The Porch Wolf Ch. 21-30

They would know what that meant, but it was innocent enough if a human read it.

Using the paste function, I got a bunch of replies out quickly. I was heartened by the response; it was far beyond the Welch Pack. They were sneaky; they couldn't respond to me directly while still under Todd's Alpha command, so they forwarded my message and their reaction to friends outside the Pack. Those friends then added on their own thoughts and sent it back to them while copying me. A little over half of the Welch Pack was interested in my offer of a Pack change.

The constant was the outrage that injuring a child brought out. Many were questioning if Todd was behind the kidnapping and murder I'd stopped.

The texting helped distract me from the moans and cries of pain in the bathroom. It wasn't long before Brent was coming back up the stairs. "Thanks, Leo," he said. "I needed that."

"Did you run?"

"Sparred with a few of the guys downstairs." The gym had an open area with mats where they could fight as humans. He disappeared into Vicki's room, but when he came out, she was with him. "She heard Mom," he said.

Vicki walked to me, and I lifted her up with my free arm and set her on my lap. "Mommy has the fever, she's in an ice bath right now," I said.

"I don't like that," she said as she rubbed her eye.

"Why don't you go see her? I'll see if we can get you any lunch while you give her a big hug."

"Okay." She leaned in and kissed my cheek, then slid off and went into the bathroom.

"Anita, I'm going to send Brent down to get food, do you need anything?"

"Yeah, your credit card. We want burgers and fries."

I just laughed. "Write down your orders, and I'll have it delivered." Mine was easy; a half-pound Mudhen burger with seasoned waffle fries and sour cream. The Mudhen was named after the town baseball team and had sauerkraut, bacon, and swiss cheese.

One of the guys went to pick it up, and the girls rotated out to eat. Vicki liked her cheeseburger with extra bacon; I'd ordered a quarter-pound one instead of a kid's size, and that was the right call. "How is Mom doing," I asked.

"She's tired and hot, and she isn't talking to me," she said.

"You were the same way when you were changing," I said. "You came through with a beautiful shark-colored wolf. What do you think Momma will be?"

"Momma is old, so maybe she will be grey like you?" I just about snorted my Coke through my nose at that.

"Your mother is NOT old," I said. "You're lucky she didn't hear that, kiddo."

"I'm old enough to be Leo's Mommy, and I'm not old," Donna said. "Larry and I are just as active as when we first mated."

"What's first mated," Vicki asked.

I just backed away and showed my hands; I wasn't the one who brought it up with a curious girl. Donna didn't mind. "Well, we believe the Goddess Luna, who gave us our wolves and the ability to shift, also gives us mates. Larry is my mate, and Mike is Anita's mate."

"Married?"

"We get married too, but it is more than that. Finding your mate is the happiest day of your life because that person is meant just for you. When you find them, your wolves claim each other, and you are mated."

"How?" I couldn't look.

"The man and the woman bite each other on the neck, like this," she said as she pulled her blouse down and showed the scar. "It's our wolf way of showing that we have a mate we are with for the rest of our lives. Then we go to bed and see if we can make babies," she said.

"Oh, you have sex," Vicki said like it was no big deal.

"Yes," Donna said.

"Mommy going to have sex with Brent?" Of course, this was said as I took a bite, and I almost choked on it.

"Why would you say that," Donna said.

"I heard him say Mommy was his mate," she said. "I hear a lot with my Wolfy."

"Mommy doesn't know that yet, and you shouldn't tell her," I told her. "When her wolf comes out, she'll know."

"When I have mate, I have LOTS of sex," Vicki said.

I started coughing; I couldn't take this anymore. "We don't find our mates until we are at least eighteen," I said. "Donna is right, it was the best day of my life when I found Catherine. I still miss her every day."

We finished the burgers, then Brent came up and escorted her downstairs so she could watch a show for a bit. She didn't need to see all the pain that her Mom would be going through.

"Help! We can't keep her temperature under control," Anita said in a panic. I was helpless to do anything but listen as I heard them dump more ice on the floor. Brent came running up the stairs, followed by Mike and Larry. They left the door and window open, cooling down the room. "One hundred and seven," Anita said as she ran the probe against her forehead again.

