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    Wheelchair Moccasins
    Wheelchair Moccasins
    Wheelchair Moccasins
    Ebook436 pages6 hours

    Wheelchair Moccasins

    By David J. Wighton

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    About this ebook

    After Mathias' eyeballs twanged the first time that Kashmira giggled, he was entranced. Nothing that she did after that changed his opinion of her. Not her volatile nature; not her lack of social skills; not even when she had sex with classmates in her bedroom. The fact that her father was a crime boss? Not a problem. His habit of murdering other crime bosses? Not that either. Even when Kashmira announced publicly that she was a prostitute, that only attracted Mathias to her more. Even when her father offered a reward for her death, Mathias supported her. When she ended up in a wheelchair with serious health issues, Mathias was there for her.

    Doc and Granny tried to help Kashmira get better. They learned why her health was so bad and both tried to help her recover from her life in her father's fortress house. Doc was making progress, but after she forced her father to abandon his fortress, Kashmira went downhill fast. She didn't remember how her father had received justice nor did she remember sitting in a wheel chair with moccasins protecting her feet. Hence the significance of the title.

    In other parts of the book: You'll remember Bean, the assassin from the previous novel. In spite of her best intentions to erase her past and become a new woman, two secret agents imprisoned her without telling her why. These agents, Dingle and Dangle, didn't exactly operate in a legal fashion. Yolanda took up Bean's cause and tried to serve as her lawyer. That was difficult to do because the judge had decided before the trial to sentence her to prison. Yolanda ended up in that prison too, but that was because of her skin color.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherDavid J. Wighton
    Release dateSep 23, 2016
    ISBN9781370154807
    Wheelchair Moccasins
    Author

    David J. Wighton

    David Wighton is a retired educator who enjoys writing youth novels when he's not on a basketball court coaching middle-school girls. The books in his Wilizy series peek at how people lived after the word's governments collapsed in the chaos that followed the catastrophic rise in ocean levels and the disappearance of the world's last deposits of oil. Luckily today, in the 2080s, the citizens of Alberta are safe because their It's Only Fair society uses brain-bands to zap people whenever they break a rule. That way, all children grow up knowing the difference between right and wrong. Unfortunately, they're also taught that women's ankles need to be covered so that men can't see them and turn into perverts. Plus, no-one in Alberta can have babies any more because the government manufactures them in a way that ensures that no child has an unfair advantage over any other child. All of this makes sense to Alberta's dictator, but not to Will and Izzy – two teenagers who are decidedly different from everyone else.Wighton's novels have strong teenage characters driving the plot and facing challenges that, in many respects, are no different from what teenagers face today. His novels are intended to entertain and readers will find adventure, romance, suspense, humour, a strong focus on family, plus a touch of whimsy. Wighton also writes to provoke a little thought about life in today's societies and what the future might bring. Teachers may find the series useful in the classroom and the novels are priced with that intent in mind.

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      Book preview

      Wheelchair Moccasins - David J. Wighton

      Chapter 1

      A solar powered copter was flying over the dense jungle of Southern Leyte, a province in the Philippines. The man in the copter – Ramón – was on a hunting expedition for his boss. The copter allowed him to prowl at will through the isolated, poverty-stricken villages scattered throughout Southern Leyte. The jungle made land transportation impossible.

      Ramón spied the little farming community that he had been seeking and began to descend. He had visited these people several years ago, but without success. He had a better feeling about his hunt this time. Ramón put the copter down in the middle of the squalid village and before he could get out, the farmers were streaming towards him. Copters were a rarity in these remote villages; Ramón always drew a crowd. He explained why he was here. The grizzled village elder was anxious to help. Within a few minutes, he was parading three young girls in front of Ramón.

      The tale of Goldilocks and the three bears had not made its way to this remote area of the world; nevertheless, Ramón found himself thinking the words. Too young, too old, just right.

