing pain ripped at his heart at the thought of it. He could lose her forever due to a roll of the genetic lottery.

  Kim kept her hand on Keith’s thigh and tried to snuggle in. She was transfixed by the game he was playing. It was a first person shooter involving a zombie apocalypse, one of the many games of the genre. She had no interest in it so she just attempted to get some form of comfort from the man next to her.

  Keith shifted his weight away from her. He knew she was trying to get sexual, but he really didn’t feel comfortable at that moment, not with a new pregnancy. He knew that a gentle romp wouldn’t hurt her when the pregnancy was further along, but the first month or so was a very delicate time.

  Kim took the hint. She removed her hand from his thigh and rose from the couch. “I’m going to go bring in the rest of the ripe veggies from my garden. I’ll be busy in the kitchen. If you want to help, that would be appreciated,” she snapped. She didn’t mind him playing video games, but when it is an obvious tool of avoidance, it rankled her.

  Kim grabbed the large basket from one of the bottom cupboards and marched out to the garden. She picked up a set of shears and gloves that were sitting by her back door on her way outside. After pulling on the gloves, she knelt by one of the large mounds and began harvesting her zucchini. With vicious cuts she pruned the small squash off of the vine, feeling her anger at Keith’s indifference beginning to ebb.

  She realized he was coping with the uncertainty in the only way he knew how. He was withdrawing from her in case the child she was carrying belonged to Tony. The thing was, Tony didn’t even know she was pregnant yet. She snipped another zucchini from its vine and placed it in the basket. She had no idea how it would work if the child was Tony’s.

  She didn’t really click with him on an emotional level. After she had dated him for a few weeks, she still only felt the basic sexual attraction to him. The emotional connection she had was a good friendship, nothing more. It was so difficult to put her finger on exactly how she felt about both men. She felt more at ease with Keith, that’s for sure. Tony’s cocky nature set her on her guard, especially after her bad history of previously abusive relationships, the latest one culminating with the murders of her parents, and the near murder of herself. Almost all the men she dated had that laissez faire cocky attitude that Tony exuded.

  She startled as she was roused from her thoughts by a knock at her gate. She stood up from her work in the garden and walked towards the gate while shaking the dirt off of her gloves. “Who is it?” she called out.

  “It’s me, Tony. Keith told me you were back here, I figured it would be easier to go this way instead of tromping through your house,” the voice on the other side replied.

  Kim unlatched the gate and opened it to let Tony into the back yard. “Hey,” Kim greeted. “I’m just back here gardening, what’s up?”

  “I’m just here to see how you’re doing,” Tony replied. “When Keith brought you back from the hospital, you were pretty wrecked.”

  “I’m doing pretty well, my head doesn’t hurt anymore and the ringing in my ears has gone away. I haven’t needed to take any pain meds at all today.”

  Tony smiled warmly at her, his chiseled face softened a little bit. “I’m glad you’re okay,” he said warmly as he placed a hand on her shoulder. “Really.”

  Kim looked up at Tony and saw nothing but genuine love in his eyes. His tall, lean body was dressed in his police uniform. Dark blue pants with a yellow stripe up the side of each leg, a brown button up shirt underneath a black flak jacket, and a heavy utility belt with a leather holster for his 9mm pistol and multiple pouches to hold other tools of his trade. Kim was absolutely terrified to tell him about her pregnancy. What if he withdrew like Keith had? Still, he had a right to know.

  “Thanks, “ Kim replied warmly. “Umm...I gotta tell you something...” Kim stammered. Tony’s warm expression evaporated and changed to one of concern. “Err...I had a phone call this morning telling me I have to stop taking my pain pills, and whatever other meds I need to take...”

  Tony scowled. “Go on.”

  “Well, it was from the resident OB at the hospital...she called to tell me the results of my blood work. Turns out I’m pregnant. Just a few weeks along, but I’m definitely pregnant.”

  Tony’s sharp features shifted from concern, to incredulity, to joy, in a matter of seconds. The myriad of emotions he felt at the announcement broke his usual stoic nature and it was all he could do to not break down and cry. He had a few other kids running around the village, but their mother’s mates had no problems raising them. This one could very well be his and his alone.