It was like watching a train wreck. Liv wasn't conscious, and a few minutes later, she had a seizure. It ended after about thirty seconds, but then she was still. Too still. "GET HER OUT AND LAY HER DOWN ON THOSE TOWELS," Donna said. Mike hauled her out with Larry holding her legs, while the women frantically dried her off. They set her on the floor by the sink. "No pulse, start CPR," Donna said as she took her fingers off Liv's neck.

Mike knelt next to her, placing his hands in position on her chest. "One and two and three and four..."

"I've got the defibrillator," Anita said. I watched as she attached the pads and turned the machine on. I always kept an AED in my truck when I was doing construction, and I had moved it to my kitchen when I sold the company. Anita had been smart enough to have it along with a medical kit staged.

"STOP COMPRESSIONS, STAY CLEAR," the machine said. "ANALYZING." A few seconds later, it had enough. "PREPARING TO SHOCK. PRESS FLASHING BUTTON."

Anita verified everyone was clear, then hit the button. Liv's chest jumped with the shock. "ANALYZING." None of us could breathe while we waited for the verdict.

"CONTINUE CPR."

No....

Ch. 25

Mike restarted compressions after Donna gave her rescue breaths. I was helpless to do anything but pray. And pray, I did. I hadn't begged Luna like this since Catherine had died.

The door opened to the apartment, and Vicki burst in, crying and yelling for her Mom. I grabbed her and pulled her into my lap, holding her as we both cried. "What are they doing?"

"Trying to save her," I said. They finished the set of compressions and let the machine analyze her again.

Brent was losing his shit. "NO! I can't lose her, not now. Luna, I'll do anything. Take me, take my wolf if you need one, but let my mate live!" He fell to his knees and begged for her life.

"PREPARING TO SHOCK. PRESS FLASHING BUTTON." Everyone leaned back with their hands up, and Anita pressed the button. Vicki screamed as her mother bounced off the floor. "HEARTBEAT DETECTED. STOP CPR."

Donna leaned over, checking her carotid artery. "Weak pulse, she's back," she said. I watched as her chest started to rise and fall on its own again. "She's still burning up. Move her back to the tub. I'll leave the pads in place." She disconnected the wires from the machine and stepped back to let the men pick her up again. As soon as she was in the tub, Vicki squirmed out of my grasp and went in after her.

"Let her stay," I told them.

Donna had Vicki sit on the edge of the platform the Jacuzzi was built into, near her head. She could talk to her mother and be out of the way. "One hundred and five," she said as she used the thermometer on her forehead again. "Keep the ice coming. Men, OUT." If she regained consciousness, she would be mortified that all these men could see her. That would change with her wolf, as we were comfortable with nudity, but that time was not now.

While they were getting her fever under control, I told the extra men to rearrange the bedroom. Pushing the furniture against the wall and leaning the bed up against it cleared out a carpeted space for her. I had them lay out a blanket on the floor, then put pillows next to any objects she might hit. In the pain of the shift, a person might lash out and hit something.

"How are you doing, Sharkbait," I asked over the link.

"What happened? Why was everyone so scared?"

"Your mother had a very high fever, and the ice wasn't helping. Her heart stopped, and they had to use the machine to start it again."

"She died?"

"The change is dangerous, but we will do everything we can to help her through. You'll help too, right? You can pray for her and talk to her. Tell her how much you love her."

"Okay." She leaned down and started whispering in her ear.

I thanked Luna for her help as a black wolf sat down next to me, his black fur broken only by a few spots of white. I scratched at the ear with the white tip. "Your wolf couldn't hold back?"

Brent nodded and chuffed. "I would make her nervous if I was in my human form and watching her. She likes me this way, and my wolf won't settle if she isn't in sight. I almost lost her before she even knew who I was," he said.

"Everyone else knows, including Vicki. You wouldn't have said something about mating and having sex with Liv while Vicki was sleeping, would you?"

"It might have come up talking to others," he said.

"Little wolves have ears, and they aren't always as asleep as you think. Links are safer around the young ones."

"Shit. I'm sorry."

"You have a long road ahead after Liv makes the change. She didn't grow up knowing about mates, and she won't understand or trust what her wolf is telling her. Nothing has changed except the strength of the pull she will feel for you. You are still going to have to get her to fall in love with you, and get Vicki to love you as a father."