      Well, almost just right. He dismissed two of the girls – not their lucky day. The third stood in front of him, head down in her tattered, filthy rags and mud-covered bare feet. She also had a grimy face and blistered hands, but such conditions were normal for girls in these remote communities. She could be cleaned up. Ramón scanned the simple checklist from his boss. He would start with priority #1. [Narrator: In this novel, many of the conversations that occurred in the Philippines would be in Spanish. I have translated them into English for you.]

      She is pure, yes?

      Yes. She is untouched, the girl's father bragged.

      You understand that if this is not the case, I will return her to this village tomorrow and I will drop your dead body into the sea. Are you sure that she is untouched?

      Yes, Señor. No boys close to her age live in this village.

      It is as he says, Señor, the wizened elder confirmed.

      Ramón looked at the girl. Moving on to priority #2 – she had a pretty face. Check. For the third and final priority, he had to lower his stare. What he saw caused him to frown. Or more accurately, what he didn't see caused him to frown.

      One laying chicken, he offered the father.

      Two laying chickens and a rooster, the father haggled.

      Does she know how to read or write? Ramón's boss didn't care about this. He wasn't bringing this young girl to Maasin City to read or write. For shrewd Ramón, this question was strictly a negotiating tactic to devalue the girl's worth in the eyes of her father.

      No, Señor. We have no school here.

      One laying chicken, Ramón repeated.

      Señor, look at that face. Two laying chickens and a rooster, the father repeated.

      The face was quite remarkable actually. How old is she?

      The farmer shrugged. She is a woman now. Although he was an unschooled peasant, the farmer knew why Ramón wanted his daughter.

      Ramón looked at the elder.

      Perhaps thirteen or fourteen, he said.

      That's where Ramón would have put her age too. He had made this kind of trip six times before. One laying chicken, he insisted.

      She can sing, the father added unexpected bait to the negotiations.

      Prove it.

      She did.

      Ramón had no instructions about anything that this girl might do for his boss other than lie on a bed and look pretty. He might like the voice; he might not. Ramón decided to take a chance that he'd like it. Two laying chickens.

      One laying chicken and a rooster, the father insisted. The rooster played an essential role in the farmer's plans to produce baby chickens from that one laying chicken. I expect my readers know this about chickens.

      No. She is too small. Ramón stated the obvious and patted his own chest.

      Two laying chickens, the father conceded defeat.

      Ramon took the girl back to his copter and had her sit in the back with the livestock he had brought with him. He extracted a cage holding two chickens out of the copter, unlatched it, upended the cage, and shook the two chickens onto the ground. The father herded them back to his hut. He never looked back.

      What's your name? Ramón asked the girl.

      Kierra.

      Ramón didn't ask for a last name. Villagers in the Philippines never had last names. It was only when they moved to a city that they added a last name. Like his boss had. He had been known simply as Diego in the little village where he had grown up. When he moved to Maasin City, and after his business started to grow, he called himself Diego Diamante. In English – Jim Diamond. Now people were starting to address him as Patrón. In English – Boss. In other areas of the world he might be referred to as Godfather.

      It was early January, 2072. On the other side of the world in a narrow valley in the Aboriginal Nation, Theo would be born soon. Here in the Philippines, El Patrón had just purchased his soon-to-be fourteen year old wife for the equivalent of eighteen cents.

      Back to the Table of Contents

      Chapter 2

      It's now the next day – Tuesday, January 5. Kierra had passed El Patrón's purity test the previous night. It was time to get married.

      Maasin City was a decent-sized urban center in Southern Leyte. It had three quality hotels, a bustling market center, five apartment towers, and a residential development on the side of the hill overlooking the water that held the houses of most of the wealthy and important people in the city. Included in this prestigious group were the mayor and the city councilors, the top brass of the city's Guardia, the owner and the editor of the city's media outlet, and the managers of the city's technology center. All of these people were living high on a hill and looking down into the slums of the city thanks to El Patrón's personal benevolence. The city's most vicious and powerful crime boss allowed these citizens to flaunt their wealth to less prosperous Maasin citizens provided that they demonstrated sufficient loyalty, gratitude, and respect to their benefactor – Diego Diamante.