  “Yeah...we kinda had a hunch about it,” Tony said. Last night Rusty approached him and let him know about Kim’s possible state, but didn’t say it was a certainty, just that something smelled different about her and it was a similar scent to that a pregnant woman gave off.

  Kim looked at Tony in disbelief. “How could you guys know?”

  “Well, Rusty has a sixth sense about these things. That and you work at the general store. He noticed you didn’t buy any female supplies yet, and you’ve been here for almost two months now. The first month was understandable because, well, you could have brought some with you, second, not so much. That ol' gaffer puts his nose where it shouldn’t be sometimes.”

  Kim was mortified, yet totally not surprised that Rusty kept an eye on her details. It was a very small town, after all. “Umm... I don’t know what to say to that,” Kim said, blushing furiously.

  “Don’t get mad at him. He’s just doing what old folks do. Since you took over the store he’s had nothing else to do with his time. He’s just concerned for you, as well as the well being of the band. Since you’re pregnant, it means our line of shifters might continue. That’s a pretty important thing for Rusty. Junior can’t mate, no one will have him. Betty’s too old, and with each coming of age ceremony we lose a few girls, so the men are left to fend for themselves until someone wanders into town, like you did, or they go out to the world and find a mate of their own and bring her back.”

  Kim finally grasped how important it was for her to stay in the small village. The fact she had grown to know and love the residents of this small town through her job at the now burnt-down general store just made her decision to stay easier to make. She felt bad for the trouble she had brought to the village in the form of Smiley, though. If she hadn’t come here, he wouldn’t have either, and they still would have their store.

  “Anyway, are you going to Betty’s tonight?” Tony asked.

  Kim nodded. “Yeah, I think I need to sit in on it for sure now.”

  “Yeah you do. The girls need to know a bit more than the boys. Has to do with the whole baby thing. I guess mothering shifter younglings needs a special touch or something, I dunno.” Tony grinned. “Anyway, I need to get to work. The insurance claim from the fire should be coming in today and we can begin to rebuild. We all will have to pitch in to get it done before the huge fall shipment comes in that will carry us through the winter.”

  Tony reached out and drew Kim into a tight hug. His flak vest was uncomfortable against her tender cheek but she dealt with it. She found comfort in his closeness and wrapped her arms around him in response. “Thank you, Tony.” Her voice quavered as she bit back her tears of uncertainty.

  “It’s gonna be okay,” Tony said, choking up. “It might not seem like it now, but trust me; things will turn out for the best. We’ll build the store
back up, and you’ll live happily ever after regardless of who you pick.” Or is picked for you... he thought to himself. He loved Kim fiercely and it killed him a little bit inside each time she was with Keith, and he knew Keith felt the same way when Tony was with her. This whole thing placed a huge strain on their friendship, from which it might never recover. They might be cousins by blood, but friends by choice. He didn’t want to lose his best friend over a woman, that would be stupid.

  Little did she know that the choice wouldn’t be hers to make anymore. That would make it much less stressful on both Keith and Tony’s friendship. No “If you would have done this she would be yours.” Bullshit. Just a simple luck of the dice as to whose swimmer was the strongest. Tony felt a bit better over that.

  Kim shook in his arms. “But...I don’t want to be pregnant,” she whispered. “I’ve never really wanted to be a mother...” Her concerns finally voiced, she felt a small weight lifted from her shoulders.

  Tony lifted her chin and looked into her bright, blue eyes. “Listen, sometimes things don’t work out the way we want, and it turns out better than what we had planned. Just trust in fate, okay?”

  Kim choked back her fear and nodded. “It’s not my usual thing, but looks like I have no choice. I don’t do well with uncertainty,” she said.

  Tony chuckled. “I know. Hope to see you after work. I think Keith might be packing his games up after he’s done that round and will go hide in his man cave. He doesn’t deal well with it, either. Try not to be too hard on him. He always pulls away when he thinks he’s about to lose. He’s the type that will cry doom over any little thing.”

  “I see,” she replied as she stepped out of Tony’s embrace. She noticed his long black hair was tied up at the nape of his neck in a loose ponytail instead of the usual braid he wore it in. “Your hair is different today.”

  “Yeah, didn’t feel like braiding it. I overslept again.” Tony walked towards the tall privacy gate. “I’ll see you later.”