He slid down until he was lying on the floor, his head on his paws in front of him. "Sharkbait is a great kid. I will claim her as my own, and Liv can give us little brothers and sisters when she is ready. I'd die for them."

"She knows. Liv saw you fight off the wolf attacking her, and Vicki heard what you said about her Mom in there. Time and patience, Brent. Trust me, it's worth it."

Liv fought the fevers for two more hours as we watched and prayed. None of the spikes were as high, and her heart didn't stop again. She woke up when it got below a hundred and three. "Momma," Vicki said as her eyes fluttered. "Wake up, Mommy!"

"Vicki?" Her voice was weak, but recognizing her daughter was a good sign.

"Mommy is too hot," she said.

That didn't last long. With the fever part nearly over, Liv's temperature returned to normal just as the first bone broke with a loud snap. "OH, FISHSTICKS," Liv screamed with the pain.

Donna was already draining the tub. "We need to move you into the bedroom for the rest of the fun," she said. "Can you stand?"

"I'll try," Liv said. The girls helped her to her feet and wrapped a towel around her body before she stepped out. Brent got out of the way first, and Anita pushed me away. It took a minute to move her into the center of the blanket and lay her down. Vicki sat next to her, and Brent trotted over to sniff her and lick her neck before returning to the door. She laughed at the feeling of his tongue.

"Liv, this next part isn't going to be pleasant as your body goes through its first change. We can't keep you covered as your skin will be very sensitive as the fur pushes through. Do you want Brent and me to leave?"

She shook her head. "I feel safer with you both here," she said. "My wolf agrees with me."

"You can hear her?"

"She's weak, but we are talking. Brent, come over here by me." His head and tail were high as he came back over and curled himself behind her. Another bone snapped, and she let out a scream. Her hands fisted in his fur until she relaxed. "It doesn't hurt as much when I'm touching him."

"Then use him as a pillow," I said. "I don't think Liv's wolf has told her you are mates," I sent to Brent.

"It doesn't matter right now. What matters is that her mate can ease her pain and help her relax." That would be very important over the next few hours.

As the change went on, the breaking bones started coming faster, and the pain became constant. She had to push Brent and Vicki away as her skin became red and sensitive before grey and white fur started to push through. "Her fur is like mine," Vicki said.

An hour later, an exhausted female werewolf lay sleeping on her side on the blanket with a black wolf curled behind her. She was gorgeous, mostly gray with some white on the bottom and a small white saddle in the middle of her back. Her legs and tail were grey with white socks and tips. Vicki thought she looked like a White-Tipped Reef Shark she'd seen at the aquarium.

I shook my head. "I don't know; the reef sharks are much smaller than a Great White, and they have black areas on their fins. I think she looks like an Oceanic White-Tip." I pulled up a picture of the shark on my phone and showed her; the shark had mottled white on the tips of her fins, and at up to thirteen feet long, was much larger than a reef shark. "They don't have those at SeaLife."

"Cool," Vicki said. "Momma a White-Tip."

Anita came up from downstairs thirty minutes later with a bowl of warmed steak pieces and a bowl of water. She set both down near Liv's nose, and Vicki laughed as her nose started to twitch as the smell hit her. "Wake up, Liv. You need to eat and drink, the change took a lot out of you."

Liv's eyes opened up and she struggled onto her stomach as she looked around. She was a little panicky, and her head was turning as she tried to figure out everything that was assaulting her brain. "Your senses are different now, sharper, and more sensitive. Don't try and move too much yet. Let your daughter feed you."

Vicki sat by her head, picking up pieces of steak and feeding it to her Mommy. "You have big white teeth, Momma, like an Oceanic White-Tip," she said. As Liv ate, I kept explaining what changes she had endured. When she'd finished her food, she struggled to her feet and took her first steps on four paws. She drank a lot of water before we coached her through walking in her fur. Finally, it was time to get up and go outside.

Donna helped her learn to go down the stairs, stopping her a few times from falling the rest of the way. Vicki wanted to run with her, but with her concussion, it wasn't safe for her to shift yet. I had her climb up in my lap and we watched out the window as she walked out with Brent at her side. With our wolf vision, we could see them clearly in the moonlit winter night. He dropped down his front legs, his tail wagging as he tried to get her to play. She figured it out, and soon the two were chasing each other around the yard and play fighting. "Mommy have sex now?"