      El Patrón was not the only criminal boss in town. One other focused on prostitution – a thriving industry for the people who owned the brothels. Not so good for the women who had to work in them. A third gangster focused on smuggling. Maasin City was not on the world's trade routes. It was a long copter ride to Cebu City – the closest major Philippine city. At one point, a ferry had linked the two cities but that route had disappeared during The Troubles. Some small cargo ships still sailed into Maasin, but irregularly. The smugglers ensured that the city's wealthy could acquire everything they yearned for. At an exorbitant price, of course.

      El Patrón was at the stage of his professional career where he had consolidated his power and was content to let others benefit from his magnanimity provided that they rendered sufficient respect. In crass terms, that meant that they would do the dirty work in stealing, extorting, and swindling. This meant that he himself would no longer run amuck through the city's coffers or filch whatever excess money the poor had accumulated. Others would do that for him. He would be their silent, but lethal partner.

      El Patrón owned all the influential people in the city. If he wished to, he could put the brothel owners and the smugglers out of business any time he desired by calling in favours from the city's power brokers. El Patrón reminded these lower class criminals of his importance from time to time. He was not a subtle man, so for now, I'll leave it to my readers to imagine how he did this.

      Most of the people in the Philippines were followers of what had once been the Roman Catholic Church. This religion remained dominant in the country's major cities. In Maasin City, a version of the Roman Catholic religion had sprung up after The Troubles. This variant religion met in the city's old cathedral that dated back to the 1700s. Other smaller, less important churches could be found in the city, but the ancient cathedral attracted the bulk of the city's religious followers. The head of the church was referred to as the paterfamilias, which when translated from Latin to English would be something like the father of the family. This church's paterfamilias still conducted mass in Latin. The bible he used was written in Latin. As the paterfamilias, he heard confessions and offered absolution. He also offered a mobile marriage ceremony to one preferred customer.

      This morning, the paterfamilias was in El Patrón's kitchen with his personal bible and assorted marriage documents in hand. The wedding party consisted of Kierra, Ramón, Constanza (the house cook), and Mariangela (the housemaid). Kierra had agreed to obey her husband and so it was now on to the document signing ceremony. Kierra put her X on the spot, after the paterfamilias showed her what an X was. The two servants signed their names and left to complete their daily work. The paterfamilias also signed the certificates and placed the church's stamp in the appropriate places. Ramón took the two copies of the wedding certificate into El Patrón's study – he was the only person in the household allowed to knock on the door and enter when acknowledged. El Patrón signed both copies and then filed his copy of the marriage certificate with the other six. Ramón returned with the original and gave it to the paterfamilias along with a mid-sized peso note.

      You're now married, Paterfamilias said to Kierra. Congratulations.

      Go upstairs, undress, and lie on the bed, Ramón instructed. This Welcome to our Family speech was not normally part of a marriage ceremony in polite society but the paterfamilias was used to hearing it. Kierra had to be told what to do because she had no idea what had just happened here in this kitchen. She did know what would soon be happening on the bed, having been a frightened participant in the pre-wedding ceremony the previous night. Her newly wed husband Diego would sweat like a pig, grunt like a pig, squeal like a pig, and then leave the bedroom. Kierra didn't mind that. She had observed that her bedroom was full of fancy clothes. She had indulged herself in her own private bathroom with a tub serviced by running water. Make that running HOT water! She had two servants who would do whatever she told them to. She was in love. Perhaps not with Diego, but she was in love just the same.

      Paterfamilias was quite content to bring the two lovers together in this private ceremony. He charged only a small untraceable fee for his mobile marriage service because he knew that the marriage would last only as long as Ramón's wedding present lasted. The church's highest official was content to bide his time for the next ceremony at which point he would charge a much larger fee – one that would also not appear in the church's books.

