Page 55 of Shifting Years
The Secretary of the Army has asked me to express his deep regret that your husband Private First Class Todd Anderson, died in Vietnam on—
A sound tore from my throat. A howl, raw and broken, followed by sharp stomach cramps.
Mary caught me before I hit the ground and howled sharply three times with her cupped hand. It wasn't long before approaching trucks and a few shifters in wolf form arrived.
As the labor pain continued, I couldn't help but think of Tina and Dawn. There was a cost to everything but did my man have to die for our child to come?
***
Kim stayed silent and had enough tea, sandwiches, and cookies. When he finally spoke, his voice was careful. "Did your pup survive?"
I waited, pushing the memories of the late seventies and early eighties away, if only for a moment. "The short answer is yes, but…"
"Did anything happen to him?"
"Yes and no," I said.
"I don't get it."
"Sometimes you have a child in you longer and you'll be fine. Other times the experience does damage." I waved vaguely to my stomach. "Shifters live longer and generally have several pups. Some don't."
He stared away, possibly feeling sorry for me, which I hoped wasn't the case. If he was smart, then he was thinking about his Alpha and if he could have a litter with him.
His gaze turned to Todd. "What about you? You weren't dead and you escaped. So, you came right to Mike?" He paused. "Please tell me you came right away, sir."
Todd's jaw tightened. "Way after, kid. Too damn long after."
***
Chapter Twenty
Date Unknown
Todd
Eat! Rip prey. Survive.
No!
Dark man, enemy? Friend?
Hell if I know how I did it, oranything,in the last couple of minutes. One minute I was a hairy, gigantic wolf with blood-colored fur, before hair sucked back into my pores. Bones broke forward and back before healing.
Bobby stared wide-eyed in horror, then jumped when I threw up. My other me might crave raw meat, but human Todd didn't. The tiger in the hut was no more. A short and naked commander with large chunks torn out where I had ripped out his animal flesh lay in his place.
"What in the holy hell are you?" Bobby's voice barely rose above a whisper, but the terror in it was deafening.
"A man, I think."
"No, you ain't a man. You're, uh…"
"A grunt. Like you."
"No! Not like me!" Wide eyes narrowed. I'll say one thing for him. He watched two men turn into animals and while surprised, handled it fairly well.
"Like you with a gift then."
"You mean to tell me you could do this all along, and you never used it to escape?"