"Mommy and Brent need to learn about each other first. When it is the right time, they will bite each other's necks and become mates. What happens AFTER that is not something little girls need to know about," I said.

"Awwww, MAN!" She crossed her arms in front of her, just like Liv did when she got mad. It was cute.

"Don't tell her. Your Mommy needs to fall in love with Brent before it happens. Brent will make her happy, and you three will be together forever."

"Good." She had been up all afternoon, and she was exhausted. "I love you, Unky Leo."

"I love you too, Sharkbait." She fell asleep on my chest as the two wolves disappeared into the forest together.

Ch. 26

I stayed there with Vicki sleeping on my lap until I saw the pair coming back out of the trees. "Our lovers have returned," I sent to Mike and Anita.

"Good thing, dinner is almost ready," Anita responded. "Liv shouldn't shift back yet, and Brent won't change until she does. I'll get Vicki, and send help to get you back down here." It was time for Vicki to wake, so I gently woke her and showed her how her mother was coming back with Brent.

"She looks happy," Vicki said as she watched her Mom nip at Brent's back leg.

"We'll have to teach her how to link," I told her. "I have to bring her into the Pack first."

"How?"

"She submits to me as her Alpha, then I'll be able to open up a link to her wolf. After she can hear me, we'll teach her how to talk with everyone else." I had an idea. "You've got a family bond with her, can you tray and send her a mental message? Can you tell her dinner is almost ready?"

"I can try," she said. She closed her eyes and concentrated. I could tell it worked because Liv's body froze, and she fell to the ground, sliding across the snow-covered grass. She looked up at the window as Vicki waved to her. "It worked!"

"Nice job," I said. Anita came in and picked her up, and she told her what she'd done as they walked out. Mike and Larry came up to get me. "I can hop down, just hold my bad side," I said. Larry wrapped his arm around my waist, and I held on to the railing as I went down. Mike set up the wheelchair in the kitchen, and I sat down in it. My useless left arm kept me from moving. "This is ridiculous. I need to rent a powered wheelchair."

I heard a squeal from the hallway, as Vicki appeared, driving a red-colored powered scooter. "Look, Unka Leo!" She smiled as she steered past me into the dining room, taking a lap before she stopped next to me. "We got you a scooter!"

"Thank Luna for that," I said. She hopped off, and Mike helped me into it and showed me how to use it. I drove it to my room, where I was able to slide off on my own and use the bathroom before dinner. I drove back to the dining room, where Liv and Brent were sitting to the side in wolf form. "Did you two have fun," I asked.

Liv woofed, and came over to greet me. She licked my neck, exposing her own neck to mine. My wolf pushed through, accepting her submission and bringing her into the Pack. "Welcome, Liv, to the Miesville Pack," I sent to everyone.

As soon as the link opened, Brent, Mike, and Anita were able to establish their own mind-links with Liv and add their greeting. Vicki heard them all, and she was hugging her Mom's furry neck. "Thank you, Leo. This is so cool!"

My eyes got big as I realized she'd mastered how to talk back over the link. "Vicki taught me while we were waiting for you," she said.

I scratched her ears, then gave Vicki a hug. "Nice job, Sharkbait."

"Mommy wants to watch one of my shows. She doesn't know what an Oceanic White-Tip looks like."

"After dinner, and only for an hour. The doctor doesn't want you sitting in front of a TV that long," I said.

"Everybody, sit down for dinner," Connie said. She pointed her ladle at me. "Not you two. You've been petting a wet wolf, so go wash up again."

"Come on, Sharkbait," I said. I drove us to the bathroom, where we both washed our hands before driving back out. They'd left a space for me, and Vicki climbed up to her chair, which was higher so she could eat normally. Connie had made sausage and four-cheese lasagna, garlic toast, and a salad for us. "What else has happened today," I asked.

"We've had six people from the Welch pack stop by, asking to join your Pack," Larry said. "All of them have already cut ties with Alpha Todd. I explained what was going on, and they agreed to stop by again tomorrow morning." He passed me a list of names; my eyes got wide. Four didn't surprise me based on their text messages, but two did. All were mated wolves with families. "Going after a child didn't go over well with them."