      Paterfamilias' church frowned on birth control devices. Because of his pressure, no such abominations were allowed inside Maasin City's retail outlets. The rich bought their condoms from smugglers. El Patrón received his condoms directly from Ramón who coptered to Cebu City and bought them in bulk – thereby bypassing the smugglers. El Patrón's interest in his new wife would last about three months – exactly the amount of time that Ramón's wedding gift of condoms lasted. At that point, the paterfamilias would be called back to administer his mobile divorce ceremony. Divorces were almost unheard of in Maasin City. But the church could grant an exception if a wife had failed to produce a child after a reasonable period of time. To date, all six of El Patrón's previous wives had failed to produce a child. This should not be a surprise to my readers given Ramón's wedding gift. Since this divorce document was so rare, and since the deliberations on its issuance required so much resolute praying, El Patrón would pay through the snout for the impending marriage dissolution document.

      Back to the Table of Contents

      Chapter 3

      It is now one wonderful month into Kierra's honeymoon. She was still in love with her life. Diego gave her gifts of new clothes and jewelry. She could have returned the favour with gifts of antiperspirants, but she didn't know that such luxuries existed in Maasin City. Kierra hadn't actually set foot outside the house. Even when El Patrón entertained, she was confined to her room. Constanza and Mariangela would care for the guests during the evening, clean up afterwards, and sleep upstairs in the bedrooms provided to them for such events. Returning home in the dark was not safe; El Patron's home was in an area of town dominated by the poor and the dangerous. Women could be attacked in such situations; the servants were better off sleeping upstairs.

      Kierra was getting along famously with Constanza and Mariangela. A naturally friendly person, Kierra would chatter with them as they went about their work. Early on, she had offered to help, but they had refused. They told her that El Patrón would punish them if he thought they were taking advantage of his wife's good nature.

      But the three did talk a lot. And it was in one of those conversations that Kierra learned that all of Diego's previous wives had lasted in that comfortable matrimonial position for about three months. Kierra had seen no sign that her husband was becoming bored with her. He had even held her hand one time when he took her upstairs to the bedroom. He seemed to like her singing, but never said anything to her about that. Constanza told Kierra that she'd probably last through a second carton of condoms. Kierra decided to improve her chances of prolonging her matrimonial bliss.

      # # # # # # # #

      In May 2072, Kierra announced to her husband that she was pregnant.

      Diego took the news calmly. How far along are you?

      Two months.

      Are you sure?

      Yes.

      Diego told her to go upstairs, undress, and climb into the shower. Kierra thought he was planning a watery form of celebration sex. While she was excitedly slipping off her clothes, Diego was suspiciously checking the carton of condoms. He found pinpricks in the rubber. He undressed too and followed her into the tub.

      Kierra held up her arms so that she could be embraced. El Patrón clubbed her in the face instead. The first blow knocked out a tooth. She covered up her face with her arms; he turned his attentions to her belly instead. When she covered that up, he went after her face. When he was finished, she wasn't pretty any longer. Diego had heard that abortions could occur spontaneously if the sex was violent. He tried that too. Unsuccessfully. The reason for the bathtub? To keep Kierra's blood off the sheets.

      Afterwards, as Kierra lay moaning in the bathtub, he removed all of her fancy clothes and expensive gifts from the bedroom. She was confined to the bedroom from now on. The maid would bring up her food.

      Periodically over the next four months, El Patrón would return to the bedroom to try and cause a spontaneous abortion. Kierra would curl up in a tight ball and cover her belly. It didn't matter what he did, she would not uncover her belly.

      At the seven month mark, Diego gave her to Ramón. Her howls echoed through the house, but each time, Ramón would report that she wouldn't uncover her belly.

      Kierra gave birth on December 15, 2072. El Patrón was out of town on business so Constanza was able to sneak a midwife into the house. The paterfamilias arrived the next day with the necessary baptismal and birth record forms. Kierra's child entered the church's records as Kashmira Diamante, daughter of Diego Diamante.

      When he returned later that day to find himself an official father, El Patrón ripped up his copy of the birth certificate. Give me a divorce, he instructed the paterfamilias.

      On what basis?

      The mother abandoned the baby immediately after the birth.

      Very well. The church considers that ample reason for a divorce. How did the mother manage to leave the city?

      You don't need to know.

      I do need to know that she won't be coming back. That could negate the divorce.

      She won't be returning.

      The baby must live. You cannot kill it. You must hire a wet nurse to care for it.

      Is that a church rule too?

      No. But a baby dying so soon after her mother had disappeared will draw attention to you and to me. I could be investigated for not reporting the extent of your wife's pre-natal injuries to the proper authorities.

      El Patrón knew a shakedown when he saw one. Paterfamilias' divorce charges were always high. They'd be even higher now that there was a child. How much? he asked.

      The next day, Ramón loaded Kierra into his copter and took her to Manila. She was not allowed to take anything with her other than the clothes on her back. As her husband had predicted, she never came back.

      Back to the Table of Contents

      Chapter 4

      We're now back to present time and we're in North America. It's the morning of Tuesday July 2, 2086. The last slaves were freed from the Safe Haven ranches on the Sunday and the Wilizy had debriefed the battles on the Monday. [See book #9, Bite Me!] Everybody was gathered in the Wilizy's recreation center for a family breakfast courtesy of Stu, Momaka, Grannie, and Yolanda.

      Hank stood as the noise of cutlery scraping on plates started to subside. As you know, we have secured all of Safe Haven's slave ranches, but Safe Haven as an organization remains untouched, he started. Their management in Minneapolis will soon discover that they have no functioning slave ranches in Montana, South Dakota, or North Dakota. We have to visit Safe Haven's offices in Minneapolis this morning before their managers can learn what happened and disappear. The planning for this visit will be conducted en route in one of our super transports. William has already stocked it with the supplies and armaments that we might need. Jock will lead this operation and will be joined by Mac as Battle Commander, Doc for medical support, and William for science. Wolf, TG, Lucas, Mathias, and I will serve as Sling Warriors. These people should go to the transport now. I will be there shortly.

      When the hubbub had become not-so-much-hub and mostly bub, Hank resumed his address to the remaining Wilizy. We have to offer some form of support to the former slaves. Right now, they're free of their dog collars. But how will they survive? Pililiani, the housekeeper at Ranch #4, asked us to spare their big house from destruction so that the slaves could use it to help start their new lives. We need to know what she had in mind and whether her idea can be applied to all of the ranches. We'll have to develop some plans for the slaves' care and return to normal life. Not a battle plan, but rather a business plan. Wizard and Stu will take the lead on this. Visit Ranch #4 and the other ranches. Come up with ideas. Dreamer, Momaka, and Wanda – please join in. Winnie and Reese are also in this group to assess the character of any potential business partners we might consider. Marie is with you to help with any discussions you need to have with the former slaves. Theo and Nary, we don't foresee the need for mystical warriors in either of today's operations, but you can join whichever group you want to. Everybody in the business plan group should stay here long enough to clean up the rec center and then you all can head off.

      Melissa and Yollie. You're in charge of taking the kiddies home. Why don't you take EmmaGee with you? That way she can have a longer visit with her cousins.

      As you may have suspected from this last instruction, Hank's suggestion for EmmaGee to join her cousins in the satellite compound was prompted by the Scandinavian attack on the home compound. Yolanda had told Hank almost everything about that attack. Where the soldiers had come from, what they wanted, and how they had died. She had also told him about the Scandinavian sniper who had switched sides and why she had done that. Yolanda didn't reveal anything else about this spy. Yolanda and Hank decided to keep the news of this attack on the home compound secret for now. Other matters were more pressing. In time, the directors would decide what to do with Scandinavia. For now, EmmaGee would live in the satellite compound on the other side of the world where she couldn't be found and kidnapped.

      Half an hour later, only four Warriors remained in the home compound. Granny, Yolanda, Theo, and Nary. Theo and Nary had decided that they wouldn't join either group today. They were sitting in the recreation center discussing something. Neither of them looked particularly happy.

      # # # # # # # #

      Granny was in her kitchen cooking up a pot of hot chocolate. Peace and quiet at last. She heard a tap-tap at the door and automatically called out Come in. Then she thought, Why would Yolanda knock at the door? Granny continued to stir. Stirring constantly was an essential part of the secret for making a good pot of hot chocolate.

      Hi Granny.

      Granny turned to look at her visitor. Two of them actually. Theo and Nary were hanging onto each other for dear life. She had seen that look on young faces before. This was not a social call. I thought you'd be on one of the operations, she said in greeting.

      Umm. We were looking for Mom. She's not in her house; she's not in the rec center either. We thought she might be here.

      Off for a fly, perhaps. You guys want some hot chocolate?

      Theo sent a short mind-message to Nary. She replied that she didn't care who he told so long as he told somebody soon. If not, Marie would find out what they were trying to hide and neither of them wanted to be around when she heard the news. Their initial plan had been for Theo to reveal what had happened to somebody in the family who was non-lethal and that person would be the one to tell Marie. Yolanda had been their first choice but she wasn't around. Granny qualified as non-lethal – at least in terms of this kind of news.

      # # # # # # # #

      Theo and Nary were sitting on the sofa and facing Granny in her rocker. Both were warming their hands on mugs of hot chocolate. Theo's hand was shaking a little. Nary was propping her mug on her knees and was staring steadily at it. She hadn't looked Granny in the eye since they had sat down in the living room. Granny was studying her visitors and recognizing the signs. Somebody was in trouble. Probably both of them if her suspicions were correct. She placed her own mug of steaming hot chocolate on the floor next to her rocker. She wouldn't pick it up again until she had heard everything. She had found herself in this situation before with grandchildren. She wouldn't get caught looking like a whale spewing hot chocolate through its blowhole again. Not that any whales existed in today's world, but you can appreciate her reservations.

      What's up, Theo?

      Well... I don't quite know how to start.

      A long silence followed. Nary put a not-so-delicate elbow into his ribs.

      You see, we've been having sex...

      Granny decided to put him out of his misery. Teenage moms and dads were the norm in frontier societies. What with the prevalence of skin cancer and other untreatable diseases, couples married soon after they reached the legal age for that ceremony – sixteen years old in some jurisdictions and seventeen in others. That way, they'd have their children and probably live long enough to see them get married. Then they'd die a painful death.

      My granny ESP tells me that somebody is pregnant, she tried to make light of this predicament. But really, Nary's pregnancy would be harsh for both of them. Theo was fourteen and a half years old. Nary was probably the same. For Theo, Nary's pregnancy would mean the end of his plans for university and for basketball. He was the kind of boy... well make that a man now... who would act responsibly. He'd take some sort of job with the Wilizy to support his family. He wouldn't ask for any handouts and he wouldn't consider evading his responsibility. Nary didn't have any work skills that would give them income. She was barely literate. She'd raise the child with Yolanda hovering over her, offering to help but driving her crazy instead. And Marie? Who knew what Marie would do.

      Theo answered Yup to Granny's somebody is pregnant comment and looked down at his mug which he had put between his knees to stop it from spilling. With both of his feet jittering on the floor, the chocolate levels in the mug were rippling inside the mug. Nary placed a hand on one of his knees to fend off the upcoming chocolate slop-over. The other knee just shook harder and the mug started to tip to the side.

      What are you two scared of?

      Marie, Theo admitted. She has spells. She eats people she doesn't like.

      I'm scared of Yolanda, Nary confessed. She won't want me in the family any longer.

      I'll take your mug; stand up and walk around, Nary mind-messaged Theo. She placed Theo's mug on the floor next to her feet and continued to examine her own mug for signs of alien intrusions, insect infestations, spontaneous combustion, or any other unexpected event that would allow her to flee from this house in one piece.

      Granny looked at Nary's midsection. Her sitting position prevented any chance of Granny estimating how far along she was. Are you sure about the pregnancy?

      Yes, Nary confirmed.

      How far along?

      Three days.

      You can't be sure with three days! There could be many reasons why...

      I'm sure, Granny. I felt it.

      Well, why don't we wait for a couple of months to be absolutely sure? That will give us ample time for the baby to show. You don't have to tell anybody else right now. You have almost nine months before the birth.

      Actually, we have only three months before the birth.

      No, Nary. Nine months even for Voodoo princesses. I'm sure of that.

      Three months, Granny. I'm not the one that's pregnant. Contrary is.

      # # # # # # # #

      Granny's fears for Theo and his future subsided. It wasn't a big deal. Some panther that lived on the other side of some astral plane was pregnant. The panther would give birth like all wild animals did. Theo could still go to university and play basketball. Nary could continue her education. Granny picked up her mug of hot chocolate from the floor. Sipped it. Perfect temperature. Why are you taking this so hard, Theo? Wild animals have babies all the time. Granny took a big pull on the mug to demonstrate how unworrisome this situation was.

      I was the one who got Contrary pregnant.

      As Granny coughed and choked, she knew that no family, not even a tolerant one like the Wilizy, could accept this news calmly. Then Nary was patting her on the back. Theo was running into the kitchen and coming back to the living room to wipe her down and the floor as well. All the time the clean up crew was working, Granny was frantically trying to come up with some words that would excuse a young man who had had sex with a panther. She had nothing. There could be no excuse for that outrageous behaviour.

      You're scared of what Marie and Yolanda will do? Granny finally asked.

      Yes, they both said.

      I don't know how it happened, Theo started.

      Don't try to bulls... me, Granny dipped into curse mode. There's only one way it could have happened. My readers will appreciate that Granny was struggling to hold herself together and not succeeding very well.

      I was dreaming. We believe it happened then.

      Granny shook her head in disbelief.

      I'm scared Granny, Theo continued. We don't know if the baby will be a panther or a human.

      Contrary can't be pregnant. A human cannot impregnate a panther. I've never heard of such a thing. Doc would know for sure. But Theo, what were you thinking? Had you eaten some unknown herb? A hallucinogen, perhaps?

      A human didn't make Contrary pregnant, Granny. I was in another panther's body at the time. A panther made Contrary pregnant.

      Huh?

      All the time that I was learning how to control my panther's body, I thought I was controlling Contrary. Nary said I wasn't. She told me that I had my own panther from the astral plane. A male one. At the end of the last battle with Safe Haven, Contrary was in heat. My panther chased her while both Nary and I were sleeping and dreaming. We felt them mate.

      Panthers actually have quite an exuberant sex life, Nary started.

      Granny stood up and turned towards the kitchen. Come with me, she said to her astral-roaming, sex-crazed grandchildren.

      They did, somewhat confused but obedient nonetheless.

      Granny poured the remaining hot chocolate from the near empty pot over their heads. You owe me a mug of steaming hot chocolate after you clean up.

      I don't understand, Theo said as the sticky liquid seeped through his hair and onto his face. What will happen with the pregnancy?

      A male panther and a female panther mated. They will produce an infant panther. The mother panther will probably raise it. The father panther will probably desert her. If there are such things in the astral plane, he'll probably spend all of his time in a panther bar, sucking down beer, and watching re-runs of the Top Ten Kills of the Week.

      But what if that baby panther has some human genes that make it part human, part panther? What are we supposed to do with it?

      Bring it to family picnics so it can play with all the other weird creatures that we have in this family. When do I get my hot chocolate?

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      Chapter 5

      The operation against Safe Haven's Minneapolis offices ended quickly. Lucas led them directly to the building housing the executive offices. Three back windows on

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